Hockey

[BSmack]

When the federal government does it, what are my options?

Move to Canada. Learn to love hockey.

[poptart]

Hockey is one of the best live sports there is.

It doesn't come across well on TV at all.

[PSUFAN]

With the advent of HDTV, it looks a lot better than it ever has.

[BSmack]

With the advent of HDTV, it looks a lot better than it ever has.

I can't wait to see hockey in 3D.

mv,

I grew up on hockey. I actually wanted to play hockey, but it was too expensive. I still love catching the occasional game live, but I just don't have the time to follow the game with any kind of passion.

[titlover]

Hockey is one of the best live sports there is.

It doesn't come across well on TV at all.

I'd say it makes a lot more sense. You can see the plays develop better. I still don't know much about it, but I have a better appreciation for it. My dad is big fan and has season tickets for the Ducks so I get out to to see a game every now and again. It's good time except for the ridiculous beer prices.

well that's the drawback for any live sport.......the $8 12oz beers and $6 piece of mystery meat mascarading as a hotdog

[smackaholic]

Ten bucks for a 20 oz Lite is still a bitter pill to swallow. At least they have the decency to make it fresh.

charging anything for that swill should be a felony.

[Smackie Chan]

I'd say it makes a lot more sense. You can see the plays develop better. I still don't know much about it, but I have a better appreciation for it. My dad is big fan and has season tickets for the Ducks so I get out to to see a game every now and again. It's good time except for the ridiculous beer prices.

Pretty much my thoughts on hockey. Never really got into it, and have only been to three games. Did get to see Gretzky play once though, when he was with the Kings in a game against the Canucks at the Forum. My daughter's company used to have a luxury suite at Verizon Center, and I went to one game there to see the Caps play the Ducks the year Anaheim won the Stanley Cup, and a friend of mine in Anaheim has Ducks season tix, so I went with him to The Pond (or Honda Center now) last month for a game against Carolina. As is universally agreed upon, it's a better sport to see live than on the tube.

And expensive piss beer is the norm for just about any sporting event, even at the college level. Went to see Georgetown play Harvard in men's basketball a few weeks ago at Verizon, and it was the same story.

[War Wagon]

For those that dig hockey, more power to you.

To me, hockey = soccer with sticks.

[Wolfman]

I couldn't believe that when I was a student (sort of-- but I did get my BS) at the University of Maine that we did not have a hockey team. I could skate a little bit and we used to play pick up games on the outdoor rink that the Maine Outing Club operated in winter. I was amazed at the skills of the Canadian kids that played with us and would always tell them we should have a real hockey team. Years later a well-off alumnus put up the $$$ for the arena and got it going. Maine plays in an annual tournament down here after Christmas at the local arena in Estero along with Cornell and two other teams. MrsO and I go to the games. She enjoys it because there is no "fighting" allowed. I agree.

[Diogenes]

For those that dig hockey, more power to you.

To me, hockey = soccer with sticks.

More liked armed hoods skating in circles.

If your highlight clip consists entirely of penalties, it's not a sport, it's reverse group therapy.

[Wolfman]

Pro hockey, especially the minor leagues has no appeal to me. A buddy talked me into going to a Syracuse Blazers game back in the 80's. Think "Slap Shot"-- part of it was filmed at the Syracuse War Memorial rink.I told him if I have a desire to see toothless guys duking it out, I can see it for free in downtown Cortland NY on a Saturday night.

[fix]

armed hoods

Hockey players don't drink cosmos nor smoke VA Slims. No wonder you're so allergic to it.

Bwah!

Hockey's probably the best sport to see live. Not saying it's the best or most popular but for live performances.. you can't beat it.

[smackaholic]

Slapshot is the best sports comedy evah.

Rack the Hanson Brothers. 2 of them actually played for the whalers. They really weren't acting in the movie, they were just being the hanson bros.

[MgoBlue-LightSpecial]

Whitey and Dio don't like hockey? Consider that a ringing endorsement for the product.

[Diogenes]

Whitey and Dio don't like hockey?

I didn't say I didn't like it. It's great for treating insomnia.

[Terry in Crapchester]

I grew up on hockey. I actually wanted to play hockey, but it was too expensive.

Not to mention the scarcity of ice time. 5:00 a.m. practices can't be much fun, and I'm guessing that they're even less fun for the parents who have to cart the kids there.

[BSmack]

I grew up on hockey. I actually wanted to play hockey, but it was too expensive.

Not to mention the scarcity of ice time. 5:00 a.m. practices can't be much fun, and I'm guessing that they're even less fun for the parents who have to cart the kids there.

We never got past the "This shit is gonna cost 500 dollars a season????" phase to even get to talking about ice time. And this was back in 1972. That was probably around 1/20th of my dad's yearly pay back then.

You know, the NHL should really think about that as they try to make hockey a major sport. Seems like every guy I know who is a big time hockey fanatic is someone who played the game as a kid. I'm certain that if I had gotten the opportunity to play as a kid that I would have grown up a big time hockey fan and would be spending a lot more of my income on hockey than the 30 dollars I spend for a Rochester Amerks game every 2-3 years.

[Ana Ng]

More liked armed hoods skating in circles.

If your highlight clip consists entirely of penalties, it's not a sport, it's reverse group therapy.

The highlight clips consist of fights, because unfortunately......that's all the nobs at ESPN wanna show you.

It's getting better though.



You need to get over the fact that the "Love-In on Ice" League never took off, mang.

[Ana Ng]

I actually wanted to play hockey, but it was too expensive.

I started playing roller hockey first, then switched to ice when I could afford it. I started @ 21......but I still wasn't affording the ice time on my own.

All of the places I've lived up until then didn't really accommodate hockey (HI,AZ,CA) and it didn't start becoming too popular out here in So-Cal until the late 80's/early 90's anyhow.


I worked in a hockey shop for a few years, which allowed me to get discounts on gear and swing some discounts on ice time and stuff, so that was kinda cool while it lasted.




IMO, professional hockey really is one of the best live sports there is.

[Shoalzie]

Kind of a weird premise for this thread but I'll jump in...

Hockey is one of those games where not everyone gets it. I had friends growing up that played that got me into watching the sport. I was already playing baseball and soccer as a young kid...couldn't really play hockey in a single parent household if I wanted to. I would've loved to play as a kid knowing what I know now about it...if not, just to be able to play in rec leagues. It's a bitch to want to get into it now since I've never learned the art of skating. You can probably count the number of times I've been on the ice on both hands.

As Ana said...hockey is a brilliant sport to watch live. If anyone is on the fence with the sport...just go to your local NHL rink and catch a game. You'll be amazed...

[smackaholic]

I grew up on hockey. I actually wanted to play hockey, but it was too expensive.

Not to mention the scarcity of ice time. 5:00 a.m. practices can't be much fun, and I'm guessing that they're even less fun for the parents who have to cart the kids there.

We never got past the "This shit is gonna cost 500 dollars a season????" phase to even get to talking about ice time. And this was back in 1972. That was probably around 1/20th of my dad's yearly pay back then.

You know, the NHL should really think about that as they try to make hockey a major sport. Seems like every guy I know who is a big time hockey fanatic is someone who played the game as a kid. I'm certain that if I had gotten the opportunity to play as a kid that I would have grown up a big time hockey fan and would be spending a lot more of my income on hockey than the 30 dollars I spend for a Rochester Amerks game every 2-3 years.

You are not that much younger than me bri, so you grew up in the "are we going into another ice age" 70s. I suspect in CNY. So, don't give me any shit about not being able to play. Here in ct, i played thousands of hours of pick up games on the town rink which was a frozen cranberry bog. You got ponds/bogs/frozen puddles in CNY, don't ya? If so, you had the opportunity to play. The warming trend we had over the last 20 years has made this a bit tougher in these parts, but, looks like were back to a good old fashioned winter this year, so the ponds are once again frozen, so lace up and get out there.

You do have a point though about $$$$$ ice time and the NHL. It would behove them to maybe look into making hockey in large parts of the country accessible to those who aren't at least upper middle class.

I wonder how much of the cost is due to ridiculous insurance rates? I'll bet it's a decent chunk.

[smackaholic]

this thread really needs a slapshot clip...



"I'm listening to the fukkin'song!!!!!"

[BSmack]

You are not that much younger than me bri, so you grew up in the "are we going into another ice age" 70s. I suspect in CNY. So, don't give me any shit about not being able to play. Here in ct, i played thousands of hours of pick up games on the town rink which was a frozen cranberry bog. You got ponds/bogs/frozen puddles in CNY, don't ya? If so, you had the opportunity to play. The warming trend we had over the last 20 years has made this a bit tougher in these parts, but, looks like were back to a good old fashioned winter this year, so the ponds are once again frozen, so lace up and get out there.

You do have a point though about $$$$$ ice time and the NHL. It would behove them to maybe look into making hockey in large parts of the country accessible to those who aren't at least upper middle class.

I wonder how much of the cost is due to ridiculous insurance rates? I'll bet it's a decent chunk.

I skated as a kid. I played what little pickup was available for a while. We didn't have ponds in my village, but we did have a couple of flooded basketball courts. It's just not the same thing as learning techniques and tactics in a real organized league. You know, like I did with football because local parents raised shitloads of money so that any kid could play for 50 bucks a season. And then when I reached HS it was free for any kid willing to take the punishment. So what do you think we played more of?

[Ana Ng]

The highlight clips consist of fights, because unfortunately......that's all the nobs at ESPN wanna show you.

The average hockey fan WANTS to see those fights, that's why they show them. I'm not into the sport solely for the fights, but like this board and real life, when someone's got an ass kicking coming, I wanna see it. I could care less about the scripted fights, but the spontaneous ones are great.

Ya, cool.....of course. I don't remember mentioning that fans didn't WANT to see them.


You had the Ted Leitner dipshits out here in SD that claimed that hockey was all about the fights for years, and would go out of his way to even do editorials on the matter on his Channel 8 Sports broadcasts.

That's basically what I was trying to get across.


Maybe "ESPN" wasn't the best example on my part, but we've all seen it.

[Terry in Crapchester]

We never got past the "This shit is gonna cost 500 dollars a season????" phase to even get to talking about ice time. And this was back in 1972. That was probably around 1/20th of my dad's yearly pay back then.

You know, the NHL should really think about that as they try to make hockey a major sport. Seems like every guy I know who is a big time hockey fanatic is someone who played the game as a kid. I'm certain that if I had gotten the opportunity to play as a kid that I would have grown up a big time hockey fan and would be spending a lot more of my income on hockey than the 30 dollars I spend for a Rochester Amerks game every 2-3 years.

You are not that much younger than me bri, so you grew up in the "are we going into another ice age" 70s. I suspect in CNY. So, don't give me any shit about not being able to play. Here in ct, i played thousands of hours of pick up games on the town rink which was a frozen cranberry bog. You got ponds/bogs/frozen puddles in CNY, don't ya? If so, you had the opportunity to play. The warming trend we had over the last 20 years has made this a bit tougher in these parts, but, looks like were back to a good old fashioned winter this year, so the ponds are once again frozen, so lace up and get out there.

You do have a point though about $$$$$ ice time and the NHL. It would behove them to maybe look into making hockey in large parts of the country accessible to those who aren't at least upper middle class.

I wonder how much of the cost is due to ridiculous insurance rates? I'll bet it's a decent chunk.

I've heard that in certain parts of the country, such as Minnesota and portions of New England, hockey isn't as expensive to play as it is elsewhere. Probably has something to do with it being a bigger deal in those places. As BSmack noted elsewhere, hockey will never get the sort of fundraising efforts from parents that football will in much of the country.

As for the cost, much of it has to do with equipment, and with a growing kid playing, you can count on having to buy new equipment every year. Around here, they now have a business called Play It Again Sports, which allows you to trade in your kid's equipment as he gets bigger for new equipment. That helps defray costs somewhat. It's a great idea, but I'm pretty sure it didn't exist when I was a kid.

[MuchoBulls]

As BSmack noted elsewhere, hockey will never get the sort of fundraising efforts from parents that football will in much of the country.

Very true. I can't even imagine how much money I spent on equipment over the years. There was one stretch growing up where I bought a new pair of skates every year for 4 years.

[fix]

Play it again sports has been around here for at least 10 years that I know of.

Ice time's so expensive for a number of reasons but the top 2 are:

1. Pure greed by municipalities
2. Pure greed by insurance companies

Don't even get me started on the costs of sticks today..

Composite sticks should be banned. They're ridiculously over priced compared to a good ol' fashioned Sherwood.

[smackaholic]

Play it again sports has been around here for at least 10 years that I know of.

Ice time's so expensive for a number of reasons but the top 2 are:

1. Pure greed by municipalities
2. Pure greed by insurance companies

Don't even get me started on the costs of sticks today..

Composite sticks should be banned. They're ridiculously over priced compared to a good ol' fashioned Sherwood.

pure greed by insurance companies? might it possibly have to do with the fact that they have to issue huge policies thanks to the ridiculous litigous system we have? nahhhh, that couldn't be it.

[Terry in Crapchester]

Play it again sports has been around here for at least 10 years that I know of.

Ice time's so expensive for a number of reasons but the top 2 are:

1. Pure greed by municipalities
2. Pure greed by insurance companies

Don't even get me started on the costs of sticks today..

Composite sticks should be banned. They're ridiculously over priced compared to a good ol' fashioned Sherwood.

pure greed by insurance companies? might it possibly have to do with the fact that they have to issue huge policies thanks to the ridiculous litigous system we have? nahhhh, that couldn't be it.

As pertaining to the cost of youth hockey, I'm about to blow up your argument with two words: youth football.

Youth football has managed to hold costs relatively flat over an entire generation. Last year, it cost us $65 for my kid to play youth football, plus we had to do two fundraisers. I'm not saying that insurance for youth hockey isn't expensive, but it can't possibly be that much more expensive for youth hockey than it is for youth football.

Imho, the difference in the cost of youth football and the cost of youth hockey can bd summed up by two factors:

1. Parents are more likely to participate in large-scale fundraising for football than for hockey. Also, charitable community organizations (Rotary, Kiwanis, Lions Club, etc.) are more likely to make donations to a youth football program than to a youth hockey program.

2. Suitable playing space for youth football is much more plentiful, and much cheaper, than is suitable playing space for youth hockey.

[smackaholic]

Play it again sports has been around here for at least 10 years that I know of.

Ice time's so expensive for a number of reasons but the top 2 are:

1. Pure greed by municipalities
2. Pure greed by insurance companies

Don't even get me started on the costs of sticks today..

Composite sticks should be banned. They're ridiculously over priced compared to a good ol' fashioned Sherwood.

pure greed by insurance companies? might it possibly have to do with the fact that they have to issue huge policies thanks to the ridiculous litigous system we have? nahhhh, that couldn't be it.

As pertaining to the cost of youth hockey, I'm about to blow up your argument with two words: youth football.

Youth football has managed to hold costs relatively flat over an entire generation. Last year, it cost us $65 for my kid to play youth football, plus we had to do two fundraisers. I'm not saying that insurance for youth hockey isn't expensive, but it can't possibly be that much more expensive for youth hockey than it is for youth football.

Imho, the difference in the cost of youth football and the cost of youth hockey can bd summed up by two factors:

1. Parents are more likely to participate in large-scale fundraising for football than for hockey. Also, charitable community organizations (Rotary, Kiwanis, Lions Club, etc.) are more likely to make donations to a youth football program than to a youth hockey program.

2. Suitable playing space for youth football is much more plentiful, and much cheaper, than is suitable playing space for youth hockey.

Sorry, counselour, but, I don't think you blowed it up by very much. I would be willing to bet that insurance for football has climbed substantially as well and that all that fundraising you talk about has gone up accordingly to keep costs "relatively flat".

I don't have any actual figures for this, but, I am fairly confident that it is so. Not saying that it doesn't cost more to produce a rink than it does a field, as it certainly does, but, if you think that insurance isn't a decent chunk of it, you are full of shit.

Wonder how many american youth hockey players are kids of personal injury lawyers? I'll bet the percentage is higher than it should be.

[Terry in Crapchester]

pure greed by insurance companies? might it possibly have to do with the fact that they have to issue huge policies thanks to the ridiculous litigous system we have? nahhhh, that couldn't be it.

As pertaining to the cost of youth hockey, I'm about to blow up your argument with two words: youth football.

Youth football has managed to hold costs relatively flat over an entire generation. Last year, it cost us $65 for my kid to play youth football, plus we had to do two fundraisers. I'm not saying that insurance for youth hockey isn't expensive, but it can't possibly be that much more expensive for youth hockey than it is for youth football.

Imho, the difference in the cost of youth football and the cost of youth hockey can bd summed up by two factors:

1. Parents are more likely to participate in large-scale fundraising for football than for hockey. Also, charitable community organizations (Rotary, Kiwanis, Lions Club, etc.) are more likely to make donations to a youth football program than to a youth hockey program.

2. Suitable playing space for youth football is much more plentiful, and much cheaper, than is suitable playing space for youth hockey.

Sorry, counselour, but, I don't think you blowed it up by very much. I would be willing to bet that insurance for football has climbed substantially as well and that all that fundraising you talk about has gone up accordingly to keep costs "relatively flat".

Maybe so, but my point was comparing the cost to the parents of youth football vs. youth hockey. Even if insurance costs have gone up, they've also gone up for football. Of course, football is still relatively inexpensive to play (some of my kids' teammates came from single-parent households). The difference, in terms of the cost to the parents, between football and hockey has much more to do with fundraising, as well as cheaper playing space, than it does with insurance costs.

[BSmack]

Maybe so, but my point was comparing the cost to the parents of youth football vs. youth hockey. Even if insurance costs have gone up, they've also gone up for football. Of course, football is still relatively inexpensive to play (some of my kids' teammates came from single-parent households). The difference, in terms of the cost to the parents, between football and hockey has much more to do with fundraising, as well as cheaper playing space, than it does with insurance costs.

I agree 1000%.

Here in my hometown they raised 20k over 30 years ago to put lights on our football field. Now even though the HS football team plays there, that money was not raised by a HS booster club. No, that money was raised by the local "Youth Football Club" so that all the local football teams could have an opportunity to play under the lights from Vince Lombardi (our version of Pop Warner) C Team all the way up to varsity. 20 years later the local parents approved a half million dollar bond issue to install field turf on this field. The surface was and is so good that the Buffalo Bills once played a scrimmage against the Browns on it when their own training camp field was flooded.

Sorry, but nobody can convince me that this kind of community involvement and caring hasn't reduced the cost to parents of signing their little Johnny up for football. And if the NHL really wants to make hockey big time in America, they need to do something to grow hockey beyond the upper middle class white kids who dominate the playing ranks of youth leagues. Or, they can continue to air their playoff games on Versus.

[MuchoBulls]

Don't even get me started on the costs of sticks today..

Composite sticks should be banned. They're ridiculously over priced compared to a good ol' fashioned Sherwood.

RACK!!