CBC-Sports

Things I wish would came back to the NHL

December 30, 2008 11:36 AM | Posted by   Jeff Marek  

Can you think of one other thing the NHL does better than the Winter Classic? Well, OK, the league does have all professional sports leagues licked when it comes to how they handle the entry draft, but is there one other event that the NHL nails on every level better than the outdoor game?

There is no better marketing tool than playing a glorified version of pond hockey. No celebrity endorsers, no gladiator-turned-hockey-player commercials hyping the sport.

Just the finest game in the world played in its original setting. Snow falling all around, steam coming off the players’ helmets, foggy visors … what an event. I love it!

Between Thursday’s outdoor game between the Chicago Blackhawks and Detroit Red Wings at Wrigley Field and watching Dan Boyle of the Sharks give fans a glimpse of what the rover position used to look like as San Jose hung on to beat Dallas on Monday night, I got to thinking of all the things I miss about the game.

You know, the things we’ve lost along the way in the pursuit of higher revenues, exposing the game to more fans and league expansion.

Now, some, if not most, of these things still do exist in the game somewhere, but let’s not confuse hockey with the NHL. I’m talking about the elite level of the sport here.

So, in no particular order, here is my list of things I, Jeff Marek, wish we had back in the NHL.

The organ: And just the organ. Not a glorified electronic keyboard, a real-life pipe organ. I don’t care “who let the dogs out” and have no plans to “get the party started” I just want the haunting sounds of the organ. Just not Lady of Spain, right Reg?

Clean boards: Hey, I understand the need to make a buck, but there’s something special about watching vintage games and the only thing you see on the boards are scars from the puck.

Names on the officials’ sweaters: One of the first things the league did after the officials went on strike in 1993 was to remove the names on the zebras’ backs. Turned them into zombies with whistles.

Crazy goalies: When did you last head about a goalie being so nervous before a game he would throw up (Glenn Hall) or tell people he was the reincarnation of a Spanish soldier (Gilles Gratton) or refuse to play citing lunar positioning (again Gratton) or skate in practice in only a mask and skates (OK, maybe I just miss Gilles Gratton). Name one eccentric goalie today? They’re all just so … normal.

Moustaches: Lanny McDonald is of course the ultimate but Wendel Clarke, Dennis Maruk, Michel Goulet, Garth Boesch (look it up, it’s a great one), Harold Snepsts, Rod Langway all had great push brooms under their noses. A big “thank you” to the Ducks’ George Parros for trying to keep the ‘stache alive in the game.

Conferences and division names: Not named after geography but rather people. The Campbell and Prince of Wales Conferences. The Norris, Smythe, Adams and Patrick Divisions. A link to the past, a nod to our sports history.

The Nords vs. the Habs: One of the great rivalries in hockey history. Two Quebecois cultures going head to head. A battle of teams. Brothers fought one another (Mark and Dale Hunter). The Good Friday brawl of 1984 that essentially cost Jean Hamel his career. It was even a battle of beer companies with Molson going up against Carling O’Keefe.

Those are just a few that come to my mind. How about you? What do you miss?

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