June 15th, 2011. It was a night when not a lot went right for the city of Vancouver as the Canucks fell to the Bruins in Game 7, behind 2 goals from both Patrice Bergeron and Daniel Sedin’s new pen-pal, Brad Marchand. It was not a Game 7 for the ages. By the end of the 2nd period it appeared that the life had gone out of the Canuck crowd, trailing 3-0 and according to Mayor Gregor Robertson in later reports – it was about this time that the downtown core was invaded by out-of-town, non-Canuck-fan hooligans – perhaps from such hubs of social unrest as Seattle, Portland or Calgary. I have yet to investigate where he feels the current tented community occupying the lawn at the Vancouver Art Gallery are from, but in news just in – plans are being made for their imminent and safe return home! I think it is important that we stay up-to-date. But… I digress.

Photo: Contributed

Forward to October 6th and the Champs open the season at home with an uninspired 2-1 loss to a revamped Flyers team and the Canucks lose 4-3 in a shootout to a still Crosby-less Penguin side. Ho-hum… first game of the season, no need to worry. Now, here we are, November 7th and if the playoffs were to get under way today, neither team would get the gold-embossed invitation envelope. In the East, the Bruins (5-7) are only better than the Islanders and that was only a boasting point in the early ‘80’s, while in the West the Canucks (7-7-1) are mired in 10th and seem intent on playing up or down to the level of their competition. For Fans of both teams, here’s the good news – it’s only November and the only things being decided this month are NASCAR’s Chase and the President’s Cup. On the basis of recent form too, both appear to be emerging from the funk – the Bruins hammered the Leafs 7-0 on Saturday and the Canucks pummeled arch-rival Chicago 6-2 on Sunday.

So, the question remains… why? I refuse to accept the standard response issued by the casual Fan leaning on the rail at his local, pontificating loudly about the length of the NHL season to the bartender and friends alike. It’s a long season, no-one questions that and we all still find it hard to believe that hockey is played in June, or in Tampa Bay… or in Tampa Bay in June, but it was 113 days from Game 7 until the undertaking began all over again on October 6th. OK, I may have left out pre-season games and off-season workouts but in this era of contracts whose value we struggle to comprehend and the fitness level of modern athletes, I can be forgiven for this oversight. Here is a number for your consideration, just for fun. Assuming no injuries in the 82-game schedule and a full 28-game playoff run, a Stanley Cup Champ would play 110 games in the year, equivalent to 110 hours of game time. Duh! For the sake of argument, let’s use Zdeno Chara’s Time On Ice/Game (TOI/G) of 25:30 and multiply that out over 110 games and one gets 2,805 of actual ice time for the whole year. At $8.5 million for the 2011/12 season, the big man gets an astounding $3,030.30 per minute of actual ice time in game situations! Were I making that kind of cash, the off-season might be a bit of a blur too. Kind of puts the Bruins’ Foxwoods bill of $156,679.74 into perspective doesn’t it?

Photo: Contributed

Enough math. While other leagues such as basketball make a habit of returning champions (although this may not be the Sports Fans’ NBA vision for this year!), the NHL is the only league which discusses the ‘hangover’. Here is the simplest reason why. With Samson beards removed and broken bones healed and concussion-like symptoms hopefully absent, 2 Stanley Cup Finals teams re-lace skates in October. This year, neither team had made significant changes. In Vancouver, GM Mike Gillis felt that the addition of Marco Sturm (pictured, in case you didn’t have the time to get to know what he looked like) made for viable future trade bait and failed to adequately address either the team toughness issue or the swirling goaltending controversy. Not sure I want to work out his dollar/decision rate.

For their part, Boston lost Recchi and Kaberle which means they got about 100 years younger but failed to address the missing goals that the apparent ending of Marc Savard’s career has taken with it. Meanwhile, other teams got better and the Canucks and Bruins enter arenas every second night or so with large targets painted squarely on their backs. When you have battled deep into June for Lord Stanley and given your all, it will always be extremely difficult to bring the ‘A’ game into Dallas or Florida, in front of 8,000 diehards in the 2nd week of October. Thankfully, at least Atlanta is no longer part of the southern swing. It is a long year Sports Fans, don’t fret. Although, I personally don’t feel either team will revisit the Promised Land, both will keep the jersey-wearing public cheering and jeering until at least early-May while a variety of licensed establishments will ensure towel-waving patron hangovers. Let’s check back in around the All-Star Game and see where these two stand. Until then, let’s save the panic for teams like the St. Louis Blues who feel that Ken Hitchcock might just be the answer behind the bench! Really? Only Marco Sturm and my ’98 Intrepid have more miles on them! Until next time Sports Fans…

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On Friday, November 11th, 2011 please take the time to remember those men and women who have died in service of their country. Regardless of your stance on current or prior conflicts, take the time to recognize those who performed their duty with honour and bravery and often gave the ultimate sacrifice.