Hockey – Deserving of More Fans?

Two nights ago, me and my roommate were channel surfing late at night. We came across a program that featured NHL hockey. My roommate didn’t want to watch so we switched channels. It got me thinking. Does Hockey have such a bad reputation? Why is it not preferred by most sports fans in the country?

Americans are in general very impatient. They want everything done right away. So maybe that’s the reason why hockey may not be exciting enough for Americans. It does not fulfill our constant need for instant satisfaction. But if you look at how hockey games are scored, you’ll see a lot of action. Most of the games are anywhere between 5 to 10 goals and even more. The game is just 1 hour long with goals being scored every few minutes. If the game is a tie, there is a sudden death shootout that will decide the winner. What more action do you want?

Maybe we have the impression that hockey players are not as athletic as basketball and football players that they could pull of spectacular plays like other sports. But if you watch hockey you will see that it is no doubt the most action packed game around. There are 10 players flying around the rink in a speed of 35-40 mph, using a stick to pass the puck is exciting, while the hits are ultimately bone shattering and often near fatal. The spectators get the excitement that is their money’s worth.

So why can’t a sport that is full of high intensity action of basketball and hard hits of football seem to have less audience base? I can’t figure it out since I am a huge hockey fan. The other fans wear outdated mullets, lost some of their teeth and say jargon like “hoser” and “eh” all day long. But this sport is exciting like the others. Maybe the reason Americans don’t like hockey because it originated from a foreign country and lacked the understanding of its rules. I still think Hockey deserves a little more credit and respect than what its getting right now.

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