Game 7

GAME 7… The two words in sports which create excitement, stress, anxiety and hype all at the same time.

 Throw in the fact it’s the NHL then you have something there.  Oh, by the way, the Bruins verses the Canadians in Boston; what more can someone ask for?  Two storied franchises who have despised each other for decades, who’s fan-bases loath one another; go toe to toe tonight to decide who moves on to the Eastern Conference Finals and who gets sent home packing.  

The series thus far has had its share of drama.   Game one was decided by a rocket off PK Subban’s stick in double overtime, where game four ended abruptly in single overtime from Matt Frazier, who was called up just prior to the game from the AHL. 

With the series tied at 3 a piece tonight can go either way.  Something normally insignificant such as a lucky bounce, poor officiating, or a mental lapse can ultimately determine the outcome of the entire series… That’s what makes it worth watching, that’s why athletes play the game.  It’s what they dream about when they’re kids hoping to make it pro.  They’ve played it in their heads for years, now is the time to do the real thing.

LET”S GO BRUINS  

Olympic hockey's future

The Sochi Winter Olympics have ended and with it the debate of the standing of Olympic Hockey's future has begun.  The National Hockey League is seriously considering putting an end to the Olympic break during the NHL regular season. 

Some arguments say the risk of star players injuring themselves is not worth it. Of course this happened in Sochi. New York Islander's star John Tavares suffered a serious knee injury while playing for team Canada that has ended his season. I understand the owners' frustrations when a player on their team goes down while playing in a different uniform than theirs. At the same time it's an injury that's part of the sport in general. Whether they play in the Olympics or not the risk of injury is the same.

NHL players should play in the Olympics for as long as Hockey is an Olympic sport. The Olympics is about the best athletes in the world competing against one another in their respective sports. If NHL players are disallowed the rest of the world will have a clear advantage over teams like USA and Canada who's players were all from the NHL. It'll go back to the days where the Soviets had "amateur" players who just so happened to have played for years together. It wouldn't ban all pros from the Olympics it's just the NHL. 

The NHL doesn't do well in the ratings as it is. How will it do when it goes against the Olympics? Ask the NBA. Not only was All-star weekend terrible, it wasn't the only sport on then. If you are a sports fan you didn't have to watch it just for the sake of watching sports. The Olympics were on and were a lot more interesting. Put it into perspective, nationally the NBA is viewed by more than the NHL. If the NBA cannot compete then how will hockey? 

The Olympics is a platform to grow the game of Hockey in the United States. Be honest, did you know who T.J. Oshie was 3 weeks ago? I'll tell you now, I saw his name on the roster and thought "who?!" How many recognize the name now? Exactly! What he did in the game against Russia was UNBELIEVABLE. It went viral and for days afterwards that's all people could talk about. A country who isn't so high on hockey was in a frenzy as a result of a hockey game. That game sparked the interest of so many and MAYBE it'll make them interested in watching the NHL. 

Bottom line the Olympics aren't just a global sporting event it's a collaboration of sports which people, sports fans or non sports fans, watch because of national pride. What better show to put on for everyone than highly paid athletes playing for their country with passion and heart. It's rare for a sport's best athletes to actually care about a game when money is not on the line. Why ruin that?