The Greatest Game

By Adam

I love hockey. I mean, I really love hockey. It is irrational how much I love this game. I consider myself to be a pretty level-headed person in most aspects of my life. But something about hockey is different for me. There are certain joys, certain heartaches that only hockey can bring. I've loved hockey in all forms for as long as I can remember, and actually longer than that. What memories do you have from when you were two? I don't really have any, but I'm told as soon as I could stand (and maybe even before) I was waving around a hockey stick, working on my slapshot.

I've loved hockey in every form ever since. I spent hours in the driveway with my brothers, taking turns playing goalie. We'd invent entire NHL playoff brackets, each taking turns "playing" as each team, picking our own players to pretend to be. I was always partial to players named Adam (Oates) or Gerard (Gallant), my first and middle names.

Table top rod hockey? Loved it. I spent way too many quarters on those bubble top games pitting the USA against the USSR (the '80s were awesome). I actually dream of living in a bigger place one day, just so I'd have a place to put one of those giant machines.

Sure, I enjoyed Super Mario Bros., but I spent the most time on my Nintendo playing Ice Hockey and Blades of Steel. I still love that you could get into a fight in Blades of Steel and only the player losing the fight would be sent to the penalty box. NHL Hockey on Sega? Edit roster, insert Nick Lidstrom.

But most of all, I've loved watching hockey. It's probably sad how much of my life I've devoted to this. I remember nights, flipping between ESPN, CBC, and the local sports station during the playoffs. Three games was not enough though, as I stayed up to watch the late double header games, refusing to yield to sleep as Dallas and Edmonton went into a second overtime.

Early on, I was a front-runner, but who isn't at the age of five? Wayne Gretzky and the Edmonton Oilers were my team. I even had a Great One action figure. But soon, my allegiance would turn local to the Detroit Red Wings and their young captain Steve Yzerman.

So with the start of a new playoffs season, I've decided to start writing down my thoughts about hockey. Mostly because I know my friends would rather I get it out this way then try to talk to them about it. As I've gotten older, I found that somehow I'm even more interested in hockey. My hope is this blog will help me connect with other people who feel the same way, people who are also captivated by the greatest tournament in all of sports.