...I guess nothing will. And time is, in all likelyhood, winding down on it.
But it was a great thing for hockey (and sports in general) to have the Rangers and Kings in the Stanley Cup finals this year. The baseball fan in me has to go back to 1981 to find a New York / Los Angeles final fling. It's been a long time coming in the sports I like. Basketball has not seen this matchup since 1973! How many of you reading this were alive then? I wasn't! I barely alive in 1981, for that matter!
Coincidenlty, the only previous matchup between the Kings and Rangers was also 1981. And it had some nice, old-time hockey!
But now, it's 2014. Since 1981, there was has been four work stoppages. The NHL was at 21 teams in '81. Eight of them were Canadian. An average of 7.7 goals were scored at a game, both teams combined. In 2014, there are now 30 teams. Only seven of them are Canadian. The Winnipeg Jets had left and since returned, while Quebec still longs for the return of the Nordiques.
Also in 1981, a kid named Gretzky, all of 20 years old, did some amazing things. You know, like break Bobby Orr's record for assists in one season. Oh, he also broke Phil Esposito's record for points in a season. He dominated the NHL for the rest of the decade. But by the end of it, he was no longer an Edmonton Oiler (The Oilers now, have missed the playoffs from the last eight seasons). He was a Los Angeles King. When he retired in 1999, he was a New York Ranger.
This, by the way, is the first Stanley Cup final to feature two teams that The Great One played for. And him dropping the ceremonial puck in game one was a nice touch. But there are many more good touches this finals gives the game of hockey.
Again, as mentioned before, it's good to see hockey coast-to-coast in the US. One of the Kings' best players is their goalie Jonathan Quick. And you know what's great about him, other than the most appropriate surname you can give a goalie of his caliber? He's from Milford, Connecticut. US born and raised. Which leads me to my next point. What has this guy done that makes for a great storyline? How about his team. Well, more on that later!
Stick with Quick, for now, right?
Quick helped Los Angeles win the Cup back in 2012. And last season (2013), they proved it was no fluke by getting back to the conference finals (making 2014 the third straight year they've progressed through two playoff rounds). Quick was also their in Sochi in February. Having won his first three games, Quick took on Canada in the semi-finals, faced 37 shots and stopped 36 of them. It would not be enough as Canada took it, 1-0.
Here's where we have a February / June connection. Also there, for Sweden, was goaltender Henrik Lundqvist, who happens to play for the New York Rangers. Lundqvist took his country all the way to the finals, where they lost to Canada (with Sidney Crosby and Carey Price), 3-0. But in this year's playoffs, Henrik has beaten both Crosby's Penguins and Price's Canadians. Now all he has to deal with is Quick, who did not ever get a medal at Sochi. Lundqvist, in addition, won the gold medal back in the 2006 games.
But after three games, it looks like Jonathan is going to have two Stanley Cups to his name. It's a battle of the goalie with the Stanley Cup rings vs. the goalie with the Olympic Medals. That in itself, and the fact that they were both their this year in the Olympics, makes for an interesting story line. Both Lundqvist and Quick are winners no matter what happens from here on in.
But the Kings success in the last three Stanley Cup playoffs have certainly created a great deal on interest in hockey in Los Angeles. And I would imagine, also on the west coast in general, too. The Big Apple though, has never been any stranger to hockey, being one of the "Original Six" teams. This is their first Stanley Cup finals appearance in twenty seasons. Put that in perspective, it was a year after the Kings first Stanley Cup finals appearance in 1993. I was not yet in high school when all that went down.
The other interesting storyline is how the NHL is going to fair against the NBA. You've got both finals going on. But in the NBA, you got LeBron, who happends to be appearing the NBA finals for the fourth straight year and fifth time overal. On the other end, you've got the old pro, Tim Duncan, in his sixth NBA final of his own. It's been a pretty good matchup between the two teams who went seven games in 2013. Can hockey compete with that? Odds are not good. But with the Dodgers and Lakers not doing much, plus with the Donald Sterling (unneccesary sideshow) on the Clippers, the Los Angeles Kings must seem almost like a tonic to all this poison. So here is the chance for Los Angeles to embrace this team more than they did when they arrived in 1967. More than when The Great One came in 1988. More than when they reached the finals in 1993. And more than when they sipped champange in 2012.
The Rangers are not to go unnoticed here either. Tim Duncan's San Antonio Spurs beat the New York Knicks in the NBA finals in 1999. New York has yet to return to the finals since. The New York Yankees always win, but that is to be expected! So their run to the finals (two seven game series and a pretty good six game semis) makes it hard not to cheer for.
Both New York and Los Angeles have shown so much character this spring. Any sports fan owes it to them to watch what is unfolding. Even if it's a sweep, you've had two overtime games (including a double-OT in game 2), plus a great goaltending performance in game three. The games have been good and entertaining, which is a sign that hockey still has it!
But it was a great thing for hockey (and sports in general) to have the Rangers and Kings in the Stanley Cup finals this year. The baseball fan in me has to go back to 1981 to find a New York / Los Angeles final fling. It's been a long time coming in the sports I like. Basketball has not seen this matchup since 1973! How many of you reading this were alive then? I wasn't! I barely alive in 1981, for that matter!
Coincidenlty, the only previous matchup between the Kings and Rangers was also 1981. And it had some nice, old-time hockey!
But now, it's 2014. Since 1981, there was has been four work stoppages. The NHL was at 21 teams in '81. Eight of them were Canadian. An average of 7.7 goals were scored at a game, both teams combined. In 2014, there are now 30 teams. Only seven of them are Canadian. The Winnipeg Jets had left and since returned, while Quebec still longs for the return of the Nordiques.
Also in 1981, a kid named Gretzky, all of 20 years old, did some amazing things. You know, like break Bobby Orr's record for assists in one season. Oh, he also broke Phil Esposito's record for points in a season. He dominated the NHL for the rest of the decade. But by the end of it, he was no longer an Edmonton Oiler (The Oilers now, have missed the playoffs from the last eight seasons). He was a Los Angeles King. When he retired in 1999, he was a New York Ranger.
This, by the way, is the first Stanley Cup final to feature two teams that The Great One played for. And him dropping the ceremonial puck in game one was a nice touch. But there are many more good touches this finals gives the game of hockey.
Again, as mentioned before, it's good to see hockey coast-to-coast in the US. One of the Kings' best players is their goalie Jonathan Quick. And you know what's great about him, other than the most appropriate surname you can give a goalie of his caliber? He's from Milford, Connecticut. US born and raised. Which leads me to my next point. What has this guy done that makes for a great storyline? How about his team. Well, more on that later!
Stick with Quick, for now, right?
Quick helped Los Angeles win the Cup back in 2012. And last season (2013), they proved it was no fluke by getting back to the conference finals (making 2014 the third straight year they've progressed through two playoff rounds). Quick was also their in Sochi in February. Having won his first three games, Quick took on Canada in the semi-finals, faced 37 shots and stopped 36 of them. It would not be enough as Canada took it, 1-0.
Here's where we have a February / June connection. Also there, for Sweden, was goaltender Henrik Lundqvist, who happens to play for the New York Rangers. Lundqvist took his country all the way to the finals, where they lost to Canada (with Sidney Crosby and Carey Price), 3-0. But in this year's playoffs, Henrik has beaten both Crosby's Penguins and Price's Canadians. Now all he has to deal with is Quick, who did not ever get a medal at Sochi. Lundqvist, in addition, won the gold medal back in the 2006 games.
But after three games, it looks like Jonathan is going to have two Stanley Cups to his name. It's a battle of the goalie with the Stanley Cup rings vs. the goalie with the Olympic Medals. That in itself, and the fact that they were both their this year in the Olympics, makes for an interesting story line. Both Lundqvist and Quick are winners no matter what happens from here on in.
But the Kings success in the last three Stanley Cup playoffs have certainly created a great deal on interest in hockey in Los Angeles. And I would imagine, also on the west coast in general, too. The Big Apple though, has never been any stranger to hockey, being one of the "Original Six" teams. This is their first Stanley Cup finals appearance in twenty seasons. Put that in perspective, it was a year after the Kings first Stanley Cup finals appearance in 1993. I was not yet in high school when all that went down.
The other interesting storyline is how the NHL is going to fair against the NBA. You've got both finals going on. But in the NBA, you got LeBron, who happends to be appearing the NBA finals for the fourth straight year and fifth time overal. On the other end, you've got the old pro, Tim Duncan, in his sixth NBA final of his own. It's been a pretty good matchup between the two teams who went seven games in 2013. Can hockey compete with that? Odds are not good. But with the Dodgers and Lakers not doing much, plus with the Donald Sterling (unneccesary sideshow) on the Clippers, the Los Angeles Kings must seem almost like a tonic to all this poison. So here is the chance for Los Angeles to embrace this team more than they did when they arrived in 1967. More than when The Great One came in 1988. More than when they reached the finals in 1993. And more than when they sipped champange in 2012.
The Rangers are not to go unnoticed here either. Tim Duncan's San Antonio Spurs beat the New York Knicks in the NBA finals in 1999. New York has yet to return to the finals since. The New York Yankees always win, but that is to be expected! So their run to the finals (two seven game series and a pretty good six game semis) makes it hard not to cheer for.
Both New York and Los Angeles have shown so much character this spring. Any sports fan owes it to them to watch what is unfolding. Even if it's a sweep, you've had two overtime games (including a double-OT in game 2), plus a great goaltending performance in game three. The games have been good and entertaining, which is a sign that hockey still has it!
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