Rink Rant
Shots on Net
Rink Rant
Hockey is the greatest team sport on earth. Played on a sheet of ice, or a Pond, or BOTH, it is the culmination of speed and grace and hustle and hard work and toughness and teamwork and patience, and… You get the picture. It takes skill to play hockey BADLY, and even more skill to play hockey well. The general public has probably WATCHED HOCKEY, but they have NEVER SEEN THE GAME. They never see the plays develop, or the defenses adjust to a new style of play. Goals happen so fast, the are only seen after the third replay. And what do we see on the NEWS and SPORTS? We see what the general public sees — the fights, and big hits along the boards and pile-ups in front of the net. Is it any wonder people think hockey is a violent game?
If we covered the Twin Cities Marathon the same way, we would only show people bent over, holding their sides, tossing breakfast by the side of the road, and crossing the finish line. None of these is a compelling reason to run. But runners know different.
And so do hockey players. And, I might add, some of the penalty boxes are really nice!!
