[Tournament] 06-07 NHL Discussion Thread

It's two days of love.







Valentine's Day is still a week away, but we have here in the NHL an early celebration of amour; the top two teams in the Pacific Division play each other twice in two days. It's a rivalry that left the Ducks limping away in victory at their last meeting. This series could play a big part in the playoff seeding for both teams. Why not root for both of them?
Teemu Selanne loves the Sharks. Nobody has scored more goals, or gained more points against San Jose than him. San Jose loves to look at the standings, and see that a sweep across these two games will put them into first place in the Pacific - something that appeared much more difficult in the first half of the season.

But, most importantly, I love these games.

Something else will become apparent across these two days. Something that will be showcased even more than these two teams: their arenas.




These two arenas share more history than you might think. They both opened in 1993, and were originally named after their city - San Jose Arena, and Anaheim arena, respectively. They came to be known by fun names pertaining to their host team. Anaheim had the Pond, and San Jose the Shark Tank - nothing boring like Joe Louis Arena, whoever that is.

Unfortunately, like siblings succumbing chicken pox at the same time, both arenas have succumbed to corporate sponsorship. The generic Honda Center and dull, if slightly witty HP Pavilion are the new names of these arenas. Even though Anaheim's was sponsored by Arrowhead water, it was still the Pond. But the dream is not over. Memories of our fine aquatic venues still remain, like so many petals on a rose, a rose, perhaps, that would be fitting to give to a sweetheart.

In the meantime, while I gather up my courage, let's all celebrate these teams, and love doing so.

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You better watch.



Have you been watching the Ducks-Sharks games this season? I know I haven't. But tonight is different. Tonight they play live all across the 500 households that carry Versus, formerly The Outdoor Life Network. Tonight, the only two California hockey teams will show everyone how we do things downtown. On the westside. The west coast. West.

You will get to see two teams, tired from playing recent back-to-back games, exhausted from a season that never seems to end, spent from building losing records so far in this month, and I don't want to get a thesaurus, but I'm sure there are more synonyms for "tired" I could use. Oh, fatigued. They're fatigued, too. The Ducks have tended to score a lot of goals in the games they've defeated the Sharks. San Jose only outscored by a total of two in their two victories. I don't know if that's significant, but it's a stat, and stats are always very impressive.

This game starts at ten if you live on the east coast. Pull a Kornheiser and put this game on, even if you're too tired to watch it. What better lullaby to put you to sleep than a game like this? I mean, it won't be boring, that's not what will put you to sleep. I just mean you'll probably be tired, that's all. So you'll naturally fall asleep, not because of the game. The game will be good. Sleep is also good. Someone asked me today how much sleep I get each night. I said about 8 hours, which is really the minimum amount that you should get. I'm a growing boy, and I need my rest. But I also need this California hockey.

Enjoy, and sleep well.

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Yeah, I work for Versus. It's an advertisement.

It's called a preview. What's wrong with you guys? It was a great, close game. Bryzgalov really got it done.

How ya doing, buddy?

I think California wants the Stanley Cup.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

California has three teams because it is awesome.

Now I just hope the Sharks can come back so both teams can move on.

I was speaking idiomatically.

A Ducks-Sharks series would be awesome.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

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My pick for next year's Stanley Cup Finals: Ducks over Sharks in 9. The two teams are ready to face each other in the first round of the playoffs, but Commisioner Bettman calls an audible, deciding that such a matchup should only be played for the Cup. He cancels all other playoff series, and declares this the Finals. San Jose wins Game 7 in Anaheim, but Bettman makes another daring move, and, in lieu of presenting the trophy, extends the series to 9 games because it is awesome. The Sharks players, instead of being angry, applaud the decision, aware of the good it would do for the world. The Ducks win Game 8 on the road, and the day of Game 9 is declared an international holiday. In honor of the event, the game is played in complete silence, the only sounds being the wispy flicks of the puck, and whispers of the blades amongst the melting Anaheim ice. The mighty Sharks yield to the home team, who hoist the Cup not just for themselves, but for humanity. Knowing that hockey of this caliber could never be matched, the NHL folds, and the sport is banned from ever being played again, under penalty of torture. The Earth plunges into the Sun, creating a massive force of energy that eventually destroys the entire solar system, and surrounding galaxies. All matters of space and dimension collapse. A beginning finds itself, time drifts.

A butterfly floats in the distance.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?