1. You Can Play Campaign
Before getting into the actual hockey stuff, this project is remarkable. There's been a growing amount of press about homophobia in the NHL, and it's great to see players step up and say they would support a gay player if he came out. Statistically, there are surely gay hockey players, and like Brian Burke has said in interviews, it's not going to be as hard as they think to come out. Check out www.youcanplayproject.org. Great stuff.
2. State of the Leafs
Oh boy. My family has been commenting lately that my knowledge of the Leafs, and of the NHL in general, has increased a great deal over the past two or three years (probably thanks to the free time I've had). This year has been both the most exciting (for the first half) and severely disappointing (for the second half) season in my memory. And I'm only going to say this once, because a lot of my friends hate the Leafs (though I don't know why), and I doubt I'll garner much sympathy:
Being a Leafs fan sucks. No other team has put their fanbase through so much shit.
That being said, I'm patient and generally happy with the direction of the team. Hope springs eternal in Toronto, and I'm not saying we're about to make a run for the Cup, but there's a reason this team was so successful at the beginning of the year. I'll take the lottery pick, find a decent veteran goalie, a few tweaks, and go from there. The team is young, it's got a good core, and young depth is being piled up at all positions. We're getting there, but this year was hard, because the team showed so much promise and then failed so spectacularly. As ever: ugh.
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| Someone photoshopped this to make the beach ball look like a puck. |
Oh right, my other other team. This year has provided me with some clarity on how I feel about the Jets. Initially, I thought they would be like a second son of mine, and I would love both teams equally. Not so, it seems. I'm fond of the Jets, but not in the same way. The Leafs to me are like having a brother or sister who just can't get their shit together: you'll love them no matter what they do, but sometimes you just want to fight them. The Jets to me are more like a young cousin that you keep an eye on, and hope they're successful in life.
I had the pleasure of going to a Jets game this year, and that building is nutso crazy. There's an energy there that comes from having a fanbase that aren't there because the corporations they work for gave them tickets: they're loud and often obnoxious, and usually fun. It's clear why the Jets' home record is so good: when I was there they got a standing ovation for just coming on the ice. They get that every time. That would motivate anyone.
I think the downside of this is that their position in the standings is inflated. They're not as good a team as they would be in Atlanta, and I worry that this will keep them stuck in neutral, forever competing for a playoff spot but never making it, and missing out on the high draft picks that are essential to stock a decent team, especially if they can't break the bank on free agents. The good news is that in goal and in defense they're pretty set. Up front they need a lot of work, pretty much everyone could go besides Kane, and that'll take time. They're in good hands, but I'm disappointed that they won't get a better draft pick than they otherwise could have.
4. Saginaw Spirit
Going to games here is awesome. Right now they just beat the Sarnia Sting in Round One of the playoffs, which had two players who should go very high in the draft (Yakupov will almost certainly go #1, and Galchenyuk shouldn't be too far behind, hopefully with the Leafs). The series went back and forth, but the Spirit were clearly the better team. Denise and I went to every game in Saginaw, and we'll keep going in the next round if we can, whomever they play. We're having a tough time, vacillating between cheering for our local team or their Canadian opponent. Tough call.
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| USA! USA! USA! |
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