Don’t get me wrong, I like hockey. I like a lot of sports, but like many Canadians I grew up playing and thinking about the game. Spring would come, ice would melt and we would just move to the streets with our sticks in hand. So hockey as a twelve month a year sport is not a foreign concept.
But the idea of sitting inside watching a game on TV in mid August somehow doesn’t seem right.
By the way, it’s not easy to watch TV outside in the summer. The screen attracts too many bugs. Watching a movie on an outdoor screen is one thing, but when you’re spending all your time trying to figure out which little dot is the puck, it can be a bit much.
I watched the press conference. The idea of hockey coming back is interesting. But by the time they get going it will almost be time to start the next season.
The other thing is, I spent a few minutes last weekend watching a soccer game on TV. A current soccer game. With no fans. An empty stadium. Just 22 guys running up and down the field, but no cheering, no singing team songs, no whistling at the refs. The players were still taking the occasional dive, but I was wondering why. There was no audience to play to. Really… it was kind of boring… and I like soccer.
So my feelings about the return of hockey were rather mixed.
There are a lot of things I am looking forward to over the coming weeks. I look forward to gathering with my family (hopefully). I look forward to sitting around a campfire with friends (hopefully). I really look forward to getting a haircut. Seriously… I can really use a haircut. But you know… I’ve been waiting fifty three years for the Leafs to win another cup (yes, I am that old). I think I can wait another year of two.
