Hockey in class of its own.

By now, you surely know that I believe hockey to be the best sport there is. I make it quite obvious the way I feel. I have shared many reasons as to why I believe this to be true and the excitement and tempo of the game are just part of the reason. Watching the Super Bowl yesterday was pretty boring to me. It did not grab or hold my attention. I think I can honestly say I have a slight idea of what it is like to have an attention deficit disorder now; I could not concentrate on that game much at all... except for the commercials.

I have always admired hockey players for their character and skill. The main thing that sets hockey apart from any other sport and any hockey player from any other athlete is their ability to skate. Athletes can usually play multiple sports, and Tom Thompson, of the Hockey News, discusses this in his recent column titled, "Skating skills separate hockey from all else."
http://www.thehockeynews.com/articles/44523-Tom-Thompson-Skating-skills-separate-hockey-from-all-else.html

In Thompson's column, he mentions the fact that Bo Jackson could excel in any sport he tried, except hockey and Michael Jordan, who attempted to play pro baseball after retiring from basketball also could not have played hockey. The main reason: They didn't know how to skate or at least did not know how to skate as well as hockey players do.

I have always said that to be a good hockey player, you have to be great at skating first. How many other sports require someone to learn how to do a completely different task and then learn skills and the concepts and fundamentals of a sport? Hockey players started out skating and then developed skill and game sense.
Any other sport you need to learn to run or walk basically, those are developmental stages that most people achieve at a very young age. Most hockey players learned to skate soon after learning to walk or run.

Some believe that skating is becoming better in earlier ages for hockey players than it has in the past and some are concerned that that might have a negative affect on the game for injuries. If that becomes the case, the game will adjust as needed, but we all know that skating is what makes hockey so unique. Thompson tells us not to take it for granted and I know I surely don't. It is just another reason I admire hockey players. Just add it to the long list.

Sid's comeback was great and all, but...

Tom Thompson of The Hockey News wrote a column about Sidney Crosby and Mario Lemieux returning to hockey and it's a story you should check out. The link is available above. (Just click on the title of this blog post.)

It was over a week ago that Sidney Crosby returned to the lineup and most eyes were on that return. The media coverage was closer to the coverage deep in the NHL playoffs and the speculation before and after the game could only be reserved for Sidney Crosby. I don't believe that any other player would garner that much attention. Though, it wasn't the biggest return we have seen. Not just as NHL fans, but Pens fans have had a memorable return in the past. Mario Lemieux's return to the game coming out of retirement was the biggest return Pens fans have witnessed.

Not only did it bring a bigger rating on tv locally than Crosby's recent return, Lemieux's return to the game of hockey was more of a surprise than Crosby's eventual return. Sidney had press conferences, updates, clearing for contact, practices and the questioning was relentless leading up to the announcement that Crosby would play last Monday night.
On the other hand, Lemieux had retired and therefore did not have daily access to the media and the constant questioning. Lemieux had kept his return quiet and when he was seen skating with Jay Caufield, there was some questioning but no one knew for sure and who would guess that after so much in his career and surgeries and pain that Lemieux would be returning. Therefore, Lemieux's return was a surprise. It was one of the greatest players in NHL history, in my opinion the best player, returning to the game of hockey. Gone for a few years and returning to marvel us all again was truly one of the best things to happen to the game of hockey and I don't know that anything could reach Lemieux's return to hockey again.