Seriously Leaning Toward “Hope So”
Today, the United States takes on Canada for the Gold Medal in the Olympics. It is one week since the Americans humbled the Canadians, 5-3, and they have a chance to do it again, on Canada’s home ice. Sweet revenge for the Canadians’ Gold Medal in Salt Lake City in 2002.
Ah, the wonderful drama of hockey.
"The NHL needs to take a look at the Olympics, and whether it’s really worth it to take two weeks off, compress the schedule, cancel the All-Star Game, and so forth."
Now, one of the big topics during the great hockey games this Olympics has been the future of the NHL in the Olympics. Commissioner Gary Bettman has been asked about it at least twice over the past two weeks, and has declined to answer. I actually agree with this, and I rarely support Gary Bettman. However, I think the NHL needs to take a look at the Olympics, and whether it’s really worth it to take two weeks off, compress the schedule, cancel the All-Star Game, and so forth.
My opinion in this case is probably not exactly popular. The NHL ending its involvement in the Olympics would not break my heart. I’ve never been crazy about Dream Teams in what I thought was supposed to be a showcase of people who aren’t making tons of money doing what they do. I wasn’t crazy about the NBA assembling a Dream Team for the Summer Olympics when they started doing that, either. The first couple times, it was just stupid: The NBA’s greatest beating up other nations’ teams by, what… 30? 40? 50 points? What was the sport in that? Not only were these athletes making obscene amounts of money to play a game, they get a Gold Medal for essentially hitting a bicycle with a Hummer.
Of course, the rest of the world started catching up, and the mighty NBA even managed to play itself out of Gold Medal contention once. And the other Olympic teams weren’t even fully stocked with NBA players. Sure, it was disappointing to not have a Gold Medal hanging around Team USA’s necks, but at the same time, I found it somewhat funny, maybe even a little refreshing.
Now, in hockey’s case, NHL players come from such a wide variety of places that most of the teams in the Olympics are fully (or at least almost fully) stocked with NHL talent. So, I can respect that a little more, because there is relative parity among the contenders.
But I think the time for the NHL in the Olympics is over. Or at least I think it should be. I realize for many, it’s not a popular viewpoint. Sure, it probably benefits the Olympics. I’m just not sure it benefits the NHL that much anymore.
The first thing that bugs me about it is the amount of changes the NHL has made to accommodate this arrangement. They changed the All-Star format to that whole “North America vs. World” fiasco. I got the point: it was a cute tie-in to the Olympics to give fans a “preview” of the Olympic competition in 1998 and 2002. Doing it for the three years in between was unnecessary… and actually kind of lame. While it is true that there is almost no hitting, no defense, and no penalties in an All-Star Game, the idea of guys playing against their own NHL teammates in an All-Star Game was an oddity that just didn’t feel right. For me, the “Conference vs. Conference” format is just how an All-Star Game should be done. I think it just makes a better game. Just like the MLB’s American League wants to win more World Series than the National League and vice versa, I’m sure they want to do the same in the All-Star Game. I think players try harder when there are bragging rights at stake.
What really made me mad was when the NHL got rid of the All-Star Game altogether in 2006 and 2010. The worst part of that for me was the timing, as fans (and intended All-Star host city Atlanta) had already been screwed over by the 2004-05 lockout. Then the new collective bargaining agreement stipulated that All-Star Games would take place only in non-Olympic years, so that players would only have to take one break in February. So the game wound up taking a two-year hiatus.
Regardless of the fact that the NHL All-Star Game does not really mean a whole lot in the grand scheme of things, it’s a showcase. The other big three sports have them, and those games are just as inconsequential, beyond bragging rights. They’re still important.
Hey, look at it from the fan standpoint: It’s one of the rare opportunities fans get to interact with the leagues beyond showing up at the game. Admit it, Blue Jackets fans… you have missed stuffing the All-Star ballot boxes (or the computer kiosks) with Rick Nash’s name during every game you attended this year.
And, somewhat selfishly, I’d kinda like a shot at getting tickets to an All-Star Game in Columbus.
For all the adjustments the NHL has made, and with all the channels NBC controls, games on cable were pre-empted by stuff like… curling?
Now for all the adjustments the NHL has made, and with all the channels NBC controls, you would think the NHL would be treated better by its “broadcast partners” at NBC. Pushing the hockey “pool games” over to the cable networks was not necessarily a horrible thing. I understand hockey is not the most popular sport in the Olympics. I can accept that. However, when I tried to find out what channel the first USA game would be on, NBC’s supposed Olympic Hockey TV Schedule Website gave me… a blank page. Then games on cable were pre-empted by stuff like… curling? If you’re going to push NHL athletes to cable, at least join them on time. We already know a good chunk of the stuff we’re watching is not live. How about a little respect for the game?
The NHL can get that much respect from NBC without committing its athletes to the Olympics. I’m sorry… one game a week on NBC starting in January and one, maybe two games a week on Versus is NOT a TV deal that helps the NHL. Unfortunately, the lack of exposure doesn’t help the NHL promote its brand so it can get a better deal with ESPN, either.
However, I guess my biggest argument kind of revisits the “professional athletes in the Olympics” thing I started with. Do professional athletes really belong in the Olympics? Is it really what the Olympics are about?
Team USA could very well be the Gold Medal winners at the end of today’s game. This is also the 30th Anniversary year of the “Miracle on Ice” at Lake Placid. Will this gold even come close to that? Probably not.
Why? Because the USA is expected to do it.
Now, every Gold in hockey means a lot in Canada no matter how many pros are on their Dream Team, because Canada must rule hockey. I think it’s written into their Constitution… they wind up on double-secret probation if they lose, or something like that. Canada could have won absolutely zero medals before today, and a Gold in men’s hockey would probably make their Games. It’s simple… hockey is their national pastime. Their hockey is like our (pre-steroids) baseball.
"There’s a huge difference in the significance of this Team USA winning Gold, and the 1980 team winning gold: The future."
Team USA (like every other NHL Olympic team) was assembled to win the Gold Medal (and this time, they actually found some goaltending, too). We’ve heard NHL players talk about what an honor it is to represent their home nations in the Olympics. I don’t doubt their sincerity in that. However, there’s a huge difference in the significance of this Team USA winning Gold, and the 1980 team winning gold….
The future.
The NHL players, win or lose, know they’re going back to work tomorrow in the NHL. Back to their seven-figure salaries. The college players Herb Brooks assembled in 1980 didn’t have the luxury of knowing an NHL job was waiting for them in a day or two. They just had a dream.
I don’t doubt playing for Team USA is an honor and a dream for the guys playing today. But they have something to fall back on. That is just… different.
"If the NBA wants to keep [having Dream Teams]... fine. My leaning on the NHL Olympic era: maybe it’s time to bring back the real Olympic hockey dream."
There’s a quote from the movie Miracle, which I watched again about six weeks ago. I’m not sure if Herb Brooks actually said it, or if it was simply for dramatic effect (it is an awesome movie, though). It went like this:
“A few years later, the U.S. began using professional athletes at the Games. “Dream Teams.” I always found that term ironic, because now that we have Dream Teams, we seldom ever get to dream.”
If the NBA wants to keep doing it, fine. But my leaning on the NHL Olympic era is… well, maybe it’s time to bring back the real Olympic hockey dream.
Go USA! And Nasher, I can’t wait to see you on the Jumbotron Tuesday. Preferably with the Silver.