After the Habs and the Wings (so shoot me, I have a soft spot for Stevie Y) got knocked out while LeBron and the Cavs and Steve Nash and the Suns were still alive in the NBA playoffs, I lost interest in the Stanley Cup games. But I did live in Edmonton for the better part of 10 years so I gave the finals a look. The last few games were worth it. Game 6 might have been a perfect game by the Oilers, but game 7 was a keeper despite the outcome. Quintessential hockey that reminded me of the college games I used to watch. A lot of skating and hitting with no clutching and grabbing or fights. Even in "the new nhl" it was apparent that defence and a hot goaltender win the cup. I much prefer this brand of hockey to the 9-8 wins that the Oilers put up when I lived in Edmonton in the 70s, or the deathly neutral zone traps of the Devils. Both teams should be proud of the show they put on and extra kudos to the Edmonton fans for singing the US national anthem before game 6. It was much appreciated down here.
US sports fans grow up indoctrinated by high scoring NBA, NFL and even to a certain extent baseball games in which grand slam homers produce 4 runs in one fell swoop. Many don't appreciate that the best hockey games might end with a final score of 1 nil. Great passing and lots of scoring chances, but wonderful goaltending and few goals. It's probably one of the reasons that World Cup 'football' has never caught on down here. The prevailing opinion, instigated and sustained by boorish, insular sports pundits, is that if the game ends in a 0 - 0 draw, then nothing happened, and it must have been boring. It's not enough to watch the unbelievable skills of the players and the patterns of the play. Fortunately, soccer thrives in the hispanic communities and I get to watch some of the games in Spanish - GOOOOAAAAAAALLLLLLLL!!!!!!!!! My fondness for this may explain why I still listen to hockey broadcasts in French every chance I get. The bland play-by-play on CJAD simply can't match: C'est Koivu avec la rondelle. Il lance, Il lance encore... IL CONNNTTE!!!
Kenny's recently become smitten by basketball. He's he's already at shoulder height on me even though he's not yet 10. If he continues on the growth charts as he has so far, he's going to be 6 foot something. We taught him how to do a lay up over the week end and he's started dribbling a ball left handed on our evening walks. The dog and the neighbours don't quite know what to make of it but some day it'll help him go to his left if he ever gets serious, eh?
I played pick-up against Kenny and my wife last night in the driveway. She lettered in soccer, track and field, and field hockey in college but fortunately for me she rode the pine on the hoops team. They made a game of it but despite being a couple of steps slower, I still got my jump shot. Victory in the twilight...
Summer evenings are great, aren't they?