With the ugly lockout far behind us, the 48-game sprint of a marathon regular season a memory, and a phenomenal four rounds that proved the best team sometimes wins, there are some lessons to be gained from the 2012-13 NHL season.
We know that 82 games are a necessity in today's sports fiscal climate, but wasn't it great to see a compact season in which every game mattered? The absence of long travel due to the conference-only schedule made for better hockey, better pace to games, and many more critical games. And that's good for players and fans.
I could not help but think, though, as I read as much about broken legs and fractured faces, sprained knees and separated shoulders, punctured lungs and concussions, that the NHL is perilously close (like 5-10 years) from having to re-assess four rounds of best-of-sevens with the Stanley Cup at stake.
Yes, it's a war of attrition. Yes, depth and health and luck are more important than ever. But is it safe and smart to ask players who have played an 82-game season just to make the playoffs to gear up for two months of high-intensity, high-pressure, critically important hockey?
A long time ago, it took three rounds to win the Cup. In 1979-80 the league expanded to 21 teams, 16 of which made the playoffs, and the playoffs expanded to four full rounds ... but the first round was a best-of-three. Then a few years later a best-of-five. Ever since 1986-87, every round has been a best-of-seven, meaning it has taken 16 really difficult wins to capture the Cup for the last 26 years.
I saw firsthand as a New York Daily News sportswriter covering the NY Islanders in the mid- to late 80s what four straight Cups and an unsuccessful Drive for Five in 1984 did to a dynasty's collective physical state. I saw firsthand over the last two weeks what Patrice Bergeron and Zdeno Chara, Nathan Horton and Milan Lucic, not to mention the rest of the Bruins and the Chicago Blackhawks, too, endured to reach the Final.
It was great hockey. It was compelling theater, with the comebacks and the rallies and the overtimes and the gut-wrenching one-goal games. I'm wondering, though, if the 48-game season was why these two teams were able to squeeze out what they did in May and June.
We shall see next season when the 30 teams play 82 ... and then 16 try to thrive for two months playing for the greatest trophy in sports.
No comments:
Post a Comment