Hello again, this is me writing again into this lovely blog. I left off two weeks ago wondering what I would write about next. I’ve decided this time to jot a few notes down about hockey and the impact it has had on me. About 3 years ago, I had a friend of mine try and convince me to get into hockey. I told him that wasn’t the sport for me. Slowly but surely, I started watching the sport more and more. I got into the sport however because I feel I needed something new to watch. The excitement and thrill of the goal horn sounding is to much to turn down folks! I may not understand all the rules still but I do know what an icing call does (this will result in a team getting a face-off in their own zone). My friend told me to pick a team and I went with the Tampa Bay Lightning. What drew me to the team was their style of play and their players looking like stars. I also enjoyed the idea of rooting for a team outside of my local roots. No offense to the San Jose Sharks, just never been a big fan of their logo (if you’ve never seen it, it’s a shark chewing on a hockey stick). Hence, I was drawn to players like Steven Stamkos, Ryan Callahan, Tyler Johnson, and my personal favorite Victor Hedman. My first season was truly an incredible one. I saw the team I had chosen go to the playoffs my first season as a fan. I was thankful about the idea that this team had made it so far. That first round was a stressful one against the Detroit Red Wings.
The Lightning were about to go down 3-1 in the series. I knew that something was about to change because I wasn’t used to winning in sports. I had gotten used to my local teams, the Oakland Raiders and the Oakland A’s lose time after time. The fun part about being a sports fan is the sheer joy of winning and losing. You stick with them when they lose and you stick with them when you win. That game 4 changed everything as the Lightning pulled off a overtime win. They went on to win the series and the next two as well as they made it all the way to the Stanley Cup Final. We eventually lost (yes I said we) to the Chicago Blackhawks in the final 4-2 and this did make me think, the incredible joy of seeing a team win and lose all in the same season make me a fan because of the emotions it brings. It can either make or break your day depending on how much you are invested. I can say after that I said no matter how good or bad my teams may be you always have to support them. They work their asses off to stay competitive and to me hockey is that one sport where you can feel the energy of the fans. The next year, I caught as many games as I could on my NHL package and once again the Lightning played some competitive games. I had the joy of once again seeing my team play until the Conference final against the eventual champions Pittsburgh Penguins. However, these playoffs were truly incredible. They were missing their top player in Steven Stamkos and lost goalie Ben Bishop in the 1st game of the conference final. In theory, this team of players should have won the Stanley cup with those two players in the lineup. I once again told myself, you are now committed to a team that you have invested time and money in. Last season, I had the honor and privilege to see this team up close at home in Tampa. I had seen them two previous times play here in my hometown of San Jose. Both times, we had been successful in winning 5-2, and 4-3 respectively. These two games in December of last year were truly incredible. I told myself I did not come to Tampa just to see these group of players lose. Low and behold, I was greeted with two excellent games against the Red Wings and the Blues. The 2nd game was my favorite I have been to so far in my short time as a hockey fan. The final score of that game was 5-2 as we had gone down 2 goals early on. Eventually we came back and won the game 5-2.
Ever since then, I have been telling myself man if it weren’t for this I’d probably lose my mind. The nature and idea that there is a small puck that players battle for is incredible. I also enjoy the idea that players are on the ice anywhere from 90-120 seconds at a time. The shifts that players go between seems rather stressful and having to remember where to be in your zone or when to create a crease so that your teammate can make a shot is also something to ponder. I also enjoy that the defensemen (along withe the goalie) play a much bigger role on how a team performs. If your defenseman on one side is unable to penetrate against the opposition in your zone, you can pretty much say that you are at a disadvantage. As for the Lightning, we were not as successful last season. There were too many injuries and unavoidable games where we collapsed. This season, I’d be curious on how we match up against the rest of NHL. We have our captain, Steven Stamkos back and a couple of upgrades on defense as well. Gone are Jonathan Drouin and Ben Bishop. This season, to me will really depend on depth and how we respond to injuries. The team has young defensemen in Slater Koekkoek and Jake Dotchin. The other young forwards on the teams such as Vladislav Namestnikov and Brayden Point will also be there playing with a chance to reach the playoffs with a team that is rolling with experience at this point. The team is still relatively young and practically made it to the playoffs with half of it’s roster hurt or playing with pains and aches. I can for one say I am excited for the season and don’t be surprised if we are contending once again for a Stanley cup. Let’s go Lightning! Below I added a little link to the season preview 🙂
Just Another Day... 