Zachary Pavlounis ‘23, Sports Writer

Devils’ Adam Henrique (foreground) celebrating his series-winning overtime goal in the 2012 Eastern Conference Final

Image Courtesy of ESPN

Hockey as a sport has seen an increase in its viewership and popularity over the past couple of years and has the potential to be more popular than basketball, baseball, football, and soccer. Dylan Wapner ‘24 declares that the National Hockey League (NHL) “definitely deserves more media attention than it gets…I think a lot of people don’t know about how great it is to watch, and more coverage would easily solve this problem. ” Few major networks are willing to broadcast the sport, which is mainly due to poor marketing by the NHL. Although it is currently like a little brother to most other American professional sports leagues, the NHL can be just as successful, if not more, than the other major professional sports.

Tackling or hitting the players on the opposing team is one of the most popular parts of football; however, there are consistently more hits in hockey than in football. After a hit in football, the play stops, and the players are given a 40-second break where they gather around in a huddle to get a new play from their quarterback. This system means fans have to wait upwards of a full minute before fans have a chance at seeing another hit. In hockey, hitting is not only one part of the game but one of the most important facets of playing a strong defensive game; even a light hit could get your team the puck and cause a scoring chance. Just like the NFL, hockey has its fair share of bone-crushing hits which happen, but they occur more often than any football game. 

Have you ever watched a boxing match and thought, “I wonder how this would look on ice?” Well, you no longer have to imagine it, because fighting is a major part of hockey. In other sports, trash talk, let alone fighting, is penalized and will result in suspensions or fines for the players involved. With hockey, however, fights are penalized with a slap on the wrist in the form of a five-minute “time out” for the players in the penalty box while their team plays without them. After they serve those five minutes, they are right back in the game like nothing happened.

Hockey players are tougher than any other athlete. Rarely do NHL players sit out on game day to prevent injury, or because they are injured. In other sports, players are taken out of the game if they cramp or twist their ankles and will remain out for days on end, but hockey players will play through any injury they get. This is especially true in the playoffs, where players are notorious for playing through broken bones, torn ligaments, and separated shoulders. While some call their mentality stupid, this show of toughness and strength is entertaining to watch.

Not only are hockey players strong, but their skills are also profound. Players have to be able to skate with great speed, shoot with accuracy to sneak the puck past the goalie, and have an incredible sense of balance. In the words of Mr. Fischer, “It’s the only game that has the same amount of speed and power as basketball, football, or other sports…however, you have to be in control and balanced the entire time.”

During gameplay, there are rarely any stoppages, allowing a flow and beauty to the sport. Dylan also states that “the high-intensity never-ending play makes it hard to take your eyes off (the game).” The fans are glued to the game because there is a constant feeling that there could be a major play happening at any moment that could turn the tide of the game. 

Some of you might be thinking “Why should I watch hockey if it is so violent or aggressive?” To that I ask, why would you watch the Jeffery Dahmer series on Netflix, or any other show involving gore/bodily harm? It provokes a jolt of energy in the viewer that makes you not want to look away. Hockey has been widely considered Canada’s pastime, but it has the ability to be the world’s pastime. This idea of hockey supremacy will only happen if the NHL learns how to correctly market its star players and teams. The strength, toughness, and skill need to be on display for the world to see, but the NHL continues to do a lackluster job of promotion. So, when you turn on ESPN or Hulu later tonight, make sure you tune into the greatest sport on ice.