HOCKEY... it WAS much better right after the recent lockout. Now it is again starting to slowly creep back to the play style of the years you described with such disdain. Look at it more like the NHL had a chance to maintain this status quo to keep the quality of open ice play we got to see in 05-07 yet again are beginning to allow the clutching and hooking of years past.
Also as with the TV visibility...there are many more channels and avenues for fans to find hockey so the demand for it becomes greater. Its hard to be a fan of a team when you have very limited access to it. Just look at the boom in European soccer fans in the US. It wouldn't have happened without internet access that caused the demand so now ESPN has scores on the ticker and coverage on the weekends. People out of market of or that can't get to the arena are creating a demand. More often when people are just getting into a sport they tend to the gravitate toward the stars or the top teams.(How many MAN U shirts have you seen in the past year?) 1. Because they get more coverage and 2. why pick a loser if you aren't forced to be geography? Thus new people come to hockey seeing essentially 2 guys because all that is covered #8 and #87. The are in demand and the NHL is jocking them hard (why not?). HBO wants new subscribers NBC wants viewership and CBS wants some action. But none are still willing to take a chance on a regular season deal...because you can make your money selling the caps and the pens without having to sell all of hockey.
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