Breaking The Rule

When was the last time you witnessed something completely new to the world of sports that caused you to say “Wow, that was ingenious?”

I ask this thinking about recent history; inter-league play was a re-hashed idea for baseball, and the All-Star game counting for something isn’t ingenious; that’s just stupid.

The invention of Ratings Percentage Index for college basketball rankings has helped fans and NCAA Tournament committee members determine the best teams based on record and strength of schedule.

College football brought us the BCS. (nevermind)

And then there’s hockey.

Yeah, hockey, the sport most foreign to southerners. Heck, soccer and volleyball are way more frequently found in these parts than hockey.

And yet, the National Hockey League is the professional sports league that has my mind pondering their recent success.

If you don’t know, the NHL All-Star weekend just passed us, and I bet most of you didn’t watch it. Neither did I, to be honest with you.

And we both missed out on a completely new, fun, and ingenious concept that I can’t believe has been done before.

They had a fantasy draft to compile the two rosters, two days before the actual game was played.

The two team captains and their assistants took turns selecting from an available pool of players in a backyard-style event.

They had podiums and a sweet stage (look up some photos), and from a Business Insider sports review, the players were genuinely nervous about being later picks.

When was the last time you heard of a professional sports league doing something this casual?

The final score of the game itself (11-10 in favor of Team Staal, named after captain Eric Staal) proves the game is much like the NBA or NFL All-Star game; very little defense and a place to showcase offensive fireworks as much as possible.

But from everything I’ve read about this concept, the NHL found themselves a gem.

Players really enjoyed the draft and game, and there were plenty of laughs to go around.

I mean, where else would you have a penalty shot because a player throws his hockey stick at another to stop a breakaway with all players smiling?

Somebody at the NHL marketing department deserves a massive raise.

Especially because the league is enjoying one of its best seasons ever: higher revenue, better ratings and more national exposure.

And with pro football set to be locked out next season for a time, the NBA having stupidly-long playoffs (three months) and baseball season’s dragging out over half a season, professional hockey may be primed for a massive jump in popularity over the next few years.

So, uh, who wants to teach me how to ice skate?

Posted by Caleb Rule on Feb 3 2011. Filed under Sports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.