Terrific Game Seven Caps Off Good Season, Playoffs For NHL

Penguins-Red Wings Finals Makes Hockey's Future Appear Bright

The Penguins Friday night defeated the Red Wings to win the Stanley Cup in a "Game 7 for the ages," a sign that the "fastest sport on ice is back," according to Tim Dahlberg of the AP. While the NBA Playoffs "may beat it in the ratings," there was a "lot to like about a Stanley Cup rematch that featured not only some of hockey's brightest young stars but two teams that staked a claim to a great rivalry that could last years." If the Penguins and Red Wings are "indeed the game's future as they appear to be, the future is bright." Hockey has an "opportunity to both prosper and grow, something that would have been unimaginable just a few years ago" (AP, 6/13). Boston Globe columnist Bob Ryan said of Penguins-Red Wings Game Seven, "That was just great up and down action. It was why people love that sport and I just hope in some way that this can be translated for the benefit of this league. The whole playoffs were (great) and the ratings were up so maybe it will be" ("The Sports Reporters," ESPN, 6/14). ESPN's Mike Golic said, "Hockey's trying to get back into the Big Four. ... This was a great year and fantastic postseason for them" ("GMA," ABC, 6/15).

FROZEN IN TIME: In N.Y., Klein & Hackel wrote it was a "successful season for the NHL is many ways." Attendance and TV viewership both "rose, especially in Chicago and Boston, traditional hockey cities that had been moribund for many years." In DC, "interest sharply increased," and the "enthusiasm of the Carolina fans, who continued their tradition of standing for the duration of playoff games, demolished preconceived notions of Southern hockey cluelessness." But the NHL "still faces big problems," including the "economic weakness of several Sun Belt teams, led, of course," by the Coyotes. Also, there is the "problem of the long season bleeding deep into June, which is bound to persist next season because of the Olympic break." While the NHL "does not see it as an issue," few hockey experts believe that "playing hockey on the cusp of summer is a way to win over new fans" in the U.S. (N.Y. TIMES, 6/14).