A love letter to Hockey

Good Morning Ocho fans! the other day while talking to some folks I realized that there are many people out there who simply have chosen not to watch and enjoy hockey. I couldnt stand by and not give you some of the many reasons why it is simply one of the best sports on earth so here on this edition of the Ocho newsletter I give to you my Love letter to hockey.

History

The NHL has a long and storied history which include many rivals, incredible records and even some franchise moves. Currently we have Alex Ovechkin chasing down one of the games most recognizable names and greatest talents Wayne Gretzky. The Bruins and leafs look poised to continue their hatred into the playoffs and even teams who arent necessarily in it are still incredible rivals (Detroit still hates Colorado its a fact) So if youre a fan of history, rivals and incredible records (scoring a goal is incredibly hard to do) then maybe you should try watching hockey?

The battles

Football is an incredibly violent sport in that the players in their mounds of gear are hurling their athletic bodies at each other without regard for their own health, basketball is…… not violent. Malice at the palace aside its physical but no where near football. If someone throws a punch in baseball its exciting but its pretty rare to see but Hockey? Hockey has a long history of Goonery. Goons are players on teams who are simply there to make sure no one is taking a run at a star player without repercussions. its a lot less prevalent now but between the checking and physical nature of the sport (its a confined area so you’re going to get hit) Hockey is by far one of the most physical sports in the world. If youre looking for UFC on ice this is probably youre closest opportunity.

GOALS!

Obviously one of the key parts of the game of hockey is scoring. Currently Auston Matthews is on pace to hit close to 70 goals in a season (which is an incredible # see the section on records). Scoring is one of the most difficult things to do in hockey so people notice when guys have a particular touch. some of the games best excel at scoring including Matthews, Nathan McKinnon and Nikita Kucherov to name a few. Just another reason to love the game.

Tendies!

Ok not Chicken Tendies but Goaltenders. The only thing more exciting then an incredible goal is a game saving attempt by a premier net minder. Goalies are the last line of defense and truly are remarkable in their ability to adjust on the fly to any shot including deflections. If scoring isnt your thing maybe you prefer to watch increidble goaltending. Past greats like Patrick Roy and Martin Brodeur have been replaced by Andre Vasilevskiy, Juuse Saros and Linas Ullmark. Goaltending is hard and when your team doesnt have it you notice it.

The Young guns

The last thing im going to touch on is the passing of the torch. I grew up watching hockey and falling in love with it in the 90s mostly (1988-present) and there have been many incredible players who have been the face of the league. Currently its Connor McDavid but Sidney Crosby, Alex Ovechkin, Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux and now Connor Bedard have all counted themselves as faces of the league. its an incredible thing to watch. Like Mariano Rivera you knew what was coming you just had to try and stop it. When Connor McDavid has the puck on his stick its just a master class. Connor Bedard might be the next one which is reason enough to watch Hockey.

If you cant find reason to watch hockey in this little bit of content maybe you can watch it so you can tune into the Ocho every wednesday over on the Ocho youtube (linked below please subscribe). Maybe Hockey isnt for you but I challenge anyone to go to a game and feel the atmosphere. Nothing compares to the atmosphere of the NHL playoffs. A grueling 4 round best of 7 tournament where nothing is left off the ice. Who is your hockey team and if you dont have one lets find you one by commenting “Armchair I need a hockey team!” on X or instagram.

thanks everyone and have an incredible weekend!