If you read my column about baseball after the All-Star break, I urged readers to stop watching A
merica’s pastime
until October when a World Series victor will be crowned.
Between the autumn ambience and flaring determination of the teams still on the hunt, October and baseball are made for each other.
However, the poetic semblances between the season and baseball make me want to watch a sport that’s more fierce and is slightly more hard-hitting and teeth-wrenching.
So, stop watching the St. Louis Cardinals as they try to win yet another World Series and switch your allegiance to our neighbor up north, Canada, and its treasured pastime — ice hockey.
Right off the bat (not literally of course, because we’re not talking baseball), hockey is back for an entire 82-game season of play after last season was cut short because of the strike.
Since the 2011 Occupy Wall Street movement we have not seen fall hockey, so basically, fans should be excited to watch hockey play its full 82-game schedule.
And what a better way to kick off the season than to see college-aged rookie Tomas Hertl tear up the ice during his first NHL games.
The 19-year-old Czech Republic native is a phenom, which was evident during his Oct. 9 performance against the New York Rangers. He one-upped a hat trick with four goals, including a reverse, between the legs, backhanded goal that skill-wise nearly beats out Alexander Ovechkin’s sliding goal from seven years ago.
It sounds difficult, but seeing it in action is breathtaking and the San Jose Sharks entered Thursday undefeated, led by Hertl’s seven goals.
Resonating closer to Athens, the Columbus Blue Jackets made headlines before touching the ice, as it switched to the East Conference, and more specifically, the Metropolitan Division.
Opponents such as Pittsburgh, Washington and New York are considerably tougher, but with additions such as right winger Marian Gaborik, who leads Columbus in points, goals and assists through five games.
A question you may be asking is with so much hockey to be played and baseball winding down, why not finish watching athletes complete their season?
To which I can say, only do watch baseball when hockey is on commercial break.
ch115710@ohiou.edu
@ColinHanner
