A House Divided: SoCal Crosstown Rivalry Fandom-Which Side Of The Fence Are You On?

For every sports fan out there one of the most common questions that they have very likely been asked at some point is what team or teams do they like to root for. Finding out the answer to that question is likely more interesting if a particular city, state or country has more than one team that plays in the same league.

For example, in the greater Los Angeles area where my family and I live, both of the Los Angeles Dodgers and Los Angeles Angels (who play in Anaheim, California), play their games as members of the Major League Baseball (MLB) professional sports league. The Los Angeles Rams and Los Angeles Chargers play in the City of Angels for the National Football League (NFL). Both of the Los Angeles Lakers and Clippers are yearly participants of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the Los Angeles Kings and Anaheim Ducks call the National Hockey League (NHL) their home.

For those sports cities like Los Angeles who have more than one professional sports team in each league, fans will usually have only one team that is their favorite to root for most of the time. Up to this point in my life I don't think I have ever met or come across someone who has said that they root for both teams equally in a particular sport. They will usually have only one team or teams that they root for or are a fan of in a given sport. These various rooting interests for only one team in a particular sport served as the inspiration for this new series of blog posts at Tim's Sports World about crosstown rivalry fandom.

Without further ado I now present the first installment of this brand new series about crosstown rivalry fandom which will focus on the sports teams that play in the Southern California region or area!:

Clayton Kershaw Photo (Top) Courtesy Of:

Wikimedia and Arturo Pardavila III on Flickr

Under CC BY 2.0 License.

Mike Trout Photo (Bottom) Courtesy Of:

 Wikimedia and Keith Allison from Hanover, MD, USA  Under CC BY-SA 2.0 License.                                                                                                                                 

                                                                                                                                                                 

1. Los Angeles Dodgers (LAD) Vs. Los Angeles Angels (LAA) (MLB)

Both of the Angels and Dodgers baseball teams of Major League Baseball (MLB) have called the Southern California area their home now for the last 50 to 60 years or so.

The Dodgers moved to the Los Angeles area from Brooklyn in New York in 1958 and played at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum from 1958 to 1961 before moving in to Dodger Stadium in 1962, while the Angels franchise played their first ever season in team history in 1961 at Wrigley Field in Los Angeles. After the 1961 season the Angels played their home games at Chavez Ravine (A.K.A. Dodger Stadium) from 1962 to 1965. Since the 1966 season the Angels have called Angel Stadium of Anaheim in Anaheim, California their home ballpark.

Both teams also play their games in two separate leagues with the Dodgers playing in the National League while the Angels take on competitors from the American League. Even though these two teams have played in separate leagues throughout their history, there are times throughout the season each year when both teams have played each other. When that happens, those series of games are referred to as the "Freeway Series" due to the fact that many of the fans can go to the games by driving on the freeways in the Los Angeles area. As a matter of fact, the one freeway that has access to both cities and stadiums is the 5 Freeway.

When it comes to figuring out the rooting interest of both teams, this is probably the one that is the most easy call for me to make as a fan. Since my family and I have been fans of the Angels for as long as I can remember, it's a no-brainer that they would come out on top in this contest.

There was even a period of time for a few years during which my dislike for the Dodgers was so intense that I would be really mad or upset if they were either beating the Angels in the head-to-head match ups or were having a much better season than the Angels were.

If I remember things correctly, this was also around the same time that Frank McCourt owned the Dodgers which also added to the intensity of my animosity of the Boys in Blue. Now that Frank McCourt no longer owns the team however, my negative views of the Dodgers have changed considerably over the last few years but not enough to the point where I would choose to root for them over the Angels when they play against each other.

Jared Goff Photo (Top) Courtesy Of:

Wikimedia and Jeffrey Beall Under

CC BY 4.0 License.

Philip Rivers Photo (Bottom) Courtesy Of:

Wikimedia and Jeffrey Beall Under

CC BY 4.0 License. 

2. Los Angeles Rams (LAR) Vs. Los Angeles Chargers (LAC) (NFL)

This same city National Football League (NFL) sports rivalry is the newest one to have arrived recently in the Southern California area. For the Rams this is now the second time in their franchise history that they have played a large part of their games in the state of California after a long detour in St. Louis, Missouri while the Chargers are currently playing in only their second season ever in the city of Los Angeles. Before that of course, they spent their previous seasons playing in the city of San Diego, California.

In terms of now having not one, but two football teams in Los Angeles after an absence of over 20 years, I'm still not quite used to knowing that the NFL has now had two teams come back and or move to the area once again and playing here over the last couple of years. As a sports fan when I was growing up, I actually got very used to not having a football team or teams in the city of Los Angeles for quite some time. As a result, I started to like the freedom of being able to choose which football team to root for if I wanted to do so. It was during that time that I became a fan of the Dallas Cowboys for a little while.

As of right now though, I have not really been a fan of any one football team in particular. That being said, if I had to choose which L.A. team football team that I currently prefer over the other, I guess I would have to go with the Rams due to their recent overall success. That endorsement however is not a ringing one when compared to some of the other rivalries that are included in this article.

Kobe Bryant Photo (Top) Courtesy Of:

Wikimedia and Keith Allison from Kinston, USA

Under CC BY-SA 3.0 License.

Chris Paul Photo (Bottom) Courtesy Of:

Wikimedia and Verse Photography

Under CC BY-SA 2.0 License.

3. Los Angeles Lakers (LAL) Vs. Los Angeles Clippers (also abbreviated as LAC) (NBA)

The next Southern California crosstown rivalry comes from the third of the four biggest professional sports leagues in North America. That is the rivalry between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Los Angeles Clippers in the National Basketball Association (NBA). This is a Southern California sports rivalry that has, for the most part, been very one-sided throughout its overall history.

For the majority of time that this rivalry has been around, it has been dominated by the Los Angeles Lakers. Over the last few years though, the Clippers have done a good job at fielding some very competitive teams while the Lakers were not very competitive. That being said though, the overall dominance of the Lakers as one of the marquee franchises in the NBA cannot be ignored. From watching some of the greatest basketball players that have played for the purple and gold during my lifetime in Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant to enjoying the excellent deep playoff runs of the three-peat championship Lakers teams from 2000-2002, there is one clear winner in this rivalry and that is the Lakers!

Now that they have added LeBron James to the fold as a free agent to start the 2018-2019 season, it will be interesting to see if the team can be good enough once again to get back to the playoffs after a drought of a few years and compete for a championship.


Dustin Brown Photo (Below) Courtesy Of:
Wikimedia and JulieAndSteve
Under CC BY 2.0 License.

4. Los Angeles Kings (LAK) Vs. Anaheim Ducks (ANA) (NHL)

The last Southern California crosstown rivalry comes from the sport that I have watched the least of. That is the rivalry between the Los Angeles Kings and the Anaheim Ducks of the National Hockey League (NHL).

Even though I don't really watch that many hockey games to begin with, I have watched enough of them to have a favorite team to root for and follow in this rivalry. That team would be the Los Angeles Kings.

Since my dad has been a fan of the team throughout the years, that is one factor which made it easier for me to be a fan of the team as well. Another factor that also influenced me along the way were the few years that they put together a solid stretch of being in the Stanley Cup playoffs from 2009 to 2014. During this time the team would end up winning the Stanley Cup at the end of the 2011-2012 and 2013-2014 seasons.

As for the Anaheim Ducks, even though they have also won a Stanley Cup championship in 2007 and did so before the Kings won a pair of their own a few years later, I have never really been a fan of that team at all since the time they were established in 1993 as the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim. At this point in my life when it comes to the Ducks team and how I view them, I probably feel a stronger connection to the Ducks' teams that were featured in the Disney movie franchise of the 1990's which served as the inspiration for the real team.

Since those teams weren't real ones though, I think I'll just stick with my original team allegiance pick of the Los Angeles Kings. That being said though, since my level of interest in the sport hasn't been at the same level of the other sports such as baseball, if either the Kings or Ducks are in the playoffs in a given year as has been the case previously, it wouldn't bother me too much to root for both of them. If that scenario were to happen in the future however, I would give a slight edge to the Kings.

Closing Thoughts:

As the famous saying at the end of the Looney Tunes cartoon series goes, "That's all folks!" With the exception of the local college teams that are in the area as well as those other teams who play for the Major League Soccer (MLS) professional sports league, I have discussed all the professional sports teams that play their respective games in the Southern California area and my subsequent rooting interests for each of them. The main reason why I chose to not include any of the other college or pro sports teams in the Southern California area such as the UCLA Bruins, USC Trojans and the Los Angeles Galaxy is because I don't follow those sports as closely as I do when compared to the four main sports leagues that I chose to be a part of the discussion.

Now that you guys know where I stand as a fan with regards to those teams, it would be interesting to find out if we're on the same page or if there will have to be some lines drawn in the sand. In any case, feel free to continue rooting for whoever you want and I hope we can still be friends, even if we happen to be on opposite sides of the sports rivalry fence.

Tim Musick
Copyright 2018-All Rights Reserved

  

One Small Step For The NHL And The NFL In Las Vegas...Two Giant Leaps For The Golden Knights And Raiders In Sin City

T-Mobile Arena-Home arena of the Vegas Golden Knights.

Photo Courtesy of:Wikimedia And Tomas Del Coro from Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

underCC BY-SA 2.0 License.

As the year 2017 continues to roll along, the professional sports landscape will also be undergoing some major changes that has never been seen before. Specifically, those major landscape changes will occur during the upcoming month of October and no it has nothing to do with a new playoff format being implemented by a certain sports league or anything like that.

The big piece of sports news to watch and keep our eyes this time around during the upcoming month of October is that is supposed to be the time when the latest and newest major league professional sports expansion franchise known as the Vegas Golden Knights of the National Hockey League (NHL) will have their arrival in the sports world and will subsequently become the first ever professional sports team in the history of any of the core four North American major league sports leagues to call the city of Las Vegas home.

What is even more surprising to me about this Las Vegas sports scene thing as a whole is that it is the NHL that will be taking the first brave and bold steps into Sin City where traditionally what happens there supposedly stays there. If you would have asked me my thoughts about which of the big core four North American major league sports leagues would have gotten a team to Las Vegas first, my answer most definitely would not have been the NHL! I would have actually thought that either the NFL or NBA would have been the first professional sports leagues to bring a team to Las Vegas either through relocation or expansion.

A case could also be made that Major League Baseball (MLB) could have and should have been among the first of the four professional major league sports entities to consider the possibility of having a team franchise there, but given how slowly the process goes with regards to other topics of discussion in MLB and how quickly or not those discussions seem to progress and come to fruition, such as the implementation of instant replay and the recent changes to the intentional walk procedures that have been put in place over the last few years as well as already having a minor league team in Las Vegas with the Las Vegas '51's, then it is easy to see why MLB has not done much up to this point as far as looking into the possibility of having their own major league team there is concerned. Facetiously as a huge fan of the sport myself, it's worth some time considering that at least it is good to know that MLB is still doing a very good job of keeping up the traditional view of itself as the slow evolving game that in general tends to move new things and trends along at a snail's pace.

Joe Maloof of the Maloof Family.

The credit for such a groundbreaking sports story in the history of Las Vegas goes to inaugural team owners Bill Foley and the Maloof Family. Foley will reportedly serve as the majority owner of the team with a 70% ownership stake in the team with the Maloof Family owning the remaining 30% of the team.  What is even more surprising to me about the whole thing is that it is the NHL that will be taking the first brave and bold steps into Sin City where traditionally what happens there supposedly stays there.

If you would have me my thoughts about which of the big core four North American major league sports leagues would have gotten a team to Las Vegas, my answer definitely would not have been the NHL! I would have actually thought that either the NFL or NBA would have been the first professional sports leagues to bring a team to Las Vegas either through relocation or expansion.

But upon further consideration a professional sports league like the NHL might just be the perfect guinea pig to test just how viable and popular a professional sports team in Las Vegas can be. probably due to the fact that the NHL is generally considered to be the least popular of the four major league professional sports leagues in North America behind the National Football League (NFL), Major League Baseball (MLB), and the National Basketball Association (NBA).

For the purposes of playing a little bit of a Devil's Advocate scenario in this particular situation, if having a professional sports franchise in Las Vegas from either one of the core four North American major league sports leagues doesn't work out for some reason or another, (which I think will not be the case most likely), then we can at least take some comfort in knowing that such an experiment has already been done over the course of the next few years starting in 2017 and onward and depending on how well or not so well it turns out in regards to the futures of both the NHL and the NFL, then we can more easily determine if the Las Vegas sports scene as a whole could be considered a success or not for the potential futures of the other big professional sports leagues such as Major League Baseball (MLB), the National Basketball Association and Major League Soccer (MLS) in Las Vegas.

Hypothetically speaking, if it turned out to not be a success with the the NHL, then the other leagues would probably most certainly reconsider any future plans that they may have in Las Vegas based on how successful or not the NHL and the NFL both are during their time there. As I've already mentioned above however, hopefully it won't turn out to be the most extreme worst case scenario of absolute failure over the next few years for the future of sports in Las Vegas and it is a prosperous future for the entirety of the sports franchise landscape over there for many years to come!

While I see no reason about why having a professional sports team or franchise in Las Vegas won't be successful in the near future or in the long run as well, I can certainly understand why the other professional leagues aside from the NHL and the NFL would be a little gun shy at first about breaking new ground in one of the most famous and well known gambling capitals of the world due to the potential conflict of interest ramifications that would potentially arise from such a partnership between the city and the leagues or teams which I will detail a little further later on in this post.    

At this time I would also like to offer my sincerest apologies to any soccer fans out there who might feel bummed or slighted in any way about being left out of the discussion when it comes to talking about which sports leagues are generally considered to be the most popular in North America but it's just a simple fact that professional soccer leagues like Major League Soccer (MLS) and other soccer leagues from around the world  still have quite a ways to go to catch up in terms of overall fan popularity.    

Speaking of other teams and professional sports leagues who also have big plans to move to Las Vegas in search of a new home, the Oakland Raiders of the National Football League (NFL) will soon follow suit along with the Golden Knights when they themselves will be relocated to Sin City as well by the year 2020. Hopefully there will be a day in the future when the city of Las Vegas will have a professional sports franchise from every major league sport in North America to call its own, MLS included (even though more than likely, I probably would not be very interested myself in following along with any potential games or seasons that a prospective MLS franchise in Las Vegas would play.)

If I had to offer up my own prediction on which team will have the most success in Las Vegas between the Golden Knights and the Raiders to start out, I would put my money on the Raiders to have more success initially. Since the Golden Knights are going to be an expansion team from the start of their history, they will more than likely be facing an uphill battle during the first few years of the teams existence. On the other hand, given how the timeline of events should work out for both teams, it is entirely possible that the Golden Knights could already be quite a successful franchise in Las Vegas by the time the Raiders arrive as new residents of Las Vegas in 2020. You would figure that having a three year head start on the proceedings over the Raiders can only help  and hopefully not hurt the Golden Knights cause during that period of time.  

The upcoming arrival of two of the four big name professional sports leagues is big news in itself because for many years and decades previously until now, the only professional sports teams of any kind in Las Vegas were of the minor league variety. Until the Golden Knights arrive later this year in Las Vegas and begin their inaugural 2017 season, the only professional sports team that currently calls Las Vegas home is the Las Vegas 51's of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) at the Triple-A (AAA) level of Minor League Baseball (MiLB).

As I alluded to above earlier in this post, the biggest and most obvious reason why Las Vegas has not had a major league franchise team yet up to this point is most likely because of the city's well known reputation as a gaming and gambling mecca throughout the world.

As a sports fan like me, it should be easy to understand why Las Vegas's reputation as a gambling mecca has made each of the four major North American professional sports leagues a little apprehensive over the course of the last several years, decades and centuries about having any major league professional sports team in Las Vegas up to this point in time. That is most likely due in large part to the possible (perceived and or otherwise) conflict of interest aspect of the relationship there could be between any of the four major league professional sports  and Las Vegas's casino gaming industry on the whole.

On the other hand, now that the world and society in general has evolved and continues to evolve in the year 2017 and beyond in the 21st century, as a fan it's nice to see that as of right now, at least 2 of the 4 professional major league sports leagues such as the NHL and the NFL are getting smart, brave and possibly bold enough to venture into the new, exciting and yet uncharted territory that is the Las Vegas major league professional sports landscape over the next few years to come. Add to that the fact that the gaming and gambling industry as a whole has already made a ton of money over the years for itself on live sporting events' betting, that should provide even more incentive and be all the more enticing for each of the remaining major league sports (MLB, NBA and MLS) to have their own potential expansion franchise or team relocation move there sometime in the near future hopefully.

With that in mind, I would just like to say that for Major League Baseball (MLB), the National Basketball Association (NBA) and Major League Soccer (MLS), it is now up to you and it's your move next to determine what kind of future, if any, your respective leagues will have in the city of Las Vegas. Your time on the Sin City Major League Sports Clock starts now!

Tim Musick
Copyright 2017
All Rights Reserved.

The Toy Department of Life: Ranking The North American Four

Baseball.  Basketball.  Football.  Hockey.  In no particular, these 4 sports are what I like to refer to as the North American Four.  Soccer doesn't count among them since it hasn't really been among the most popular sports in North America throughout much of its history.  Those four major sports can also be put into the so-called Toy Department of Life because they help serve as a type of distraction to help take our minds off certain things going on in our lives that may cause stress or other personal obstacles we may face on a daily basis.



As a sports fans throughout a given year, I like to focus my viewing efforts on the four sports listed above.  The one guideline I will use in ranking each sport is I will focus on my own opinions and viewpoints on each sport from the past year or so.

Photo Courtesy of: Wikimedia and

Frederick Dennstedt from Los Angeles, USA under CC BY-SA 2.0 License

1. Major League Baseball (MLB)-America's Pasttime will most certainly be at the top of this list no matter what season it is.  The fact that there's a game being played everyday of the week during the regular season is a definite plus.  I don't care if some fans out there view the sport as boring and slow at times.  At least teams not named the Boston Red Sox or New York York Yankees have joined in on the championship train in recent years.

2. National Football League (NFL)-The one sport that plays its regular season games on one of three (sometimes four, when Saturday games are added later in the season), days in a week.  The Sunday slate of games (Sunday Night Football included), to go along with Monday Night Football and Thursday Night Football make it pretty easy to remember when a gridiron game is taking place in order to satisfy your weekly football fix.  What also beneficial for NFL fans watching on television is that the majority of each week's games can be found on one of the big three networks in CBS, FOX and NBC.  For those who have access to ESPN, the NFL Network and NFL RedZone, all your viewing bases are covered-so you should have no excuses for not keeping up with this gladiator sport if you consider yourself a die-hard fan of the yardage game.

Photo Courtesy of:Wikimedia

and Aude under CC BY-SA 2.5 License

3. National Hockey League (NHL)-The excitement of the Stanley Cup Playoffs is enough to put the game invented by America's neighbors to the North in the #3 spot on this list.  The emergence of the Kings and Ducks as perennial doesn't hurt either.  I also like giving my Grandmother a hard time whenever I watch because she has trouble following the puck from time to time.

Photo Courtesy of: Wikimedia

and Keith Allison under CC BY-SA 2.0 License

4. National Basketball Association (NBA)-If the Lakers of recent vintage would come out of their Dumpster Fire phase of the past few seasons, the squeaky sounds of sneakers running across hardwood floors would be moved into the third spot.  Until that happens, Adam Silver and company will have to wait a little longer for my full and undivided attention.



Tim Musick
Copyright 2015
All Rights Reserved.

Capturing The Excitement Of The Stanley Cup Playoffs

Photo Courtesy of Wikimedia and

Alexey Chernyadyev under CC BY 3.0 License

Well to say it's been an adrenaline rush watching this year's Stanley Cup Playoffs would be a huge understatement.  And the funny thing is I didn't really start getting into hockey until the Los Angeles Kings made their run to 2 Stanley Cup victories over the last few years.

So go ahead and call me a bandwagon fan if you must.  That still doesn't diminish my excitement as the playoff march rolls on.  There's just something dramatic about the potential of every play leading to a scoring chance or missed opportunity.  It's even more exciting with the added element of sudden death overtime!  Oh and then there's the extra chippiness that comes with scrums and altercations that develops between the players, coaches and officials and I love it!

Photo Courtesy of Wikimedia and

Resolute under CC BY-SA 3.0 License

That's the way it should be over the course of any best-of-7 playoff series in any sport.  Trophies aren't handed out for taking it easy on your opponent.  On the contrary, greatness is ultimately rewarded by pushing your foes to their breaking point.  So as the 2015 Stanley Cup Playoffs march on, here's to hoping that the excitement doesn't stop.  Oh and for my money, I'm rooting for the Blackhawks and Rangers this year with the Rangers coming out on top.

Tim Musick
Copyright 2015
All Rights Reserved  

The Sports Elitist Lifestyle

All future Mike Trouts of the world will need to graduate to the varsity level for me to take notice.

Photo Courtesy of Wikimedia and

Keith Allison from Owings Mills, USA under CC BY-SA 2.0 License

One of my core beliefs in life is one should strive for the highest possible standards you can achieve. If you are not striving to be the best at something than you won't be able to fully appreciate true greatness and excellence.

This is the the way I approach all of my sports viewing today.  I consider myself to be living the Sports Elitist Lifestyle.  That means when I do watch sports, I only concern myself with what's going on at the major league levels of all sports.  So welcome to the club Nathional Football League (NFL), Major League Baseball (MLB), National Basketball Association (NBA) and the National Hockey League (NHL).  Sorry NCAA and all other developmental leagues across America.

As a kid I have many memories of attending my fair share of minor league sporting events.  While they were each fun in their own way, I always felt I could never get fully invested into learning about the future athletes whose ultimate dream is to make it on the big stage.  That maybe due to the fact that in the minor leagues of sports, winning is secondary to making a name for yourself and getting noticed.  The enjoyment of minor league sports seems better suited for someone who has the time and patience for evaluating the pros and cons of the future talent the bigger leagues have to offer.  The future Mike Trouts will have to make the big show for me to take notice of their talents.  Until then, they are only prospects with potential to be great.

Another area of my life where my only interest is in seeing the best aspect of a certain sport is my lifelong goal of seeing all 30 Major League ballparks in baseball.  I have very little interest in seeing every single minor league ballpark throughout the United States.

Yes I'm a sports snob and I'm proud of it!

 

Tim Musick
Copyright 2015
All Rights Reserved
    

March Madness?!...Not So Fast My Friend.

 Living the life of an uber sports fan can be hard to juggle at certain times of the year. Right now I'm doing all I can to balance this juggling act.

Sports is no different than any other aspect of everyday life in that events unfold at an always increasing pace. As in any other aspect of everyday life, there are four very distinct and very different seasons a la Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall.

The new year begins with a bang as the NFL gets things going in January with the arrival of its playoff journey to crown the ultimate champion.

February continues on the natural leisurely path with the world's most watched television of the year at the beginning of the month.  You may have heard of it.  Advertisers call it the big game because that's what the league tells them to call it.  They have to do this because whatever the shield wants the shield gets.  If advertisers stray from this doctrine, you better believe they are going to be hearing from the almighty Commissioner Goodell and his cronies.  We fans call it what it is...THE SUPER BOWL!

Once March rolls around, the sports dialogue gets ratcheted up EVEN MORE to an insanely high volume.  As Nigel Tufnel in Spinal Tap put it so eloquently in perhaps the film's most memorable scene, the sports speakers are pushed to eleven as we reach the end of yearly cycle's first quarter pole.

Photo Courtesy of: Wikimedia and

Ucla90024 under CC BY-SA 3.0 License

This is when brackets are busted, spring training signals the dawn of the 7 month marathon that is the Major League Baseball season and the march, (no pun intended), to the NBA and the NHL's Stanley Cup Playoffs hits full bore! When you put it those various ingredients all together simultaneously, it is enough to drive the senses crazy.  

This is where I am right now.  I just need to remember to and remind myself from time to time to adjust adjust my internal head noise when needed. Right now the speakers are at eleven.  Level five would certainly be nice.  Not too loud and not too soft...JUUUUUUUUUST Right!

Photo Courtesy of: Wikimedia and

Frederick Dennstedt from Los Angeles, USA under CC BY-SA 2.0 License

At least I can find solace in knowing that a new baseball season is so close I can almost taste it. BRING ON THE 7 MONTH LOVE AFFAIR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Tim Musick
Copyright 2015
All Rights Reserved.

Slow And Steady May Win The Race But It Doesn't Always Lead To Something Compelling

Photo Courtesy of

Wikimedia

and

Rick Dikeman

under

CC BY-SA 3.0 License

Over the years I have heard from various family members and friends of mine about what a beautiful game the game of soccer is.  Well you know what, I've tried watching the so-called grand game a few times over the years and I just don't see what the big deal is.

As the title of this post suggests, soccer seems to move at a slow and steady pace to me.  As a devoted fan and lover of baseball, I've heard those same critiques about our national pastime.  I would counter that statement by pointing out that even though the game of baseball does move at a slow and steady pace at times, there is always something happening!  Maybe I just don't fully understand all the strategic moves that go into the game of soccer like I do with baseball.

I went to a fight and a hockey game broke out!

Don't despair for me though.  There is a game that is very similar to the game of soccer which I find much more captivating and entertaining and they both the same basic of putting an inanimate object through a net to score a goal.  That is ice hockey.  What soccer feels like to me when I've watched it before, ice hockey is the total polar opposite.  It moves at a much  faster pace.  Players hit each other hard and don't act like little prima donnas afterwards when falling to the ground.  Not only do hockey players sometimes fall down hard when getting hit but they're falling on a much more slippery and potentially more dangerous surface in the form of ice.  At least soccer players have nice soft grass available to cushion their falls!    

Here's something else to take into consideration when comparing both sports.  While soccer is played on a much larger piece of real estate to that of the hockey rink, the only time a puck is legally considered to be out of play is when it goes into the stands.

Now that I've made my case for why ice hockey is much better than soccer, who out there feels brave enough to plead in favor of the world's grand game?

Tim Musick
Copyright 2015
All Rights Reserved

Tim's Two Cents-February 5

You Must be Joking!  The Los Angeles Kings Have Won Eight Straight.  Well it's no joke.  The Kings continue to be one of the most surprising teams in the NHL this season. 

They tied a club record of eight straight triumphs last night with a 6 to 4 victory over their rivals to the south, the Anaheim Ducks at Staples Center.

Now I don't usually talk much about the NHL but this is turning into a big buzz worthy story.  Let's face it.  The Kings are off to best start after 57 games with a 35-19-3 record.  It is their best start since the 1980-1981 season.  That's a very long time! 

Entering Friday, the Kings are fourth, that's right, fourth in the Western Conference with 73 points behind Vancouver, Chicago and San Jose.  If the playoffs started today, the Kings would be facing the Phoenix Coyotes in the first round.  I think they could beat the Coyotes 

As this season has unfolded, it is becoming clear that Kings fans have a reason to be excited this year after several lackluster campaigns.  It is turning into the glory days of the '80s with Wayne Gretzky.  Keep it up Kings!   

Photo courtesy:
Wikimedia Commons and Nichole under CC-BY 2.0 License

NHL Winter Classic=Marketing Brilliance

Happy New Year's Day to you all.  I hope the new year finds you in good health and good spirits  While many of you today will probably be enjoying the spectacles that are the Rose Parade and Rose Bowl, I will also have an interest in a sporting event of a different kind.  The 3rd annual NHL Winter Classic on NBC.  This year the Philadelphia Flyers will face the Boston Bruins from Fenway Park at 1 PM ET/10 AM PT.  That's right, the Winter Classic is an outdoor hockey game!  The modern day version of the Winter Classic was introduced in 2008 when the Pittsburgh Penguins battled the Buffalo Sabres at Ralph Wilson Stadium in Buffalo, New York.  Let me tell you, it was a sight to see and is a perfect example of effective sports marketing.

                                         2008 Winter Classic at Ralph Wilson Stadium.

Today, the NHL is probably the least popular of the four major North American sports.  One major reason could be the scarcity of the networks which many of the games are available on.  Some of the regular season games are shown on Versus Network, which many people don't have access to.  There are also regional games available throughout the country on regional sports channels for a certain area, such as Fox Sports West which carries Los Angeles Kings games.

Based on what I just described, you would think the NHL is in big trouble.  That's not so however, with the Winter Classic.  This is the one regular season hockey game you can look forward to each year.  Like the football games on the NFL Network, the Winter Classic is one of those unique sporting events that to my knowledge, is only shown on one network: NBC.  What also makes it special is that it only occurs once every year in a setting that is completely different than a normal hockey game.  It's as if this is the way hockey is supposed to be played.  So before you settle in to watch the latest edition of the Rose Bowl today, I invite you to experience a unique sporting that is unlike anything you will ever see.

                                         Fenway Park (below)-site of 2009 NHL Winter Classic.

Photos courtesy:

Wikimedia Commons and Falling Heavens under CC-BY license
Wikimedia Commons and Jared C. Benedict under GNU Free Documentation License 

Tim's Two Cents-December 27

Note: Tim's Sports World will be on a light schedule this coming week because I'll be up north in Santa Rosa for a few days.

2009-2010 Los Angeles Kings Headed to the Playoffs?

Here's something I saw the other day that surprised me.  If the NHL Playoffs were to start today, the Los Angeles Kings would be one of the eight teams from the Western Conference that would be going to the postseason.  You read that right, the Los Angeles Kings!

As of today, the Kings occupy the fifth spot in the Western Conference.  They are turning the hockey world upside down with their 47 points and 22 wins heading into yesterday's matchup with the Phoenix Coyotes.  They ended up losing 4 to 2.  In addition, they're only four points off the pace of the San Jose Sharks for the top spot in the Western Conference.  It remains to be seen if they have what it takes to make a serious run, but former coach and current ESPN hockey analyst Barry Melrose is probably proud of what this year's team has accomplished so far. If they can pull it off, they'll be my underdog team to root for when the playoffs start.

Photo courtesy:
Wikimedia Commons and Nichole Glaze under CC-BY-2.0 License