All-Star Weak-End

Well, I watched the NHL skills competition last night and while I can't say its the worst thing I have ever witnessed, it is very close. The events were extremely lame and honestly didn't look to be all that much fun. They tried to add more pizzaz and fan interest by allowing the players to use creativity when they handeled the puck and took shots on goal. If anyone saw the film Hostel, then you know that asking eastern europeans to be creative never, ever ends well. Besides, there is only so much hocus pocus one can do with a puck and a stick. Bless his russian heart but while Alexander Ovechkin tried his best to play along and have fun, he should have taken this weekend's festivities off and visited a dentist immediately. I have never seen "teeth" like his in a human being. I will get down on my knees and pray that Alex uses some of that $124 million on quality dental care. Oh and the "red carpet" interview segment was a royal howl as well. Look, talent aside, hockey players aren't the flashiest group of guys in the world. They are mostly shy and unassuming and frankly alot of them could use some conversational english lessons.

So, the NHL layed a decent sized egg with this whole gala weekend nonsense. I would have loved to see the Young Stars game cut and replaced with the NHL Legends contest. There is something disturbingly wonderful about watching the maniacal Tiger Williams ride his stick after going 5-hole on Cesare Maniago.

Maybe if NBC televised the darn thing and the league gave a teeny bit more thought to making the events remotely exciting, the NHL, its players and its fans would be a heckuva lot better off.