Rite of Spring '15: exhume our idols! bury our friends!

[IceCap]

Why don't we try to make more American fans of Canadian teams? Get new/casual/unaffiliated fans to root for the Montreal Canadiens the way people do for the Yankees. Of course, the dilemma there is that those people probably don't even know where Montreal is because when we study maps in grade school, there's nothing north of the United States. Still, promote the Habs as a team people all across the continent can get behind.

Americans are frontrunners first and foremost. The reason the Yankees, Steelers, and Cowboys have so many fans is because those teams won a lot of championships in a short amount of time. (Not to mention, they did it on a much bigger stage.) Just telling Americans "hey, even though they haven't won jack since 1993, this Montreal team is hockey's version of the Yankees" ain't gonna do it.

Why not? Seems to work for the Rangers. NBC pushes them as the NHL's Yankees. And they haven't won anything since 1994.

Does it really "work for the Rangers?" If so, how? (Not to mention, with just 4 Stanley Cups on their ledger, the Rangers are more like the NHL's version of the Cincinnati Reds.)

The Habs are hockey's Yankees and Reds. 20+ championships and visually defined by an all-time classic look AND being their sport's oldest surviving team who was last relevant in the early 1990s. Also the red C logo.

Anyway I say it works for the Rangers because NBC Comcast has played them up as the NHL's Yankees. Even though they have twenty less Cups then Montreal, and a drought almost as long. The real premier team of the league plays in a French speaking city in another country. NBC seems resigned to the fact that there's never going to be interest in the Habs in the US, so the Rangers get the nod as the sport's "flagship" according to their narrative.

Anyway, If I had to guess, I'd say that maybe 10% of NBC's NHL audience is "unaffiliated." And I doubt it's that high. At this point, any narrative NBC comes up with is just preaching to the choir. Hockey fans watch whatever game NBC is airing because they're hockey fans. And as such, the vast majority of them already have a team. It's not like NBC is getting a couple million unaffiliated viewers to influence every week. Point being that I don't think NBC coming up with some sort of "Montreal is the NHL version of the Yankees" narrative is going to move overall American interest in the Habs needle much, if at all. Anyone interested in the Habs is already watching the NBC games. And just like you and Zach, they're probably bitching about the number of times Buffalo is on NBC.

Like it or not, when it comes to TV viewers in the U.S., the NHL is very similar to MLB. We watch our favorite team and we aren't much interested in anything else. You guys like to make fun of me on BASS because I'll "watch whatever baseball game happens to be on at the moment." What I find amusing is that you two are exactly the same way when it comes to hockey and, just like me with baseball, it seems to cloud your judgement. We have to remember that not everyone is looking at our respective games through the same "it's the greatest thing ever" prism that we are. Both sports could use a whole lot more people like us.

The main difference is that hockey fans have always been very provincial whereas it's a recent development with baseball.

Not sure that changes much, but I thought it was worth noting. Anyone picking up the NHL is probably aware of that going in. The best you can really do is create a narrative for people to latch onto once their team is eliminated. You don't make new Habs or Rangers fans, you just give Red Wings or Penguins fans a reason to watch once their teams have been booted.

[Unocal]

Really, if you look at the matchups, there are no really REALLY bad conference/Cup Finals possibilities.

This isn't 2012 where we had Coyotes/Devils vs. the Kings that just sounded meh.

Calgary/Minnesota would be kinda cool. So would Calgary/Chicago.

We're guaranteed some kind of unique combo of SCF dancer partners. None of the usual suspects other than Chicago are around in terms of Cup Finalists are still left other than NYR/ANA.

Since the 2005 lockout, the following SCF reps are not among the final 8: EDM/CAR, OTT, DET/PIT, PHI, VAN, LA, NJD, PHX, BOS/VAN.

So, other than CHI/NYR, there's a high chance of new blood come June (Anaheim is the only other team since the '05 lockout among the last 8 to even reach the SCF)

[rxmc89]

Why don't we try to make more American fans of Canadian teams? Get new/casual/unaffiliated fans to root for the Montreal Canadiens the way people do for the Yankees. Of course, the dilemma there is that those people probably don't even know where Montreal is because when we study maps in grade school, there's nothing north of the United States. Still, promote the Habs as a team people all across the continent can get behind.

Americans are frontrunners first and foremost. The reason the Yankees, Steelers, and Cowboys have so many fans is because those teams won a lot of championships in a short amount of time. (Not to mention, they did it on a much bigger stage.) Just telling Americans "hey, even though they haven't won jack since 1993, this Montreal team is hockey's version of the Yankees" ain't gonna do it.

Why not? Seems to work for the Rangers. NBC pushes them as the NHL's Yankees. And they haven't won anything since 1994.

Does it really "work for the Rangers?" If so, how? (Not to mention, with just 4 Stanley Cups on their ledger, the Rangers are more like the NHL's version of the Cincinnati Reds.)

The Habs are hockey's Yankees and Reds. 20+ championships and visually defined by an all-time classic look AND being their sport's oldest surviving team who was last relevant in the early 1990s. Also the red C logo.

Anyway I say it works for the Rangers because NBC Comcast has played them up as the NHL's Yankees. Even though they have twenty less Cups then Montreal, and a drought almost as long. The real premier team of the league plays in a French speaking city in another country. NBC seems resigned to the fact that there's never going to be interest in the Habs in the US, so the Rangers get the nod as the sport's "flagship" according to their narrative.

What about the Red Wings? They have 7 more cups than the Rangers, the most cups of any U.S. team, have won one in the last 10 years, and have a huge (bandwagon) following outside of their home market. I've always thought of them as sort of being the Yankees of the NHL. Plus NBC shows them a lot.

I would say the Rangers are the Dodgers of the NHL. Big market, big payroll, same color scheme, mid-single digit championships, storied franchise but haven't won a title in 20+ years.

[The_Admiral]

Hmm. Did the Dodgers win a championship with all of Oakland's old players?

[FiddySicks]

Well, Tim Belcher was part of that 88 team.

[Still MIGHTY]

With the first round over, here's an update on the CCSLC Bracket Challenge:

The (Technically) Top 10

1. Still MIGHTY 79 pts (Hey, that's me!)

T2. tjpaerels (?), John Wash (?) 72 pts

T4. Alex Houston, CS85, McCarthy, Rockstar Matt, zpqmaowl 66 pts

T9. AnythingChicago, FGM13, Ice_Cap, ninersdd, Shawn Seeger (?) 63 points

Second Round winners are worth 25 points. (Which means I'm already down a potential 25 because I missed on just one series, St. Louis, and I had them winning in the second round. In retrospect, dumb, I know.)

[zpqmaowl]

Unlike the Kings, I still have a shot at defending my title from last year.

[TheGrimReaper]

Those of you whose teams are out, who are you pulling for? I'm rooting for Ottawa in the east and Minnesota in the west.

I forgot to mention, anyone but the Ducks.

Who's your favorite team?

[nash61]

With the first round over, here's an update on the CCSLC Bracket Challenge:

The (Technically) Top 10

1. Still MIGHTY 79 pts (Hey, that's me!)

T2. tjpaerels (?), John Wash (?) 72 pts

T4. Alex Houston, CS85, McCarthy, Rockstar Matt, zpqmaowl 66 pts

T9. AnythingChicago, FGM13, Ice_Cap, ninersdd, Shawn Seeger (?) 63 points

Second Round winners are worth 25 points. (Which means I'm already down a potential 25 because I missed on just one series, St. Louis, and I had them winning in the second round. In retrospect, dumb, I know.)

What's the password? I'm not in.

[FGM13]

With the first round over, here's an update on the CCSLC Bracket Challenge:

The (Technically) Top 10

1. Still MIGHTY 79 pts (Hey, that's me!)

T2. tjpaerels (?), John Wash (?) 72 pts

T4. Alex Houston, CS85, McCarthy, Rockstar Matt, zpqmaowl 66 pts

T9. AnythingChicago, FGM13, Ice_Cap, ninersdd, Shawn Seeger (?) 63 points

Second Round winners are worth 25 points. (Which means I'm already down a potential 25 because I missed on just one series, St. Louis, and I had them winning in the second round. In retrospect, dumb, I know.)

Damnit, I think I'm down a potential 50 points. I had the Islanders and Blues winning in the second round.

[sportstar1212]

Only one I nailed was the Bolts beating Detroit in 7. Not the best first round, but I'm pretty confident in my next round. My final four are the Rangers, Habs, Hawks, and Ducks, and I don't see any of them losing their respective series.

[Still MIGHTY]

With the first round over, here's an update on the CCSLC Bracket Challenge:

The (Technically) Top 10

1. Still MIGHTY 79 pts (Hey, that's me!)

T2. tjpaerels (?), John Wash (?) 72 pts

T4. Alex Houston, CS85, McCarthy, Rockstar Matt, zpqmaowl 66 pts

T9. AnythingChicago, FGM13, Ice_Cap, ninersdd, Shawn Seeger (?) 63 points

Second Round winners are worth 25 points. (Which means I'm already down a potential 25 because I missed on just one series, St. Louis, and I had them winning in the second round. In retrospect, dumb, I know.)

What's the password? I'm not in.

ccslc2015

[infrared41]

Anyway, If I had to guess, I'd say that maybe 10% of NBC's NHL audience is "unaffiliated." And I doubt it's that high. At this point, any narrative NBC comes up with is just preaching to the choir. Hockey fans watch whatever game NBC is airing because they're hockey fans. And as such, the vast majority of them already have a team. It's not like NBC is getting a couple million unaffiliated viewers to influence every week. Point being that I don't think NBC coming up with some sort of "Montreal is the NHL version of the Yankees" narrative is going to move overall American interest in the Habs needle much, if at all. Anyone interested in the Habs is already watching the NBC games. And just like you and Zach, they're probably bitching about the number of times Buffalo is on NBC.

Like it or not, when it comes to TV viewers in the U.S., the NHL is very similar to MLB. We watch our favorite team and we aren't much interested in anything else. You guys like to make fun of me on BASS because I'll "watch whatever baseball game happens to be on at the moment." What I find amusing is that you two are exactly the same way when it comes to hockey and, just like me with baseball, it seems to cloud your judgement. We have to remember that not everyone is looking at our respective games through the same "it's the greatest thing ever" prism that we are. Both sports could use a whole lot more people like us.

The main difference is that hockey fans have always been very provincial whereas it's a recent development with baseball.

Not sure that changes much, but I thought it was worth noting. Anyone picking up the NHL is probably aware of that going in. The best you can really do is create a narrative for people to latch onto once their team is eliminated. You don't make new Habs or Rangers fans, you just give Red Wings or Penguins fans a reason to watch once their teams have been booted.

Which is the only point I was trying to make.

[Alex Houston]

I think my WCF pick of Hawks/Ducks should remain untouched, because Dubynk is gonna fail this series and I don't know how feel good Calgary counters that depth that Anaheim has, so I should be all good there. I'm also pretty confident in the Rangers getting by Ovi and company but Tampa's performance versus Detroit has me worried. Both them and the Habs have proven themselves vulnerable.

[Sport]

With the first round over, here's an update on the CCSLC Bracket Challenge:

The (Technically) Top 10

1. Still MIGHTY 79 pts (Hey, that's me!)

T2. tjpaerels (?), John Wash (?) 72 pts

T4. Alex Houston, CS85, McCarthy, Rockstar Matt, zpqmaowl 66 pts

T9. AnythingChicago, FGM13, Ice_Cap, ninersdd, Shawn Seeger (?) 63 points

Second Round winners are worth 25 points. (Which means I'm already down a potential 25 because I missed on just one series, St. Louis, and I had them winning in the second round. In retrospect, dumb, I know.)

I will probably never again match my 8/8 streak I pulled off in 2011, but 6/8 isn't too shabby, and I have all my final four still alive.

There's a guy I follow on twitter who went 0/8. That's hard to do.

[Tigers6884]

Go Habs.

[JasonFromMiami]

I am hoping the hawks win the cup, but i think it will be the ducks, and frederik andersen with the conn smythe

[rxmc89]

Those of you whose teams are out, who are you pulling for? I'm rooting for Ottawa in the east and Minnesota in the west.

I forgot to mention, anyone but the Ducks.

Who's your favorite team?

The Kings.

[NEW.ERA]

I think my WCF pick of Hawks/Ducks should remain untouched, because Dubynk is gonna fail this series and I don't know how feel good Calgary counters that depth that Anaheim has, so I should be all good there. I'm also pretty confident in the Rangers getting by Ovi and company but Tampa's performance versus Detroit has me worried. Both them and the Habs have proven themselves vulnerable.

This guy against Getz/Perry line has me all smiles.

[monkeypower]

But Getzlaf and Perry can throw it out just as much as Ferklund can. He'll have his hands full, especially with Maroon on the line too.