Let There Be Hockey
Image credit: Joe Daly
At long last, we stand on the precipice of another punishing journey into the heart of ice-cold chaos – the impending 2023-2024 NHL season. In my continued efforts to use this site to write about more than just the leather-studded bliss of heavy metal, I now touch the freshly-sharpened carbon steel of my blades upon the pristine sheet of ice that is the new season ahead.
As I peer into my crystal ball, my vision is clouded by a swirling maelstrom of statistics, anecdotes, and gut feelings gleaned from the turbulent sea of speculation on which the hockey press ever sails. That all said, certain teams seem to predictably flaunt the potential to rise above the rest and to use this season as stone face on which to etch their names into the annals of hockey history. The Tampa Bay Lightning, with their hypersonic speed and uncanny ability to strike at just the right moment, again loom large as perennial contenders. The other obvious contender is the Colorado Avalanche, a team of hulking, no-bullshit playmakers ready to confuse, batter and demoralize anyone and everything that dares cross their path.
Of course, nobody would give two shits about hockey — or any sport, for that matter — if the final results always correlated with the pre-seasons predictions. The true essence of the NHL lies in its chaotic unpredictability. Who could have foreseen the Vegas Golden Knights' inaugural season, blazing a trail to the Stanley Cup Finals? Years later, after steadily battering away at the rest of the league, they snagged the ultimate prize, as Canadian teams — who have collectively failed to bring the Stanley Cup back to Canada for THIRTY YEARS — stare enviously down from their chilly barns in the Great White North. This season, I’m calling out the Calgary Flames as legit contenders. They possess that ideal balance of swagger and speed, oblivious to the notion that any team they face might appear superior — on paper, at least.
And then, there are the dark horses, the teams that have been biding their time, waiting for the perfect moment to pounce. I can’t stand Tri-State teams of any stripe, but the New Jersey Devils, might emerge as bona fide studs this year. And let's not forget the Columbus Blue Jackets, a team that thrives on the adrenaline of overturning expectations. And then there’s the whole Connor Bedard thing unfolding in Chicago. I mean, who could have predicted that an Original Six team with a commercially vibrant fan-base would defy all odds (couch, cough) and snag the first draft pick over a low-level California team with middling management?
Speaking of, it is both a curse and a joy — but mainly a curse — for me to support the Anaheim Ducks. The Stanley Cup, that gleaming chalice of hockey glory, has eluded them since 2007. Could this be the season that their stars align? Hell no. If they climb their way up to the middle of the table, Ducks fans across the globe will be dancing like drunken cowboys in an old-timey saloon. The Ducks youthful core have certainly shown flashes of brilliance, and if they can harness that potential and channel it into a concerted attack, they might well shut up grumbly naysayers like yours truly.
The NHL is a ruthless battlefield, a world where fortunes rise and fall with every bounce of the puck. In this hyperviolent dance, injuries, slumps, and surprise upsets are as inevitable as the changing of the seasons. To predict with certainty would be to defy the very essence of the game – its wild, untamed spirit that refuses to be caged by the confines of reason.
So, as we brace ourselves for the whirlwind that is the 2023-2024 NHL season, let us remember that while predictions and prophecies offer a dim, guiding light, it is the unrelenting passion, the sheer insanity of the game that keeps us plunging forward through the heart of the season. Regardless of which team one supports, one thing is certain: this new season promises a heart-stopping journey into the abyss of ice and fire that is the NHL.