Up here in Canada especially, NHL fans are lamenting the fact that there will be no hockey this spring. People, just arent looking hard enough.
I write this having just gotten back from an Alberta Junior Hockey League playoff game between Brooks and the Calgary Canucks, and am caught in a quandry, as there are three games I wish to attend tomorrow.
The Calgary Hitmen of the Western Hockey League are playing their home finale, trying to break a WHL attendance record currently held by Portland at 19,103, while my alma-matter, SAIT is facing cross town rival Mount Royal College in the deciding game of the Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference South final. Across town, the Calgary Flames will face the UFA Bisons in the Alberta Midget Hockey League semifinal.
There is also the Heritage Junior “B” playoffs, where the Airdrie Thunder shocked a championship contender to advance to the second round, while the WHL’s playoffs are less than a week away, where all four Alberta based teams have qualified for the second season. Three hours north, in Edmonton, the American Hockey League’s Roadrunners are fighting for their playoff lives.
Apparently there is no hockey being played right now. My bank account disagrees.
However, while one would expect numerous options in a large Canadian city, there is still plenty of hockey being played in Florida as well. In the ECHL, the Pensacola Ice Pilots lead the Southern Division, with the Florida Everblades safely in second place. In the Southern Professional Hockey League, Jacksonville will sadly miss the playoffs, as they stand in last place. In the SouthEast Junior Hockey League, the Tampa/Oldsmar Sandsharks lead the league with a 13-4 record.
No NHL? No problem.
