The trap is turning off NHL fans
January 5, 2003 Print it
You want to be heard? Well, now you can! Throughout the week, we let readers speak out as guest columnists. Want to get something off your chest? Put it in writing and send it to us. Be sure to put "Fans' View" in the subject heading.
Today, NHL fan Steve Szmyt explains why the trap is ruining the game, and he says the league is losing fans because of it.
What is a fan to do? I'm a longtime Bruins fan, but after watching the B's lose to New Jersey recently, I made a New Year's resolution: I solemnly swear to never watch another New Jersey Devils or Minnesota Wild game in my life.
I rarely miss a Bruins game, but after watching "the trap" executed to perfection and the Devils win a 1-0 game, why should I bother to even pick up the remote? Seriously, don't we all have something better to do with our time than to sit and watch a three-hour game featuring five guys clutching, grabbing and holding another team against the boards? I can assure you that I do.
The trap is a poison that the NHL just can't seem to cure itself of. Jacques Lemaire should be banished from the league, and Pat Burns should be ashamed of himself for perpetuating something the league is trying to abolish.
Yes, you can argue that the trap is effective, and the Devils have won two Stanley Cups with it. Great, good for you. I hope you win 50 more Stanley Cups with it. However, I won't be watching, and neither will a many other fans. Besides, there are 100 other teams that have won the Cup without using the trap.
The only reason that a team uses the trap is because the coach realizes that he has a pathetic team with no talent and the GM demands results. So the coach implements the trap in hopes of winning a lot of one-goal games.
The NHL is making an effort to crack down on clutching, holding and grabbing in an attempt to get the game going again. Well the league has been doing a good job, and certain players have altered their playing styles to accommodate the new rules.
Lately, though, the refs definitely have relaxed the amount of calls being made, and teams such as New Jersey and Minnesota have taken advantage of it. So what are other teams to do -- take dumb retaliation penalties because they are fed up with being held? Personally, I don't care what they do because I won't be watching.
Good luck to all of the teams that use trap. I hope you have great success and win many Stanley Cups, but I won't have any idea that you won because I won't be watching.
AI
