Cheap Shots

In hockey, I have always preferred skill over filth. Since the lockout (the last one, not the ongoing one), we have seen more filth and less skill. To make matters worse, the Canucks were eliminate three years in a row by team who rely heavily on cheap shots after the whistle.

Cheap shots have always been a problem since punishments rarely fit the crime. Things are getting even worse right now. Why? In all honesty, I don’t know. All I do know is that multiple teams have won the Stanley Cup without any displays of skill (Blackhawks and Bruins) and the usually more skillful players from Europe (there are exceptions) are being displaced by the generally dirtier North American players (there are exceptions to this as well).

Part of the reason that I cut back on watching playoff hockey is because they no longer seem to include or reward entertaining hockey. Instead, you have thugs embarrassing the sport by waiting for the refs to turn their backs and acting like scum. As I have stated before, I absolutely hate the Blackhawks and Bruins. They don’t resemble playoff-caliber hockey teams, and they have completely abandoned any attempts to resort to playing actual hockey. They don’t care for the sport, and I don’t care for their antics.