Polemic Hockey

I can't even figure out what Strachan's agenda is exactly, so I can't easily deconstruct what he's getting at all the time. Now he seems to be advocating a return to the glory days of the 90s (!) usually not a decade people remember fondly in hockey, even if I think there were many great playoff series then.

First he says, "the big spenders thus far in the free-agent market are none other than the wealthy teams — the same teams that spent vast amounts prior to the lockout." (ie, Colorado, Detroit, Toronto, Philadelphia, and the Rangers.) These are the "big market" teams, according to Strachan whose popularity is good for the sport in the US.

Then he says, "

It's an undeniable fact, whether small-market fans like it or not, that big cities drive the television ratings. And television ratings drive league revenues, both directly and indirectly.

The NHL has never been as popular and as highly ranked in the American sports picture as it was when the New York Rangers won the Stanley Cup in 1994.

In 1994, the league had just seen Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York in the final in the last three seasons. This had nothing to do with success in Philadelphia, Colorado (didn't even exist yet), Detroit (who absolutely bombed in 1994), or Toronto (who I won't be addressing here as a significant interest builder in the US). Thus his attempt to equate the "good news" of the ridiculous contracts some of these teams have entered into lately as good for the league doesn't wash.

Strachan then goes on to discuss the miserable fate of the Kings, Hawks, and Bruins. These are the big markets. For your reference, the ten largest US media markets are:

(1) New York
(2) Los Angeles
(3) Chicago
(4) Philadelphia
(5) San Francisco
(6) Dallas
(7) Boston
(8) DC
(9) Atlanta
(10) Houston

This means that the "big market" teams that the league should be fellating are the teams located in those big markets. Denver and Detroit do not appear on that list. There are 12 teams in those top 10 markets, and most are largely ignored compared to some of the supposed big spenders that Strachan praises and received so much coverage on ESPN.

It is important not just for one team in those markets to be good, but all of them. That means that it's not just important for the Rangers and Flyers to be good. It's important for the Rangers, Devils, Islanders, Hawks, Kings, Ducks, Flyers, Sharks, Stars, Bruins, Caps, and Thrashers to be good. However, that list doesn't seem to be on most people's radar.

I don't know if it's just that Detroit and Denver seem to be big important cities to Canadians or what, but there are mostly irrelevant in the US, especially compared to NY, LA, and Chicago, which are the real triad of key US cities in terms of culture, power, money, and the media.