I really don’t understand it. The NHL compressed its season to jam in 48 games. The schedule required players to play several back-to-backs.
Then the playoffs roll around, and the pace is reduced to a leisurely stroll.
Take the Chicago-Detroit series. After Game 1 on Wednesday, May 18, there was a two-day break until Game 2 on Saturday. Then after playing Game 3 on Monday, there is another two-day break until Game 4 tonight.
The Pittsburgh-Ottawa series already has had two 2-day breaks. Boston-New York Rangers had two days off between Games 1 and 2 last week.
If you think that is bad, after playing Game 2 on Tuesday night, the San Antonio-Memphis series has a three-day break until Game 3 on Saturday in Memphis.
What’s the reason for all this? Of course, television.
(Note: In the case of Chicago-Detroit, Game 2 had to be pushed to Saturday because of the possibility of a Game 6 in the Chicago-Miami series that would have been Friday night in the United Center.)
The networks are trying to package these series so they can maximize ratings. That means spreading them out to minimize multiple games on the same day.
However, the long gaps interrupt the flow of these series for fans. I don’t know about you, but it annoys me to have to wait two or three days between games.
I also think the gaps provide a competitive advantage for older, veteran teams who can benefit from the extra days of recovery. I’m sure Tim Duncan and the Spurs aren’t complaining.
At least the NBA is ahead of the NHL. Thanks to the lockout, there’s a long way to go before anyone lifts the Stanley Cup.
You would think there would have been a greater sense of urgency to accelerate the NHL playoffs for an earlier finish. The finals now could extend into late June. Really, will anyone care by then?
Doesn’t bother me at all.
You also left out the fact the NHL had several back-to-backs in the Round 1, including Caps/Rangers doing Game 6/7 on consecutive days.
The real problem, to me, is when a league has no games on. Like tonight with the NBA. That’s ridiculous, though I’m sure the NHL will enjoy the spotlight.
An even greater frustration for me is the excessive timeouts at the end of every close NBA playoff game. It took 14 minutes to play the final 1:00 of regulation in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals. It’s becoming unwatchable.
Back during the height of the NHL’s last Golden Age (the ’80s Gretzky-Oilers years), I remember a seven-game series could be completed in about 10 days. Teams got the 2-3-2 format with one day off for city-to-city travel and one day off between Games 4 and 5. Games 1&2, 3&4, and 6&7 went back-to-back.
To quote Dana Carvey’s SNL Grumpy Old Man skit:
“AND WE LIKED IT.”
I also liked home teams wearing white sweaters, but that’s a rant for another day.