I am a big hockey fan.
More than that, I have been heavily involved in covering the sport over the years, though mainly at the junior and the amateur level.
I can honestly say few things give me more joy in life than going to a rink - any rink - to watch a hockey game.
So it's fair to say whenever there is a National Hockey League strike or lockout - this is the fourth NHL work stoppage in my lifetime - it throws a wrench into my routine and I am forced to cope.
In 2005, I was living in Toronto and going through the same thing during that lockout debacle. Shortly after the announcement was made that the whole NHL season was lost, I did the only thing I could do under the circumstances. I went to the Hockey Hall of Fame.
I felt the need to take in the sights and sounds of the game and the glories of it. I looked at the trophies and the old hockey jerseys, and it was the tonic I needed. Being around that hockey history kept me sane during a period of insanity for the sport.
That was one way to deal with the lockout. Another was a vow from me at the time to no longer let the NHL rule my life. My attitude was, if folks in the NHL don't care enough about their league to play games, why should we?
That's one way I have coped with the current lockout. Still, even though I keep telling people how I don't miss the NHL, I still find myself caring.
What has really driven me up the wall has been the coverage of the "negotiations." Every day on TSN, Sportsnet and elsewhere, their top story is the lockout, even though there are other sports going on that we could get highlights of. Instead, we get non-stop commentary from the "experts" and "NHL insiders" about the NHL, even though nothing is happening.
I'm almost ready to toss my TV if I see any more footage of those two jokers Gary Bettman or Donald Fehr on Sportscentre. "Wake me when it's over" is my attitude.
Beyond my annoyance at the media coverage, I have not experienced the type of NHL withdrawal that other fans have experienced, thanks to successful "alternative measures" I have taken in the past few months.
The lockout started Sept. 15. At first, it was no big deal. The early cancellations wiped out the pre-season, but nobody cares about pre-season anyway and there was still plenty of baseball and football to watch.
Then came October, and the first cancellations of regular season games. Again: no big deal. Major league baseball playoffs were going on, and football was still going full tilt at every level. So it was easy for me to say "to hell with the NHL" and follow the other sports.
A couple of things changed by late October. First, the World Series ended. Second, the first snow hit the ground and stayed there, earlier than usual.
When following sports, I tend to be a creature of the weather. In the spring, especially in March, I am a basketball fan. When it's summer, I'm a baseball fan. When it is fall, I am a football fan. And when it is winter, when there is snow and chilly temperatures all the time, I am a hockey fan.
The arrival of snow so early made an impact. That's when I want to see my beloved hockey on TV because, as a patriotic winter-hating Canadian, hockey is just about the only good thing about the cold and snowy months here once Christmas is over.
I really had no choice but to get my hockey fix.
For several weeks, I have been tuning in to junior hockey and the minor leagues, and scoured the Internet for European hockey.
By a stroke of luck, I found a site that had the rights to stream German league games. It was strange seeing hockey players with their uniforms covered with German ads, playing on ice surfaces that were also covered with German ads, but I got used to it. I also got used to the German commentary. I picked up the language quickly; I understood many of the words, such as "lockout," and "NHL."
One thing that helped was going out and covering hockey activity in the Battlefords. I've been at games involving the Barons, the Sharks, and of course the North Stars, reporting on their 4-3 shootout win against Notre Dame recently.
When you are at these games, you realize that despite the efforts of the powers that be in the NHL, hockey goes on. It's like the story of the Grinch who stole Christmas. Despite his best efforts, the Grinch didn't stop Christmas from coming.
The Grinches in charge of the hockey talks, despite their efforts, haven't stopped hockey season from coming, either.
So that is how I have dealt with the gaping hole in TV sports programming on weeknights and on Saturdays, a hole I am filling watching other hockey and other sports, or other things like going to movies or watching DVDs.
Others are finding they now have money to spend on a winter getaway, since they didn't waste it at NHL games or on Centre Ice TV packages.
A lot of good has come of this lockout. It's freed up time and money for folks to concentrate on other important things out there.
Life goes on and life is good. But I must admit, it's not the same.
