Hockey Talk

As I write this, the Ottawa Senators are in the process of blowing a 4-0, first-period lead against the New Jersey Devils (it's now 4-3 Sens after two periods). To me, that isn't even the real story of this game, though. What IS the story as far as I am concerned is that New Jersey couldn't even sell the game out. Let's call it like it is; for the most part, there is no such thing as a New Jersey Devils fan. There are disaffected New York Rangers, Islanders or Philadelphia Flyers fans who don't feel like driving into Manhattan, out to Long Island or into Philadelphia to see the teams they truly like play. Does that mean that there are no Devils fans? Of course not, but there aren't that many. If the team picked up and relocated tomorrow, it would be greeted with a collective yawn by New York City-area sports fans, assuming that anyone even noticed. And next season, the team will play in a brand new arena in Newark. I give them ONE season before the attendance problems return. Here's a suggestion: Move the Devils to Winnipeg, Quebec City or even Hartford, all locations which lost teams but did not deserve to do so.