It’s pretty safe to say the NHL’s 4 Nations Face-Off has been a massive success so far.
You have millions of people tuning into a hockey game who never really gave a shit about hockey before.
Well then the NHL is going to be in a great spot moving forward.
The 4 Nations Face-Off isn’t without its own flaws.
It would be great to have Russia involved.
I’m sorry, but no.
That’s just not true.
Just listen to Drew Doughty here real quick.
This is a guy who has won 2 Stanley Cups, and a Norris Trophy.
Jack Eichel is a Stanley Cup Champion.
Secondly, we can’t pretend like circumstance doesn’t play a role here.
We can’t pretend like politics didn’t play a role in making Saturday night so epic.
Immense pride, and circumstance has allowed the 4 Nations Face-Off to be a hit.
Let’s just take away the obvious one here and say it would never work in the NFL.
Then you get to the NBA.
These guys are too rich to care.
They’d treat it like an exhibition until the final few minutes of the game.
They’re not willing to lay it all out on the line for their country.
Maybe the Europeans would, I don’t know.
Then you get to the MLB.
Fact of the matter here is that the NHL has something special, and they have something pretty unique.
For once, the NHL is in the driver’s seat of the sports world in North America.
Here’s to hoping Thursday night lives up to the hype and they keep their foot on the gas.
