Long Time No Blog

I'm back!

Not that I really went anywhere...I've just had the busiest non-college-related week of my life. Dance competitions, rehearsals...and my sister's softball team made it to the state championships which start tomorrow in NYC - Congrats Lady Lancers of St. Mary's!

With all that's been going on, I really haven't had much time to even watch the conference finals. It's not too hard to guess who I'm rooting for (if it is...Chicago and Pittsburgh), so I'm happy with one series and sad (but not unexpectedly so) about the other.

As a way of summing up the great amount of hockey that I've missed out on, I present the "Top 5 Revelations I've Had (So Far) During the Conference Finals ":

5.) I really don't hate Sidney Crosby as much as I let on this year. I spent the whole regular season telling myself that Sid was a whiner that I must have been crazy to follow like I did during the 2008 playoffs. Well, absence must make the heart grow fonder because my love for Sid is back in full force. I just like how he has really stepped up in these playoffs, proving that this really is his team. For all the crap he gets about being immature, I think he truly does handle himself well for being put on a pedestal as a role model so young.

Colby would be so happy to read this!

4.) I hate the Carolina Hurricanes more than I let on this year. Really. I hate them. I have such a visceral reaction every time they show footage of Brind'Amour lifting the Stanley Cup that should have been ours - it's like I want to cry and throw up at the same time. Or maybe that's just from his face...Whatever it is, I don't think it's a reaction that's going away any time soon. I'm Polish; I hold grudges like it's my job.

3.) The Chicago Blackhawks have the best mixture of playoff beards ever. From Toews's mutton chops and Kane's peach fuzz to Sharp's mountain man look and Soupy's bright red beard, the Hawks run the gamut in terms of ritual facial hair. Whether it's ruggedly handsome that you're going for or boyishly pathetic, they have something for every taste. In addition, they also have this hilarious video playing up the beard-growing prowess (or lack thereof) of their two biggest stars:

2.) I am still not really over losing Brian Campbell. I say this not because I sit there and wish he was still playing for us with the nostalgia that I save for Briere, Biron and McKee but because I like to pick on him a little too much. It's like that significant other who dumps you and then you try to pick out everything they do wrong and get a kick out doing so...Until it's over a year later and you look more than a little pathetic in your inability to move on. He's playing for the team I want in the West, but I'll be damned if a little part of me doesn't smile inside when he makes some major mistake. I don't want him back, but I don't want him to be a star for anyone else, either. I sound way more than "a little pathetic" now...

1.) I miss Sabres hockey more than last year. Last year, it seemed easier for some reason. Maybe it's because we knew from early on in the season that it wasn't going to be a good year. Maybe it's because we thought missing the postseason was a one-time deal. Whatever the case may be, I was able to transition into playoff hockey a lot easier last year than this year. This year, I find it really hard to keep up a rooting interest in a team or even in the game itself without some level of bitterness towards the Sabres. It's hard to watch other teams progress when I felt for the longest time this season that my team would be in the mix right along with these others. They're not, through no one's fault but their own, and it's difficult to feel no resentment to cities that get to experience the beauty that is hockey in May.

That doesn't mean, though, that I'll stop watching. I have my teams, and I'm starting to get out of my "playoff funk." Expect more posts in the coming days; I really do feel bad for how I've been neglecting my writing and my readers.