love of the game...

people may ask me why am i a hockey fan? that is actually a very complex answer,when i do not live anywhere near the Great White North,or live up near the Canadian border,where in the states of Minnesota,Michigan,Wisconsin,North Dakota,South Dakota,and in New England,hockey in minor leagues,pee wee,and college is really big... people may think i am nuts to talk about hockey 24/7/365,but honestly it is not that they really think,in all those trivia books that i picked up growing up,i saw pictures of old-time hockey,going back to before 1900,or about that time... people may believe that i have been a true hockey fan,for about fifteen years,or so,but they would be badly mistaken... i have read a lot of history on the game,including about overseas teams,in Sweden,and Czechoslovakia(i use that country's name,because the appreciation of hockey goes back to before the Soviet era ended)... i read about the Canada-USSR series of games,in the mid-70's,in which NHL players were involved,and the time that Canada beat the Soviet Union in a series of games,in Canada... they still talk about that up in Canada,to this day... knowing that i am a true history buff,i looked into the real history of the game of hockey,including the making of the Stanley Cup,and where it came from... honestly,i watch hockey,because of the real beauty of the game,and am amazed at how they play the game...i do not mean how rough and tumble the game can be,but could watch film of kids playing on ponds,and rivers,most of the day,and just be amazed at the true love of the game that the kids have... it still amazes me,to this day... people may wonder why i root for the Detroit Red Wings,and they may believe that i am a frontrunner,and they would be dead wrong... my real interest goes back to the real career,of "Mr. Hockey",one Gordie Howe,and the fact that he was one of the best players in NHL history,but was humble about his roots,up in Saskatchewan,but that he had a very long career(25 years;1946-1971,in Detroit),and even though the Montreal Canadiens,and the Toronto Maple Leafs may be beloved up in Canada,the Red Wings came from a gritty city,in Detroit;a workingman's team,and yet when i became a real fan of the Red Wings,they were one of the worst teams,in NHL(the Dead Wings era,in the late 70's,and early 80's,when teams came into Detroit,looking for an easy win,and Detroit would fight,and really lose on a regular basis),but i go back to the the real beauty,and love of the game of hockey,when kids go out and play,on a clean slate of river,or pond ice... what a real beautiful sight to see!!!!