NHL is Back

NHL has commenced its season after a year-long absence that was caused by contract disputes between the players and owners. This was something that the league did not need, given the lack of ice hockey’s popularity among U.S. fans. It’s a well-known fact that ice hockey is the dominant sport in colder regions such as Canada and Russia. However, many Americans would love hockey if they learned the true essence of hockey. Hockey is not a boxing match on ice. Instead, it’s a finesse game played at high speeds.

TV viewers have complained about the difficulty of following the small puck on their TV sets. HDTV will be the answer to that problem. I am very familiar with television technology because I grew up being a child of a Samsung engineer. I will tell you that people will be able to follow the game much easier because of the clear and high resolution pictures produced by HDTV sets.

The kid in me will always love playing ice hockey; but when I think of sports nowadays, I am beginning to see more of the business aspects of the sports industry. Of the four major sports in the U.S., NHL will probably most benefit from dropping HDTV prices (particularly those that use DLP technology - a Texas Instrument proprietary product). NHL must resolve many issues to regain momentum. On the bright side, the league started the long awaited season opener with a bang, nearly selling out across the arenas and with a record attendee level.