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Piedmont Triad Sports Club - Editor's View |
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EDITOR'S VIEW by Francis Kinlaw:
Although temperatures in our region of the country are hovering around 90 degrees on most days, let us take note of the social significance of the National Hockey League season that just concluded. Even members of the PTSC who follow sports regularly could not have imagined in the autumn of 2005 that the Carolina Hurricanes would capture the Stanley Cup in the early summer of 2006, or that Hurricanes hockey would be a prime topic of conversation throughout North Carolina as the major league baseball season entered its third month. A club member commented not long ago that he did not understand the rules of hockey and did not have much interest in the sport. But he now wonders whether he will soon be converted into a "Caniac" and live the remainder of his life watching a sport that he had ignored until he was a senior citizen.
The future of big-time professional hockey in North Carolina rests on the reactions of this man, others of his generation, and fans much younger in age. We have recently seen the Hurricanes ignite the imagination and enthusiasm of people who seek entertainment and wish to identify with a winning organization. The recipe for continued success by the franchise must include a tradition of competitive teams and the building of a fan base that will accept occasional disappointments along with victories. It will indeed be fascinating to look back in a decade and observe whether North Carolinians in general and sports fans in particular have become more attached to the traditions of hockey. Will the day ever come when large numbers of sports fans will utilize their remote controls to switch back and forth between telecasts of Hurricanes game and ACC basketball contests? Perhaps not, but the possibility of a "hockey revolution" does seem much more likely than it did just a few short months ago.
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Copyright 2003 © All Rights Reserved.
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