Am I Starting to Lose Interest in the NHL?

[Doohickie]

18 hours ago, Weave said:

I was a fervent Bills fan until about the 6-7 yr mark of irrelevance.  They have been a top team for what, 4 seasons now?  I don’t make a point of staying up to watch the prime time games.  It’s not important to me anymore. Not even the ones that are truly meaningful.  I check the score first thing in the morning.

Pro tip:  Now would be a good time to start watching the games live again.

 

😉

[Doohickie]

18 hours ago, LTS said:

This is what my son and I had an animated discussion over prior to the Bills/Miami game.  I was his age when 4 straight SuperBowls led to an incredible disappointment. That changed me.  I do care how the team does.. but I just laughed while they were futile and I simply smiled when they fail to make it back to the SuperBowl now.  I just don't care enough.. I've experienced the biggest game loss and now after that much time has passed i am positive I just have a very different priority on it.  Back then I thought it was incredibly important and now, it's just a cool thing if they win a championship.  Of course, I say this having not experienced what winning a championship feels like so I reserve my right to change my mind once its happened. 🙂

To be honest, I think 13 seconds had a bigger effect on me than the 4 SB losses.  After Wide Right I thought it was likely we'd get back, and we did three more times, but with each SB loss it was a little more numbing.  The 13 seconds game... I really believed they would make it to the SB and win it all that year.  I was really down on the Bills when they were 5-5 and 6-6 this year.  This time it feels like they're playing with house money; everyone wrote them off but here they are.  I really hope they finally win it all but I'm just happy they didn't fold when it was bleak.

18 hours ago, Thorny said:

And therein lies the rub 

perhaps the real fandom is the friends we’ve made along the way 

[Doohickie]

17 hours ago, PerreaultForever said:

Well I would just say if you are losing interest in the NHL because of the Sabres you're not really a fan of hockey, you're just a fan of the local team.

What's wrong with that approach?  Yeah, I follow the NHL because of the Sabres and maybe I'm not really a fan of hockey by your definition.  So what?

[Doohickie]

6 hours ago, PerreaultForever said:

Well that's fair so maybe it's a Canadian thing. Just love the game, period.

That's a valid take.  I live in the Dallas Stars market; here it's more about football and baseball in terms of the sports being played around here.  Hockey in the SW US is a sport of the elite, what with all the equipment needed and how much ice time costs, along with the fact that there are no neighborhood outdoor rinks here (they'd only be frozen a week or two out of the year at best, and many years would never freeze over if there were any).

I grew up in Buffalo though, so I do remember trying to skate on the flooded backyard rink, etc.

[WhenWillItEnd66]

5 minutes ago, Doohickie said:

What's wrong with that approach?  Yeah, I follow the NHL because of the Sabres and maybe I'm not really a fan of hockey by your definition.  So what?

I am with you Doo! I can actually put the reason behind it though. I LOVE LOVE HOCKEY!!!! It is harder watching other teams play even though i love the sport as i see so many teams skating and trying even if they are not great and wonder why our stupid team does not have the kahunas to do the same and get angry/sick to my stomach. 13 years of ineptness in a league where half makes the playoffs almost makes you wonder if the Sabres are doing it on purpose! 

[Doohickie]

2 hours ago, Cascade Youth said:

I am pretty much done at this point and would not be too bothered if the team was sold and moved.  The product is terrible and the fans are being punished for their patience.

I'm not there yet, but trending that way.  I mean, the fact that they're in Buffalo doesn't really matter to me anyway since I live 1,400 miles away, other than they are a touchstone to "back home".  I generally go to one game per year, when the Sabres visit Dallas.  Already have my tickets for April.  It's a shame that it will probably be a meaningless game and the Sabres will get blown out.

[nfreeman]

Unfortunately, I'm pretty close with the Sabres to the point that I got to with the Bills about 2/3 of the way through their streak of suckitude -- I'm only casually interested and don't make a point of watching the games, although I might flip it on if I'm home and not doing anything and they aren't getting smoked again.  I'd expect that I'll be much more invested if and when they become a real team again, but not until the results are there.  I certainly don't give a crap about who they draft or which B-level free agent or trade they make next summer.  Hiring a real coach would probably get my attention.

As for other NHL games, I'm less interested there too.  At this point I'll turn on a game if I'm hanging out with my son, who's more of an NHL fan than I am, but not otherwise.  I prefer the NBA, and most of the time when I want to check out a random game, there is a good NBA game on.

Great job, KA!

 

[R_Dudley]

Great question.

Definitely losing interest in following the Sabers with how they have been playing Dr. Jeckel and Mr. Hyde from game to game. Thats a tough act to follow.

I used to get Center ice for a few years and watched a lot of teams/games because I do like hockey. Thats why I also follow the Pens locally here and they have been relevant during all these years that the Sabre's have not been (sans last year), so I do love hockey though and I guess why I still do follow the NHL and enjoy the game when its being played right way. What's the right way someone might say. It's a team game and needs the organization to be working together, Front office, Back Office, Coaching and players.  I saw that happen here in PGH with Crosby when he was the Kid captain take over the captain reins from Mario and watched him grow into that role and he's perfect example of what a captain needs to be for his team and organization. 

Still don't see that type of team in Buffalo but know it's the way all the top teams are constructed when you look at the Colorado's, Vegas, Lightning, Florida, Boston, etc. 

So, I'll keep hockey even if the Sabre's are just a dalliance till, they figure it out... 

[Pimlach]

We all go through subtle and slow changes in life.  When my kids were growing up and my career was important to me, I had less time for following sports.  I still followed sports, but the family and the career took precedence.  

After the Drury/Briere fiasco I started to lose interest in the Sabres, but was more into hockey because I had two sons in youth travel leagues, a big commitment.   The Bills were in the midst of the drought, so I had a reduced interest in football too.  

Now I’m retired. I have more time to watch football and hockey so I do.  

I would change a few things if I could:

1-  NFL Football has gotten very overblown on its coverage. I  think it should be scaled back.  Get rid of Thursday games, cut the playoffs back to 6 teams.  Stop games in Europe.   Make officials a full time job.  None of this will happen, I realize I’m being a dinosaur on this.   

2 - In hockey, I would stop expansion for quite awhile.  There are too many teams, we don’t see the great players enough, stop expansion.  I would start earlier in the fall, maybe cut some games out, adjust the season to end hockey by the end of April.  Hockey cannot compete with baseball in most US markets.  Most people here don’t even watch the SC playoffs unless their team is in it.  It’s sad.  I know this will not resonate with many Canadian fans though.  

3 - I wish they would stop showing gambling odds during the games.  Gambling is another dependency, like drugs and alcohol, that hurts people while making massive profits for a few. 
 

I realize that none of this will happen, but I subscribe to the  “less is more” theory in these cases. 

Edited January 11 by Pimlach

[mjd1001]

49 minutes ago, Pimlach said:

1-  NFL Football has gotten very overblown on its coverage. I  think it should be scaled back.  Get rid of Thursday games, cut the playoffs back to 6 teams.  Stop games in Europe.   Make officials a full time job.  None of this will happen, I realize I’m being a dinosaur on this.   

2 - In hockey, I would stop expansion for quite awhile.  There are too many teams, we don’t see the great players enough, stop expansion.  I would start earlier in the fall, maybe cut some games out, adjust the season to end hockey by the end of April.  Hockey cannot compete with baseball in most US markets.  Most people here don’t even watch the SC playoffs unless their team is in it.  It’s sad.  I know this will not resonate with many Canadian fans though.  

3 - I wish they would stop showing gambling odds during the games.  Gambling is another dependency, like drugs and alcohol, that hurts people will making massive profits for a few. 
 

I agree with all of those points.  With all sports, I want the ability to watch the game without they hype and gambling getting thrown in my face.  Its not happening though.

I have posted in the past that the Bills were always my first passion, Had season tickets from the time I was a teenager until I moved out of the area...would never miss a game for any reason..etc.  But I fell out of love with the Bills/NFL, and it was just in the past few year mostly (when they started to get good again.) The best reason I can think is I just get worn down by the coverage. Steven A. Smith yelling drives me crazy.  The non stop talk about who is the greatest ever, best team ever, best defense ever....it serves little purpose OTHER than to cause a discussion and getting people to argue with each other.   Basically, the NFL coverage has turned into the things in life I dislike the most...saying something controversial, or at least creating a discussion where people disagree (for ratings) and sitting back while people tear into each other.  Espn's shows, talk radio, forums, twitter (see the Dolphins and Bills fanbases last week tearing into each other's cities), it has become a battle that has been intentionally created for ratings and I want zero part of that.

With Hockey/NHL, we aren't there yet...but the problem is the team I like is just dreadful to watch and follow most of the time.

[msw2112]

23 hours ago, CallawaySabres said:

I can't remember ever losing interest in the Bills, even during the 17 year drought. I don't even remember losing interest in the Sabres during the tank years because I always knew something really great was right around the corner. 

Coming into this year, i thought that the waiting was over and this was going to be step 1 to plenty of years of consistent playoffs. Here we are, halfway through the season, and I got nothin, I mean...nothin. Even if this team went on to win its last 10 games of the season, being a STH after all these years is beyond dead. I have obviously been extremely down on this team over the years, but the last few weeks are different. I will never watch the beginning of the game, and unless Buffalo is up by 2 goals, the tv does not go on at all.

How does one go from being one of the biggest fans that I know...to really just writing off the sport all-together? Maybe I haven't, but right now, this is new territory. I have 6 center ice tickets for the game on Friday and none of my kids even want to go. The last 3 games we have attended have not only been losses, but games where the team has been booed off the ice.

I fear that coaching is not the only issue with this group. What if all this talent that we thought was on the verge of being stars are just decent hockey players and are way further away than we think. That is a scary thought to me and if it truly is the case, it may be years until I am back. I love this city more than anything and the only two teams I have ever cared about in my life are the Bills and Sabres. 

I really hope that I am wrong, but something just isn't right with this group and I don't think coaching will solve all the issues. A coach should not be responsible for getting these guys heads right every other night. If that drive is not instilled in you as a player already, you will never get it to surface. Add more players around you will similar drive, this is what you get. This group has sucked all the fun out of watching for me and I never thought I would see the day where it just makes sense to shut them out. It's the only way I know I will not get frustrated, and I don't need that emotion if I can simply choose to shut it down.

Hell, I am the person that made Lincoln Station in Chicago a Buffalo bar. If this team can do that to me, what damage has it done to the casual fan.... Go Bills, Go Sabes

Josh?

And yes, I agree with you.  It's very difficult to remain interested in the Sabres and the NHL during year after year of failure.  Just when things seemed to be on the upswing, it's the same old crap.  I like NHL hockey, but my sports-watching time is limited, so if the Sabres are not relevant, I'm fairly tuned out on the NHL.  With big time college players being well-known and moving on to the NFL, fantasy leagues, fewer games, and more access (ABC, CBS, FOX, ESPN, plus NFL games are on in virtually every bar, restaurant and airport lounge), the NFL is an easier product to stay in touch with, even if your team sucks.

Edited January 11 by msw2112

[LTS]

4 hours ago, Doohickie said:

To be honest, I think 13 seconds had a bigger effect on me than the 4 SB losses.  After Wide Right I thought it was likely we'd get back, and we did three more times, but with each SB loss it was a little more numbing.  The 13 seconds game... I really believed they would make it to the SB and win it all that year.  I was really down on the Bills when they were 5-5 and 6-6 this year.  This time it feels like they're playing with house money; everyone wrote them off but here they are.  I really hope they finally win it all but I'm just happy they didn't fold when it was bleak.

Interesting.  13 seconds irritated me but not to the same level.  What irritated me most I think was how cocksure everyone was about the Bills winning that game. I am pretty sure that was the first time I posted "You ain't won ****, until you win ****." 

In my head I maybe felt a little vindictive towards all those who were bragging so hard about the Bills. It was one kick to the nuts that people who had never been kicked in the nuts by the team needed to feel. I'm not saying it's right, but if the Bills do win it all, then people now will have the 13 seconds game to help put in perspective what an accomplishment a championship would be.

I still want them to win though.  No matter what happens, I was still born in Buffalo, spent 21 years there and only moved an hour away.  I want that city to experience a championship.  Especially after having been kicked in the nuts so many times.

[Marvin]

My health and my job prevent me from following hockey as much as I would like.  The Sabres' seemingly routine setbacks have taken a toll on my patience with the franchise.  The treatment I got at the games from some fans during The Tank soured me on going to games very often.  I still want them to win, but the passion has dissipated.

This year is worse than the last 2 years because I was starting to like this team, yet here they are disappointing us again.  They are still beset with problems.  I know they need to fix the assistant coaches at least and get a different blend of personnel on the ice.  Until that happens, I guess I should just keep doing what I am doing.

[sabrefanday1]

Interesting question...to be honest I loved hockey (watching, playing, and coaching all of which I did in years gone by). Living oin a pension now, money is tight so I guess I can thank the Sabres for saving me a ton of money as we use to drive down on a regular basis from north of Toronto to see games and stay at a local hotel then drive back the next day; I use to pay Bell big bucks for the center ice thingee so I could watch all Sabre games.

  Now? I rarely even bother to watch a Sabre game if Sportsnet has it free unless maybe afternoon game and nothing else to watch. It kills me cause I use to be such a huge Sabre fan (from Day One) and got my son loving them and then...boom! They crashed just when he started watching. I loved when Lindy was coach and Darcy was at the helm...now I do watch other teams when on free and I am amazed at the intensity of these teams when they play. You'd think that a game between Philly and say whoever was a playoff game. They play hard and crash the net and hit so much.

  When I try to watch a Sabre game you never know what you'll get now...some times they are quite good...other games they are pretty bad. So, I guess you'd say I have lost my passion for the team out of necessity (to save me heartache after heartache), but not necesssarily for the NHL in general as it still puts on a good show. And of course being Canadian, I grew up with hockey and stilllove the game. Playoffs are the best! For everybody but the Sabres of course!   

Edited January 11 by sabrefanday1

[PerreaultForever]

5 hours ago, Doohickie said:

What's wrong with that approach?  Yeah, I follow the NHL because of the Sabres and maybe I'm not really a fan of hockey by your definition.  So what?

I didn't say it was "wrong". Everybody can watch what they want for whatever reason they want. You can watch Sabres games if Marty Biron turns you on if you want or for any reason at all and that's fine, but if you don't like hockey if it's not the Sabres then you're not really a fan of hockey, you're a fan of the Sabres. That's all I said. No judgement. It's just different. 

[PerreaultForever]

5 hours ago, Doohickie said:

That's a valid take.  I live in the Dallas Stars market; here it's more about football and baseball in terms of the sports being played around here.  Hockey in the SW US is a sport of the elite, what with all the equipment needed and how much ice time costs, along with the fact that there are no neighborhood outdoor rinks here (they'd only be frozen a week or two out of the year at best, and many years would never freeze over if there were any).

I grew up in Buffalo though, so I do remember trying to skate on the flooded backyard rink, etc.

Ya, I grew up in Hamilton and fondly remember my dad making me the backyard rink. That was a long time ago and I don't think that's easy to do any more around there. Generally not cold enough any more. 

Lived in Ottawa for a while and skated on the canal. They rarely open that any more either. ice too thin and unstable now.

[Marvin]

1 hour ago, PerreaultForever said:

Ya, I grew up in Hamilton and fondly remember my dad making me the backyard rink. That was a long time ago and I don't think that's easy to do any more around there. Generally not cold enough any more. 

Lived in Ottawa for a while and skated on the canal. They rarely open that any more either. ice too thin and unstable now.

My nieces, nephews, etc. find the idea of skating on a frozen back yard locally or skiing to the grocery store to be virtually inconceivable because winters are so warm now.  I think they are really missing out.

[#freejame]

1 hour ago, PerreaultForever said:

I didn't say it was "wrong". Everybody can watch what they want for whatever reason they want. You can watch Sabres games if Marty Biron turns you on if you want or for any reason at all and that's fine, but if you don't like hockey if it's not the Sabres then you're not really a fan of hockey, you're a fan of the Sabres. That's all I said. No judgement. It's just different. 

You can be a massive hockey fan and not give two shits about the NHL or any of the teams. 

[CallawaySabres]

1 hour ago, sabrefanday1 said:

Interesting question...to be honest I loved hockey (watching, playing, and coaching all of which I did in years gone by). Living oin a pension now, money is tight so I guess I can thank the Sabres for saving me a ton of money as we use to drive down on a regular basis from north of Toronto to see games and stay at a local hotel then drive back the next day; I use to pay Bell big bucks for the center ice thingee so I could watch all Sabre games.

  Now? I rarely even bother to watch a Sabre game if Sportsnet has it free unless maybe afternoon game and nothing else to watch. It kills me cause I use to be such a huge Sabre fan (from Day One) and got my son loving them and then...boom! They crashed just when he started watching. I loved when Lindy was coach and Darcy was at the helm...now I do watch other teams when on free and I am amazed at the intensity of these teams when they play. You'd think that a game between Philly and say whoever was a playoff game. They play hard and crash the net and hit so much.

  When I try to watch a Sabre game you never know what you'll get now...some times they are quite good...other games they are pretty bad. So, I guess you'd say I have lost my passion for the team out of necessity (to save me heartache after heartache), but not necesssarily for the NHL in general as it still puts on a good show. And of course being Canadian, I grew up with hockey and stilllove the game. Playoffs are the best! For everybody but the Sabres of course!   

The bolded part is exactly how I feel. The Sabres just put me in a bad mood and now I am choosing to avoid that feeling by not tuning in unless they are closer to 8th. When they lose now, and I don't watch, it's like....ehh. Since playoffs are not even in the picture this year, my season is over with this crew.

[PerreaultForever]

6 hours ago, #freejame said:

You can be a massive hockey fan and not give two shits about the NHL or any of the teams. 

Well yes, just like I didn't say it was wrong, nowhere did I say it had to be NHL hockey. 

There's a women's league now too. That might be a new thing for some as well.