The following post was written by Chuck (@clkirch). It’s his debut on not only my blog but anywhere on the web. Read and comment, maybe he’ll make an appearance here more often.
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Let’s start off by saying I don’t dispute the fact that the NHL needs more rivalries but this article, NHL Misses Yet Another Chance to Amp Up Rivalries,  rubbed me the wrong way.  Simply put the All-Star game has always been and always will be a extremely high skilled pick-up game.  Players and owners hold their breath the weekend of the All-Star game praying that no one gets hurt.

However, the NHL ‘higher-ups’ could have overruled the voting system in order to bring the fans a more heated battle – making the All-Star game just as passionate, if not more, than a regular season – or even post-season – game.

The NHL has dropped the ball here. The All-Star game is a perfect venue to fuel the fire beneath some quickly cooling rivalries.

If you want better rivalry, as far as an All-Star setting, it would be better created with a country against country game.   For example the Canda Cup ’72.

The NHL didn’t drop the ball puck(?) on building rivalries, the All-Star game isn’t the opportunity to build them.  They would have been quickly built with the realignment that the players voted down.

For the record, I would have liked to see the realignment take place to have  home and home games because that really would have amped up rivalries.