Five Reasons to Watch the NHL

In case you didn't hear about it (and Martha Burk is doing her best to make sure that you do), the NHL is back from its lockout of stupidity and looking to break the ice with fans new and old. It's not your dad's NHL — or even your older brother's — but a sleeker, sexier, faster NHL. Or at least that's what their marketing team wants you to believe.

Will they be successful? They certainly have the means to be — it'll come down to execution to see if everything works. Here are five reasons why the NHL might be better than ever:

1) Bye Bye, Obstruction

Boy, Gary Bettman and Co. really mean it this time. Seriously. Honestly. They promise. This time, it's for real. The annual crackdown on obstruction gets another go. This time, head of officiating Stephen Walkom says that it will stick. Why? Because every official's job, along with the league's popularity, is on the line. This time, it might actually work though. Almost every player (sans slowpoke gripers like Derian Hatcher) have stated their support of the zero tolerance rule standard. They know that a faster game means more entertainment for fans. And that translates into revenue which, of course, the players now get a portion of.

2) New Faces, New Places

Peter Forsberg's in Philly. J.R.'s gone Hollywood. Someone named [Paul] Kariya decided to explore Music City. What's happened? Parity and a salary cap — exactly what Gary Bettman promised small-market clubs. After the CBA was signed, an unprecedented three-week period of free agent signings brought headlines to non-traditional hockey markets such as Nashville and Columbus. Former big budget teams, such as Detroit and Colorado, openly wept over the salary cap crunch. The bottom line? More star players scattered further throughout the league, meaning more parity, and more competition — and hopefully, a better product.

3) The Kids Are All Right

Hello, Sidney Crosby, Alexander Ovechkin, Jeff Carter, Kari Lehtonen, and some of the most talented rookies in a single NHL entry class. Of course, it's actually two rookie classes instead of one, but that's just a technicality. Combine that with a group of young veterans such as Ilya Kovalchuk, Rick Nash, Vincent Lecavalier, and Jarome Iginla, and suddenly, the NHL appears to be in good hands. We'll notice on the ice — will the NHL marketing team handle it correctly?

4) No More Ugly Ties

Hockey purists cringe, but the shootout is in. Of course, when don't hockey purists cringe? They cringed when the league expanded past six teams, then to 21, then to 30. They cringed when the rover was removed from the ice, when goalie gear was allowed to expand, and now that it's going back down. Even now, Harry Sinden is whining about how clutching and grabbing is part of the game. Wake up folks, sports is evolutionary. More importantly, it's entertainment. Shootouts are entertaining — at least to the masses. And catering to the masses is the only way the NHL will grow.

5) See You Next Week

You know those critical four-point games between division rivals coming down the stretch in February and March? Well, they're about to be a lot more critical — and common. The NHL has revamped its schedule to boost the amount of inter-division play from six games to eight games. Unfortunately, he amount of cross-division play is being sacrificed, as the league moves towards a rotating division system similar to the NFL's. Some teams will be missed — the Leafs, Rangers, and Red Wings are a big draw wherever they go — but many fans will salivate to get another go at their most hated local rival, especially if it means another opportunity to bury their opponent further.