I missed this a few days ago...

from Roy MacGregor of the Globe and Mail,

It is not as if there are no Canadians still involved. The Anaheim Ducks, the team that eliminated Calgary, have eight Canadians, including their captain, Ryan Getzlaf, and both assistants, Corey Perry and François Beauchemin. The Tampa Bay Lightning, the team that put the Canadiens out, has seven Canadians on the roster, including captain Steven Stamkos.

But it is just not the same. The Canadiens might have an American and a Russian as assistant captains but the team is still very much Canadian.

Speculation as to why Canadian teams now regularly come up short range from bad luck to bad drafting to an inability to attract the blue-chip free agents that are widely believed to be the difference makers in the postseason. Whether they will not come because of the weather, taxes or spouses wishing their families to avoid the intensity of the spotlight hardly matters – the very best don’t seem to come north.

Once there is no Canadian team to cheer for – or cheer against, which is equally important in sports – there is not much attraction to be found in a game reduced to chip and chase, blocked shots, gigantic goaltenders and low-scoring games that now seem never to feature the sort of glory goals children are scoring in their driveways at this time of year.

It has created a situation in this country where the climax of the season is no longer the day in June when the championship is decided, but a season that peaks in the opening round of the playoffs, might continue into a second round – but then enters a denouement wherein interest slips steadily, even if the televisions remain on.

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