Original Six Love

Original 6, original 6, original 6. It is a saying that only holds value in the NHL. No other sport talks about the foundings of it as much as hockey does. In no other sport are 6 teams as important to its success, and it's failure. For years the NHL had been dominated by the Montreal Canadians, Toronto Maple Leafs, Detroit Red Wings, Boston Bruins, Chicago Blackhawks, and New York Rangers. That was until this awful idea that the NHL had to expand to all reaches of North America. Cities that had and deserved teams were moved to places like sunny Southern California or Ft. Lauderdale "F***ing" Florida. I think it is time we put our foot down and say that the life and death of the NHL rests in the Original 6.

Gary Bettman is looking down (or up) from his seat thinking about how lucky he is that were 4 Original 6 teams in this years Stanley Cup Playoffs. 5 of the Original 6 teams are in the Top 10 of their respective countries regarding Television markets, with Detroit being the lone-one on the outside at number 11. As the Original 6 teams succeed, so does the NHL. A sign that maybe we never should have expanded after all...here's to you Columbus Blue Jackets for destryong everything awesome, here's to you.

My favorite player from each Original 6 team:

Montreal Canadians: Jacques Lemaire

Won a remarkable 8 Stanley Cups with the Montreal Canadians dominace of the late 60s-70s. Between him and Bobby Hull, it was close call who had the most powerful slapshot at the time. Can also be attributed as the person who destroyed hockey, by his developement of the "Trap"

Toronto Maple Leafs: Wendel "Captain Crunch" Clark

Most known for his bone-crushing hits and kick-ass moustache. Honorable Mention: Barry Melrose

Detroit Red Wings: Gordie "Mr. Hockey" Howe

All that I can think about is how many decades this man played through, as well as the oft-mentioned "Gordie Howe Hatrick" which includes a goal an assist and a fight. When I have a child, I will teach him to play hockey just like that. Left it all on the ice.

Boston Bruins: Bobby Orr

Man, from everything that I have read, heard and seen this kid could fly. I love how he flies under the radar today, living quietly. But that's how he played...flew on the ice, quietly did his job and moved on. Who can forget the "Superman Goal".

Chicago Blachawks: Tony Amonte

I loved him on the Rangers, but he had his best years as part of the Chicago Blackhawks organization. The guy scored 30 goals 5 times, and 40 goals 3 times without missing a game in a 5 year span. Goal-scoring and resilience...that is impressive.

New York Rangers: Joey Kocur

Few people knew that Joey Kocur was actually the third goalie on the 1994 New York Rangers team tha tone the Stanley Cup. But I feel as though this man's work ethic on and office the ice was New York. Hey, do you want to fight him?