Interestingly, we aren't alone in the "woe is us" boat. It appears at the moment, as the season heads to March, that most of the Metro Division, except for Philly, is now in a rut also. It almost feels as if the strong competition in the Metro this year has spurred the teams that have been toward the top to efforts to maintain or improve their position, and they are now hitting a wall, while Philly and the Rangers, two teams lying toward the bottom and "waiting in the weeds" are now coming on stronger. With regard to the Caps, JJ Regan had been predicting this drop-off ever since November.
There can be a psychological advantage to being a team that no one is really paying attention to. And there can be psychological burdens attached to great expectations. I prefer to look at it as the ebbs and flows of a long, wearing season that, in the end, doesn't mean squat to a lot of fans, as long as their team makes the playoffs.
Pretty good info, and interesting observation on the Metro situation, Black!👍
With the exception of the Pens and Islanders, I hadn’t been keeping very close tabs on our fellow Metro buddies lately!
As you’ve mentioned, both Pittsburgh and Islanders have been slumping, while Philly has been quite hot, and the Rangers are also making themselves heard!
At the time of this post, the Islanders have already lost again today, and Pittsburgh is down one nothing in the second period to a near bottom feeder San Jose team, and the Pens lost yesterday as well!
Definitely agree also with both the mental advantages, and pressures that you’ve mentioned, can come with being at the top, OR, being hidden somewhere in the middle of the league!
Lastly, I think you hit on a good subject having to do with fans, and the attitudes, they retain, throughout the season, as they experience the ups and downs, as their team drives towards the playoffs!
As you say, while also allying yourself, with those many multitudes of fans who are more tolerable, or accepting, of the regular season, “ebbs and flows”, SO LONG AS, their team gets to the playoffs.
This really does help to define, and understand better, for me, as an old schooler, the many, many, fans that aren’t as rattled about the ups and downs, VS, the many, like me, who get quite unnerved, and are less tolerant, and the “ebbs and flows”, DO mean squat, even though their team makes the playoffs!
It helps illuminate the ways, two different groups of fans view their hockey fan experience!
Sincerely, I say that neither view is right, wrong, better or worse, than the other! It’s more like different ways to slice an apple, and it’s very interesting to be aware of, IMO!!👍
The group of fans, of your ilk, seem to see things more in the MACRO, where the overarching goal, and top priority, is making the playoffs, with a LESSER emphasis/focus, on examining how we played, in order to ARRIVE, at playoff time!!👍
Resulting in LESS anxiety during the season, as long as the playoffs are made, but possibly experiencing a bigger disappointment, than the other fan group, if the team doesn’t make the playoffs! Knowing WHY they didn’t make the playoffs doesn’t help much, as the team just didn’t fulfill their goal!
The fan group I tend to be like, seem to see it more MICRO, where focus on the details, that contribute to our teams shortcomings, throughout the season, are EXTREMELY IMPORTANT, as it fulfills a more stronger desire, even possibly a NEED, to understand and make sense, personally to us, as to WHY, our team either DID, or DID NOT, make the playoffs!!👍
This may result in more anxiety during the regular season, and of course, great disappointment if their team doesn’t qualify for the playoffs, however, accompanied with a sense of understanding as to why it all happened, adding some possible help with acceptance!
Ya know, it is kind of funny to imagine all the members that I see posting here, as to whether they fall more likely into the first or second group, MACRO, or MICRO, or a little bit of both!!😁😁
Both groups ways of thinking, are hopefully designed to lessen the suicide rate amongst ALL fans, if we God forbid, DON’T make the playoffs!!😂🤣😂
Good post Black!
Rush
UPDATE: Hens LOSE to the Sharks, 5-0!!👍👍👍
( you’re right Black, we’re not the only ones with “WOES“)😁
