Can the NHL be saved by the NHL?

That's the theme of a good post at the NYT's Slap Shot blog. In Jeff Klein's view, the past decade was mostly a disaster until the first Winter Classic was staged on Jan. 1, 2008, in front of 71,000 people in the Buffalo Bills' stadium.

Give the piece a read. I'm curious what others think. As a relatively new pro hockey fan, I find the game terribly exciting but remain puzzled by several aspects -- the bland marketing, the absence from television, the often poor writing about it in the media, teams in odd locales, a season that goes on forever, etc.

Am I alone in these views? Or just seeing what other hockey fans see?

--Steve Hymon

photo: New York Times