one last gripe

I hope this is the last time I bitch about this.

I'm sort of a sentimental guy. Although it's a painful thing to go through, I like the "this is our last goodbye" stuff. However, this NHL lockout and cancellation of this season has unceremoniously brought about the retirement of some of the best players who ever laced them up. In all likelihood, fans across North America won't get to see SuperMario Lemieux, Mark Messier, Steve Yzerman, Ron Francis, or Brett Hull play their last games against (or for) our home team, because we already have. Even if you're not a hockey fan, you're certainly familiar with most of these names. These guys are each in the top ten all-time in goals, assists, and points. Okay, Francis doesn't have the goals to make the top ten, and Hull doesn't have the assists or total points. But I'm talking ALL-TIME. These five guys are in the top ten in the history of the NHL in these offensive categories. They're all also into their forties, and can still make the young phenoms look silly. Francis and Messier were already on the fence anyway, so consider them done. Lemieux, Hull and Yzerman are each rumored to have said the lockout and cancellation would be enough to make them retire.

The point is, I'm just sad that we couldn't send these players off in style. Remember Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's final season in the NBA? That's the kind of thing I'm talking about.

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