If you have picked up your local paper, you know that hockey rarely rates more than a cursory mention in the sports pages, even when your local team is on the ice. Local television coverage is not much better. The NHL has done a good job of disseminating information through alternative sources, such as its website and through local and national bloggers. We are fortunate here in our area to have a number of very good bloggers that provide insight not only on our beloved Predators, but on the state of hockey in all markets. Two of those local bloggers are Buddy and Jackson Oakes who write the Preds on the Glass blog and Dirk Hoag who pens the blog On the Forecheck (also known as the Forechecker). Both blogs are linked on the right side of this blog, and I encourage the readers that are gracious enough to visit my blog to take a look at their blogs for new insight and perspectives on the Predators and hockey in general. I have written several recent posts about what is happening in Phoenix. Buddy Oakes does an internet radio show on Mondays, and this past show included and interview with Travis Hair who writes a blog in Phoenix called Five for Howling. Go to Buddy's site and click on the link to BlogTalk Radio and take a listen for the unique local perspective from Phoenix about the Coyotes, their bankruptcy filing, and the state of hockey in that area.
While the mainstream media continues to abdicate their role in covering hockey, others are picking up the torch and providing excellent coverage of this great game. Take a listen or a glance at these blogs to get the news we need.
Thanks for the kind comments. The work of the local Hockey blogging community is a good as that in many of the "traditional" markets. While we all look at the same thing it comes out in different and interesting ways based on each blog's "personality" for lack of a better word. It has been a fun year that all the local writers have been able to get together at the Tweet-up and other places and get to know each other. The local coverage will only get better through you and all the other folks that blog with passion and love of what we do. Encouragement from readers and each other makes it all worth while. If some of the folks who think we (and Phoenix and others) don't "deserve" a team would look a little closer, they would see a fan base that doesn't take their team for granted and has bloggers make up for what the traditional MSM doesn't always provide. It's easy to be a fan when you get 30 minutes of hockey news on Sportscenter and four pages in the sports section every day. Our fans work a little harder to stay informed. Thanks again for the written pat on the back.
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