Ice hockey? ICE HOCKEY?!? Don't ever call it that in front of a Canadian unless you want a demonstration of the old stick through the head trick (tm Dave Brown)...or so I've heard anyway. "Ice" in the previous phrase is unnecessary. It's kind of like saying water swimming. It might also suggest to the uninitiated that field hockey is a legitimate activity or something other than heresy.
Personally I was horrified when the North Stars moved to Texas, but hockey in southern states is no longer just a novelty. Dallas, Atlanta, Nashville, Phoenix, 2 teams in Florida, 3 teams in California...apparently its here, or rather, there to stay. I guess it's a good thing, growing the sport and all but it does seem a bit odd if you stop and think about it. But not too odd. After all hockey is a fast, hard hitting, manly sport (not that women can't or don't play). You can't make me believe that the average southern sports fan would rather watch a boring wussie game like volleyball.
