Have the Stanley Cup Playoffs Become Stale?

Farbeit for me as a die-hard hockey fan to say that I won't watch the Stanley Cup Finals.

I'm just not so sure I'll be as enthusiastic about them as I was about the hockey playoffs as a whole when they began a month and a half ago.

I've always prided myself on watching as many hockey games as I possibly could, even if the game involved two teams I didn't care about or even hated.

Why? Because the sport still fascinates me after nearly 20 years of watching. I almost always learn something new during every game, be it about the game itself or the players and coaches who put on the show.

Every year, I live for the playoffs. I'll make it no secret that I'm a Flyers fan, and since my team has perennially been in the playoff picture (save for that atrocious season two years ago) it's been relatively easy for me to find interest.

Beyond that, however, I enjoy the raw emotion and excitement that the playoffs bring with them. Every series produces some sort of intrigue that demands attention.

And up until the beginning of this year's Conference Finals, I can honestly say that was true.

You had Detroit and Chicago, two original-six rivals, set to battle it out in what should have been an absolute war.

You had Pittsburgh and Carolina, teams that each have a Staal brother competing for them, competing for bragging rights.

However, once the teams took the ice, almost all entertainment value was lost unless you're a Detroit or Pittsburgh fan. Both series ended in what can only be classified as blowouts, even though there were a few close games.

Fair credit is due to the Red Wings and the Penguins. They played their best and earned their right to be in the Stanley Cup Finals.

I am almost always at work while the evening games are being played, but usually I turn the TV up in the room next door to my office so I can at least hear what's going on.

For the first time that I can remember, I actually muted the TV during Game Four of the Eastern Conference Finals, feeling that I could do this game enough justice by walking in every 10 minutes to see the score.

I ended up doing the same thing the next night for what turned out to be the final game in the Western Conference Finals. I had lost that much interest.

This is not the fault of anyone in particular. And by no means am I suggesting that the Red Wings or Penguins should have intentionally lost a game here or there just to "make it interesting."

I'm merely saying that as a hockey fan in general, it's tough to be compelled to watch a series when one team has a commanding lead.

My hope is that the Stanley Cup Finals will bring back a renewed interest, and be a fairlyeven matchup. While the same two teams from last year are back, this time around it's definitely a much different story.

What interests me right now is that this is the Penguins' second chance—can they capitalize on it?

As I mentioned before, I'm a Flyers fan, and this might be blasphemy, but part of me really wants them to pull this one off for one reason and one reason only—the only thing worse than a boring Finals matchup is the same team winning it twice in a row.

Like I said before, domination by any team that's not yours is boring. It's almost frustrating because sometimes they make it look so easy.

Have the playoffs become stale? Maybe not as a whole, but the Conference Finals were not series that will stick out in my mind.

If the Finals don't turn out to be interesting, I'm not about to jump ship and say "to heck with hockey." But I certainly won't feel as much of a void as I have in past summers.