NHL Playoffs 2012: A Rangers vs. Kings Final Would Be NHL's Dream Come True

The NHL pales in comparison to the NFL in terms of national popularity, but professional hockey has one thing professional football wishes it could have again—a franchise based in Los Angeles. 

Both leagues have multiple storied organizations in the New York City metropolitan area that garner major media attention and television ratings each season, but the Kings give the NHL a small leg up on the big brother that is the NFL. 

Right now, the NHL is on the verge of an absolute dream Stanley Cup Final between the New York Rangers and Los Angeles Kings.

Here's why.

Since the lockout was lifted in 2005, the NHL has sold its "new game" to fans with tweaked rules that increase scoring chances and goals because, regardless of the sport, we have an intrinsic attraction to offense. 

Luckily for commissioner Gary Bettman, supremely talented playmakers like Sidney Crosby, Alex Ovechkin, Evgeni Malkin and Patrick Kane burst onto the scene over the last seven seasons. 

The NHL has relentlessly pushed to make Ovechkin and Crosby—players with unparalleled skill—household names and sponsorship icons by placing them in prime-time contests and in their famed Winter Classic played on New Year's Day.  

For the most part, it succeeded in its mission. The NHL strategically highlighted its most exciting and marketable offensive players. 

However, Ovechkin's fiery demeanor and outrageous sniping abilities have been trumped by overall postseason disappointment and ultimate failure. 

During his time with the Capitals, Ovechkin has not advanced past the second round. 

Crosby's Pittsburgh Penguins have accomplished much more, including a 2009 Stanley Cup title. The issue with Crosby has been recurring injuries. He most notably suffered a high ankle sprain in 2008 and a concussion in the 2011 Winter Classic that lingered into this season.

With a few worrisome question marks surrounding its biggest players and a desire to increase interest on the West Coast, a Kings vs. Rangers final would be an exquisite matchup for the NHL. 

It can only sell Ovechkin vs. Crosby for so long. 

Not only do the Kings play in our nation's second-biggest TV market, but they're young, exciting, an underdog No. 8-seed steamrolling through the postseason and loaded with talent. Talent that has limitless on-ice and advertising potential. 

Remember the stir Wayne Gretzky caused when he took his talents to Hollywood?

The NHL could be in for a second, more captivating installment.

Wouldn't the NHL love to have its own "big-name" team in L.A. like the Lakers or Dodgers? The league is dying for the Kings to rise from obscurity. Now's their chance.

Dustin Brown, the team's captain, is a 27-year-old American with flair and the deceptive skills to create huge plays for his team. 

He's got 13 points (seven goals, six assists) this postseason and has totaled at least 53 points every regular season since 2007.

A young Chris Drury. 

Jeff Carter and Mike Richards are well-known names that were key cogs in the many successful and frequently featured Philadelphia Flyers teams over the years.

Anze Kopitar, a Yugoslavian/Slovenian goal-scorer with crafty puck-handling skills and a wicked wrist shot, plays the role of the sniper from across the pond. 

Goalie Jonathan Quick was a member of the U.S. national team that won a silver medal at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver. 

The 2012 L.A. Kings are easily one of the most compelling teams in hockey. Until their recent run through the postseason, nobody knew it. 

We all know the New York Rangers, an NHL institution. They play in Madison Square Garden and their Big Apple fans are as rabid as anywhere else. 

They've got star power in Brad Richards, Ryan Callahan, assassin Marion Gaborik and stonewall goaltender Henrik Lundqvist. 

Both teams are currently leading their respective conference finals. 

There's just something about witnessing our nation's two population Goliaths going head-to-head for a professional sports championship that elicits interest from not only the millions of fans from those respective cities, but all of us. Big population equals big interest.

Although it'd lack the old-school luster of a Dodgers vs. Yankees World Series or a Knicks vs. Lakers NBA Finals, if the Kings and Rangers advance to create hockey's first Los Angeles vs. New York City Stanley Cup series, they'll break ratings records and generate a new buzz in pro hockey felt from the Hollywood Hills to the Statue of Liberty. 

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