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Seven Wonders of the Hockey World

Here's something silly to keep you occupied during this week. As detailed below, there are a new "Seven Wonders of the World", as voted upon in a worldwide internet survey (is there any better way to decide an issue? Of course not, wrote the intrepid blogger).

So here's your challenge - what would be considered the Seven Wonders of the Hockey World? If you had a shortlist of hockey-related trips you could make, which would make the cut? My suggestions are included a little further down, and include either places or specific events. Sound off in the comments, and next week I'll summarize the results.

Update: Greg Wyshynski over at the Fanhouse has chimed in with some hilarious suggestions, including Lanny McDonald's mustache and Don Cherry's closet...





Some items for consideration (some of them obvious, some of them my personal additions):

  1. The Hockey Hall of Fame: duh.

  2. The Stanley Cup Finals: double-duh.

  3. The World Ice Hockey Championships: Held in Europe each spring, they're largely ignored by North American fans focusing on the NHL playoffs.

  4. Madison Square Garden: The "World's Most Famous Arena" has been the stage for some fierce battles over the years, some of which have even taken place on the ice.

  5. Joe Louis Arena: It's not quite 30 years old, but it feels like it belongs to another time in this age of spacious concourses and luxury boxes.

  6. The Minnesota high school hockey tournament: 100,000+ fans each spring can't be wrong.

  7. The Victoria Skating Rink: Sure, it's a parking garage now, but back in 1875 it hosted the first known indoor ice hockey game.

  8. The National Hockey League offices: Because who wouldn't love the opportunity to moon Gary Bettman as he left the building one day?

  9. Yost Ice Arena: Home to the University of Michigan Wolverines (and where I began my adult rec-hockey career almost 20 years ago), it's a cozy little barn that provides by far the most entertaining action on a campus better known for top football programs.


That's enough to get you started, so fire away with your suggestions, from the big-time NHL stadia down to the hallowed rinks of local legend. Besides, it's 92-friggin' degrees down here (that's 33 for you hosers), and I could use something to rekindle memories of ice-cold winters...
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