The NHL's Lazy, Hazy, Crazy Days

Some sports stories get recycled, year after year. Like this one:

"Grey's Anatomy" is done for the season, "Lost" is about to do the same and an Idol is set to be crowned. The Yankees have fallen into a nightmare and the NFL held its draft. And still, the sports winter lingers. Make it end.

That's Tara Sullivan at NorthJersey.com, who says the NBA and NHL should have wrapped up business by now. With temperatures (finally) climbing all over North America, the length of the hockey season is a topic of derision even in Canada.

It only gets worse from here. The Stanley Cup Final will likely begin on Saturday begins Monday, May 28. Until then, all we get is Game Six and (if necessary) Game Seven of the Western Conference Final. With such a sparse schedule competing with such good weather, plenty of casual fans will drift away by next weekend.

I've long argued that the NHL regular season should be shortened, so that the Stanley Cup Final ends before June begins. By burying the NHL's showcase series in the middle of summer, the current schedule does a disservice to the game.

Some historical perspective:

• The first Stanley Cup game in April:
  April 1, 1920. The original Ottawa Senators defeat the Seattle Metropolitans 6-1 on the artificial ice of Toronto's Mutual Arena. Beginning in the 1930s, the Stanley Cup Final will usually be played in early-to-mid April, ending as late as April 23 in 1950 and April 25 in 1964.
• The first Stanley Cup game in May:
  May 1, 1965. Montreal's 4-0 win over Chicago clinches the Cup. From then on, the playoffs stretch into May every year.
• The first Stanley Cup game in June:
  June 1, 1992. Pittsburgh beats Chicago 6-5 to sweep the Blackhawks and win a second straight Stanley Cup. They've been playing in June ever since.
• The latest date ever for a Stanley Cup game:
  June 24, 1995. New Jersey's 5-2 win over Detroit completes a sweep of the Red Wings. With the 1994-95 season delayed by a labor dispute, it was May before the playoffs even started.