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Watched a little bit of hockey last night and I have to admit it put me in a very bad mood. It is tough to watch knowing that a season’s worth of work has not offered me a chance at the Stanley Cup. As a pro athlete we always can recover and gain motivation from a failure or a set back, but there really are only so many opportunities to win a championship and that is what really eats at you over a summer.

 

From my experience in the last two years going to the conference finals I would say that the NHL’s newest ad campaign is the best explanation that anyone can come up with... “the Cup changes everything.” The game itself doesn’t change, it is still about executing a system and playing hockey… but the collective attitude of a team and the focus in a player can increase. I think that is what makes the Playoffs great.

 

The first night had some exciting games and I have been getting caught up on the highlights but mainly I have been catching up with everyone back home in East Lansing, Michigan. I drove the five hours home from Buffalo yesterday and am settling in to a little down time. I got to hang with my godson, Riley, for the first time in eight months. We played a little basement hockey… the only hockey I will be playing for a few months.





Tune in to Stretch on Maxim Radio on Sirius Satellite Radio each Wednesday morning at 11am ET for NHL All-Star goalie Ryan Miller's weekly Stanley Cup Playoffs report.