By Joe Becker

No hockey this weekend. I missed watching it. The Stanley Cup Finals open tomorrow when Ottawa plays at Anaheim at 5pm on the Versus network.

NBC will pick up the series for game three next Saturday in Ottawa. I hope the ratings are better than last weekend. I couldn't believe it. Well,
yes I can. Get this. Last Sunday Championship Poker had better ratings than the Stanley Cup Playoffs. It was a great game too! Anaheim beat Detroit 2-1 in Overtime. More people in Portland watched Poker than the NHL.

You might say the NHL didn't play their cards right. Missing the 2004-2005 season wasn't a good thing.

As most of you know...I grew up in St. Louis. I used to watch the Blues a lot when I was a kid. We would go to the old Arena in St. Louis and get in for less than three dollars. That's right. Standing room only tickets were just $2.75. I saw Gordie Howe, Bobby Hull, Bobby Orr and the great Blues goalies Glenn Hall and Jacques Plante. Legendary coach Scotty Bowman was the Blues Coach the first few years. Bowman went on to win a record 9 Stanley Cup Titles with Montreal, Detroit and Pittsburgh.
I still love hockey. If you get the chance....drive to Vancouver, B.C. to see a game.
Saw the Canucks and Edmonton there. What a blast.

Did you know that Portland had a team play for the Stanley Cup? The Portland Rosebuds were in the Pacific Coast Hockey Association and played the Montreal Canadiens of the National Hockey Association for the Stanley Cup in 1916. Montreal won the Cup three games to two.

The Rosebuds were the first American based team to play for the Stanley Cup. If they had TV back then...how much you want to bet more people would be watching hockey than poker?

Portland needs an NHL team.

Enjoy the Stanley Cup Finals on NBC.