Withdrawal Symptoms

So, we're halfway through the weekend, and the Blaze are already done until next week, which means no Elite League hockey at the Skydome this week. This meant that last night saw me at the Skydome, along with a few hundred other hardy souls, for a dose of hockey methadone in the shape of the ENL.

And, despite even the thought of only having an ENL game to watch at the Skydome only existing deep in my darkest nightmares even as recently as the summer, it wasn't that bad...

But that isn't the main point of this post. Yes, it's another "what the hell is going on in British hockey" post...which'll ramble through economics, psychology and perhaps even romance before we're done...

"I see....a bad moon rising.
I see...trouble on the way"
Creedence Clearwater Revival: Bad Moon Rising

Unless you've been under a rock for the past week or two, you can't have failed to notice that all is not well at the lower end of the EIHL table. Hull have lost their franchise player Rick Kozak (some say down to his reluctance to be "Strachanized", some say because he's an arrogant sod who threw a hissy fit at Jake Riddle being cut, and some claiming money issues-you can follow the reaction in Hull at the F-Block Blog) and we all know what's occurring at Basingstoke at the moment.

And of course, now the solutions are flying. The best one I've read thus far comes from Robb over at The Pyre-but the point he makes about some saying that everyone should drop to EPL level is relevant because, believe it or not, that's precisely the debate going on in Basingstoke at the moment, and it's got three camps.
The Bison will survive the season-sod discussing the future, let's get behind them (otherwise known as the Happy Bunch)
The Bison don't deserve (harsh view)/can't sustain (reasonable view) being in the EIHL any longer, and should drop for the good of themselves and the game (almost everyone else).
The Bison made their beds. Sod 'em. (Some EPL fans)

I find it amazing that any mention of a team dropping or climbing leagues, even when there's compelling arguments for them to do so (and in Basingstoke's case there certainly is) can provoke such an emotional response-even from people not remotely connected to them-on THF and other forums the third camp is extremely vocal, with their arguments being along the lines of "Why should the EPL accept Basingstoke anyway-they chose EIHL and we're fine without them"

I have one word for that argument...Bollocks. The essential fact is that no team in British hockey is guaranteed to be stable. The hard-line EPL fans seem to take great delight in the troubles of EIHL clubs, while conveniently forgetting that, this season alone, Telford were within 24 hours of death, Chelmsford have already gone (at least from the EPL) due to money issues, and Romford have their backs to the wall. That makes the fact that the EIHL only has one club in seeming real trouble look positively rosy, does it not?
Some are far more stable than others, but this season in particular is evidence that it only takes one or two events to push teams over the edge, business plan or no business plan.

Would reducing the number of imports make economic sense? Perhaps. But this is of course assuming that the standard dropping (and it will, at least in the short term) doesn't drive those who've only ever been used to a high level of hockey, or even those who can remember a high level of hockey (i.e the Scottish clubs, particularly Fife and Dundee) out of the door-which I don't think it will, at least for those who actually love the game rather than the simple fact that their team is always winning because it pays the most. So, we're agreed that dropping the level of imports isn't necessarily a bad thing. At least in pure economic terms. As long as the standard doesn't drop dramatically.

Now to part two-the psychology-this is the thing that's been causing most of the arguments-and indeed the problems.
People always like to think they're watching the best product available. EIHL fans claim it's theirs due to the higher quality (in general) of import attracted. EPL fans claim theirs, because the games are closer. However, both sets of fans are similar, in that they are now almost psychologically programmed with the mantra, beaten into them for many years by teams arguing why they want to play with as many imports as the budget and rules allow, of "less imports = worse hockey". This is particularly true among those fans who have perhaps never seen their team climb a league (or, to be fair) drop one since they've been watching. Which leads me to conclude thus...

The only thing holding back change in British hockey to a system that works for everyone, at least from the fans' side, is this:
Mass fear of the unknown.

I'm not saying that no fans want change. Quite clearly the opposite is true. But many only want change which will keep that which they already know and are used to, whether that be Sheffield playing Nottingham and hyping it up ridiculously five or six times a season, Guildford being one of the big fish in the EPL, or ENL and Scottish teams playing to only a few hundred people.

And that is an attitude which is eventually going to kill the sport.

Too many woes are placed squarely on the shoulders of the fragmented governmental structure of hockey in this country, or on the egos of a few owners. But while there is no doubt that these are issues, the main problems, and perhaps the reason that nothing substantial ever gets done, is because there are two few people such as Robb at the Pyre, who will stand up and say "actually, both parts of the current system are rubbish. What is needed is a way to bring them together. And if you don't want to commit to that, then clearly you have no interest in seeing the sport thrive in this country".

The moment the fans of British hockey, as a whole, stop dividing themselves into camps such as "EPL fans", "EIHL fans" or God only knows what else and simply say "we support British hockey, and we want it sorted NOW!" is the moment things will eventually start happening.

But, to be honest, I'm not holding my breath.

Keep keeping your eye on the puck...