Author: Wick

When I’m able to watch a Redwings playoff game at home, I have a few patterns I follow. IBC, my hockey stick, wearing a jersey, and oh yes….the playoff beard. Mine is coming in nicely.

Do I actually believe these small rituals are contributing to the win of my team? Probably not. But it’s called being a fan. A fanatic. It’s a connection to my team. It’s part of following and experiencing it all. There is a respect and long built reverence for ritual that is not akin to worship, but more along the lines of having something “worth” value in today’s anything goes mentality. To some, it may be silly. But to a hockey fan…you nod, understanding exactly what I’m talking about.

Last night, that respect and reverence was thrown aside as if it were simply an old snake skin, no longer necessary or valuable. Sidney Crosby led the charge against such reverence and superstition, as his team won the Eastern Conference Finals. When awarded the Prince of Wales trophy, every hockey player knows….

You smile. You take pictures near it. You shake hands with the man presenting it. You do NOT touch it. Lord Stanley’s Cup is the only trophy you’re anticipating, and desiring to celebrate. All other awards and trophies on the way to the Cup will be celebrated in it’s wake.

But no. Sidney Crosby did that last year. He respected tradition, only to realize that by not winning the cup, he missed out on his only opportunity to hoist this trophy when the cameras were watching, and get some press.

This year, he knew the same would happen. He knows that as they face the Wings in the finals, he will not get anymore opportunities to bask in the glory of any trophy hoisting. So, stomping on years of tradition and the reverence built up for generations….he grabbed the Prince of Wales Trophy, desperate for any press and media attention he could get. Many of his team followed suit, after all…he is the captain.

Watch a real hockey team tonight. As the Detroit Redwings finish their round against Chicago. As they are presented the Clarence Campbell Bowl for the Western Conference. As they smile, and shake hands, and look forward to the REAL celebration that is to come.

It’s been a while since I posted an NHL update. So here it goes:

Chicago began pretty decent. In the first period of the first game. Since then, even with Detroit having major players out with injuries, Chicago has lost composure. The most recent game reveals that for sure. The Blackhawks were nesting in the penalty box much more than usual that night, throwin’ ‘bows and takin’ cheap shots to make up for their inability to score OR stop the puck.

Not to mention their Coach, who took a $10,000 fine for publicly criticizing league officials for properly officiating the game. 🙂

Over all, it shows the amazing depth of talent that runs deep in the Detroit Redwings team. Which will come in handy as we move forward. After we win Wednesday night in Detroit, finishing the round against Chicago, we move on to face the Pittsburgh Penguins most likely. They’re 3-0, and look to finish their round tonight.

So it’s a rematch it seems. We faced the Penguins in the Stanley Cup finals last year…with both teams very much the same. Last year, the Pens depended on Crosby, Malkin, and Hossa to do most of their scoring. After losing to Detroit last year, Hossa signed up with us, and has continued to provide goals. He took less money with Detroit than he could have made on other teams. Why? BECAUSE HE WANTED TO WIN THE CUP, AND KNEW DETROIT WOULD DO IT. 🙂

So this year, Pittsburgh comes to the table with two great players, and a decent goalie. To play against the Redwings who have Crosby’s and Malkin’s in every line.

Not gonna be easy. It should still be great hockey…it’s the FINALS after all. But it’ll go to Detroit in 5, maybe 6, games. 🙂 HERE COMES THE CUP!!!!

Recently I listened to a previously recorded message by NT Wright on Christian Virtue. Here’s a link to the audio, if you’re interested. It’ll take an hour for the main message…but totally worth it. If not, here are a few thoughts…

He presents a new metaphor, that I don’t think can replace the “Jesus in my heart” talks…but can definitely expand it and describe it well. He talks about virtue in regards to the man who landed the plane on water back in January in New York. The man practiced many of the skills required for that landing over 1,000 times so that on THIS time, when it mattered most, they would come as a sort of second nature.

He then spoke of learning a second language. When we do this, it doesn’t come naturally. We learn the basics first. Then things begin to make a bit more sense. We can put sentences together, although we probably make mistakes often, etc. You practice for days, weeks, months, often years. He noted that one of the greatest compliments you can give someone who has learned a second language is to mistake them for an actual native citizen.

He was quick to remind his audience that he is not advocating grace by works, or that we can earn any bit of this. But that Christian Virtue is much like learning a language. The language/lifestyle Jesus Christ spoke of in the Beatitudes and throughout his lifetime. The language of life….the language of new creation.

In moments that reminded me how over my head all of this can be, he reminded us of Plato’s Cardinal virtues (prudence, justice, temperance, courage), which had “happiness” as their main goal. It’s a mistake often made by humanity, and ends up in a variety of efforts, all pursuing “happiness” for the greatest amount of people as some sort of worthy and attainable moral goal.

But when we replace “happiness” with the “new heaven and new earth – new creation”, we see that as Christians, virtues like Faith, Hope, and Love serve an incredible purpose, and become the mission of the Church in many ways.

May we be learning the language/customs of the Kingdom of God, and live as the citizens we are being re-created as. His Kingdom come…