Blacks Hawks Down

Blacks Hawks Down

These guys did not carry AK47 rifles but hockey sticks. There were no Ridley Scott special effects but at the end of the day the Blackhawks went down. The Chicago Blackhawks, the semi-finalists of the last NHL season lost 2-1 to the European champions, the ZSC Zurich Lions on Tuesday night.

It could sound unimpressive considering a couple of Euroleague teams have defeated NBA teams regularly those last few years, but it’s not. It was the first time since 1991 that a European team beat an NHL team. The game was called the Victoria Cup, a competition between the winner of the European Champions League and an NHL team (the Stanley Cup winners did not participate meaning that technically, those Swiss journalists should not start the World Champions banners).

Zurich forward Ryan Gardner told NHL.com: “Us winning it tonight gives a little credit to our league,”. “We did our country proud. We did Europe proud. It’s a special night for us.” Funny to see this feeling of relating to Europe from a country who has always refused to join the European Union (and coming from a Swiss-canadian). But it says a lot in terms of European feeling, that the European identity most often comes in reaction to the American superpower. I am European because I am Occidental but I am not American.Something it was easier to see during the Bush administration, when being European meant to refuse a certain number of values and principles.

Switzerland is celebrating but there should be no tomorrow. Why? Because a Swiss team will not play the Victoria Cup next year? How do I know ? Because the head of said so. After one year; the European Champions League ceased to exist because its main sponsor; Russian giant Gazprom, backed down. Not to say it’s bad omen for Chelski or any other teams who live on artificial Russian money.

The Europeans might teach a hockey lesson once in a while but they could get a marketing and business seminar everyday.

These guys did not carry AK47 rifles but hockey sticks. There were no Ridley Scott special effects but at the end of the day the Blackhawks went down. The Chicago Blackhawks, the semi-finalists of the last NHL season lost 2-1 to the European champions, Switzerland’s ZSC Zurich Lions on Tuesday night (and the extensive highlights happen here on a player).