Of all the teams that are still in the NHL playoffs, the only ones that were probably prepared for this season are the Washington Capitals and the Pittsburgh Penguins. Of course, every other team definitely had an inkling of hope that they'd make it. However, with the amount of power houses in this league it's hard to be sure of your final series.
No Canadian teams even made the playoffs in the first place and for the first time since 2006, not one original six team is contending for the Cup. Tell me that you're not actually shocked that this is happening.
In the past 10 years, out of the current contenders for the cup only the Penguins have actually won a Cup. Fans of the Capitals, Stars, Lightning, Predators, Sharks, Islanders, and Blues are all anxiously awaiting the Cup to be hoisted by one of their team members and this year could be their year.
My team, the New York Islanders, hasn't made it out of the first round in 23 YEARS and they finally did this year. Watching their games heighten my anxiety like nothing else. Now that we've made it this far it's going to absolutely suck to see us lose.
How could I have prepared for this? It's a simple answer, I couldn't. I thought for sure the Panthers were going to knock us out just like every other team we've faced in the first round since 1993. Yet, here we are, fighting to advance against the Tampa Bay Lightning.
I'm so much more stressed about the playoffs than I am about my finals. Here's why:
I knew my finals were coming. I had months to prepare myself for these exams. The teachers gave me the exact material to study and they constantly reminded me the date and time of my test.
I had no idea that my team would advance from the first round. It hasn't happened in my lifetime! I was not prepared for this much Islanders hockey this season. I'm not complaining at all because when hockey season is over I start counting down the days until my boys are back on the ice. However, this new chapter in our current franchise stresses me out.
Quite honestly, considering how awful they try to hold it together during regular season games, I couldn't picture them making it this far. I love the Isles, but I'm extremely hard on them. Our defense is weak and we can't ever hold a one goal lead.
So, if you ask me how I'm feeling, the answer is stressed. Not about finals, but about my hockey team being successful for the first time in 23 years. It's a blessing and a curse that this happened, but I'll make it through and hopefully next year I won't be so blindsided by our success in the playoffs.
P.S. This was written on the 8th of May. The Islanders are about to play a must win game against the Lightning in 10 minutes, so if they lose... Good luck to the Lightning and hopefully I don't see the Caps, or Penguins, hoist the Stanley Cup in a few weeks. Here's to a few months without Hockey anxiety and then another season of it in October. YES YES YES!
