2009 Memorial Cup

The CHL’s Memorial Cup is set to begin on Friday. First things first, I am one that believes it should be the Memorial Cup...not the Mem Cup. That name is meant to honour and I don’t like when people use the short form, seems a little disrespectful.
Many sports shows like to use the short version, I don’t thinks it sounds right and find it in poor taste. Just a personal opinion.

The Windsor Spitfires, Rimouski Oceanic, Kelowna Rockets, and Drummondville Voltigeurs are the 4 representatives. The action kicks off with the host Rimouski vs. Kelowna on Friday night. All game should be on Sportsnet and should all be shown in HD. For those who like (or love) the World Junior’s this is another short tournament where every game is as important as the one that follows it, maybe more important....no as important. A first game loss can put you in a huge hole that can be very difficult to get out of. It is that kind of pressure game that makes this such a fun tournament to watch.

It is very helpful too for the more casual observer that there are actually some names that people will recognise. Not a lot of people follow Jr. Hockey too closely to know the players. If you watched the World Jr’s or have an eye on some of the scouting for the upcoming NHL Entry Draft to see who your team may be in the running to draft come June you will surely see some familiar names. That just makes it a little easier to get into.

Granted it is in tough for ratings and exposure since it is going up against the NHL Playoffs that are actually proving to be close and very competitive due to the "parody" that currently exists due to the Salary Cap. If you do get a chance to watch some of these games I suggest you do so, it is a high paced game at that level and usually will have a good amount of offence.
What more could a fan ask for?