The 2011 Frozen Four: More than just a game

I am a mess.

Since waking up Monday morning, my fear and loathing has grown to the point where it has become almost debilitating.  I've lacked focus, lost sleep and spent long hours pondering the 'ifs' of what might unfold Thursday.  In short, I've spent far too much time and energy thinking about something I have absolutely no impact on, short of perhaps being one voice in a crowd of thousands spurring my team on.  This is the stuff that causes people I know to wonder why I follow sports in the first place.  To most, my idiotic gyrations must seem either comical or sad.  But this is the way I'm wired, and have never known another way to operate.

Sports is supposed to be entertainment.  No doubt you've heard the cliches of "It's not life or death" and "It's just a game", repeated a hundred times over.  The problem is, for millions of people throughout the world, the outcomes of these games means so much more than that.  Maybe we overplay their significance because we just don't have enough important things going on in our lives.  I will certainly cop to that, it's doubtful the teams I follow would take on the same importance if I had a child to look after (At least I hope so, for the kid's sake).  But the whole thing is really much deeper than that.

Every college hockey season I renew acquaintances with old friends, many of which I haven't seen in some time.  They are people who may not be the closest of friends, but are always a welcome sight wherever they happen to pop up.  Sometimes it's an expected meeting, other times a random run-in at some far-flung arena or college town bar.  Whatever the circumstances, it never gets old, be it in the form of an entire evening shooting the breeze, a quick drink, or a 2-minute chat in an arena concourse.  Some will scoff at the notion, but these people are my college hockey family, and there's a similar set out there for every other team in every other sport.

Because there's a kinship among fans, even those of the worst teams.  When the going gets tough, we lean on the collective, and the presence of like-minded individuals who know what we're feeling offers the strength to get back on that horse.  Those who don't understand wonder why we cling to the same bad teams one heartbreaking year after another, asking why not just jump ship to another that offers better prospects for success?  We don't do this because it would make us frauds in the eyes of those who we've struggled alongside.  The past is prelude, and winning is meaningless if you sell out who you are to achieve it.

Am I doing a sufficient job of making this situation much grander and more complex than it ever should be?  I certainly hope so.  Lord knows how my sleeping might suffer should I stopped to think of just how much of my life revolves around grown men throwing a ball.  But what people who don't follow sports will never understand are the connections between fans of the same team.  Even if they are strangers thousands of miles from home, the sight of a familiar logo and simple question "You a ______ fan?" can be the only two steps needed to kick off a budding friendship.  Or, should it be a rival, at least an evening of good-natured trash talk. 

Our stuff beats your stuff, it's true.  There will never be an Oscar debate that's as interesting as an MVP debate.  Too subjective.  No stats.  There will never be a conversation about music or art that draws in so many people as equals.  Too much accounting for tastes.  No broader appeal.  Sports are one of the few places you'll see two strangers with nothing in common but the color of their jerseys high-five and hug.  One of the only environments where the opinions of Joe Sixpack carry the same weight as a six-figure executive. While admittedly imperfect for a host of reasons (bad calls, PEDs, disparate salaries) sports remain superior because they allow for debate on the minor points, yet require none for the major.  Those are settled on the field, or ice, or diamond, decisively and with no equivocation.

Like many things in life, winning a title is as much about the journey as the destination, falling short a few times just adds to the sweetness once you finally break through.  Only problem is, sometimes you start to wonder if the breakthrough will ever come.  The last decade has been hard on my fellow Sioux fans and I.  Sure there has been plenty of success, but also a ton of heartbreak in big games to accompany it.  This will be the 11th season since the last Fighting Sioux national title, and 6th Frozen Four appearance in that span.  I've gone into these games confident, nervous, just happy to be there, emotions have run the gamut.  The only consistency has been in the results, no hardware.

This year's team has the feel of one that should get the job done, and everyone offering an opinion seems to think they're the team to beat.  That's cold comfort to anyone who's watched enough hockey to realize how fickle the game can be, one bad bounce or hot goaltender is all it takes to derail even the best squad.  Now with a week off to cool down from a dominant regional performance, who knows how it's all going to go?  I guess all that I can say is that I'm happy to not see Boston College as the opposition, then I remember the other bench will be occupied by the winningest program in NCAA history, so careful what you wish for.

On paper, the Sioux should beat Michigan, and whichever team comes out of the Duluth-Notre Dame matchup.  On paper they have the nation's best scorer, goaltender and deepest lineup.  On paper, I should be fearless.  But they don't play games on paper.

Most people in this town, including most of my friends, won't be rooting for North Dakota to win, which is understandable.  If the shoe were on the other foot, I'd be cheering for just about anybody before I would their Gophers.  But as much as a Sioux title might annoy them, I'd hope even the biggest UND hater could be happy for people like me, who put their heart and soul into this stuff, without a whole lot to show for it.

A friend of mine told me the other day that North Dakota winning the title is destiny.  After all, it's been the worst year in recent Minnesota sports history, the hated Packers won the Super Bowl, a Sioux title would fit perfectly with the theme.  Man I hope he's right, and my personal jinx isn't strong enough to trump the collective struggles of a state.  Guess we'll find out soon enough.

Go Sioux.