Having been an NHL fan for three decades now, I'm able to enjoy almost every aspect of the game.  However, there is almost nothing I find more enjoyable than watching a good penalty kill. This likely stems from growing up as a Washington Capitals fan in the 1980's.  As a Caps fan in those days, I was able to watch Doug Jarvis, arguably one of the best penalty killers ever, ply his trade for 3+ seasons. You come to appreciate a skill when watching someone who does it well.

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Hockey fans consistently rant and rave about individual on-air personalities and game production issues involving the broadcast of hockey on television. As a matter of fact, I can think of few issues outside of games and league discipline that can get puckheads more excitable.  Look no further than the reaction created by Derek Zona's post last month ranking hockey's RSN broadcast teams.  In many cases, people's likes and dislikes have to do more with personal taste than the broadcaster's ability.  I'm no different.

With Dick Ebersol, former head of NBC Sports and one of the principal architects of the new 10 year NHL TV contract gone from NBC Sports, it is time for me to take over (sorry Mark Lazarus).  I've come up with my Ultimate Hockey Broadcast team.  Money and contract issues are not an issue for me as they are in the real world for the folks at NBC Universal.  My team would work both on NBC and Versus (soon to be NBC Sports Network). 

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With over a month to go until camps start and little hockey news going on it's time for something light this week.  This week I'm combining two of my favorite things, hockey and music.  What is the best song ever about hockey.   I have selected six candidates for you to choose from.

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July and August are the time of year when people throughout the United States and the rest of the Northern Hemisphere leave their homes and jobs to go on vacation.  Whether they go to a beach, national park, or just somewhere to escape the heat, they attempt to relax and enjoy themselves.  This is also the time of year that hardcore hockey fans typically find themselves in a depressive state.  It's the dead zone between development camps and rookie camps.  For regular fans, the depression tends to last even longer, from the draft to opening night of the regular season.

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What better day than today to ask the question.  During their 15 years in the Valley of the Sun, the Phoenix Coyotes have had their fair share of elite American citizens on their roster. Below are brief synopses on the 4 most likely candidates for the title 'Favorite American Coyote'.   Feel free to explain your votes in the comments section.

Keith Yandle - The current Coyotes star has only worn the red ,white, and blue once so far (2010 World Championships).  However, he will likely be wearing those colors often in the future.  He's arguably the best U.S. born defensemen in the NHL right now.

Jeremy Roenick - The former NHL All-Star is known for someone who speaks his mind, including on U.S. national team matters.  He was also a pretty decent hockey player.  He represented the U.S. in the IIHF World Junior Championships, The Canada Cup, World Cup, and the Olympics. He is 2nd on the list of American born goal scorers in the NHL.  He was inducted into the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame last year.

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So far this summer the Coyotes have traded away the rights to a player who was never going to re-sign here, drafted a bunch of kids who may or may not ever make it to the NHL, re-signed their backup goaltender, and re-signed a player they bought out not so long ago.  While all of the aforementioned moves are somewhat important they figure little into whether or not the upcoming 2011-12 season is a successful for the Valley's NHL franchise.  Think of them as the appetizer of a meal.

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Ringing the Post is a new hockey feature here at Five for Howling that will run on Mondays.  Special thanks to pbcoyotes for coming up with the name.

The 2010 - 2011 NHL season may come to an end this evening in Boston, and, if not, it will Wednesday night in Vancouver.  The season has seen the usual assortment of storylines: from Shea Weber  getting league wide recognition, to the Finnish Flash appearing to be ageless, to the Washington Capitals winning the Eastern Conference and then flaming out in the postseason for a second straight year, the Canucks with a  dominant performance on their way to a President's trophy, Steve Yzerman  making the Bolts relevant again, and Mark Recchi still pulling on a sweater and producing on the biggest stage.

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