For a league that struggles to market to the mythical casual fans without upsetting the die-hard fans, the Winter Classic could not have been more perfect for the NHL.

A cold, blustery day with light to moderate snow in Buffalo provided the perfect backdrop for Pittsburgh's entertaining 2-1 victory over the Buffalo Sabres, but the game was about far more than the score.

A 2.6 rating/5.0 share on NBC impressed league and network execs, but the ratings might be on the low side. It has long been theorized sports ratings are lower than the real numbers, as the ratings tend to ignore those who watch the game in groups or at bars -- not to mention, the average 30-year-old, beer-drinking sports fan is not exactly the most likely person to fill out a survey on their viewing habits.

No matter how you cut it, most die-hard NHL fans tuned in for at least part of the game, while thousands of new fans stumbled on the game and likely approved of what they saw.

There has been talk of doing an outdoor game every year on Jan. 1, and that is unquestionably a great idea. Rotate it from city to city, and the league will reap the benefits.

However, the idea needs to be planted for a second outdoor game each year, this one coming a little later in January.

While Versus has done a great job of their NHL coverage and will likely continue to do so, it appears likely ESPN will re-enter the fray at some point. Versus is said to be very open to sharing the contract with ESPN, with the thought being the cross-promotion will help both the NHL and the young network.

As most of you under the age of 30 are likely aware, the annual Winter X Games are coming up in Aspen, Colorado, in a few days. Once dismissed by many as an ESPN creation, the Winter X Games have developed a sound following, particularly among the hard-to-reach 18-to-35 demographic.

Names like Shaun White, Gretchen Bleiler, and Blair Morgan are household names in that demographic -- every bit as much as or more so than Sidney Crosby, Ryan Miller, and Evgeni Malkin. Consider every sport is trying to find a way to reach the younger generation, where sports television ratings have dropped faster and more dramatic than any other demographic.

An annual outdoor NHL game tied in with the Winter X Games seems like an absolute natural. The events usually run Thursday through Sunday, leaving the NHL with a few options.

The first option would be to hold the game as a Winter X Games kickoff on Wednesday night, an event that would surely draw many of the competitors. A second option is to hold the game Sunday night as a type of closing ceremony -- again, sure to draw many of the competitors.

If the league wants to strike when the maximum number of tourists are in town, it could be arranged to hold the game Friday night or sometime Saturday afternoon or evening. The drawback would be less sightings of competitors and music acts, yet the league would maintain a tie-in with the event.

The Winter X Games are held every year in Aspen, Colorado, and there is no 75,000-seat football stadium in the town. Yet the league has discussed playing an outdoor game in a dramatic natural setting -- and what is more dramatic for hockey than the Rocky Mountains?

A temporary outdoor arena could be built -- think Mystery, Alaska. Depending on the location and logistics, it could be possible to make the structure more permanent and leave it standing year-round, with various winter sports utilizing the structure during the colder months.

If this does not work out, the idea of having 15,000-20,000 temporary seats is certainly not unprecedented. The seats could be stored the rest of the year, while they would be brought out once a year for the outdoor game -- again, think of the look of the rink in Mystery, Alaska, the movie that started the outdoor craze.

With an elevation of roughly 8,000 feet, Aspen would present some logistical issues, but nothing that could not be overcome. Denver is 5,280 feet above sea level, and much of the suburbs are closer to 6,000 feet. Colorado Springs has a major arena more than 6,000 feet above sea level. When that is taken into consideration, an additional 2,000 feet seems like a minor issue.

And while the city is located in the mountains, winter highs routinely reach the 40s. For an evening game, the temperature would likely be in the teens or 20s -- a little cooler than ideal, but significantly warmer than the successful Heritage Classic in Edmonton.

The game would be able to piggyback off the intense promotion of the Winter X Games, and many of the viewers -- and attendees -- would be in the much-targeted, 18-to-35 non-traditional hockey fan demographic.

The game itself might not be a moneymaker when the costs are weighed against the mid-sized arena, but as with the Winter Classic, this is about the bigger picture. If the NHL can draw new fans from the event, it becomes a far cheaper and more effective form of advertising than many of the current concepts.

Remember all the talk of the new NHL coming out of the lockout a little more than two years ago? The new rules and enforcements of existing rules were supposed to change the game for the better, creating more offense and eliminating strict defensive systems.

For a year, they accomplished their goal.

Does that ever seem like a long time ago now.

In the third season with the new rules and enforcement standards, it is becoming clear the desired effects - which were the initial effects - are no longer around. The wide-open hockey of the 2005-06 season has become replaced by... you guessed it, strict defensive systems.

When the league increased enforcement of interference coming out of the lockout, the thought was the elimination of clutch-and-grab hockey would lead to a more wide-open game. For about a year, that worked very well. Games were wide-open, physical, end-to-end, and the fans responded in a great manner, considering the lost 2004-05 season.

In the playoffs that year, the Edmonton Oilers reintroduced the trap, or at least a variation of the much-maligned system. Yet the eighth place Oilers fell to Carolina in the Stanley Cup Finals, and it seemed wide-open hockey was the new norm.

Over the next year and half, coaches figured out the lack of clutch and grab did not mean teams could not play a tight defensive system. In fact, what it really meant was teams had to play even more conservatively in order to be defensive-oriented, as players could no longer hook and hold if they were beaten by an opposing player.

The result has been less than positive. While a traditional New Jersey or Minnesota-style trap features puck pursuit between the bluelines, many of the new systems have the sole goal of forcing the opponents to play a dump-and-chase style.

Instead of talking about the trap, the talk is about defensive postures, as if it were a basketball game. The term 1-2-2 refers to a system with one forechecker, two forwards by the near blueline, and the two defensemen by the far blueline.

As dull as that system can be, especially if the forechecker is passive and retreats quickly upon a breakout, it is falling by the wayside in favor of the even more conservative 1-4.

In a 1-4, there is a lone forechecker, and the other four players set up on the defensive side of the red line. More times than not, they create a wall at the blueline, forcing the offensive team to chip the puck into the offensive zone. Badly outnumbered, the offensive team rarely regains possession.

While the term 0-5 has not been used as of yet, that could change in the future. Some teams retreat entirely when they have the lead, posting four players between the bluelines with the fifth almost posing as a forechecker. The fifth man usually retreats to the neutral zone once it appears the breakout is about to begin.

Exciting stuff, isn't it?

Anyone who goes back a generation or so remembers the old system employed by virtually every team. A two-man forecheck - the first man takes the man, the second man takes the puck. Third man stays high. Defensemen stay back.

Oh, for those days again.

It is not that the NHL is devoid of excitement these days. Yet the phrase "new NHL" has more or less disappeared. The reality is, today's NHL may be less exciting than the much-maligned days before the lockout.

Scoring is still low, shots are still low, and scoring chances are still low. The difference is, instead of the clutch and grab at least creating some interesting one-on-one battles, too many coaches instruct their players to take such a conservative defensive posture that they cannot be found out of position.

For a league that is trying to increase its fan base in much of the United States, this is not a good thing. The Dallas Stars have been one of the league's most successful franchises on the ice for the past decade, yet empty seats about by the thousands in the American Airlines Center, an arena that was once a guaranteed sellout.

Despite their on-ice success, the Stars fired general manager Doug Armstrong early this season, replacing him with famed goal scorer Brett Hull. Many speculated the move had more to do with the Stars' style of play than anything else. While the team was winning, fans were quickly jumping ship from the often-dull Stars.

Thousands of empty seats appear most nights in previously packed Detroit and Colorado, and lesser markets have even more ticket availability. While the league continues to talk of attendance records, much of that comes from the Canadian markets, where a strong economy has helped lead the NHL's resurgence.

And as strong as the game is in Canada, it is not without threat. More than 20 percent of Canada is foreign-born, and many of those people view soccer as their dominant sport. The expansion Toronto FC in Major League Soccer sold out every game last season with more than 20,000 fans. TFC has a similar season ticket base and similar length waiting list as the Maple Leafs, indicating the soccer interest in Canada's largest city.

With MLS expansion a potential for Vancouver and Montreal, it is clear hockey is not the only game in town for Canadian cities, despite what the media often reports.

For now, the game is solid in Canada and in some United States markets. Yet at the same time, the league must put a good product on the ice to keep that interest at a high level.

The good news is, based on his comments on his NHL Home Ice XM 204 radio show, commissioner Gary Bettman seems to be aware of the problem. Unfortunately, the solution is not so obvious.

One possible solution is to limit the number of defensive players set up between the bluelines, but there are several issues. Allowances would have to be made for line changes, and the on-ice officials are already busy enough without watching for what essentially would be an illegal defense call.

Many solutions will be bandied about in the coming months, but this much is true - the NHL finds itself facing an issue nobody thought they would be two years ago.

Hockey fans like to think tradition is important in our sport. While other sports such as basketball and football cater to the flavor of the day, hockey is built on decades of tradition.

We have our own terminologies, many of which have come under assault in recent years. The traditional hockey term of dressing rooms has been replaced by the unoriginal term locker rooms. Center ice has been replaced by the neutral zone. Two-on-ones and three-on-twos have been replaced by the generic term odd-man rushes. And perhaps worst of all, the boards are starting to become known as the wall, especially in non-traditional markets.

It is enough to make a hockey fan scream.

However, if a hockey fan screams and nobody can hear it over the too-loud arena music, does the scream really exist?

Over-the-top game presentation has long been a trademark of the National Basketball Association, and while critics have praised the league for their marketing, NBA ratings and interest are a fraction of what they were a decade ago.

Sadly, this type of game presentation is creeping into our game, and fans must voice their opinion to stop the spread.

Last weekend should have been one of the greatest moments in recent Chicago Blackhawks history. The team is playing well behind rookie sensations Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews, and Sunday's game against Detroit launched a new era of home games being televised on local television.

Yet the big story came in the area of game presentation. Longtime organist Frank Pelico was largely absent from the weekend's games, his duties being limited to the national anthem and post-game proceedings.

Anyone over the age of 25 who grew up as a hockey fan associates the organ with Chicago hockey. While the pipe organ did not make its way from Chicago Stadium to the United Center, organ music stayed a big part of the Blackhawks. While other teams shunned organ music for recorded music, the Hawks stayed traditional.

Ironically, now that many teams are featuring more organ music than they have in recent years, Pelico finds himself watching games as a spectator. Hawks fans are understandably outraged, flooding message boards, blogs, and the front office with complaints.

Southern California's two NHL franchises demonstrate the radical differences between various arenas when it comes to game presentation. While the Los Angeles Kings take a traditional approach to game presentation, the Anaheim Ducks feature a nightclub atmosphere - something most people outgrow before they reach 30.

The Kings start with a great introduction on their 2400-inch ICE TV, also known as an on-ice projector. The accompanying music by Hans Zimmer and Linkin Park - played at reasonable volumes - provide the perfect accompaniment to the visuals.

Once the game starts, the game presentation stays top-notch. Organist Dieter Ruehle, who was the organist at the last two Olympics, leads the crowd in traditional yells such as "Go Kings Go." He does a great job of mixing classics like Kalinka or Hava Nagila with modern adaptations of bands such as U2 or Green Day. Ruehle maintains at least a 50/50 ratio of organ music to recorded music, and both are played at reasonable levels.

Thirty miles southeast at Honda Center, the assault on the senses is impossible to avoid. The introduction music is played way beyond the capabilities of the sound system, making the music painfully loud and virtually impossible to understand. While this is happening, a couple of dozen spotlights move in a fast, haphazard manner across the ice, creating a sense of motion sickness.

Sadly, the presentation gets no better once the game begins. While the music stays too loud and the organist adds too many Disneyland-esque drum rolls in most songs, the spotlights return far too frequently. When the spotlights are thankfully reduced, several migrane-inducing strobe lights are used in conjunction with the music at most whistles. The result is an atmosphere that resembles a WWE event or a teen-oriented nightclub, but certainly not a hockey game.

As someone who has spent most of his life in traditional hockey environments, there is no question which arena is more appealing. And the California market is more savvy than the Ducks seem to give it credit. Many, if not most, hockey fans in the region are transplants from traditional markets. If I had a dollar for every time one of these transplants told me they will not go to Ducks games because of the distracting game presentation, I might have enough money to buy the team and change the game presentation myself.

While no other NHL arena - certainly not the United Center - approaches the distraction level of the Honda Center, the loss of another hockey tradition in the sake of modernization would be a travesty.

Rocky Wirtz has done many things right since assuming leadership in Chicago. He would be wise to do one more thing right - bring back Pelico.

When a team is said to have potential year after year, at a certain point people start believing that potential is unfulfilled.

As the saying goes, potential is often a nice way of saying something simply is not very good right now.

Scratch the potential from Columbus Blue Jackets in that case. If you have not noticed, this team is very good.

How good? A playoff team, for sure, at this rate. Actually, at this rate, this might be much more than a playoff team.

With a 7-3-2 record -- good for 16 points in 12 games -- Columbus occupies a share of fourth place in the Western Conference heading into Friday night's games. Yes, the only team that has never qualified for the playoffs currently sits in a position that would give them home ice advantage in the first round.

To those who have followed the Jackets for several seasons, it comes as both a surprise and as no surprise. In reality, the team is certainly talented enough to be a contender. Rick Nash is one of the game's premier power forwards, and he is surrounded by a host of skilled forwards.

The defensive corps, led by Adam Foote and Rostislav Klesla, is more than adequate. And highly touted goalie Pascal Leclaire has more than lived up to the potential this season, posting four shutouts in October.

Yet little changed from the past two seasons in terms of personnel. Without question, coach Ken Hitchcock has had more time to implement his system, which features accountability at all times in all areas of the ice.

Columbus features a strong forecheck, yet the same five man unit is always backchecking to near-perfection. Even when they give up a large number of shots, as they did Thursday when the Ducks posted 34 shots on goal but scored just once, the chances are limited.

Wednesday at Staples Center, the Kings got their chances, but Leclaire was there to turn all but one away. The next night in Anaheim, the Ducks got plenty of shots, but backup goaltender Fredrik Norrena had to make very few spectacular saves.

When the opposing team creates sustained pressure, the Jackets are able to execute a bend but don't break philosophy to perfection. The goalies play with confidence, knowing the five skaters will be in solid defensive position. By the same token, the forwards and defensemen play with confidence knowing Leclaire or Norrena will come up with the big stop when called upon.

Columbus may limit goals against as well as any team in the league, but nobody would call them a boring team. The Jackets play with an entertaining, physical edge to their game, and two newcomers play a big part in creating that style.

Michael Peca, one of the game's best penalty killers and faceoff men, has brought his gritty game to the Ohio capital. Long considered a skill team lacking the grit to win, Peca is just what the Jackets needed.

Rookie Jared Boll has made far more of an impact than his two goals and roughly seven minutes of ice time per game would suggest. In the two California games, Boll was evident on every shift.

The rough and tumble Boll went from a one-dimensional enforcer to one of the best players on the USHL's Lincoln Stars between his first and second seasons, then continued his junior career with the OHL's Plymouth Whalers.

His career path has continued an impressive progression with Columbus. Against Los Angeles, he drew a penalty on an early shift, then it was his work screening Kings' goalie Jason LaBarbera -- Tomas Holmstrom-style -- that led to the second Columbus goal.

Against Anaheim, he made the most of limited ice time, throwing his weight around and taking on Travis Moen in an entertaining second period scrap.

The energy infused by the likes of Peca and Boll seems to have carried over throughout the lineup, as the Jackets play with a definite edge to their game.

It is probably early to sell playoff tickets in Columbus, but the thought of playoffs has to have front office staff excited. After drawing sell-0uts virtually every night since they entered the league in 2000, crowds have been down this year, frustrated with the lack of playoff berths.

Unless something drastic happens, look for all that to change. These Jackets are for real, and a playoff berth seems much more than likely.

Many observers seem surprised the Los Angeles Kings find themselves one point ahead of cross town rival Anaheim in late October - with one game in hand yet.

It should not be a surprise, and do not look for the trend to reverse any time soon.

The Kings feature a wealth of young talent up front, including Anze Kopitar, Michael Cammalleri, Dustin Brown, and Alexander Frolov. The defense is solid with a good mix of veterans, youngsters, and blueliners in their prime.

The only question coming into the season was goaltending, and Jason LaBarbera seems poised to step up as the starter.

After a 1-5-0 start, the Kings have won four of five games, and arguably outplayed Calgary in the lone loss. For the first time in several years, Kings fans have reason to be truly optimistic. Barring injuries, there is no reason this team will not make the playoffs.

It is a different story 30 miles to the southeast. The wheels are coming off in Anaheim, and the Ducks already face an uphill battle to make the playoffs, never mind repeat as Stanley Cup Champions.

With a 4-7-1 record after 12 games, Anaheim likely needs 87 points over their final 70 games to grab a playoff spot. In other words, a 42-25-3 record would get the job done, but there is no indication that will happen.

Scott Niedermayer and Teemu Selanne look more retired by the day, and without them, Anaheim is full of holes. Sure, injuries have taken their toll, but there is no reason to believe that will change.

Defenseman Mathieu Schneider is entering the twilight of his career, and injuries have bedeviled him the past couple of years. Still, his injury history pales in comparison to the team's other key free agent signing.

Todd Bertuzzi has struggled with back injuries the past couple of seasons, and he is currently out of the lineup with a concussion. Earlier this year, Bertuzzi told the media he is finding injuries he never knew he had.

Not exactly what you want to hear from a $4 million per year player.

Ryan Getzlaf is currently out of the lineup with an upper body injury, leaving Anaheim with a second line of Mark Mowers, Drew Miller, and Petteri Wirtanen.

To top it off, the Ducks are running their big horses as if it was game seven of the Stanley Cup Finals. Francois Beauchemin and Chris Pronger lead the league in ice time, each averaging about a half hour per game.

With the key players logging so much ice time this early in the year, the potential for more injuries is very real.

Meanwhile, things keep looking up at Staples Center. Cammalleri leads the league with 10 goals, two more than any other player.

Kopitar continues his progression as one of the league's young superstars. A top-notch playmaker, he also possesses a sniper's hands and is one of the squad's best defensive forwards.

Brown is among the league leaders in hits and provides the perfect complement to Kopitar and Cammalleri on a top line that is arguably as good as any in the league.

The reviews on free-agent signings Ladislav Nagy, Kyle Calder, Michael Handzus, Tom Preissing, and Brad Stuart have been mixed, but all have looked stronger in recent games. Nagy had a breakout game Tuesday against Nashville, while Handzus responded with a solid effort after being demoted to the fourth line Tuesday against Dallas.

In fact, that fourth line of Handzus, John Zeiler, and Raitis Ivanans played a nearly perfect fourth line game against Dallas. Each player ate up more than 10 minutes of ice time and the unit created significant sustained pressure in the offensive zone.

With four lines clicking and six solid defensemen, the Kings are for real. LaBarbera is looking more comfortable between the pipes, and Los Angeles fans are optimistic.

At the moment, it is hard to find optimism in Anaheim. The team cut off season ticket sales at 15,000, but there are thousands of empty seats many nights. Fans arrive late and leave early -- one estimate put less than 5,000 fans left in their seats with three minutes remaining in a recent 3-1 Ducks win. Prime seats posted below face value are going unsold on the team's online ticket exchange.

It may be early to press the panic button, but with a couple of more losses, the Ducks find themselves facing must-win games as early as November.

In downtown Los Angeles, however, the opening of the L.A. Live development adjacent to Staples Center is not the only cause for optimism in the area.