NHL Draft '08

Last night I watched the NHL draft, not because I found it interesting and was on tenterhooks to see who the 'Canes were able to pick, but because I was bored and wanted to subject my mom to something she'd never understand. (There's nothing like the filial piety our family shows.) 

Oh, that and to see if I could make fun of the New Jersey Devils. My dislike for them has no concrete beginning but is more of a visceral response whenever I hear "New Jersey". That and my brother prefers Jersey above all other teams. And then there was that event two Christmases ago when I received my Carolina Hurricanes jersey (all I need is a cute belt and it's a dress!) and my Jersey uncle says, "What is that? Some kinda New Jersey Devils shirt?" 

Yeah, the dislike runs deep. 

By the time I turned it on, I missed Carolina's pick of Zach Boychuck, but I did notice a few petty things that I could not let go: 

• The commish, Gary Bettman, is short. Not that I have a lot of room to talk, but next to all those hockey players and former hockey players, the man is the size of a garden gnome. 
• What is the deal with listing one's height at 6' 1-1/2"? At that height, do you honestly need that other HALF-INCH? That's just being mean to all us short people. It's one thing for me to list my height at 5' 0-1/2" because I need every little bit I have, but to add a 1/2" to an already tall frame is just cruel. It's like when a six-year old says she's not six but "six and three-quarters." 

As far as the substance of the draft, I can't explain it. I'm not going to. There are plenty of other blogs and websites that will break down the draft and explain what it means for each team. That means I can just sit back and relax.