M. Spencer Green / AP

Workers put up banners at Wrigley Field for New Year's Day's NHL Winter Classic hockey game. Last year's outdoor game drew the highest rating and share of any regular-season game since 1996.

Coates said "the game is really good. It has great entertainment value to it right now. For fans, it's got something for everybody. People who love shooting, passing, people who love the hitting. It's got the speed, it's got the fisticuffs."

So what's preventing the NHL from stealing more of the spotlight? Why is the NHL like the teen girl or boy who has lost the braces and the weight and the acne, but still can't get the right classmates to notice?

Two factors stand out, in the eyes of many. Rapid expansion into the United States, and specifically the South, diluted the rosters and made it difficult for fans to follow and relate to players. Making it even more difficult? Many of those players are European. Although they have added flair on the ice, something has been lost in translation off of it, because many aren't comfortable enough with English to reveal their personalities.

Coates argues that expansion's success is proven by the fact that Carolina, Tampa Bay and Anaheim have all won Stanley Cups, and Florida played in the finals. But Florida, Carolina, Phoenix, Atlanta, Nashville and Columbus all rank in the bottom-eight in average league attendance. And even with the influx of Europeans, Taylor thinks teams are thinner than they were a decade or two ago.

"The really good teams now have two good lines, where they once had three or four," Taylor said.

Taylor also thinks that the league has gone somewhat soft, which is why he found the aforementioned contest between the Lightning and Rangers so refreshing. He sees less threat of retribution and, thus, less edge, and often less urgency and intensity.

"We had the ballet and grace, but we also used to have the fierceness of football," Taylor said. "And that has kind of drifted away a bit."

Federko doesn't agree. He thinks the game is fine. The influx of Europeans is a positive to him because to him, the league now includes the greatest players around the world. Still, he acknowledges that the move from ESPN has cost the league visibility, since "a lot of households in the United States still don't have Versus." Although he believes the league must market those players better nationally, he added that "those players have to be willing to market themselves." He recognizes that it would be difficult for any person to work in a foreign country, and feel comfortable.

"It's something the league has to spend time on, developing these kids, to make sure they are visible and well-spoken," Federko said.

Nick Wass / AP The Capitals' Alexander Ovechkin, who scored 65 goals last season, is an example of a star the NHL can sell.

Taylor suggests that the league work with players before they enter, and start marketing them immediately, the way the NBA markets its young stars.

"We have some guys who have the personality of Peyton Manning, but they are only on regionally," Taylor said.

Both cited Ovechkin, who doesn't speak English that well.

"But at least he is a personality," Federko said. "At least he tries. He's got the smile. He plays every shift like it is the last of his life. A lot of these kids are very sellable."

Nor must broken English be a detriment.

"When female fans hear an athlete speak in an accent," Taylor said, "it's like he's the sexiest man alive."

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Heading to the Cup finals

Adam Henrique scored off a wild scramble in front early in OT and the New Jersey Devils defeated the New York Rangers 3-2 to advance to their first Stanley Cup finals since '03. The new Eastern champs will face LA next.

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Highlights: OT goal delivers Devils to Cup finals

  Check out highlights as the New Jersey Devils advanced to the Stanley Cup finals by defeating the New York Rangers, 3-2, in overtime.

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