It's not the NHL, but...

www.drunkenbleachers.com

Take this with a grain of salt because it's coming from a hockey junkie without the pleasure of an NHL fix this season, but the IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship (Dec. 25th - Jan 4th) has been a pleasant surprise.

The tournament is taking place in Grand Forks, North Dakota and features the best 20 and under hockey players in the world including a few NHLers and tons prospects including Sidney Crosby of Team Canada (the 17 year old that is supposedly the next Gretzky), Russia's Alexander Ovechkin (the NHL's #1 pick overall in the 2004 draft), and Hall of Famer Ray Bourque's son, Chris (Team USA).

Team USA plays Sweden in the quarterfinals on New Years Day. It will be televised on ESPN2 at 8:30pm EST.

Oh yeah, and a big thumbs up to Team USA for wearing the retro 1932 Olympic hockey uniforms. They are sharp.