By Stevie

**Edit to Note** This article now also applies to the article the Rangers posted today “A Girl’s Guide to Watching the Rangers” 1/25/13 I believe they have actually removed the article. The link is now dead and the Tweet about the link has been deleted from their timeline. BUT…I have the text below

Today, Claude Giroux I suppose was helping out a friend by tweeting her blog “A girl’s guide to surviving the playoffs“. The fine ladies over at Puck Huffers  did an excellent job responding to this garbage. I read the blog when I saw him tweet it this morning and my eyes glazed over. I didn’t even finish it.

If you don’t feel like reading it, let me give you to short version:

If you are a female and you don’t like hockey, it is in your best interest to pretend to like hockey to keep your significant other happy and they provide some very helpful tips on how to achieve faking like you know Jack piss about the sport.

This is what you find to be “True”? Barf.

Clode…there is a reason you are single, my dear. It is because you like girls who are fakes and liars.

I dated a guy for four years that was from southern New Jersey and was a huge fan of Philadelphia sports. He didn’t like hockey but loved basketball and football and was okay with baseball. I hate football. I have no love for the sport. Same with the NBA. I’d occasionally watch a football game with him, but to be honest, he was so insufferably miserable when his teams lost I would just as soon go occupy myself some other way. NBA on TV? I was gone like a fart in a wind.

There is nothing wrong with not sharing things in common. It will not break your relationship. Do you want your boyfriend shoe shopping with you and pretending to like it? Probably not. So if you don’t like hockey, don’t sit there and suffer through, making a total jackass of yourself asking ridiculous questions.

Look, if any girls out there need some REAL relationship advice when it comes to sports, I have a few tips for you.

1. It is okay to NOT like a sport that your boyfriend or spouse likes. I will agree with one thing from that blog: don’t nag him about it. Take the opportunity to enjoy some time to yourself.

2. If you are genuinely interested in learning about hockey (or any other sport for that matter) then yes, watch it with your beau and ask him if he will teach you about the sport. Make it a bonding opportunity instead of being a pest who is trying too hard to impress someone by faking like she cares.

3. When you are crowding a guy pretending to be into something just to get his attention you look desperate and jealous that he isn’t making you the sole focus of his attention for those few hours.

4. Having different interests is great for a relationship. When you have activities that you enjoy alone it will make the time you do spend together a. more special and appreciated and b. it will give you something to talk about. Give each other a chance to miss one another! So you didn’t spend the day together? Great! That night when you talk you each have something to talk about.

5. Another guy I dated long term was a huge soccer fan. Me? Not so much. But he didn’t force the issue of me trying to learn to love soccer and I didn’t bust his balls to get him to try and be interested in baseball or hockey. Know what we did do that was fun? Instead of me having to sit around watching soccer, we did something more active: went to the park and played soccer together. Kept us active and outdoors and a little competition kept things interesting. Compromise!

Part of the reason that people end relationships after the honeymoon period is because they weren’t being themselves until after date #10.

Be honest. Be real.

And if you are going to insist on taking tips from that God forsaken blog, please disregard this whole thing about pizza and beer being a must for game nights. I’m watching the Blackhawks right now and I didn’t order pizza or drink beer. Am I watching the playoffs incorrectly?

The Rangers deleted the original article, but someone at HF Boards nabbed the text:

A Girl’s Guide to Watching the RangersBy: Mirna Mandil I was recently one of four females in a house packed with about 20 guys watching the game — football, I think. The men were there for the game, while I was there for the food: deep fried turkey, which quickly turned into deep frying everything in sight. Sure, I could’ve sat and watched with the men, but I don’t care for football, nor do I pretend to. I’m not going to fake an alpha-male-level obsession with a sport because, frankly, that just seems exhausting. That being said, when having either guy friends, brothers, boyfriends or husbands in your life, watching games in any sport becomes unavoidable. And if you live in New York and have one of the aforementioned male figures in your life, then chances are you can’t avoid their obsession with the Rangers. The fact that every single one of the guys watching this football game was wearing a Rangers jersey is a true testament to the loyalty of a Rangers fan. It’s not just a phase. It’s not just an obsession. It’s a Rangers lifestyle. News of the NHL lockout’s end caused as much excitement in the male world as a 70 percent off sale does in a woman’s. If you’re completely oblivious to what the end of the lockout means, think of it as the premiere of the newest season of “Girls” being delayed by months, and then suddenly, it’s announced that it will be coming back but with a lot fewer episodes to make up for lost time. Have said all that, this article is an attempt to help you at least understand their obsession, enthusiasm and passion, and help you hold your own during game nights. They’re EXPECTING You To Ask Questions …Just know WHEN to do it. Carl Hagelin has the puck. The boys are all standing and screaming and you’re going to yell ‘what’s happening!?” Nope. You need to sense the tension at certain points in the game and let them do their jumping, screaming and cheering thing. You can tell if something huge has happened by their reaction, and if you’re absolutely lost, wait for the replay. There’s always a replay after a major play. Still confused? Wait until a penalty or other whistle to ask. The clock stopped so there’s a pause in the game, and at this level you won’t need to know why a penalty was called anyway (unless there’s a fight, which is pretty self-explanatory). Everything else? Not important in your world … yet. Get To Know The RANGERS I’m not asking you to memorize a yearbook, but after watching a game or two, last names will start to sound familiar: Staal, Callahan, Del Zotto. You’ll get the idea. The Rangers’ roster is easily available online, and even though knowing a last name won’t do much in terms of understanding the game, it will build up your connection when watching future games. You’ll be more attuned to a game when you hear a name you recognize. Get To Know Goalie Henrik Lundqvist If New York were to have a new face on every quarter, it would be his. He’s broken NHL records. His nickname is “The King.” He played “Sweet Child O’ Mine” on guitar during a recent episode of “Late Night With Jimmy Fallon.” Don’t you want him to do well? Don’t you want to watch when he’s on the ice? My point exactly. Congratulations You’ve officially graduated level one of what to expect when Ranger fans are expecting. Before I wrote this article, I gave all the guys I spoke with the option of saying, “I don’t want her watching the game with me. It’s my sport, leave it alone.” Not a single one of them took it. Don’t be afraid to ask questions, but ask quesions they’ll enjoy answering. Things like who their favorite player is, or who their biggest rival is. If you have a couple hours of free time, go ahead and ask about the famous Potvin chant. You’ll certainly be in for a great story. If you feel too forced and uninterested, at least know the Rangers’ schedule so you can schedule a girl’s night for those times. Oh, and one last thing: don’t give the guys and grief for their playoff beards. Google it. You’ll thank me later.