F = m * a

For those of you who remember high school physics, that's the expression of Newton's second law of motion, where force equals mass (where mass is a constant) times acceleration.

We don't bring this up to have a test at the end of the hour, but to highlight something reported in Tarik El-Bashir's column in this morning's Washington Post on the NHL's introduction of its new uniform "system" at tomorrow's All-Star Game. In it, El-Bashir writes...

The [new] uniforms also are supposed to reduce drag by 9 percent, according to wind tunnel testing at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

We have a game that has been characterized by many -- in derogatory terms -- as having less hitting than the "pre-lockout" version of the sport or any of a number of previous generations of hockey. Now, we are going to be treated to large men with malice on their minds skating faster in a confined space.

It's nice that the league has spent untold amounts of money testing and developing a lighter, more aerodynamic uniform for the benefit of the players (the $424 price tag for fans is a secondary consideration, of course). But guys? You might want to think about doing some more research on helmets. Maybe it's a good thing that Bettman Hockey is a pale imitation of its more physical ancestors. Someone might get killed out there.