Just Drink the Kool-Aid, Dammit!

I've spoken many times about how much I love twitter. In the off chance you missed it, it's a whole lot. Many still fight the urge to join twitter. They say they just don't get it. But I assure you, you don't have to get it to join it.

Twitter is one of the only outlets that lets you talk to players, sportscasters, fellow fans of your team, and fans of opposing teams. Where can you chirp BizNasty and have him sometimes chirp back? That would be twitter. Where can you express your gratitude and admiration for DMac to DMac? That would be twitter. Where can you get all the latest contract news and breaking hockey news? That would also be twitter. For hockey fans, Twitter is an amazing resource that some aren't taking advantage of.

It's all in who you follow. If you follow two people that you knew from high school who don't particularly tweet then twitter probably won't be much fun for you. If you follow a bunch of like-minded hockey fans and players that interest you along with writers who write articles you read and broadcasters you watch continuously then twitter will be fun.

Most all of the NHL official team twitter accounts as well as the NHL's own twitter have contests that they do. You can win anything from t-shirts to signed memorabilia. The NHL, as a whole, has found ways to gain and keep followers by making it more than just an information source. The contests give you extra incentive to join.

As with any social media outlet there is a human factor. With the human factor comes drama. Keep in mind, if you don't like what someone has to say, you don't have to follow them. There is no rule that fans have to follow each other just because they share the love of the same team. Just like there is no rule that bloggers have to follow each other just because we blog about the same team. Although most bloggers do follow each other as a courtesy, it is not a requirement. The great thing about twitter is you choose who you want to know about. Just because someone follows you, it doesn't mean you have to follow back if they don't interest you. It's not like facebook where it has to go both ways.

As with anything, I just challenge you to try it. You might not like it and quit. Or you might end up like me. I've made some of the most amazing friends, talked to some of the best hockey minds, interacted with some of the world's best players, and had a lot of fun along the way.

So join up and if you need some suggestions of who to follow: I have a list of NHL twitter accounts, you could follow Hockey Blogette or you could follow me. In any case, just try it.