This is the first installment of an ongoing series at two* on deck in which Taylor Gaines of Newsome High and Allie Davison of Wharton High will tackle the things about sports that annoy them. First up: Taylor on the shootout, and Allie on bandwagon fans.

SHOOTOUT: Sure, the fans love it; it’s exciting. That doesn’t mean it’s right. Since the 2005-2006 season, the NHL has resorted to using the shootout to decide games that remain tied after five minutes of overtime play. Each team gets three shooters who attempt to score one-on-one against the goalie. The highest score wins (or they advance to sudden death).

Sounds fun, right? Maybe if you’re playing a video game. How do you think the players feel? They fight for their lives for 65 minutes playing hockey and then the game is decided in a skills contest. The shootout is a sideshow and can be unfair to teams who just aren’t good at trick shots.

The game should be decided on the ice,  or just simply end in a tie. If the issue is one of worrying about players’ fatigue, just call it a tie and give them each a point. There’s no need to have an All-Star Game event at the end of a hockey game.

It’s like ending a basketball game by playing HORSE. Why don’t they just end tied baseball games by having a home run derby? How about instead of overtime in football, they just have a field goal competition?

The shootout is just outrageous and a ploy to get more people interested in watching. It is guaranteed to be exciting and over quickly. However, I believe the NHL would be a better place without them.

Fortunately in the playoffs, the NHL is smart enough to play continuous overtime so that we are not at risk of seeing the better team lose in a shootout. It preserves the excitement of sudden death overtime for the most intense postseason in all of sports, the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

--Taylor Gaines

BANDWAGON FANS: What do the Pittsburgh Steelers, Boston Bruins and Florida Gators all have in common? An excess of bandwagon fans.

For those of you not  up your sports definitions, a bandwagon fan is one who hops on the train of support when a team is doing well and jumps right off during a slump.

Some question why people spend energy hating on such fans. Their argument, that it shouldn’t matter why someone is rooting for a team, just be happy they are, does have a sound foundation. Any type of support is welcome. If the wagoneers are cheering for my team, that means they are buying tickets and that means they’re helping ensure my team’s future.

However, as a faithful fan, I can’t help but get defensive when I see them calling  my teams theirs. I stand by my teams through thick and thin, so why should I have to share them with someone who only cares about the glamorous all-stars?

Those three teams in particular seem to have the most fans jumping on the joy ride at the beginning of every season. Don’t get me wrong, those teams do have a right to hype, but the number of  fans left at the end of a non-championship season equals the number of true fans there were to begin with.

--Allie Davison

Next pet peeves:  Wrongly attired fans and baseball caps