Right now I am missing out on watching a tied game between the Blackhawks and the Bruins in the Madhouse (2-2). While I am sorely frustrated that I can’t find the game on the dysfunctional television set in my dorm room lounge, I guess I will take this time to reminisce about the last time I was able to watch hockey. About a week ago I attended my first minor league hockey game. My parents and I got tickets to see ECHL team the Florida Everblades. They faced off against the South Carolina Stingrays. Before the game could even begin there was a brawl and one of the best players on the Blades was suspended from the game. After that the game finally began. After the initial fight the game was pretty clean, not as aggressive as I would have anticipated for a local minor league team. Blades forward Parker Stanfield scored early in the first period with an assist by Mike Merrifield and the Stingrays spent the next two periods attempting to even out the game in vain thanks to some stellar defense by Blades goalie Trevor Cann. Without some impressive saves by Cann, Stingrays forward Patrick Gaul may have tied the game during the third period. It was a fantastic experience. We nabbed some great seats, met some loyal ECHL fans, and were able to be a part of a new hockey experience. The Germain Arena even had a post game free skate! ECHL is an affiliate of the AHL and NHL and is considered to be a tier below the AHL. The Everblades are currently associated with the Carolina Hurricanes and the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Some cool flavored mouth guards I found in the gift shop.
Click here for a link to see a list of Florida Everblade Players who made it to the NHL: http://floridaeverblades.com/team/in-the-pros/
*FOMOH= Fear Of Missing Out (on) Hockey
Hooked on Hockey 