By Madeline Lau
There is a sport, a glorious sport, that has somehow yet to reach the inner core of Oregon, despite the fact that our state was made for a pro team. I’m talking hockey, y’all, and we need it!
Sure, we have the Winterhawks (if they count) and a few college teams but it’s just not the same as the glory of a PROFESSIONAL hockey team filling the stands with crazy, unadulterated, boisterous energy! It’s incredible, and I can confidently say: I love hockey.
My adoration started in Arizona, of all places, a little less than a year ago. I was visiting a friend and her hockey-crazed boyfriend (really, I don’t think there are any moderate, calm fans) who insisted on taking me to a Phoenix Coyotes game. We donned the jerseys, ascended the stands and braved the frigid atmosphere to watch a bunch of dudes smack into each other and chase around an object the size of a Ding Dong on a giant slab of ice.
Needless to say, they had me at “dudes smack each other” and I was soon screaming and gesticulating with the best of the sloshed regulars. I don’t know why hockey and beer go hand in hand, and I certainly don’t condone that combination, but my fellow hockey fans are regularly pretty hammered and it makes for a much more relaxed, uninhibited environment. I’m all about that!
After that first hockey game in Phoenix I was all about Canada’s national pastime. I scrounged around and found my sister’s old LA Kings t-shirt, got tickets with my now ex but still hockey-obsessed boyfriend, and we were off to Staples Center. The irony of that game was that LA was playing Phoenix, and I, as a fledgling fan, had difficulty determining my loyalty. Hedging my bets and probably looking to get punched I chose to root for the Coyotes in a sea of Angelinos; chaos ensued. Even my date for the night was ragging on me with the best of them as I attempted to give the poor Coyotes a little love. But it was this insane confrontational brawl-y crowd that fuelled my passion for the game. After three periods and a totally unpredictable upset by the Kings I was raring to go like the match hadn’t even started. This is when I realized that liking sports is 30 percent about the actual game, athleticism, or sportsmanship and 70 percent about the camaraderie that comes with being in the crowd, slurring at the goalie and arguing with your seatmate. THAT is why people like sports and that is why I like hockey.
So now I’m in between teams (still love Phoenix, but gotta love my Kings) until Oregon decides to man up and get itself a real NHL certified line-up. I’m thinking we could be the Oregon Wild Elk or the Notorious Nutria; you know, give the Beavers a break for a while. But we’ve got to start hassling the NHL. Who wants to help with the letter-writing campaign?
Hockey fans unite!
