I was there when…
Ever witness one of those special moments that make you call all your friends and tell them what you saw? One of those moments that lets you tell people years later, “I was there when…”? Thanks to MoPR’s new client, Talkster, I had one of those moments.
I’m a big hockey fan. A long time ago, when I first started becoming aware of sports and teams, I lived in Toronto. My first memory of supporting a home team was to root for the Toronto Maple Leafs. But I never saw them play at home. Not live anyway.
I was in Toronto over the weekend working with Talkster. A casual mention of my desire to see hockey turned into a very special night. Talkster’s CEO, Harry Borenstein, is a very generous man. Once he heard that I wanted to see a Maple Leafs game “Uncle Harry” called his friend Johnny and got tickets to the sold out game: Toronto vs Calgary. Harry brought Maria of Talkster, Johnny and me to the game.
It was a tremendously special night for me. But I would say it was also special for the Talksterites who came along. It was Uncle Harry’s first hockey game and Maria finally fulfilled her lifelong dream of getting a giant foam finger.
Hockey is the national sport of Canada (it used to be Lacrosse, but lets get real). But Canadians often lament the fact that out of 30 teams in the NHL, only six are from Canada, and they play in only two of the six divisions. Because of the way teams are scheduled, it means that these two divisions only play once every four years in the regular season. So when the Leafs of the Northeast division host the Flames of the Northwest, it’s not just a game; it’s an event.
By the way, we can wax philosophical about the good old days of the NHL when there were teams like the Winnipeg Jets and the Quebec Nordiques. But when I first became a hockey fan there were only three Canadian teams in the NHL: the Habs, the Leafs and the Canucks (which oddly enough was in the East Division although the team is from Vancouver). But I digress.
When Americans think of arenas and stadiums for sporting events, we think of the great fields like Soldier Field in Chicago or Fenway Park in Boston. Americans seem to be less impressed by hockey arenas. There is a reason for that. In America the NHL plays in basketball arenas that also happen to have hockey. The Air Canada Centre is different. ACC is a hockey arena where they happen to have basketball. It is a truly magnificent place to see a sporting event; a cathedral for hockey. It is loud and raucous and when something exciting happens in the game, it reverberates around the arena like the shockwave of an atom bomb.
I know this, because the October 14 meeting of the Leafs and Flames was one of the most exciting sporting events I ever witnessed, certainly the most exciting I witnessed live. Part of this has to do with the rule changes put into effect last season by the NHL after the players strike. The game is just more exciting in general. The refs blow their whistle a lot less frequently and the game moves a lot more quickly. But most of the excitementment happened in the last 50 seconds of the game.
Like true sports fans, we stayed to the end. Everyone did. Maybe six people left at the end of regulation to get a head start on exiting the parking lot. But they weren’t there when; we were.
At the end of regulation, the score was tied 4-4. The Leafs were starting the sudden death overtime period with one player in the penalty box (meaning they were on the ice with only four players while Calgary had five). Toronto played their best line, which includes team captain Mats Sundin. Sundin had already scored twice in the game. Not even one minute into the period had passed when Sundin got his stick on the puck and drove it down the ice. With a slapshot from nearly center ice, Sundin completed his hat trick (third goal in a game by a single player) with an unassisted, short-handed goal, which also happened to be the 500th goal of his career. The Leafs win (later we’ll ask Maria to debate whether the team should be known as the Toronto Maple Leaves rather than the Leafs).
Many thanks to Uncle Harry, Maria, Johnny and Talkster. Because of them, I can say I was there when.
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