Hockey Night in Raleigh

I went to the Carolina Hurricanes game against the Atlanta Thrashers tonight. My mom scored some sweet tickets so I went along with my family. It's the first time I've been to a game so far this season (I'm poor and tickets aren't cheap). But the cool thing about going out with your parents is that you don't have to pay to get in.


I know, I'm cheap, but it's okay for me to be cheap right now because I'm in school. I'll remember my parents kindness thirty years from now when I put them in a real nice old folks home.

Anyway, I'd forgotten how much more fun hockey games are when you are actually there as opposed to watching on TV. You see so much more when you're in the arena. My favorite part was when during a brief altercation after a whistle, while the refs were paying attention to a different group of players pushing and shoving, Tim Gleason shoved a Thrashers player's head into the glass. Canadians showed good taste in choosing a national pastime.

My least favorite part of the game was before the game started. I dropped my beer and spilled it all over myself and the seats of the people sitting in front of me. I felt terrible, but the guy was cool about it. The girl he was with wouldn't look at me.

Anyhoo, back to the game


The Hurricanes looked well-rested and their forecheck was outstanding. The 'Canes responded to Ilya Kovalchuck's wrister that went by Cam Ward in the first period with three unanswered goals. Sergei Samsonov was a manimal, picking up two goals and an assist in the 3-1 win.

My inner sportswriter is starting to take over... I'll try to pace myself from here on out.

One last note about the game. The three stars were 1) Sergei Samsonov 2) Tuomo Ruutu and 3) Joe Corvo. All players acquired last season by GM Jim Rutherford (Samsonov was picked up off waivers from the Blackhawks while Ruutu and Corvo were acquired via trades with the Blackhawks and Senators, respectively) so cudos to Mister Jim on picking up players that have been solid contributors to the team.