Sunday, March 27, 2016

Spring Break Avalanche Game

Every year my Dad and I try to go to at least one Colorado Avalanche game and this year we picked a game against the Minnesota Wild during my spring break.  It's a long drive but we've done it so many times that it has become part of the experience!  We have traditions and rituals with things we do and places we stop.  Right before we left, Denver had a huge snow storm and I-80 was actually closed for a while which made us nervous to drive but we only had snow flurries here and there.  Whenever I travel to Denver alone I usually stay at the Motel 6 but with my Dad it is first class all the way and we stay at the SpringHill Suites downtown.  This hotel is so nice!  We checked in late Friday afternoon and the plan was to rest for a little while and then go to dinner (I love Old Chicago and we don't have one in SLC) but I fell asleep and, by the time I woke up, it was too late to go anywhere!  I'm such a party animal!
The game was Saturday afternoon and my Dad and I were so excited!  I think the Pepsi Center is such an amazing venue for hockey.  I can smell the ice as soon as I walk in the doors!
We had absolutely fabulous seats right at center ice!  This game was really important for the Avalanche because they are chasing the Wild for a playoff spot and it was intense during the first period.  It felt like playoff hockey to me with lots of shots on goal and really tight defense.  Then the Avalanche totally fell apart in the second period.  Their puck handling was terrible and there were so many giveaways that I stopped counting.  They had several power play opportunities but couldn't convert.  In fact, they didn't even get one shot on goal during one power play.
The only thing that enlivened the second period was a visit from Bernie, the Avalanche mascot.  The Wild scored twice in the second period and then got a short-handed goal and an empty-net goal in the third period.  It was disappointing but, like last year, we invited my cousin Blaine to go to the game with us and it was a lot of fun to talk to him (especially about Batman v Superman).  I love the Colorado Avalanche, so even though they lost the game, and most likely a chance at making the playoffs, I lhad a great time watching them play!  Next year my Dad and I are hoping to see the Avs play the Maple Leafs in Toronto!
Many years ago I started a tradition of getting an Avalanche hat at every game I went to.  Even though I have more hats than I know what to do with, I had to get another one!  I really wanted a hat with the new logo on it and my Dad wanted one, too!
Even though the Avalanche lost, at least we got matching hats!

Note:  Several years ago I almost ran out of gas while driving in Wyoming.  I could have stopped in Green River but I thought I would make it and then barely coasted into Little America only to discover that the power was off!  I vowed that I would never, ever, do that again because my Dad always tells me not to let the tank get that low!  Last night when we reached Green River, we had 1/8th of a tank left.  My Dad and I decided that we could make it to Little America and the gas light immediately came on!  I think we made it to Little America on fumes but, at least, the power was on this time!

No comments:

Post a Comment

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...