Opening a can of whoop ass

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[youtube=Y-EmdNxF4A8]

The Calgary Flames ice hockey team are undoubtedly the cities pride and joy. We were desperate to see a game and had tried to get tickets on a few prior occasions but found they were sold out. In the end I booked us tickets well in advance for a Monday night game near the end of the season. By this stage the flames had ensured they would make the playoffs but in a rather unconvincing way. Prior to the match we watched they had only scored 6 goals in 6 games so things didn't look promising.

Nic, Tina and I finished work and had a spot of dinner before catching the train with the throngs of red-attired Flames fans. It took us a while to find and then made the arduous trek up to our seats. We were in the cheap sport check zone more commonly known as the nose bleeders. We didn't realise that this section was a first come first served area otherwise we would have arrived earlier. None the less, we had a decent view, and were situated amongst hordes of university students who were pretty vocal and kitted out in Flames jerseys. One even sported a bright red mohawk with the flames symbol shaved into the side of his head. Now that's commitment.

Because of Calgary's recent poor form I was surprised that the game was a sellout. Then again I should have realised that Calgary is a patriotic city and the nearly 20,000 supporters were right in behind their team. After some pre-match hype and music the game got going. I guess I should mention the opposition were the Los Angeles Kings. The first period was defensive from both sides, the Kings hit the post and the Flames had a few good chances snuffed out. So the first period ended 0-0 and we were dreading a terribly low scoring match.

The second period started slowly but picked up when the Flames bundled in a goal. The tempo of the game seemed to rise and the play was more open. The Kings levelled the scores before the best part of the game - an awesome brawl. It was a one on one, both players threw their helmets, sticks and gloves to the ground and went toe to toe for nearly a minute. The referees let it all go until one, or both of the players go to ground. Check out the video, it's well worth a watch.

After the fight the Flames seemed to again lift their game and scored some fantastic goals. Iginla, who is the Flames all-time leading goal scorer put one away, so that was a nice bonus to be able to say we saw one of his goals live. In the end the Flames took it out 4-1, and there was another good fight. So the wait was worth it, let’s hope the Flames can say the same and win their first Stanley cup since 1988.

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