Hockey Kings of the West

What amazingness!!

One of my earlier blog posts was about how much I have gotten into hockey. The experience of the game, the cool from the ice, the roar of the crowd, the jumping up and yelling either from a goal or telling the ref that he's blind, its all very much apart of the game.

I learned another part of the game when I started going to the ECHL's Stockton Thunder games. I knew the fellas (as I like to refer to whatever season's current roster of the team) had skill and passion. Our city is kinda always down in the dumps so we make up for our depression by cheering on our local hockey team. What we lack as a city the team shows on ice.

The thing is sometimes its interesting to be a fan because as our roster changes constantly and so does the unity of the team. Thunder are apart of the ECHL which is a semi pro team. We have players come down to play for us and have players get called up to the next higher up league. We've even had quite a few players make it to the NHL.

With all the changes that happen throughout the season you always see the team grow. Even the vets grow on their own but you also see them taking on the rookies. By the end of the season what might've started off as a clunky team has now been fine tuned to perform optimally on the ice.

As any fan from any team would understand, I always hope that my team gets a shot at the championship, but I know its not always possible. When this season started off I had no doubt that the team would make the playoffs. They have the past few years and have become that high standard club that plays the hardest to at the very least make the playoffs. What amazed me was what happened during the playoffs. Game by game they picked up a Win. They lost a few but during each round of the playoffs the Wins became more and the Losses became less. They beat teams during away games and they beat teams on home ice. The more they won the more it unified them as a team, us as a city of fans, and boosted the confidence of all involved to the point that we the fans knew in our hearts that the Western Conference would be taken by the Thunder.

As I sat in section 107, right behind the goalie, the score board screen showed the team in the locker room and starting to walk out to come to the ice. The team has a phrase written on the wall to the entrance/exit of the locker room that I've seen before but it never really impacted me as much as it did the very last game they played. Written in that western "outlaw" font it says, not so simply:

Our Club

Our House

Our Way
...

All Night 

How true that phrase was that night. They were up in the series 3-1 and this was the last game in Stockton. They had to win at home in front of the nearly 5,000 fans that were cheering them on.
And. They. Did. It.

It was a great game. They played with heart and didn't let the extra roughing and hard checks of the other team phase them. They kept their head in the game and gave the fans what they wanted. How nice it'll be to walk into the arena now with a banner hanging high to show the achievements of such an amazing group of fellas.

5 Grateful things, 5/12

My second weekly 5 grateful things that I was thankful for this past week:

1. My mom. Without her I wouldn't be the person I am today. I have a deep admiration and respect for women because of her. 
2. My friends' mom for feeding me! She invites me over for dinner and welcomes me into her house as if I was one of her own. 
3. My wife and Ayesha, for putting up with my moods on a daily basis. They deal with me and diffuse my moods in a way that no others can. They both have a way to lift my spirits without knowing it or without even knowing I need it. 
4. For seeing and being able to hang out with my niece who has served a few tours in the Air Force over seas, and has now retired from serving our country. 
5. To the Stockton Thunder ECHL West Coast Champs!! For the past 5 years I've cheered them on at games and last night they won the Western Conference Championship for the very first time. It was an emotional moment to countdown last few seconds of the game and see what hardwork and a great team can do when they work together. 

St. Hockey's Day

People know I don't care much for sports, but there is one that gets my blood pumping every time, Hockey. God I love hockey.

I did this thing on Facebook a few years ago where it calculates what you talk about most and gives a percentage. Hockey got the highest rating. To say I'm obsessed is a bit of an understatement.

The fascination started around high school. I grew out of baseball at an early age, always hated basketball and golf, and football was fun but only if it was Raider's football. Other than the Silver & Black I just wasn't all that interested. One of my friends said he loved hockey and suggested I give it a shot. I watched a Redwings game, I don't remember who they played but I liked it! There was so much going on that it was impossible for me to get distracted. I would watch an occasional game on TV but I wanted to be there and the fact that I knew I probably wouldn't go to a real game just made me lose some interest.

Fast forward to 2005 my city got a minor league hockey team, the Stockton Thunder. I was pretty excited but my friend had moved away and I knew of no one that liked hockey. I asked a few people to go but I couldn't find anyone interested. I live in a city in Northern California were it doesn't snow or get all that cold, why would anyone be interested in a game that no one around here plays or grew up with?

It took me until the 3rd season of the Thunder being here to make my 1st game. It was love at first ice. It was fun, entertaining, exciting, and emotional! I'm the type of person that gets distracted easily but this game had my full and complete attention. From constantly tracking the super fast puck, to watching the grace of the players skate up and down the rink as equally as fast as the puck, to the refs letting the guys go at it in a full on brawl. I got the hockey fever bad. After that 1st initial game I haven't stopped going.

A few years ago I hit a rough spot and got depressed a bit. I credit two things that kept me going through that dark time, my wife and hockey. I don't want anyone to think my wife isn't the single most important thing that's ever happened to me but this post is about hockey so lets keep that going. The game made me feel alive. I'd love going to the arena wearing all the Thunder Wear I had acquired. Walking in with thousands of other fans wondering what would happen during the game. Who would get goals? Who would fight? Let's face it, we all knew who would fight, *ahem* Garet Hunt, but how many fights would he get it in? What would the final score be? Would this game get us closer to the Kelly Cup?

The buzz and the electricity of the arena mixed with the cool cold air coming off the ice was and is always so refreshing. Then the lights go off and the entrance music comes on, my personal favorite is when Young Men Dead by The Black Angels starts playing. The players are announced and deafening cheering is made for our hometown gladiators. The lights come back on after the National Anthem and then as soon as the puck drops I get full on hardcore fan mode. I love sitting behind the goalie in good old section 107 to yell and get as rowdy as the people around me will let me. Hearing the players yell plays, the crack of the puck against a stick, and the boom of the glass as players are pushed into it gets my adrenaline going like nothing else could. The moment someone fights and you cheer for Thunder and boo the night's rival is the most fun to be had. The pure joy you feel to see the red light flashing and hear the loud horn is amazing! The best feeling however, the absolute best feeling is when at the end of the game you see the team all in the middle of the ice holding their sticks up saluting the fans that cheered them on. How could anyone not love this sport?!


This past weekend was St. Patrick's Day weekend and I went to two games in two days. Never once was I bored. Never once did I wish I spent my weekend any other way.

Awhile back the team announcer mentioned how much some guys on the team liked the TV show Sons of Anarchy. Soon after I saw an image from a fan that had a biker-type logo and a banner that said "Sons of Thunder". I have embraced that and will always think of myself as a member of the Sons of Thunder, Hockey Club section 107.

I feel so grateful and glad that our city has the Stockton Thunder. They helped me through alot and let me share them and turn family and friends into fans.