I'm a Hypocrite with Hockey

• I'm a starved hockey fan and I finally got fed last night (what a cliche!). The Otters put on a great show for us in their home opener. It had it all, a win with penalties, some hard hits, some great scoring plays and a big brawl complete with sticks, gloves, helmets flying and plenty of punching. That's where I become the hypocrite.


• Years ago when I first saw some hockey on TV I thought it was terrible. Look how those guys hit each other. Violence! When I saw my first Chicago Blackhawks game in Chicago, I was very put off at first by the crowd. They scared me. Somewhere between getting scared and the end of the game, I got hooked.


• Last night before the 10-year anniversary of the first home Otter's game, they had a presentation with clips of great plays and memorable moments over those previous 9 years. When the clips of the goal-scoring skate dance and exhibition celebration after each goal was shown on the screen, the crowd roared and laughed with glee. The clips with the hard checks against the board and the brawls all drew the crowd's approval. And there I was, ( Mrs. anti-violence, I hate swearing, supposedly-mellow me) laughing and applauding with the rest of the crowd. Hockey must be exempt from normal sportsmanship for some unknown reason and it just seems OK to boo the opposing team, yell at the ref (because they deserve it most of the time) delight in bench-clearing brawls. I figure if I get it out of my system at the game I can go home and be my old self again.
  
  
• And something else I don't get. I've always thought the hotdogging dances and celebrations after a touchdown in football was cute, funny and entertaining. Then I found out it is not good, it is unacceptable, bad sportsmanship. Hmmm...Why is it not Ok to celebrate and dance and other such antics in other sports after a great play but it is loved and endeared to in hockey? I'm going on record to say I like it (the great play and scoring celebrations) in hockey and I like it in football. And the fighting? Well, I'll go on record to say it isn't a good thing...but like people who go to car races and say they don't really want to see car crashes.......