Hey Kitchener!

Last week, a coworker of mine gave me tickets to the first *Kitchener Rangers* game of the season as a thank you for helping some of his clients while he was away. So that’s what got me into something I probably wouldn’t have normally done.

Going into this, I knew some of the basic rules of hockey from playing street hockey, but other than that, my only experience was maybe seeing an NHL clip or something happening during the Olympics. I’ve never actually watched a hockey game from start to finish, or even a full period!

**Now let’s get into my first experience.**

The game today started at 2:00 PM, so I left Cambridge around 12:40 and got to the Kitchener Memorial Auditorium, which I learned today people call the “*Aud*.” I found that a little odd but cute, and shortly after it clicked that it was short for “Auditorium.” That one went right over my head.

The parking was free, which is something I didn’t expect but really appreciated. Since I got there a little early, the walk from the car to the entrance was basically nothing.

It felt special walking into the Auditorium. The tall ceilings, the fans dressed up in their merch, the history of the sport and the team plastered everywhere. It felt like I was entering some sort of kingdom. I know that sounds cheesy, but that’s just how my nerdy brain works!

I saw a ticket booth, so I awkwardly shuffled over to the side of the hall so I wouldn’t block the walkway because I needed to get my tickets up on my phone.

I quickly swiped through my bloated email inbox that’s packed with spam from all sorts of odd foreign companies trying to sell me snake oil, and eventually found the “here are your tickets” email.  
With my e tickets loaded on my phone, I waited in line at the ticket booth, only to realize when it was my turn that this was where you BUY a ticket if you don’t already have one…

I felt a little silly, but eh, it’s a learning process.   
Let’s just say that’s part of the experience.

I walked up the stairs, whipping my head left, right, up and down, looking at all the people and cool artwork. I got to one of the two men checking tickets and he greeted me with a big smile and lots of energy. He asked how I was doing and told me to have a great time.

I know he was just doing his job, but that positive energy really sticks with me and helped set the tone for the whole event :)

Once I was inside, I was walking through the halls shoulder to shoulder with tons of fans. I checked my ticket and knew I was looking for Section 11, Row R, so I had a general idea of where I needed to go.

Food stands were at every corner, along with smaller tables for the 50/50 draw. It reminded me heavily of going to see the Blue Jays, and it gave me the fuzzy feelings.

I stopped at the gift shop. I wasn’t planning on actually buying anything and just wanted to window shop, but with me, who knows? I’m the type of person who will impulse purchase something if I really like it.

**Luckily for my wallet, that didn’t happen.**

I did appreciate the back section of the store having old goalie masks and showing some of the history of masks in hockey. It blew my mind that at one point goalies didn’t actually wear masks. Those guys must have been tough as nails or just insane to sign up for that.

After doing some sightseeing around the arena, I wanted to find my seat before getting snacks.  
There was a gentleman at the front of Section 11’s seating area. I guess his job was to make sure people were sitting in their assigned seats. I showed him my ticket and he pointed me in the right direction.

I was confused about where Row R was since I didn’t see any letters, so I asked him and he pointed out that they’re labelled on the bottom of the row chairs.

Once I found my seat, I still had about 20 minutes before the game actually started, but players from both teams were already warming up and shooting at the nets.

*It looked like a swarm of bees.*

I walked up to one of the food stands and saw a Pizza Pizza logo and a large menu of overpriced food. I wasn’t surprised. It’s an event, food is always overpriced.

I got myself a large Diet Coke and a large soft pretzel. It was maybe $18 together? I love my salt and no calorie sparkles, so I was happy and content.

I got back to my seat and the game was shortly going to start.

I began to notice that the seats aren’t exactly spacious. I’m not the biggest guy, maybe 5’9”, but my legs were basically almost touching the guy in the row in front of me. With nowhere to put my drink, I had to keep it on the floor under me when I wasn’t drinking it.

If I were a much bigger person in the 6 foot range, I couldn’t imagine what the legroom situation would be like. But eh, I made it work.  
The lights turned on and the teams were introduced.

First out were the **Sarnia Sting***.* I’d never heard of them before, but I thought their bee logo was pretty cool.

Then, of course, **the Kitchener Rangers** followed.  
The crowd roared, *and so did I.*

I have absolutely no idea what they’ve done, but if it’s Waterloo Region, you know I’m rooting for them.

The music was loud, the fans were cheering and the entire stadium was getting ready. **At that moment, I knew I was going to have a great time.**

Once the teams made their entrance, the music slowed down and the lights dimmed to a light orange. The stadium took a moment to acknowledge the Indigenous peoples who originally lived in the region.

Then came the good old classic, O Canada.  
I stood up and sang my heart out proudly, but very poorly, it was the French version. I still had fun singing even though my voice was a little rough from last night’s karaoke session.

**Then the game started.**  
*And I was hooked.*

It was speed like I had never seen before. The way the hockey players moved looked like butter. Watching the puck fly across the rink was like a game of cat and mouse for my eyes.

Things were happening and I didn’t really know what, but whenever the Rangers had the puck, I was excited.  
The referees would stop the game sometimes for reasons I was unsure of, but the downtime was minimal. 

*It felt like something was always happening.*

I really enjoyed the intensity and the sounds of the hits. I would instantly cringe whenever a player got hit. It felt brutal.

**If I take anything from today, I know hockey is definitely NOT a sport I was made to play.**

Minutes into the game, the Rangers did it.  
>!They scored their first goal of the season!!<  
The sound that plays when they score gave me goosebumps. It’s such a unique sound, and I could feel the roar of the crowd in my body.  
It was addictive! I stood up like a fanboy screaming in joy.

I saw a few sticks break during the game. I’m not sure how often that happens, but I believe it happened three times??

Some of the players would play without a stick for what seemed like forever if they lost it and just try to get in the attackers’ way. **It was kind of funny!**

*Then it ended.*  
*Period 1 of 3.*

My first ever fully watched hockey period was officially complete, and I loved every moment of it.

Then I saw an 18 minute timer start.  
I didn’t believe it at first, but apparently there’s an 18 minute intermission between periods. I’m not sure if the same thing happens in the NHL, but during that time the Zamboni came out and cleaned the ice.

It also gave me some time to use the restroom, which was super clean, something I highly appreciate. Of course, everyone else in the stadium had the same idea, so the hallways became a little bit of madness.

Period 2 was mostly the same, but I started to realize something….  
**These boys like to fight!**  
It was almost like there was some sort of *heated rivalry* going on.

I wasn’t expecting much fighting, but the amount of pushing and punches I saw during this game shocked me. I thought that type of behaviour was rare, and with this being a preseason game, I figured the tension would be pretty low.  
Don’t get me wrong, it was fun to see. I was expecting no fighting at all, so I enjoyed the extra drama.

A few of the guys seemed to get a little out of hand and ended up getting sent to the penalty box though :)))

The last two minutes of the game were something else. It was 3 to 2 and the Rangers were up.  
*The Sting pulled their goalie* and it became a total shootout.  
I was making all sorts of weird noises and gasping for air every time the Sting took a shot on net.  
Deep down, part of me was hoping they’d score a last minute goal just so the game would go on longer. I’m a sucker for high stakes and dramatic moments.

>!Fortunately for the Rangers, the boys held a solid defence through the final seconds.!<

>!And then the buzzer rang.!<  
>!The Rangers had won their first game of the season!!<

I cheered for a few seconds but quickly got moving because I wanted to have at least some hope of getting out of the arena in a reasonable amount of time. The parking lot actually wasn’t complete chaos. Most drivers were respectful, letting people walk across the street, and cars generally took their turns merging onto the road to leave.

I started this day hoping I’d have a good time because, honestly, hockey has never really interested me. But as I’m writing this, I’m already planning my next Rangers game in another tab.

Thank you to all the staff at the Aud who helped create such a positive environment, the players on both teams for working hard and developing their skills to put on such a show, and of course my friend who gave me the tickets.

I hope this post can inspire some other people to go out and enjoy this little slice of Waterloo Region culture. Maybe even someone from the Rangers or the Aud will see this and get a glimpse into what the experience is like for someone walking into the building for the very first time.

Until next time, Kitchener!  
*Danny from Cambridge*

***TL;DR:***  
My friend gave me tickets to a Kitchener Rangers game today, but I knew basically nothing about hockey, so I wasn’t sure if I’d actually enjoy it.  
I loved every moment of it, and I’m already excited for my next game.

I watched my first ever hockey game at the Aud today… I finally get it