Finally, it came. Friday night’s home opener for the Boston University men’s ice hockey team against the University of New Hampshire was also my first experience of hockey from the press box. To mark the occasion, I decided to keep a running diary of my observations throughout the night.
Pre-Game Observations
6:47 – The Pep Band plays a quintessential ’80s song as the crowd pump-up jam. Last year, it was Paul Simon’s “You Can Call Me Al.” This year’s winner: The J. Geils Band’s “Centerfold.” Fantastic choice. Other candidates for future years should include Toto’s “Africa” and Cher’s “If I Could Turn Back Time” just to throw everybody for a loop.
6:52 – Looking out into the crowd, the first thing I notice is that while the two student sections are filled to the brim, the side sections of the arena are 75 percent empty 10 minutes before the game starts. This is especially surprising considering that UNH was picked to finish first in Hockey East and this is the first night of hockey at Agganis. Interesting. My guess is that everyone thought the men’s basketball team was playing tonight and knew to stay away.
(Edit: By the third period, the stands filled up, but there were still a lot of empty seats. I talked to an usher between the second and third periods who said the game didn’t sell out and there were plenty of seats available at the box office.)
6:56 – Your Boston University Terriers take the rink for the first time.
6:57 – The Jumbotron is showing continuous Frank TV commercials. Just kidding.
6:59 – The 2006 Beanpot Banner is unveiled to the fans. This is accompanied by a fantastic montage on the Jumbotron showing highlights from BU’s 2-1 victory over Boston College at the TD Banknorth Garden last year. Wait a minute — a BC reference?
As happens at BU, this must be followed by…
7:00 – The year’s first “BC sucks” chant. I love it. Only in Boston can something like this happen — derogatory chant made about a Boston rival that’s nowhere in the vicinity of the field of play. This happens at a Red Sox-Devil Rays game with the numerous “Yankees suck” calls. I went to a Dave Matthews concert last year in April and the chant broke out in the middle of the show. This happens nowhere else. I wonder if someone stands up and yells “Tiger sucks!” at a Phil Mickelson family dinner.
7:02 – BU senior goalie Karson Gillespie is introduced and he’s wearing the “please don’t be the third period” look on his face.
Game Observation
7:42 – The same usher just informed me that famed National Hockey League defenseman Bobby Orr is in attendance. What’s the NHL?
8:25 – The student section just told UNH goalie Kevin Regan that he sucks. That’ll show him.
9:10 – UNH just sealed the deal on a goal by James vanRiemsdyk. Wasn’t he one of the members of the family that tried to escape Germany during The Sound of Music? The BU crowd is speechless.
Sopan Deb, a sophomore in the College of Communication, is a weekly columnist for The Daily Free Press. He can be reached at [email protected].
