May the [Fargo] Force be with you.

I attended my first hockey game last night. My office had a box at the Fargo Force game. Going into the game, I knew very little about hockey. I learned a lot.

Things I didn't expect to see at a hockey game:

• An organist. For some reason an organ feels like a baseball-only kind of instrument. Who knew.


• An indoor blimp. This was pretty sweet.


• A between-period tricycle race on the ice (four little kids). Big wheels don't drive very well on ice. It was like watching the mercedes try to drive in the winter.


• Actual fist-fighting. I kinda thought it would be like watching the WWE, kinda fake.

Things I didn't know about the game of hockey:

• There are very few rules. The only real rules that [appear to] exist are the ones that prevent you from actually maiming your competitor and not obstructing the justice of the puck. You can shove one another, kick the puck, catch the puck (if you immediately drop it on the ice), pretty much wreak havoc.


• The walls are a vital teammate in the game of hockey. They can be used to pass the puck, check a foe, stop the momemtum of a players movement, and protect the crowd.


• Hockey jerseys are called sweaters. We decided this must be a Canadian thing.


• Players can [seemingly] come and go from the ice as the please.


• When someone gets put in the penalty box, their team does not get to put another guy on the ice, but they have to play minus a player until that player's "time-out" is complete. At which point the announcer states that "The Force are back at full strength." I liked this.


• Hockey is way fun.

The Force won 3 to 1. They scored the 3rd goal right at the very end of the game (like last 10 seconds) when the other team had their goalie abandon ship to let an additional player try to score a game-tying goal.

I had a great time. I can definitely see more hockey enjoyment in my future.

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