Team | GP | W | L | OTW | OTL | CP | PTS |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Adrenaline | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Lightning | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Brave | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Rhinos | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Northstars | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Player | Points |
---|---|
Ryan Annesley (SBR) | 0 |
Anthony Barnes (BRE) | 0 |
Connor Bartholomew (SID) | 0 |
Connor Bolger (CCR) | 0 |
Goalie | SV% |
---|---|
Justin Harrison (CCR) | - |
Anthony Kimlin (SBR) | - |
Matthew Montgomery (NNS) | - |
Nicholas Novysedlak (BRE) | - |
Behind the Glass: the first taste |
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We all remember our first live hockey experience. Whether it was in Australia or abroad, it was enough to hook us for good. Eric Brook, a newly minted AIHL fan reveals his first taste. "I went to a fight and a game of hockey broke out." The old hockey cliché was pretty much the extent of my knowledge of the game I now love. Occasionally I might flick through the sports channels on Foxtel and see a game in progress. I would watch for a couple of minutes and if there wasn't a fight or a goal, I would switch channels again. During the recent Australian summer, I was on vacation in America where I was visiting Portland in the Pacific Northwest. I have a few friends in the city and it’s my kind of town. I was trying to organise to meet up with my local friends there but because many of them have families and find it difficult to head out in the cold on a freezing winter's night. As a result, we couldn’t get our schedules match, so I was looking for something to do at night. A message directed at me on Twitter grabbed my attention. The question was simple - "Do you want to come to the ice hockey on Friday night?" Upon finding out that the Rose Quarter was across the road from my hotel, I thought ‘why not’. Little did I know that I was about to spend a fair chunk of my weekend at the venue. The foyer was filled with people wearing red jerseys. Despite the cold, the arena was warm and there was a buzz of excitement among the gathering crowd. Banners detailing the achievements of the team I was about to see hung proudly from the roof. The crowd was building nicely. From my seat, I could see the protective screens. I could see the goals. I could see the giant Winterhawks logo in centre ice. As far as this virgin ice hockey viewer was concerned, I had a good seat. I was side on to the rink about 20 rows from the glass. Briefly before the start of the game, I was introduced to the man who made my first night at the hockey possible. Sean "The Pipes" Norris is the stadium announcer for the Portland Winterhawks. He’s really knowledgeable about hockey, and this was really handy for me because apart from a couple of seasons of field hockey at high school, I had little idea about what was going on apart from the fact that there were goals scored and that fights break out. The Portland Winterhawks hit the ice for their pre-game warm up and the atmosphere was instantly electric. Players were firing puck after puck at their goalkeeper. The sounds of pucks rapidly hitting glass filled the stadium. Portland's opponents soon joined them on the ice. Moose Jaw was the first of many Canadian towns that I would only know because of their hockey team. The national anthems of both countries were sung and even for an Australian, it was a stirring moment. The hairs on the back of my neck stood up as I waited for my first taste of live hockey. The first time I heard the thud when two players hit the screens sounded like cannon fire. Thud, Thud. Thud. As shots at goal went wide, the crowd groaned. As the Portland players slammed a Moose Jaw player into the glass, the crowd cheered. Following the end-to-end motion of the puck, I soon had the chance to cheer as the Winterhawks scored their first goal. AC/DC's song Thunderstruck filled the stadium and the crowd went wild. My friend Polly told me a lot of things about the game that I would not learn from the TV. I was stunned to find that the team had cheerleaders (the Portland Rosebuds) who dance on the ice during intermissions. I also had a lot of questions to ask Sean after the game about the team and the competition. Portland totally dominated the game. Thunderstruck was played eight times in total during the game as the Hawks were finding the net easily. Moose Jaw scored a couple of consolation goals but was totally out-classed 8-2. While I knew that the game existed before that night, this was the longest I had sat down and watched a game. I was hooked. I wanted more. I was watching the Western Hockey League (WHL), which is a part of the Canadian Hockey League (CHL). The Portland Winterhawks are one of five American teams from the Pacific Northwest along with 17 teams from western Canada. The WHL and CHL competitions are stepping stones to the NHL so it is quite possible that players I had seen could soon be in the NHL. Players are young, and encouraged to complete their high school or college educations while playing for their team. I returned to the arena solo on Sunday to watch my second hockey game. I’d had a great view for Friday's game against Moose Jaw but for Sunday afternoon's game against Spokane, I wanted a different view. There was one experience that I wanted to have before my weekend of hockey ended - sitting behind the glass behind the goals. What a view! Even though Friday night's game gave me some idea about the sights and the sounds, nothing prepared me for the players hitting the glass at close range or the pucks hitting the glass in front of my face! Lucky for me, the Winterhawks were shooting in my direction for two periods. They defeated Spokane 5-0. I'd now been to two games and saw two convincing victories from the Winterhawks. With a lot more hockey knowledge under my belt, I was determined to keep following the team from afar as I returned home. I now had a sporting team that I had some sort of connection with. I went to a game on Monday night. It was played at the larger Moda Centre. Arriving well before the opening puck, Sean was surprised to see me wearing a Winterhawks away jersey—I’d managed to find a store selling merch. Sean treated me to a behind the scenes tour of the stadium. During my tour, I was able to meet some of the team's staff including mascot Tom-A-Hawk and a couple of the Rosebuds. The undoubted pre-game highlight was getting to walk on the ice around 90 minutes before the puck dropped. This was a little scary for me because I can't ice-skate to save my life - or at least I couldn't the first and only time I tried when in year 5 on a school excursion. I'm not sure what I gripped harder - the wall of the rink or the hand of the girl who offered to take me around the ice for a lap. Portland defeated Vancouver 5-2 which gave the large crowd and I a great way to end a weekend of hockey. I’ve been following the team's progress via Twitter, Facebook and occasional tuning into their audio live stream. I am very pleased to be able to say that I saw part of the team's 21 game winning streak. At the time of writing, the Winterhawks have completed two series in their post-season and are about to compete in their conference final series on their way to what will hopefully lead to their second consecutive championship. After my first game, I knew that I was a newly minted hockey fan. I love the action. I love the excitement. I love the passion and the skill. I knew that I had to search for an Australian competition when I returned home. That story is for another time behind the glass. Links: Portland Winterhawks (@pdxwinterhawks) Western Hockey League (@thewhl) Canadian Hockey League (@CHLHockey) Erk (@erkpod) Sean "The Pipes" Norris (@hawkspipes) |
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Contact Information
Australian Ice Hockey League Ltd
Level 1
7 Lonsdale Street
Braddon, Australian Capital Territory
2612 Australia
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