On Tuesday the 23rd, I went to three hockey games. This makes six Olympic hockey games in total. And the middle one was Team Canada, which for me, is something I can cross off my life-to-do list. I’ve taken buddies, brothers and sisters, and of course, my wife.
Instead of blog each game, outcome, etc etc, here are some Olympic hockey tips.
• Come in your country colors. The bigger, brighter, and crazier your get up, the better. Costumes are encouraged!
Swedish Helmets
Swedish Twins
• You can get cheap hockey tickets from scalpers, especially in a game after Team Canada plays. I had my brother-in-law join me last minute for a game, and bought a single seat three rows from the ice for $40 (where as my ticket 3 rows from the back of arena cost $80 + fees). We all went down and sat together.
• The food in GM place is brutal. I’ve done the nachos, hot dog, foot long hot dog, $4 snickers bar, cinnamon stick, pretty much everything they are selling. The only hope is the $5 bag of mini donots – they are quite good – but you certainly can’t eat them all. I recommend heading to the Beijing / Plaza of Nations area for pregame grub.
• You are best to head out with a minute left in a period for the bathroom or beer. You can do both in seconds, instead of 15 minutes.
• Have a buddy grab a table close to stadium to greet you after the game. Having 20,000 people leaving Canada Hockey Place at once looking for food and beer, it’s your only chance to get a table. We had a good setup for my triple header, where friends that weren’t coming to that specific game had the table and we looped back in-between games. Different people met us there during the day, and Dix became our official party site.
• If you have back-to-back games, leave the stadium. Security hasn’t taken me more than 15 minutes, even for the Canada game, and that way you can get real food, cheaper food, cheaper drinks, and just stretch your legs.
From here forward, I’ll be watching games on big screens, pubs and at home – but to be in the stadium, even for smaller countries, is an awesome experience. Go Canada!
