El Paso Rhinos vs OKC Blazers Hockey 2-23-20

I had been looking forward to this.  Ron told me last year that he was going to take out some out-of-state friends, Steve and Jenny, to a hockey game for Jenny’s birthday when they would be here at this time.  He invited me to go too.  I’ve seen lots hockey on TV, but never live.  I’ve been told it is a different experience in-person.  Having seen it now, they’re right.   

We listened to Aggie Baseball during our short trip down the Interstate.  There was one bad patch with a dust storm, as the wind was bad today.  I saw the new race track along the way.  It looked like a nice facility.  We had a late lunch when we got to El Paso.  I’d mentioned the famous Popeye’s Chicken Sandwich to Ron before, and said we’d have to try one the next time we were in town.  (There isn’t a Popeye’s in Las Cruces.)  Did it live up to the hype?  I have to say, it’s pretty darn good.  That toasted bun and juicy chicken was a potent combination.  The Cajun fries were a good side. 

The trip to the El Paso County Coliseum was adventurous.  It featured Ron, who was the one driving Steve’s car, arguing with Steve and Alexa (or whatever the GPS voice is named) over the best route the whole way there.  I had been to Dudley Field once in high school to see the Diablos.  Dad had been very reluctant to go, even with free tickets, because of the neighborhood.  Let’s just say, it wasn’t scenic then and hasn’t improved since.  Dudley Field has been torn down is now an extension of the El Paso Zoo.  It’s all still a dump. 

The Coliseum is a majestic structure, kind of like the Roman Coliseum, in that it’s really old and dilapidated, but has classic styling.  Actually, the hockey team doesn’t play there.  No, they play next door at the Events Center.  How to best describe this?  A hanger?  A metal barn?  It was an equestrian arena where they hosted rodeos.  I don’t know if it can still be converted back-and-forth.  It was cold inside from the ice and the cold weather outside.  I wonder what it’s like inside when it’s hot outside.  I didn’t notice any air conditioning for the arena.   

It was $5 to park by the arena.  There may or may not have been free parking across the street, if you don’t value your vehicle overly much.  While the building didn’t look like much, there was an impressive photo marquee over the main doors announcing it as the home of the Rhinos, the “Back-to-back Throne Cup Champions.”  (It sort of looks like the picture at the top.)  Inside the doors, there’s something of a concourse with concessions before you get to the stands.  

I wasn’t expecting a palace.  I was there to see hockey.  I just needed a seat and a view.  The Events Center meets that bare minimum and then some.  There are large video screens on either end of the arena.  The seats Ron got were at center ice in the grandstand.  (Those were $15, not including the Tickemaster service charge.)  They were metal bleachers, but at least they had backs.  Did I mention it was cold inside?  Yeah, that was a cold metal seat.  Bring a cushion or something to sit on. 

There are smaller stands to either side (presumably cheaper seats).  There were folding seats lower down in front of the glass.  Across the ice and above the team benches were the season ticket holder seats ($30).  In between the benches was the PA’s booth, with the TV booth above that.  There was a skate rental office on the west side (?).  On the other side is something like a club area with tables facing the rink.  That looked like a pretty good place to take in the game.                   

It was a good crowd for a late Sunday afternoon.  It was later announced as a sellout.  The fans were pretty hard core.  A lot of them were wearing Rhinos gear.  A few were wearing team-signed jerseys.  There were plenty of families.  It was “Kids Weekend,” but I’m sure there are usually plenty of kids there.  There were couples.  This would be a great place to bring a date.  Not only would you be snuggling together from the cold, but I couldn’t help but notice that the women were really getting excited watching.  There were some pretty girls down in front with boyfriends.  A couple of them had tremendous hair.    

Hands down, the most interesting and inexplicable fans were a group of tall, handsome young men.  They were very sharply dressed in suits with a couple of them wearing nice cowboy hats.  The guys were completely out of place wardrobe-wise, but somehow fit right in.  They didn’t have seats, but were standing together at the east end of the arena right behind the glass behind the goal.  I’m sure there’s a story here, but I don’t know what it is.        

The sound system at the Events Center is loud.  The PA voice is excellent and does a great job of motivating the crowd.  Audience participation is mandatory.  That said, Ron was covering his ears when they blew the horn for Rhinos’ goals.  Also, the sound was a bit muddled.  Announcements about the goals and penalties tended to be a bit hard to hear.  (Of course, my ears might after been ringing after the goals.)  I could barely get the player numbers, much less the names.  Actually seeing the players scoring or being sent to the penalty box and getting their numbers was more difficult than you’d think. 

The championship sign out front is no fluke.  There are a row of banners hanging from the rafters facing the stands.  There are over ten and range from conference champion to a national champion banner.  The earliest one is from 2007.  Here’s where a nice program with the franchise history would be helpful, but there wasn’t even a photocopied lineup with stats available like at an Aggie Baseball game.  (The team name seems to demand explanation as well.) 

A giant inflatable rhino head was erected on the west end for the players’ entrance and introduction.  The player introduction videos were pretty cool (and I should have tried writing down names and numbers).  The first couple of guys were Swedes and then a Canadian.  A guy with long permed hair got the biggest cheer from the crowd (and for good reason, as we’ll see later).  Another one with a good beard got a big cheer.  These two are the guys pictured at the top of this post.  (It may have been the women getting excited by these guys.)  There was a good Anthem singer.  She was accompanied by a little girl nearby us in the stands who loudly sang with her.  There was definitely a patriotic vibe at the game all the way through.  At the end, the players on both teams banged their sticks on the ice to applaud.

I admit, the first problem I had with live hockey was not having expert voiceover commentary explaining the action to me.  I seem to remember there used to be some local radio coverage for the Rhinos, but that’s been discontinued.  There is a broadcast booth above the PA, but it is apparently for video over the Internet.  It took some getting used to, but I got over it.

The next issue was notetaking.  Without a program, I was going to have to look up everything on the Internet later (or so I thought).  The action is, of course, very fast and continuous without any regular breaks.  Noting anything that didn’t involve a stoppage, such goals and penalties, was going to be difficult.  I usually like mentioning the little things in a game that don’t show up in a box score.  I eventually worked out a kind of rhythm for it, but at the expense of nearly all legibility. 

Yeah, I’ll get all the names later on the Internet, I thought.  Yeah, there were no game stats recap there that I could find on their website.  There was something of a video recap, but it was just a montage of game footage.  Even the listed rosters listed were not current.  I couldn’t find players I’d noted during the game.  (I’m sure detailed player stats are kept somewhere by the teams, just not available to the public.)  I think I’m finally getting to the point of saying, this isn’t going to be much of a recap.  I’ll do my best here, but this a sport you need to actually experience rather than read about to really get anything out of it.  TV hockey is fun (and you can take notes on it), but recapping the game live with no help is nearly hopeless. 

First Period

A bunch of dudes played hockey for 20 minutes.

That much I’m sure of. 

Unlike watching soccer, I could not hope to track every shot on goal.  The game is too fast.  The Rhinos took the first couple of shots, including that guy with the long hair, #3 Sebastian Jovicic.  13’ left in the period, #18 on the OKC Blazers took a shot on a breakaway that was stopped. 

11’ our first penalty.  Since it was on OKC, they had a production number to go with it.  There was something like a police siren, flashing lights, and a song.  I didn’t quite get the lyrics, but it was something to the tune of Whoop, whoop, you’re busted.  The crowd joined in with the “whoop’s.”  During the power play, the Rhinos fired a couple of shots on goal.  The OKC goalie stopped a couple of point blank shots. 

We also had our first minor scuffle during the power play, which resulting in offsetting penalties.  The referees seemed pretty quick to jump on any fighting.  (There was a reason for that, as I found out later.)  Sebastian got the payoff with a shot into the top shelf to give El Paso a 1-0 lead.  At that point, a deafening horn went off and steam fired off behind the goals.  A little girl and a troop of kids ran down the aisle with a Rhinos flag.  (They’d use some other kids for succeeding goals.)  It was a spectacle.  After the PA’s goal announcement, which I couldn’t entirely hear from either being deafened and/or the muddled sound system, the section next to us sang out something.  I think it was something to tune of OKC, you suck!        

     

Heads up!  6’ a puck flew into the stands with a clang.  There’s another good reason to pay attention to the game apart from the action.  4’ scary, a loose puck floated in front of an open side of the Rhino’s goal.  It was nearly an own goal.  That would have been a downer.  3’ #9 EP got a penalty for hooking.  2’ there as a stoppage as puck went into a Rhino player’s uniform and somehow got stuck there.  1’ OKC got a penalty that would carry over to the second period.

First Intermission

Here’s something I didn’t expect at a hockey game: a buggy blasting out on to the rink.  It spun around on the ice wildly while a guy on the back fired a couple of t-shirts into the crowd.  Admittedly, that livened things up.  There was also a kid puck-shooting contest and a game of musical chairs.  Since the games were on ice, the contestants were wearing helmets. 

We used the facilities in the break.  I don’t know if there’s another bathroom, but the one we used had plenty urinals, so there was no waiting.  There was a stall with merchandise.  Wait.  That was a bad transition.  The merchandise stall was in the concourse, not the bathroom.  It wasn’t so much a concourse, as a wide hallway between the men and women’s bathrooms.  Ron noted the prices as $7 for a puck and $89 for a jersey.  Not sure about t-shirts or hats.  There was a line for beer/food on the other side and a soda and water stall next door. 

Spike, the Rhinos’ mascot, came by the stands.  He is a large, friendly individual with a happy, smiling big rhino head.  He’s also quite friendly.  He danced with several people in the aisle.  Steve handed me his large sock hat to sit on for the rest of the game.  He was worried I was getting too cold.    

Second Period

Events didn’t start on a good note.  18’ #18 on OKC tied it on a soft drive.  1-1.  Music was still played after the opposition goal.  17’ a Rhino player accidently made a massive trip on a teammate.  No foul on that.  17’ #28 OKC outskated two guys on a breakaway for a goal.  2-1 OKC.  Since so much of the action had been in the opponent’s zone, I was a bit worried about what would happen when the Rhino goalie was tested.

On the other hand, there was a hot and stylish team photographer on a platform next to the opposing bench.  I’m guessing some of the players have introduced themselves to her.  On the ice, the Rhinos went back on the offensive.  The OKC goalie had made four stops by the 15’ mark.  12’ there was a fight between two guys that went down to the ice.  However, it was on the other end of the ice away from the puck.  The refs didn’t see it, but most of the crowd was watching it.

11’ OKC penalty.  A Rhino player was hit in the mouth and went right to the bench.  I wish I knew the OKC goalie’s name, because he was doing a great job.  He stood on his head making stops.  The Rhinos even pulled their goalie during the power play to put another attacker on the ice.  9’ another OKC penalty immediately followed for slashing.  8’ oh, a beauty one-timer by #9 tied it. 2-2.  That took us into a media timeout.

8’ back to the action and we had our first full-on fight.  An OKC player knocked the hat off of a Rhino player pushing him into the boards and it was on.  There were again offsetting penalties for fighting.  7’ the EP goalie made a good catch.  After that, two more players went to the penalty boxes for ruffing.  It was getting crowded in those boxes.  6’ more pushing and shoving and an OKC player got dinged for it for a Rhino power play.  #23 EP, standing by the goal, deflected in a shot from the blue line to put the Rhinos back up 3-2.  The crowd took up a He shoots, he scores chant.

4’ there’s the rock star again, Sebastian slapped one in on a breakaway to make it 4-2 Rhinos.  Two players went down right away fighting.  An El Paso player got a penalty for ruffing.  Sebastian later whiffed on an outside shot.  It happens to the best of them.  1’ EP picked up another penalty, which would carry over to the third period.    

Second Intermission

Ron got up for a walk and I moved over to sit by Steve and Jenny.  Some fans had bought foam pucks, which were thrown on to the ice for a giveaway for a player’s jersey.  I’m surprised people would give up the souvenir for a low-percentage chance of hitting the target, but the player would come out to present the winner with the jersey later (presumably signed). 

Kiss cam was announced.  Steve immediately moved away from Jenny.  They have an interesting relationship.  With one couple, the girl literally jumped the guy and they won.  (Like I said, this is a good place to bring a date.)  There was also a race with a fan pulling another fan sitting on a sled.  There was a PA read for a dentist sponsor.  Jenny mentioned that every hockey game she’s been to had had a sponsorship with a dentist. 

Ron returned with some intel.  OKC is El Paso’s main rival.  Usually, play is even chippier.  While it was pretty full today, the arena is usually completely packed on Fridays and Saturdays.  He also looked around for our former boss, who we knew was a big hockey fan.  He was a season ticket holder back when the Buzzards were around, the previous El Paso hockey team in the 90’s.  Ron also mentioned that he kept thinking he was hearing the PA shouting “Let’s go Miners!” instead of “Let’s go Rhinos!”  I kept thinking he was going to say, “Let’s go Chihuahuas!”  I had to keep stopping myself from writing “Aggies” in my notes as well.

Third Period

18’ a good EP shot just missed.  17’ an OKC player went down hard.  Another player immediately called for the trainer.  The player came off the ice holding his arm and got a round of applause from the crowd.  Meanwhile, the nice-looking couple in front of me started making out.  (Note to self, next time, dump Ron and bring a date, preferably Emerson or Megan Hart.  Meg is Canadian.  She’d probably really enjoy it.)

13’ we have a hat trick!  Sebastian gets one in to make it 5-2 El Paso.  I took off my hat and . . . waved it in the air.  I’d already decided earlier that if this event occurred, I would NOT be tossing my favorite San Francisco Giants hat on to the ice.  (I know it was an odd hat choice, but it’s the nicest one I have.)  I think there was an announcement afterward that you could go get your hat back after the game.  Maybe. 

This also brought up the funniest moment in the game.  I missed it, but Ron and everyone else saw it.  The referees were the ones collecting the hats on the ice.  After one of the refs got all of the hats on one side, a fan tossed one behind him.  He skated back and got it.  As soon as he’d turned around, the fan tossed another behind him.  The ref collected it, skated up to the glass, and flipped the fan off.  This got a good laugh out of the crowd.  (Even the players know not to mess with a hockey ref.)

There was an OKC power play right after, but most of the penalty was actually spent in the OKC zone.  4’ there were words exchanged and a near fight.  7’ the OKC goalie pulled down an El Paso player by his goal.  Another OKC player piled on, maybe to keep the goalie from getting a penalty.  There ended up being offsetting penalties again. 

6’ El Paso got another power play.  5’ another Rhino player went straight to the bench after a shot to the mouth.  This gave the Rhinos a one-minute two-man advantage, but they didn’t score on it.  3’ the last good shot on goal clanged off the OKC crossbar.  The remaining time was uneventful.  Rhinos win 5-2! 

Afterward, the team skated around the length of the rink to salute the fans.  There is also a skate with the team for kids afterward.  I don’t know all of the details, but they do it after every game.  It’s free, though maybe you have to rent the skates?  I saw one kid putting on ice skates that had training wheels on them.  In any case, you can meet the players.  This might be how the fans seemed so well-acquainted with them without a program or up-to-date roster on the Internet. 

We didn’t hang around for the team skate.  Outside, the weather had gotten more unpleasant with a stiff, freezing cold wind blowing.  I’m glad we didn’t try parking further away.  Leaving downtown El Paso, usually feels like an escape from a maze, which it is.  After a chatty drive back to Las Cruces, we got some Caliches frozen custard, in spite of the cold, and said our goodbyes.  Jenny, the birthday girl, had had a good time, along with the rest of us. 

One thing live hockey has is the noises of the game.  When the pucks are slapped and the players crash into the boards, the sounds are sharp and distinct.  The speed of the game and, as tough as the players are, the gracefulness of their skating skill are so much more impressive in person.  In short (looking at the page count here, that’s a joke), I’m highly recommending to any sports fan in the area to go see the Rhinos.