I don't want to fanboy this thread too much, but I can't tell you how happy I am to have some fellas to talk hockey with. Woo hoo!!
Retrology wrote:I'm a Blue Jackets fan
Grud bless you, sir.
I [unfortunately] found myself spending a few years in Columbus around six or seven years ago. Best thing that happened during my time there was that I met my future wife (dawwww) but besides that, bleh, no thanks! Bad weather, non-stop commutes by car with little mass transit, and a strange fixation on the local college team. Jeebus, grow up, people! The Jackets were one of the best teams in the conference a few years I lived there, and all anyone seemed to want to talk about was the Ohio State Buckeyes... even months after the season ended. I can't tell you how many times I had to "remind" born-and-raised Columbus residents that they had a hockey team, and a damn good one, too. Always a losing battle, unfortunately.
I made the best of my time there by sweeping up as many cheapie Jackets tickets as I could. Back when they were in the Western Conference, anytime the Blackhawks were in town, I was there. You could get in the door for $15 or so, which was all I needed, and my family would occasionally come down to visit from Chicago, as it was actually cheaper to drive down to Ohio, get cheap tickets, and stay the night in a motel than it was to pay for parking and get tickets to the United Center. They've really priced the casual fan out of that place, but with the Jackets playing better as of late, I'm sure prices have gone up at Nationwide Arena, too,
DAT CANNON, THO!! What a way to celebrate a goal! I could do without the stupid AC/DC they play afterwards, though. Yeesh, do we really need to hear that song again?? My Dad says that the cannon reminded him of the old foghorn they had at Chicago Stadium back in the day. It was a legit foghorn taken off an old-timey tugboat, and when they'd blast it after a goal, you could hear it all the way out on the sidewalk outside the stadium. Made everyone in the stadium jump a foot when they blasted it, just like the Jackets' cannon. Good times!
Also, those third jerseys with the cannon on the front are so very, very lit. I like the newer redesigned home and away jerseys (especially the red pants) but man, those "fauxback" jerseys are really something else.
Lucifixion wrote:Jets fan. Jets play the Lightning in 2.5 hours. We're having a blizzard presently. Hope it helps. Go JETS!!!
EEEEEK, sorry about that matchup! My Uncle lives in St. Pete and has season tickets to the Lightning, though he says this is probably the last year as they've gotten prohibitively expensive. I like the Bolts OK, but I've always had a soft spot for the Jets. I like having them as divisional rivals, and they tend to pick up a lot of the Hawks' leftovers. I will always love Dusting Byfuglien, and feel that Chicago wouldn't have won that cup in 2010 without him. Seriously, one of my all-time favorites of the modern era. Hopefully he gets whatever issues he has sorted out and can hit the ice again soon.
I know they're not the OG Jets (that team currently plays in Arizona - bleh!) but I like having Winnipeg back in the league, one way or another. Can't say I miss the Thrashers too much (even though Atlanta's OG team currently plays in Calgary - strange world, that NHL realignment) but I was happy Winnipeg got a team back, even if they had to take one from another city.
The old man says seeing Bobby Hull get traded to the Jets back in the day was such a strange time. The Jets weren't even an NHL team yet (yay, WHL!) and fans would boo him for years at Blackhawks games, even though he was hundreds of miles away from the stadium. Chants of, "Go to Hell! *clap clap* Bobby Hull! *clap clap*" would rain down at nearly every Hawks home game, especially when the team struggled. You just don't replace a guy like that overnight.
Lucifixion wrote:NHL 94 on Genesis is THE hockey game. Mastered it 26 years ago with the almighty Teemu Selanne...and forgot how to play in more recent years.
I was big on '96, myself. One of those times where I didn't buy every yearly sports game, and went from NHLPA '93 to NHL '96, missing the games in between. I've played plenty of '94 over the years, but man, that engine they worked up for '96 was so fast and smooth by comparison. Hard to go back after playing it, personally, but I love any classic 16-bit EA hockey game, regardless of release year. They're just timeless.