New York, NY -- While everyone was carousing in their dorms on Saturday evening and pre-gaming for a night of street-wandering in ludicrous garb, I was sitting in my typical attire, captivated by an intense hockey game.
The two teams were knotted at one goal apiece when the ref dropped the puck to start the third period. Soon after, I watched as one player gracefully settled the puck on the tape of his stick and, with a burst of speed, skated toward the opposing goalie. He deftly dropped his shoulder as if to shoot, then switched the puck to his backhand side with finesse, finally depositing it in the twine of the net a la Sergei Federov.
But it wasn't Sergei Federov I was watching. In fact, it wasn't even an NHL game. The player I sat admiring was none other than sophomore forward Tom D'Agostino of NYU's very own club hockey team.
I was there in the bleachers at Chelsea Piers yelling and screaming as the Violets took a 2-1 lead with that goal, and went on to beat Bryant College in one of their most important games of the season.
With the NHL lockout leaving TV waves void of one-timers, cross-checks, and power-play goals, it has also left avid hockey buffs like me feeling incomplete. That may sound like an exaggeration, but as NHL diehards will attest, nothing is as thrilling as a hockey game, especially at this time of year, when football is hitting its redundant stage and the league that has so-called basketball "teams" but actually showcases individuals has yet to begin its season.
Enter NYU Hockey.
While the NHL lockout has cooled part of the passionate flame that is my sports soul, NYU's guys on the frozen pond have re-heated it and provided a therapeutic answer to my recent woes as a hockey fan.
You'll see me at Chelsea Piers for practically every home game, and you should see my seats - because, of course, they're free. THe games are so accessible - just a short cab ride from most NYU dorms to West 23rd Street - and just showing up has put me closer to the action than any Flyers game I've ever been to.
But that front-row seat might actually be tougher to come by nowadays, as the NYU sports crowd - though borderline non-existent - has embraced this team more than others on campus.
Why have casual fans, and even those who know squat about the sport, started to show up for the games? For the same reasons ardent hockey followers have latched on.
It's fast-paced, it's physical, and it's flat-out impressive. Have you ever tried dipsy-doing around someone while you were on ice skates, carrying a frozen disc with you on a stick? Most people realize how hard that is, and that's why theyt love to watch people who can do it.
And our athletes make it look easy. We have a group of skilled players who go out there and show off their stuff. They throw their bodies into other players, talk some trash and take some wicked slapshots, all while having a good time.
Although there is no doubt the players take the games seriously, playing at the club level instead of being a Division I varsity team affords them the ability to keep their passion for hockey as just a part - rather than the entirety - of their lives. This lets them go out each game, do what they love and entertain the fans.
And students have started realizing that the games are among the most entertaining activities associated with our university. Give me a choice between waiting in line for a Silver Center elevator or going nuts when I see an acrobatic glove save by a golaie, and I'm going to choose the goalie every time.
The hockey games provide a fun way to show some school spirit at a school that is certainly faltering in that department. It even gives people a reason to start drinking earlier on a weekend. Everyone should start making their pre-gaming an actual pre-game activity. There's nothing like having a few drinks with some friends, cabbing it over to Chelsea Piers, cheering as our team kicks ass and then continuing on with the rest of the night.
Whether you're into sports or you're not, know someone on the team or not, what to get shit-faced before the game or not, it's going to be fun.
And for my fellow hockey lovers, this experience can definitely fill that missing piece inside of you, because no matter what, it's hockey. And our guys are good at it.