Last year was a wild year for the NHL playoffs to say the least. There were five Canadian teams in the post-season which was amazing because the year before there wasn’t a single one.

So let me get started on the most intense sporting event I have ever been to. Game three of the first round, The Calgary Flames VS. the Anaheim Ducks. Man was this game wild! Let me get started with the fans. Driving to that game my Dad was warning me the crowd was going to be loud and intense but at the time I didn’t really believe him and thought the turnout wasn’t going to be that good. Man was I wrong! When we got there, there had to be hundreds of Flames fans outside the rink like two hours before puck drop which absolutely amazed me! There were hot dog stands, beer stands and all sorts of events and stores opened up outside of the Scotiabank Saddledome which never happens.

So we finally are allowed to go into the stadium and that’s where it got even more crazy! There were even more benders inside the rink then outside, there was fans dressed in crazy Flames gear and the auctions were packed like nothing I’ve ever seen before! The game hadn’t even started yet and I could feel the intensity of the crowd!

So we finally make our way to our seats and we are standing for o’ Canada and The national anthem and the Flames fans are chanting out their classic “C!” and Red” as the American Anthem was going on and finally the puck drops. Each fan was handed a Budweiser cup that lit up to the colour red that had the Flames logo on it and lit up whenever the Flames would score which I thought was super cool! The intro into the game was unbelievable! The lights went dark and everyone’s Budweiser cups lit up making it look so unreal. Now here is where it gets even more crazy! (I know right?). Fans are booing the Ducks and yelling out hateful things that I can’t really say in here because this is a family friendly blog, but I must admit I eventually joined in to the fun and it honestly made me feel like I was one of them! Every break in-between plays our cups would light up and we would hold them high to sky!

The game itself was a wild one. The flames had a 4-1 lead at one point and it was looking like they were going to make the series 2-1 but then due to certain reasons, (The stupid refs) they tied the game up 4-4.

Then overtime came along. The crowd got even more loud then before that you couldn’t even hear yourself think! Then all of a sudden one of the Ducks players threw the puck in front of the net and it trickled in. The crowd went silent then followed by a bunch of boos. It was a sad walk back to the parking lot as it seemed fans had finally lost hope. All except for my dad. He never lost hope for one second, he’s a true dedicated fan through and through.

Even though the Flames lost. This was my most favourite sporting event and it was so intense it wasn’t even funny. This is an event that I will never forget and I will eventually tell my kids one day.