Last game you've seen live?

[HerrDecadens]

darn, I was watching this game on the Internet and I had to turn the transmission off after second period and I missed Djurgardens goals Anyway I'm glad they won game finally

[archibalduk]

Just got back from a game in the SHL. My favourite team, Djurgården came to town to play the host team, Färjestad.
Djurgården had lost their previous 11 road games and was in great need of points near the bottom of the standings.
Färjestad was clearly the better team at first, but Djurgården kept them at bay with the help of former NHL-goalie Mikael Tellqvist.
Färjestad scored first in the 2nd period and looked way better. In the third Djurgården equalized and with less than three minutes to play they took the lead on a Power play. Färjestad pulled the goalie but couldn't score. Great win for Djurgården!

Nice! Do you get to many SHL games? I imagine having a young family might make it difficult to find the time (and I'm guessing SHL tickets aren't that cheap).

I haven't been to see any particularly interesting teams recently - just the usual Guildford Flames games every weekend. Though they're not playing at home this weekend and so I drove up to Basingstoke to see the Bison play Bracknell Bees earlier this evening. It was a 4-0 win to the Bison. Not the most exciting of games unfortunately - Bracknell have major funding issues and so they have a rather weak roster.

[Manimal]

Nice! Do you get to many SHL games? I imagine having a young family might make it difficult to find the time (and I'm guessing SHL tickets aren't that cheap).

No, this was the first one in ages. Yes, they aren't cheap and I'm not a fan of the team that plays here(even if they have been a great franchise the past 15-20 years)
I did go to an SuperElit J20 game earlier this season. Junior games are for free here!

Family has a part in it, too. My partner has no interest in sports so I don't want to alienate her by going to lots of games and leaving everything in the home to her.

[Manimal]

So, I went and watched Djurgården play Färjestad again. This time it was their junior squads facing off in front of more than 7000 less spectators than the men's team. Safe to say, junior hockey isn't very big in Sweden. On the other hand, entrance is free.

I got to see Oliver Kylington play. He will get drafted in the first round of this years NHL draft. At first, I wasn't very enthustiastic about his play. I could see that he skates effortlessly and he likes to carry the puck and does so with smooth stickhandling. I think he could have used his teammates better, but most of his passes hit the target. I didn't see much mistakes in his defence but I wasn't awed by it either. The arena didn't show replays, so I couldn't look for things I missed.
Kylington ended up scoring the game-winning goal and added an assist to that.

On Djurgården I noticed RW Jonathan Davidsson, who is a scoring RW that might get picked in the draft. Not sure if he can make the NHL, but he'll probably become a solid player here in the SHL. I also liked 1998-born William Fällström. A few years younger than the big guys (1995 is the oldest birthyear allowed) but he has promise. He has committed to the University of Minnesota for 2016 and will need some time to train and bulk up.

Färjestad goalie Adam Werner might also get selected this summer, but he didn't have a really good game, though he was solid in the last period.

Three seats away from me sat Thommie Bergman, a former NHL and WHA player (Detroit and Winnipeg) that was raised in the region. He is now a scout for the Toronto Maple Leafs. I thought to myself that it would be cool if I saw a trade on Twitter during the game so I could tell him he got some new picks to use. Didn't happen during the game but when I had been home for an hour the Franson/Santorelli deal was announced!
Another funny thing is that Nashville's top European scout is his son, Lucas Bergman.

[MWE]

I went to watch Steelers vs Coventry yesterday we lost 2-1 in what i think was probably the worlds most boring match

[philou21]

It's British hockey after all.

[MWE]

And yet the majority of the players and coaches are American or Canadian go figure

[dave1927p]

I just received two leaf tickets in late march against Minnesota for my Birthday. I was told no givebacks either so I'm stuck with them Can't wait to throw my leaf jersey on the ice haha

[philou21]

Well at least the tickets didn't cost you anything so only the jersey + the fine is not that bad!

[archibalduk]

I went to watch Steelers vs Coventry yesterday we lost 2-1 in what i think was probably the worlds most boring match

I'll be visiting the Motorpoint Arena in two weeks' time for the Challenge Cup Final. It seemed like a good idea at the time, but it's going to involve a lot of driving to and from the arena - it's something like a 7 - 8 hour round trip. The train tickets are far too expensive.

I was thinking of going up on the Saturday (the game is on Sunday) but it seems none of the 5 teams playing out of Sheffield have a game that day! And I do want to stay in a hotel over night for no reason...

Can't wait to throw my leaf jersey on the ice haha

Take some photos of that!

[MWE]

Who's playing in the final?

How far is your hotel from the arena?

[archibalduk]

The second legs of the semis take place today and tomorrow (Nottingham v Sheffield and Cardiff v Coventry).

I don't have a hotel - I'm driving up in the morning and back in the evening. If there was a game to watch on the Saturday then I'd have booked a hotel for the Saturday night. Sheffield were going to play Belfast that night but I think it has been rearranged as the arena is to be used for some other event.

[MWE]

Steelers are in the final

The match against Belfast is still on at the arena according to the Steelers website and the arena website with the cup final the next day

[dave1927p]

Can't wait to throw my leaf jersey on the ice haha

Take some photos of that!

haha I'll also send the photo of the security guards tossing me and the $15 beers.

[archibalduk]

The match against Belfast is still on at the arena according to the Steelers website and the arena website with the cup final the next day

I could have sworn it had been cancelled. I'm mulling over whether to go up on the Saturday and watch that game too. On the plus side, it'll break up the driving over 2 days but on the other side it'll mean shelling out £70 for a hotel (and a Travel Lodge at that)...

haha I'll also send the photo of the security guards tossing me and the $15 beers.

[Calv]

Avs - Kings and the refs debating last February



Watching Sharks - Flames last November

[archibalduk]

Not bad for your first post in three years!

Maybe next season we can resurrect the UK Hockey Thread!

[Calv]

Not bad for your first post in three years!

Maybe next season we can resurrect the UK Hockey Thread!

I was thinking of starting an EIHL DOPS, guess the punishment thread!

To balance out those last photos, here's a picture from that well known hockey-Mecca Chelmsford.

[archibalduk]

Ha! I don't think the forum is ready for a British DOPS thread! Also, I don't think anybody can second guess the inconsistencies of the DOPS!

[archibalduk]

Yesterday's Challenge Cup Final between Sheffield and Cardiff was a cracking game. Sheffield were the dominant team for most of the game, but Cardiff had their chances and scored two quick goals in the second period. Sheffield scored in the third but couldn't get a tying goal.

The game was a lot more open and physical than the Playoff weekend games. I'd definitely go back up next year to see the final (this season was the first time it wasn't a two-legged final) - although only so long as I could afford to see the Saturday EIHL game too. The 7 hour round trip of driving was a bit too much for just one game!!

We had some pretty good seats for the game:

[CJ]

I'm surprised at how many people there are

[philou21]

He clearly photoshopped the picture!

[Calv]

There was over 7,000 people there. The side that the photo was taken from was a little bit emptier (the capacity of the arena is 9,000+). Highlights: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GUAlz5iDqgo The last 10 minutes were pretty tense, especially as we were sat in with the Cardiff fans whose team was trying to hold on to the lead

[archibalduk]

The atmosphere was electric too. Much better than the EIHL playoffs - mostly because you have fans from all ten teams at the playoffs whereas the arena yesterday was packed with home and away fans (along with the odd neutral fans like ourselves).

[Tasku]

Would you say that British hockey is on the rise? What kind of attendances do the teams normally get?