"Rock the Red Tour" - Day 3 - The Big Game!

Finally, the moment we've been planning for since September and anticipating all weekend had arrived....GAME DAY!!!! After brunch with my friends Mike and Michelle, we headed over to Verizon Center to watch what turned into an epic battle between the Caps and Penguins. Mike is a Caps fan from way back, so he managed to snag a ticket as well, just couple of sections over from where we were sitting.

Mike also owns a collection of Caps gear, but chose to wear a jersey honoring the greatest work of hockey cinema ever...it's a replica of the one Bruce Boudreau wore in the movie "Slapshot." Love it!!



We made sure to allow plenty of time to check out the team store at Verizon, just in case they had something different and better from everything we already bought at the practice arena store. Nadine apparently needed to make sure she had enough Caps wardrobe for all 7 days of the week. We didn't end up adding anything to the collection this time around, but I was tempted to take this Alex Ovechkin Bobble-Head home with me....



I also loved that the section of the store devoted to game-used gear is called "The Locker Room." Marketing genius, people!



In my short time as a hockey fan, I have not experienced a game in any other building besides Staples Center, so this was a real eye-opener to what hockey should be like. The best word I can use to describe the feeling in Verizon Center today was electric! These fans are INSANE in the best possible way. They all shout "Red" in unison during the national anthem when the line "....and the rockets RED glare..." gets sung. They have a special 3rd period comeback video with everyone shouting the same chant at the end. The crowd was an absolute sea of red. And they let fans bring in SIGNS! Big, cool ones...so unlike the Staples Center 11x17 restricted size. "Rock the Red" t-shirts float down from the ceiling on little parachutes! It was easily the coolest hockey experience I've had in my life so far. Maybe why I look so happy!





And to say there was no love in the building for Nadine's hot tub buddy Sid Crosby is the understatement of the year. Here's a jersey someone was having customized for the game that pretty much says it all...



Unfortunately Sid The Kid got the best of AO this time, and Pens won in a shoot-out. He was also named Number 1 "Star of the Game." But the Caps gained a point and remain firmly in the lead in the Southeast Division, and 3rd in the Eastern Conference standings overall, so they're headed to the playoffs.

And my life as a hockey fan is forever marked by our epic journey...I think we need to plan another one!