Brief thoughts on a minor league hockey game....

Wandered up to Knoxville to take in an Ice Bears game last evening. It's one of those things I've wanted to do for a couple of years, but just never made the time to do so.

In a short word, I dug it. Nice venue. Pretty intimate. Nice crowd, announced at 4200 and change, on a cancer-awareness night billed as "Guaranteed Fight Night." There weren't many empty seats in the Knoxville last night, as they beat Louisiana 3-2 in overtime. And yes, there were fight. All the better.

Plus? I'd gone to roughly 400 baseball games (Major, Minor and College) in my life before I got even close a foul ball, when I finally caught one off knuckleballer Jared Fernandez at relatively lovely Greer Stadium in Nashville.

I dig hockey, but I've been to probably a dozen games, and this was my first minor league game. During warmups, a puck pinged off the goal, and flew into the stands. I got a hand out, and it nicked my middle finger before falling at the feet of the child in front of me. Dammit.

Anyway, good time. Gonna have to head up again. Already thinking birthday trip for February, with a couple other trips in between. Dig it....