giants on ice

There are an unsettling number of things that give me away as a foreigner.
You might think the accent would do it, but with so many Australians in Vancouver, people never know if you've been here for 20 years or 20 minutes.
I say beanie instead of toque (toook).
Housemate instead of roommate.
Jumper instead of sweater.
And no one knows what whinge or stickybeaking means.
I also make the almost unforgivable mistake of saying ice hockey.
This is a big no-no. To a Canadian, there is no need to clarify what type of hockey you are referring to. Hockey is hockey. Unless it's field hockey. But why would you play that they wonder?
A few months ago I was treated to a Canucks game (Vancouver's home team). The Canucks lost, so it wasn't a good night. I had hoped a little for a riot...just for fun...but it didn't happen. [For those who missed it, Canucks fans rioted last year after Vancouver lost the Stanley Cup to Boston. More than 100 people we injured, four people were stabbed and police are still prosecuting people involved. The ones they have caught anyway.]

On Friday I took two visiting Aussie friends to a Vancouver Giant's game. The Giants is the city's Western Hockey League junior hockey team. The oldest players are 20 but most are between 16 and 19. Because it's not the top league, the tickets are cheaper and the fights are more frequent.
Hockey's a fascinating sport to watch. It's fast. Rough. And a lot of fun.

While the Canucks' game a few months ago was fun to watch, the Giants were something else. Young blokes with something to prove. There was more than one punch-up. One big one, which ended with both players sent to the penalty box, wasn't even interrupted by the refs. They just stood back and waited for the boys to have it out, then pointed to the box and off they skated. We were two rows back from the glass - a barrier I put a lot of faith in as the players smashed into it. The game is broken into 20-minute thirds and the players sub regularly so they're always fresh and ready to slam someone into wall.

This guy is lucky he's got broad shoulders.
Otherwise he might need a nickname.

The Canadians take their hockey seriously. On game nights everyone wears their team colours and the pubs are full. At the games they cheer, do the Mexican wave, and don't hesitate to let the refs know if there is a decision they might not agree with. The Canadians also know how to make the most of the breaks in the play. In between thirds there are cheerleaders, a mini blimp dropping prizes into the ground and games on the ice. Even if you're not into sport (and I accept there are strange humans out there who fall into this category), hockey isn't more than winning and losing, it's about the game! And it's one hell of a game.

Stretch time.