Arena: BB&T Center (1998)

Location: Sunrise, Florida

Game Attended: April 24, 2021 vs. Carolina Hurricanes

Game Result: 4-3 Panthers Win in OT; Alex Barkov Good at Hockey; Keith Yandle Regrettably Off the Scoresheet

Seat Location: Upper Level Corner, Panthers Shoot 2x End

Overall Impression: Surprisingly Good, Loud Crowd, Incredibly Satisfying COVID Activity

Thirteen months ago, the world as we knew it changed. Our vocabulary expanded to include words like “coronavirus”, “social distancing”, and “flattening the curve”. Our behavior changed to the point where we stayed at home, refrained from daily traditions like going to work, to school, to church, and even stopped socializing with our friends and family. Planes were grounded, restaurants and bars closed, sports leagues cancelled games and seasons as quickly as you could snap your fingers. Thirteen months ago, the Tour de NHL went on an indefinite hiatus. 

I felt quite sad and disappointed: on March 13, 2020 I was scheduled to fly to Denver to close out the 2020-21 Tour schedule with a great group of friends for an Avalanche game and long weekend vacation. But March 12 was a “Black Thursday” of sorts that saw the NHL, like so many other sports leagues, suspend its season. I felt like the season was ripped away from me so close to the end of the season, and I spent the next several months just hoping things would return to normal by the fall. 

Then in December I got dealt the toughest hand of my life. I skated up the right wing ready to shoot on net in the first round of the playoffs. The defenseman slid on the ice and swung his stick out like a windshield wiper to knock the puck off my stick. The next three seconds consisted of a fall to the ice, a brief second to gather my thoughts, and a shoulder-first crash into the end boards. 

The good news is that I got to cross a lot of things off my bucket list that night: hospital visit, ambulance ride, x-rays, my first broken bine in my life. The bad news is……..well, yeah. 

During my three-month recovery, I had PLENTY of time lying in bed thinking about life and the things that I missed. I missed my friends, I missed playing hockey, I missed traveling on this incredible journey around the NHL. And then one night I saw the news that a few teams (Florida, Dallas, and Arizona) would welcome fans back to their respective buildings, albeit at limited 20-25% capacities. During one of my daily FaceTime calls with Boston Drew and roommate Dillon, I mentioned (possibly under the influence of painkillers) that it would be fun to go to a game as soon as I healed. 

And so, COVID and partially broken bones be damned, we bought ourselves some cheap flights and sunblock and the cheapest tickets we could find on Stubhub, and off we went. A fourteen-month Tour hiatus over!

I don’t really want to make this an arena review of BB&T Center; you can read about that if you’d like. Not much has changed in Sunrise, Florida: the building is pretty nice, nothing too flashy, still has its average seats and concourses and food options and HOW DID I NOT NOTICE THE CRABFRIES STAND BEFORE??? (Regrettably, it was closed.)

I think the point of this trip was to celebrate. Not only my birthday on this 27th of April but also an early birthday for Boston Drew, a chance to recognize how far we’ve come in our response to the pandemic, to reconnect with old and new friends, and to enjoy this amazing sport. 

And speaking of amazing, many thanks to the Hurricanes and Panthers for putting on a show! Both teams were top-5 NHL teams at the time, and they put on a very entertaining game that resulted in a furious two-goal Panthers comeback and thrilling overtime win thanks to Alex Barkov! The referees even obliged this Philly fan’s penchant for booing with several questionable-to-terrible penalty calls against the Cats. Damn, it felt good to boo the stripes in person again!

But the Panthers also did something that warmed my heart. About a month before the game when we still sought tickets, the Panthers named April 24th their Hockey Fights Cancer night. Usually in November, every team picked a home game during the season to dedicate to this cause – as you all know, a cause I care passionately about. 

Activities for the night were perhaps tempered by the limited crowd of 4,800 and the pandemic, but the Panthers still honored all cancer survivors during the same, handed out “I FIGHT FOR” signs to all in attendance, and honored one local survivor by having her sing the national anthem (which she KILLED, by the way). It was a lucky coincidence that I feel very fortunate to have benefitted by. 

I think my overall impression this weekend was one of gratitude. Gratitude for the many thousands of healthcare and front-line workers who have worked so tirelessly over the past year to keep us safe and healthy. Gratitude for my family and friends who have supported me on this amazing journey around the NHL, especially those who have graciously joined me on these trips and have contributed to Hockey Fights Cancer. Gratitude for the NHL for bringing fans back safely in limited numbers (which the Panthers accomplished quite well). Gratitude for the Canes (and Miiiiiistaaaaa Svechnikov) and Panthers (and our favorite SONKman Keith Yandle) for putting on a great show!

For this weekend, life felt somewhat normal again. And it was one of the best birthday weekends I’ve had in years!

See y’all again in the fall.