And Lo, Kate Morphs Into a Fan Girl

Drew Doughty at the Staples Center

Success! I was able to score some great tickets to the free practice session at the Staples Center on Monday night. We were Row 8! It was so exciting to be so close to the players. There was an announcer trying to describe what they were doing, but it was difficult to understand him. It didn’t seem like a real practice, and I was right. (More below.) Still, a really fun time.

They lofted some of the pucks over the glass afterward, but we were seated behind an area where a high net was above the glass. Darn. One coach eyed the top of the net, bit his lip, and hurled a puck. It made it over, but too far for my husband to get to it in time. Double darn.

Dustin Penner at the Staples Center

Wednesday, my eldest son–the one with the pricey camera–accompanied me to one of their regular practices at the Toyota Sports Center (TSC) in El Segundo. We just walked right in and it seemed very much like our local Ice Station Valencia in layout. We found our way in to the NHL rink where the practice was already in session. This was a real practice. They did many drills. They gathered on the sidelines to listen to the coaches. It was very exhilarating. If not for the glass, I could have reached out and tapped players on the shoulders.

Matt Greene at the TSC

I took a lot of notes on the sounds (lots of noise!!) and sights and what they did. My son took about 300 pictures. Below are some I took with my phone. My only difficulty was their jerseys didn’t have their names on them, so if I didn’t recognize their faces, I had to refer to the numbers on their helmets. Unfortunately, I’m not familiar enough with them to know each player by number, so I had the team roster on my phone ready to glance at.

I can’t wait for the Season Opener on Saturday. Hockey at last!!

Matt Greene even closer! Nice schnoz.