After an extremely long, stressful and tiring week of midterms, papers and assignments, McGill students had this year’s “Fill the Arena” Redmen hockey game to look forward to. In fact, the only thing that kept me moderately sane during the last week was knowing that come Saturday night, I would be decked out in my red apparel, nestled in between close friends on a cold bench, delicious beer in one hand, hot dog in the other, cheering on one of our school’s most accomplished varsity teams as they take on our second most despised rivalry, Queen’s University.
As with the majority of sporting events at McGill, I attended this weekend’s hockey game not to engage as a spectator to Canada’s favorite sport, but to take part in the social event that is a hockey game at McGill. By the time my friends and I had our trekked our way up to McConnell arena at around 6:45, the stands were already packed with face-painted members of Red Thunder and other McGill fans eagerly awaiting the start of the game, and the Redmen were warming up on the ice, accompanied by the loud cheers of those who, I assume, partook in the pre-game festivities at BDP.
By the time the first puck dropped, McGill fans were as rowdy as Habs fans during last May’s play-off riot on St. Catherines. Some fans were already on their feet, faces pressed against the glass, cheering on the Redmen players as they warmed up and living up to the reputation of McGill fans as being the most boisterous. Any Queen’s fans, which appeared to be a very small group of players’ parents and grandparents, were forced to endure a string of loud and persistent chants and rants in favor of the Redmen.
The Redmen scored their first goal (of seven) five minutes into the first period. Fans arriving late to the game were somewhat confused as they entered an arena of screaming and standing fans. Realizing that the Redmen had just scored, some fans were so caught off guard by excitement that they dropped their drinks to join in on the cheering. One fan in particular, upon realizing that the first goal had been scored, watched in despair as her hot dog fell to the ground. She made the right decision in leaving it there and joining the red sea of McGill fans in the stands.
The Redmen scored two more goals during the first period. With each goal scored, McGill fans grew more rowdy, excited and spirited. I almost felt bad for the parents and fans on the Queen’s side of the arena as fans proceeded to erupt in cheers whenever a Redmen player so much as made a successful pass to another player. I did not feel bad, however, because only those foolish enough would attend a McGill home hockey game with the expectation of being able to sit back and relax, while watching their son get crushed by the Redmen.
The second period would have been tragic to witness had I been cheering for Queen’s. After scoring four more goals, the Redmen were dominating 7-0 and a comeback from Queen’s seemed very unlikely. It wasn’t until the third period that the Queen’s team was able to squeeze in their only goal, but that was it. The better University, I mean team, remained on top for the entire duration of the game, reminding Queen’s of our superiority not only as a hockey team but also as a school. McGill students have a tendency to channel their McGill pride through their school spirit at sporting events, and this game was no exception. Marlet Girl is expecting big things from this year’s Redmen hockey team. Good job, boys!
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