Just Another Hockey Game?

My wife and I were discussing the Western Conference Finals Game One that we were fortunate enough to attend tonight.  We were discussing what the Coyotes could have done better to get the win, and other things we noticed at the game.  I took time to express how thrilled I was just to be in the building for the Western Conference Finals.   The discussion took an interesting turn at that point.  I see the opportunity to go to these games as as very special occasion, certainly a once in a great while opportunity.  My twitter followers have seen how excited I am to get to go to these games.  The wife sees it as "just a hockey game", "a really exciting game, but still just a hockey game."   I see her point, but I think she may not realized exactly what we have going on this year.  There are only four active hockey cities in North America, and Phoenix is one of them.  The NHL reserved several entire rows in section 210 for the home games during the Conference Finals for additional national media covering the games. Here's a little perspective, we've been Washington Capitals fans for almost 12 years, and had until we moved to the desert, never been to a playoff game outside of round one.  The conversation was fun, as I enjoy learning her perspective, and Lord knows, she keeps me grounded 99.9% of the time.    I've also referred to the Stanley Cup Finals as a "once in a lifetime" hockey experience, that I will not miss.  Again, she disagrees, and I get her point...but still "just a hockey game?"  Na, much much more.