OK, so we decided to go to the playoff bound Cleveland “Lake Erie Monsters” fan appreciation night last night.  Got lucky and got 2 seats row 2 in the corner on the glass.

A real "Fan Appreciation" night!

The second I saw the puck deflected I knew exactly where it was headed.  But being with 2 kids, my lap was filled with crap (coats, skittles, etc.) so I was immobilized.  Then it happened.  The puck hit the netting and landed right on the boards, fan-side.  There was a slight scramble but the man sitting right there just grabbed it.

Everyone was clapping and we were all up on the big Q-Tube.  Fans were clapping etc.  I was happy and jealous simultaneously.  Suddenly, and we’ve all seen this happen before, but we’ve also seen it not happen often.  The man turned around and handed the puck to my daughter.

I haven’t seen her so excited in a long time.  She thanked him.  Beaming the biggest smile I’ve seen.  A game puck.   Wow.  Really.  12,000 people there, 1 game puck.  She got it!  But the story gets better.  About 15 minutes later, they start throwing t-shirts.  People will kill for these.  Low and behold, my daughter Sydney catches one!  She immediately taps the man on the shoulder and gives it to him.

You really had to be there and my writing is nowhere near good enough to convey the sweetness of the entire situation.  The man was soft-spoken, didn’t really even look like a hockey fan (i don’t mean this disrespectful).  Wouldn’t take a beer or anything for making my daughter’s day.  But when he got his t-shirt back from Sydney he appeared to be just as happy as she was when getting the puck.

Note: That broad in the background was checking me out all night.