Hockey, a Canadian pastime. Up until I actually became a hockey fan, I had always thought of hockey as just some random sport that let people fight when they got ticked off. I’d watch SportsCenter’s Top 10 plays, and every once in a while see a hockey player scoring a goal and, I thought why in the world did they put that play in there. If you’ve ever tried to ice skate you will see what makes hockey such a hard sport to play. Ask any person how to shoot a basketball, throw a football, or throw a baseball, they can usually do it or learn how to fairly easily. Hockey is a totally different issue. Skating backwards, defending a guy skating towards you, going around 15 mph is no easy task. This shows how hockey players are some of the most athletic sports players out of any major league sports. To me, hockey goalies have some of the best hand-eye coordination out of any sport because they have to block a small puck flying at them with speeds of around 90 mph. They may not be as athletic as the forwards who usually score the goals, but they have to always be on the edge and constantly paying attention. To me, hockey players are the most athletic out of any other athletes. To really appreciate the sport of hockey you really need to go to a live game. Two years ago I went to a Gwinnett Gladiators game, minor league hockey, and the atmosphere was amazing. All of the fans against the glass were going crazy the entire game. When the opposing teams’ players would get corned against the glass, all the home fans would beat against the glass to distract the players. Later that year, I went to an Atlanta Thrashers game, major league hockey, and the game was more up-pace and the players were obviously better but either way, hockey is such an amazing sport to watch live.