My mission is to see the Flames play in all 30 NHL arenas, a mission that began in October of 2005 while at a local pub watching the Flames take on the Oilers. With the previous season’s work stoppage, and the season before’s run to the Stanley Cup Finals, Flames tickets had become a very hard item to come by. I was then struck with the idea of combining two of my favourite activities; watching hockey and travelling. You can follow my quest to visit all 30 arenas right here…
April 15, 2006 –Los Angeles, CA
My second away game saw me returning to the Staples Center for the Flames 2nd last game of the ’05-’06 season. This time I was accompanied by my girlfriend, and our trip also included stops at the Honda Center for the Flames’ final game of the season, a Dodgers-Giants game at Dodger Stadium and a couple of days at the Happiest Place on Earth, Disneyland.
When we arrived at the Staples Center before the game, my girlfriend was a little apprehensive about seeing a game in enemy territory. I had assured her it wouldn’t be bad and that people wouldn’t be yelling at us or anything, but nonetheless she was still worried. Much to her relief, the first hockey fans we saw as we approached the West side of the arena, was a group of over 30 Flames fans! These guys were playing a game of street hockey in the California sun. They had sticks and balls, and were using a couple of pylons for goal posts. Although it wouldn’t be that out of the ordinary in Canada, it wasn’t something we had expected to see in Los Angeles. After talking with a couple of them, we learned they were a group of Saddledome employees who head to a Flames away game each year. This year’s group had over 30 people, and they were attending the same sporting events we were; both hockey games and a baseball game.
Although there wasn’t anything on the line for either team; the Flames were already guaranteed 3rd place in the Western Conference and the Kings had already missed the playoffs, the game was destined to be a special one, as long-time King, Luc Robitaille was playing in his final game at the Staples Center, and the 2nd last game of his career. With over 600 goals and 1300 points, the Montreal born left-winger was calling it a career after 19 seasons. As we entered the arena, we were each given a t-shirt commemorating Robitaille’s last game with the words ‘King of Kings’ on the front and a silhouette of the future hall-of-famer raising his hands in celebration of a goal.
Walking the concourse before the game, we found another unique food at a concession booth called Camacho’s, burritos. I had never seen Mexican food at a hockey game before, but when in Rome…! We ordered a couple of burritos and headed to our seats. Entering the seating bowl, we were greeted with a sea of yellow and white placards that were on every seat in honour of Mr. Robitaille. The cardboard signs read “Thank You Luuuc” on one side and had the number 20 on the other. The same signs were also on the boards between several ads.
With the North West Division already clinched, it was obvious the Flames were sort of mailing it in for this game. There wasn’t a lot of hitting, and there didn’t seem to be much hustle from the away team. Fortunately, the Kings lacked a few key components to hockey success. Most notably, speed, strength, goal tending, defence, offence and overall talent. As a result, the game ended up tied 1-1 after regulation and overtime, and continued on to a shootout. Pavol Demitra was able to score on Kiprusoff while Jason LaBarbera was able to stop all three Flames shooters, handing the Flames a 2-1 loss.
A brief retirement ceremony followed the game, with the Kings faithful letting out a string of “Luuuuuucs,” and Robitaille doing a celebratory lap of the rink.
Next up is the Flames-Ducks game at the Arrowhead Pond against the Mighty Ducks.
-TheRev
Staples Center Fast Facts
Seats: Section 314; $28.00USD; Ticketmaster
Score: Flames 1, Kings 2 in a shootout
Arena Rating: 8/10
Unique Concession: burritos
Souvenir Stick: none
Public Transit: Train stop across the street
Unique Arena Trait: 3 levels of luxury suites
Swag: Luc Robitaille t-shirt, Luuuuc!/#20 Placard
Photos
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