We are all Canucks.
Last night, my son Aidan lived that in a very special way. He was selected to join the Vancouver Canucks for the pre-game skate and the national anthems for one of the biggest games in Canucks history: game 7 of the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs against the Chicago Blackhawks.
This is his story …
Getting ready to leave
We pack up Aidan’s gear and stick in the car and head out to downtown Vancouver:
We arrive at Roger’s Arena in Vancouver
It’s a party in Vancouver, but we don’t like dark birds of prey
We chill for a bit at Blenz with a cup of hot chocolate
And then Aidan gets his face painted at the CBC’s offices
We get a pic with Peter Puck at the CBC
We go in to the Canuck’s offices – gate 16
Aidan chills by playing some hockey at gate 16 and hits me with a “puck”
In the hall of heroes
We go down to ice level at Rogers Arena – it’s the calm before the storm
Aidan makes a new friend – a son of one of the Canucks’ coaches:
The Canucks come out for the pre-game skate – Burrows flips a puck over the glass for Aidan
The pre-game action heats up:
Lu makes some sick saves:
Aidan is all eyes
Here’s the puck that Alexandre Burrows flicked over the glass to Aidan
Time to get suited up for the pre-game skate and national anthem
Backstage at Rogers Arena – Aidan gets final instructions
We get a pic taken by the Canucks’ logo
Aidan skates out with Lu and the rest of the Vancouver Canucks
Aidan with the starting line-up for the national anthems
The whole crowd joins in singing the Canadian national anthem
Afterwards, Aidan changes out of his hockey gear and we head to our seats
The crowd goes nuts with our Roger Neilson towels
The game is unbelievably awesome – one of the best in Canucks’ history
We check out the merch during the second intermission
Canpages (my company) shows on the scoreboard at center ice
The Canucks win in overtime and Rogers Arena ERUPTS
The shake of shame for the Blackhawks, led by Jonathan Toews
A friendly fellow fan takes a shot of the historic game 7 overtime winning moment
The celebration continues outdoors
Some random guy puts Aidan on his shoulders as we walk down West Georgia
5 minutes after getting in the car … one tired Canuck
. . .
. . .
We had a wonderful time. Thanks Canucks for a great opportunity and a great game! Thanks Vancouver for such a fun and exciting and safe celebration after the game!
Here’s to the next round: Nashville here we come.
