As part of our look back at the season that was, the DBD staff has put together a Top 10 list of the best moments of the season, moments that occurred within the course of the year that were highlights of this particular team and it’s fight to the playoffs. They’re ranked from 1-10, and we’ll present them in reverse order, leading up to the top moment of the 2013-2014 season.
I first became a Dallas Stars fan in the spring of 2008. My first game ever attended in person was versus the San Jose Sharks.
From the start of warmups, I was HOOKED.
I remember watching the playoff matchup versus the San Jose Sharks later that season. The four overtime game. I woke up at about 2 a.m. after falling asleep around 12:30 a.m., thinking I’d just have to see the final score. But then they were still playing, and I watched Brenden Morrow score that goal. I realized that day just how intense and special the playoffs were in hockey.
Alas, I would not see it again until this spring. I missed you, playoff hockey.
Experiencing it for the first time in person when I had an emotional investment in the outcome is hard to describe (I saw the Washington Capitals vs New York Rangers round one, game one last year…while that was intense and exciting hockey, nothing comes close to seeing the team you’ve followed all season long make it to the dance).
The nervousness. The butterflies. Standing and looking at the arena around me as it erupted in the chants and cheers of a fanbase that had been starved for exactly that moment for so many long seasons. Realizing just how far this team has come since the last time they were in it. The culmination of exciting hockey we watched all season long and the promise this team has to be so good.
It was magical.