Last night we had the privilege of going to an NHL hockey game. This is only the second time I’ve been to an NHL game, and the first time seeing our home team play. Our seats were in the upper deck, but our stadium is constructed in such a way that there really isn’t a bad seat in the place. I rather enjoy being a bit further away from the action because it allows you to see the scope of everything better without whipping your head back and forth.

As I watched the game last night it made me think about soccer, and how similar some of the patterns and choreography are between the two sports. At their base, both sports are about putting a small item into a netted goal, and using teamwork to out maneuver the goal keeper. In both sports there is a passing game, that, to me at least, is amazing to watch in it’s orchestration. Teams that are able to maintain control over the puck/ball are often able to do so with amazing skill and precision. In both sports it’s amazing to watch as one team member passes the puck/ball to another spot on the field at just the right time for his teammate to pick it up, with precision and accuracy. Sure, there’s a lot of misses, but overall when the skill comes out, it’s a thing of beauty to watch.

I’ll be watching a lot of soccer this season with our home team, and hopefully I can pick up a few more hockey tickets as well, since what I seem to enjoy is similar in both sports.