April 6, 2002

I've been meaning to write this column for a while now. It would have made more sense when the date was actually April 6. In my defense, I had opening day, NCAA championship basketball, and free chicken wings at my exposure on Monday. Lets just say writing an article wasn't in my top priorities. But as you loyal readers are so forgiving, let me explain to you an important date in my life.

If you go up to any random person, most of them should have a day in the year that is special to them. It might be a birthday, an anniversary, or just a day where something amazing happened. These dates are implanted into our heads and bring us a chill just thinking about them. I happen to have a useless skill in remembering all dates that major things happen in my life. Everything from my first party, kiss, state championship, day in college, and other random seemingly meaningless events, I can tell you the date it happened. But more importantly I can remember one day that I'll hold dearly the rest of my life. Fortunately, most of you hold it too, but for very different reasons. Exactly 7 years and 2 days ago, I witnessed the greatest hockey game ever seen in the state of Minnesota.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VqRfMPRJkY8

Watch that video. I simply dare you to. If you don't get chills from it, you very well might not have a soul. And although this game might mean something to you, let me explain what it means to me.

As many of you know, growing up I've created an unhealthy obsession with sports. Baseball will always be my first love, but hockey is right behind it. Now I will not take full credit for creating this passion, in fact I owe credit to two special people, my brother Allan and of course The Rick. I feel like my mom will be offended when she reads this, so let me make it clear that she was there for every little moment to and I'll never be able to repay her, but Al and Rick made me into the wannabe athlete I soon became.

By the age of 12, the two men in my life had formed me into a top notch baseball player and a hockey player that always worked hard enough to get cut at the last second (I swear I'm not bitter...Mike Ryan...). So with the baseball season ending and winter coming around, what could be a better joy for a 12 year old hockey player than season tickets at Marriuchi Arena for the entire Gopher hockey season. Those Saturday nights with the Rick are some of the happiest I'll ever remember. I came to love that team like my own family. To this day, I can still recall damn near every player including the likes of Johnny Pohl, Jordan Leopold, Kieth Ballard, Matt Demarchi, Matt Koalska, Jon Waibel, Paul Martin, Troy Riddle, and Nick Angell. As The Rick and I watched every home game every Saturday night, I fell in love with the atmosphere. I learned every cheer, every dance, every fight song, and basically anything the student section would do. This was my team. This was so my team in fact, that not one time that I went to a game did the gophers lose. Through all the Twins, Vikings, Timberwolves, and any other sports team that I have loved, this roster ranks above them all.

As the season ended, I was elated when the Gophers made it to field of 16 for the national tournament. I didn't realize until late that the frozen four was being played at the Xcel Energy Center. This added incentive made me want this national championship more than anything in the world. I knew if they could get passed those two games, I would get my shot to see a chance at history. However, being a Minnesota fan, I've grown accustomed to disappointment. But by the grace of God, the team pulled the unthinkable and actually won. They were coming home to St. Paul to play for their first championship in 25 years. It was to close to be let down now.

The Gophers filled out a section of the frozen four along with Michigan, New Hampshire, and Maine. Relying on The Rick to get me to these games, he came through in the clutch and landed two of the three games. Maine vs New Hampshire and the championship game. I was slightly terrified that I was not going to see my Gopher finish off the dream season I prayed for every night for a solid month. So after I went home following Maine's destruction of New Hampshire in the first semi final game, I remember not breathing much with my eyes glued to the TV as the Gophers played Michigan. But this was my team, and of course they would not let me down. So as they squeezed past Michigan to get into the title game, I was ready to run around my block in joy. I couldn't sleep that night. I wanted the game to start just that instance, but I'm glad I waited. I was in no shape at that point to be able to endure the emotions I would feel the next night.

The Rick and I went into the Xcel around two hours before the game. He treated me to dinner, mainly cause The Rick was the man. The entire day I knew my brother slightly hated me through his envious tone on the phone, and to be fair I would have felt the same way had the tables been turned. But The Rick and I earned this game. We were there for every moment. Few fans can say they deserved it more than us.

We were seated about twenty rows up in the corner left of the Minnesota goaltender, Adam Hauser. In all the goalies I have watched from Steve DeBus to Adam Hauser to Kellen Briggs to (screw) Jeff Frazie to Alex Kangas, Hauser will always be my favorite. Watching him through the years was enough to always feel indebted to him. I still remember taking in the electricity of the crowd before the game. Two sections dedicated to Maine and the rest of the Xcel was Maroon and Gold.

As the puck dropped, I don't think I had a clear thought the rest of the game. It was all scrambled into me jumping up and down and feeling bipolar with the tempo of the game. In the first period, my favorite player on the team, Keith Ballard, put one in from the tops of circles. The Rick had pointed out Ballard to me the entire season and made appreciate the little things a player can do. I never thought I would like a player more than Erik Westrum, but Ballard overthrew that spot during this season. I still have an issue with any player that wears 13 on the gophers. I want to start an unspoken rule that 13 is retired forever. But, when Ballard put that goal in, I knew the planets were aligning just right.

Maine put in a game tying goal early on in the second period. To make this game just more perfect, the Maine player made a costly mistake. He pulled his glove off and shushed the crowd. I learned a lesson that day. If you're playing front of 17,000 out of 20,000 fans that oppose you, you really should not antagonize them unless you're winning. Only two minutes or so later, the crowd grew even louder as Johnny Pohl may have scored one of the greatest snipes to the low post I will probably ever watch. If you watch the video above, simply no one believes it could have gone in. I still have trouble believing that it happened, but I didn't care then, why should I now.

After two periods were done, I couldn't function. We were twenty minutes of play away from winning this game. So you can imagine the horrified look on my face when Maine put in the tying goal early in the third and the near tears I almost had when they went ahead with four and a half to go. When they went up 3-2, every gopher fan was in a state of shock. No one knew what to do. And that's when it happened. For the first time in my life, I was a part of something much bigger than me. Not one fan sat down the rest of that game. The crowd got louder and louder as the clock winded down. I was close to losing my voice by the time we called the timeout. I'll never forget during that timeout, The Rick looked at me and said were going to score. I would be lying if I told you I believed him. I was already so used to walking away disappointed in Minnesota sports, I didn't believe it could happen. But this was my team. They had to pull through.

With 58.3 seconds on the clock, I have to tell you that the next six seconds may very well be the most exciting 6 seconds I have ever had. I can still see the faceoff being won in my head. And when Matt Koalska scored I've never heard such a loud sound before. The Xcel center was literally shaking. Now, I didn't see this part as I was hugging and high fiving every person within a 50 foot radius around me, but Koalska leaping the boards into the bench is without question my favorite image in the history of sports. It even tops Kirby Puckett's fist pump in game 6 in my mind. Matt Koalska will always have a special spot in my memories.

Remember when David Ortiz had two game winning hits to take the Red Sox 2-3 against the Yankees in 2004, which inevitably led to them winning the world series. After those two games, they achieved a mentality of "no fucking were losing." And that's exactly the mentality the Gophers and the fans had when we took the game into overtime. I may have only been 12, but all that ran through my mind during that intermission was "no fucking way were losing this game." So when Maine took a penalty and our power play came on the ice, I knew this was it. Our power play had come through so many times before. Then it happened. Grant Potulney put in the goal that made me achieve a happiness I had never known before hand. I probably could have jump a pole vault bar without the pole I was so excited. All I could was hug and high five The Rick.

That was seven years ago. A lot has changed since then. I wish everyday I could live over those memories, but it will be a long time before that happens. However, the beauty of a memory is that no one can take it away from you. No matter what ever happens to me or The Rick, that moment will always be there between us, and that's how I will always see my dad as well. If you can take away anything from reading about this moment, please don't take the moments for granted. You never know when the moments that count someday become all you have left.