Pawlenty Drops Puck (and Nearly the F-Bomb) to Start Season Opener

Hockey is back. And as far as Minnesota is concerned the lock-out is a memory as distant as Norm Green. The Wild did not experience an attendance drop like the Twins felt after the baseball strike. In fact, they set a franchise record for attendance. To complete the perfect hockey night in Minnesota, they pulled off a 6-3 victory over division rival Calgary Flames in a very intense game.

The Wild have the best arena in hockey and one of the best pre-game ceromonies in sports. I nearly forgot how good. Last night, I got chills from the opening anthem "The State of Hockey", especially after a girl skates to center ice and defiently plants the State of Hockey flag. Then the blast of the horn really got my heart going.

The funniest point of the opening ceremony came from Governor Pawlenty. He and the first lady were invited to start the festivities with the official call of "Let's play hockey." As the governor led up to the call he stated that "the time has come to drop the fu (checked swing) puck.

Although for me the Wild take a back seat to Gopher Hockey and the Vikings, I'm glad that NHL hockey is back. It wasn't Minnesota without it.