I was back at the United Center after missing the last two Blackhawks playoff games. This game I was not going to miss. The Blackhawks had a chance to advance to the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time since 1992 and the first time since I have been living in Chicago.
Beg, Borrow and Deal
Blackhawks Jim, who I am now renaming Hospitality Jim after the London version of Hospitality Jim, picked me up. He already had a ticket so we needed to buy two tickets – one for me and …

It was one of the most exciting Blackhawks games I have attended this season. The Canucks scored two goals within the first five minutes of the game and it appeared Game 2 was heading in the same direction as Game 1. However, the Blackhawks reversed their fortunes and also scored a goal in the first period.
After a scoreless second period, Patrick Sharp scored a shorthanded goal to tie the game at two goals apiece with 13:11 left in the game. It appeared the game was heading into overtime until Kris …

As opposed to the doubleheader I attended on Friday, I had a lot of time in between the Cubs game and Blackhawks game on Saturday. Thus, I went home to relax before driving to the United Center.
Parking
I parked for free on Washington Blvd. between Ashland Blvd. and Paulina St. The walk is not too far from the United Center and will allow you to pass scalpers as you walk to the arena.
Beg, Borrow and Deal
After parking, I walked to the United Center box office directly. I saw a scalper I …

When I was a kid, my family and I would show up early to Oakland Athletics and San Francisco Giants games to ensure we received the promotional giveaway. At the time, I also wanted to show up early so I could catch batting practice home run balls from Mark McGwire and Jose Canseco. So the time spent before the game in the ballpark was worthwhile. However, as time moved on, I ended up giving away nearly all of the promotional giveaways I received and only kept the baseballs I caught.
For …

Even though I owned a San Jose Sharks partial season ticket plan when I was in high school, I rarely get to a Sharks game anymore (obviously, since I live in Chicago). The last Sharks game I attended was May 7, 2007 when the Sharks hosted the Detroit Red Wings in a conference semi-final playoff game. The last regular season game I attended was November 30, 2002 when the Ultimate Sports Wife sang the National Anthem before the game.
Given these facts, I realized on the ride down to …

There are many reasons NOT to buy tickets in advance to any game and show up outside the stadium to buy tickets. First, tickets will be cheaper outside of the stadium than buying in advance (even buying tickets for face value from the team most of the time). Second, if you have a change of plans you do not have to sell your tickets (most likely at less than what you paid for them). Third, sometimes, at the last minute, a friend may have an extra ticket for the same …

Last week I wrote about how the Chicago Blackhawks hosted their earliest game I could ever remember. This week the Blackhawks hosted their most important regular season game I could remember. This was a game between the top teams in each conference and NBC was televising the contest making it the second straight Sunday the Blackhawks would play an 11:30 am game. Besides this fact, I was hoping to watch Alex Ovechkin, arguably the best player in the NHL. The last time I saw Ovechkin in person was on March …

I would never say I am opposed to fans “sneaking” liquor into sporting events. With beers in Chicago averaging $7 per beer and wine and mixed drinks priced higher, fans can save themselves a good amount of money brining in their own. In fact, I have used my Bears flask (the Ultimate Sports Wife bought me a few years back) to make myself some rum and cokes or seven and sevens in the upper rows of any ballpark.
Granted I have not “snuck” in any alcohol for awhile (mainly …

As always, in this blog, I write about how I begged, bought, received for free or used my season ticket to gain entry into a game. Some of these experiences are lucky, some are random, some are typical and some plain boring – however, whenever I receive a free ticket or buy a $100 ticket for $20, most people do not believe it.
Last night was one of the random experiences. For this Blackhawks season, I have adopted the general rule that I would rather spend $25 on a …

It was a relatively warm Sunday in Chicago and the Chicago Blackhawks were playing in their earliest game I can ever remember – the puck dropped at 11:30 am. 2.5 hours earlier than their usual 2:00 pm March Sunday afternoon start time.
The early start time must have affected the goalies as the Red Wings gave up four goals and the Blackhawks gave up five goals in the second period alone. Crostobal Huet, who started the game, was replaced by Antti Niemi, after the Red Wings scored their fourth goal within …