Family Friendly Hockey with the Ottawa 67's!

KITC would like to welcome back guest blogger, Stephen Johnson. Stephen Johnson is an Ottawa writer who loves to write about family travel.  During the summer, you will most likely find him and his family at a local fair or festival. During the winter, a beach in Mexico is a likely bet.  

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The playoffs are always my favourite time to watch hockey. The Ottawa 67’s have had a record breaking year and it looks like they could go deep into the playoffs.  Sandy, David and I decided to check out a game between the Ottawa 67’s and Hamilton Bulldogs.  

One aspect I like about attending a 67’s game are all the activities taking place inside and outside the arena. We arrived early and had time to check out the Ottawa Farmers Market. We also wandered around the restaurants and shops enjoying the colour and passion of the Ottawa 67’s fans.   

Once inside the arena,  we still had a few minutes before game time started.  The 67’s have done a great job at creating a family-friendly atmosphere.  There was a bouncy castle, face-painting and Jenga blocks to keep the young ones entertained.  At ten years old, David felt he was too old to partake in those activities but was excited to watch the hockey game.

The first period started and the 67’s quickly jumped out to an early lead with a short-handed goal.  The Bulldogs responded by playing aggressively but the 67’s answered with another goal. By the end of the first period, it was 2-0 for the good guys.

In keeping with the family-friendly entertainment theme,  the first period intermission featured a contest between uncle and nephew to see who could get the most pucks in the net.  I am not sure if the uncle was just being nice but the nephew won by a wide margin.

The second period started with physical play on both sides. Hamilton started with a power play goal but the 67’s came storming back with two quick goals before the second period ended.

The second period intermission featured a game of musical chairs on the ice.  The highlight was seeing a young participant out-jumping the 67’s mascot to grab one of the remaining chairs.  I think that kid might have a future in sports!

For the third period,  the 67’s held on to their lead earning a 5-2 win.  The atmosphere for the entire game was great with most of the crowd only looking at their phones to take photos of the 67’s goals.

How to get there

Planning to leave your car at home, the 67’s have got you covered.  A pre-purchased game ticket gives you access to OC Transpo three hours before and after the game. There is also a free park and ride shuttle from Carleton University to and from the game. All transit options can be found here  http://ottawa67s.com/transportation. If you do take your car, I would recommend to buy a game-day parking pass ahead of time.  It is for the underground garage at Lansdowne and is eight dollars which is quite affordable for a sporting event nowadays.  

What you should know

Of course, one of the attractions of seeing a game at TD Place are all the restaurants open before and after the game.  There are also numerous food options available inside the arena. I have found them to be fairly priced when you consider all arena food has a mark-up.  One policy I also like is that you are allowed to bring empty water bottles into the arena. There are two refillable water fountain stations so you are not left thirsty.  No outside food or drink is allowed inside the arena.

If all goes according to plan, there will be many playoff games in the 67’s immediate future.  For all the details and schedule, www.ottawa67s.com

Disclaimer: Stephen and his family received free tickets for this Ottawa 67s game but all views and excitement are his own.

Hockey Mom: Empowering Life Lessons

Kids in the Capital is pleased to welcome back Antonia Cetin to the blog. Antonia is an educator and the author of You’ve Got This, Mom! A Mother’s Guide to Surviving and Thriving in Today’s Modern World. This post originally appeared here.

Having woken my son at 5am on a Saturday morning, I’ve fed him and got him out the door to sit in a cold rink where I wait for his hockey practice to begin with the mug of coffee that I cling to for warmth and solace. I joke with the other parents, “Who thought this was a good idea?” Yet, we’ve been coming back for 7 years.

Over the course of the 7 years my son has participated in NMHA activities and teams, Matthieu, has grown and learned so much. When he first started playing at the age of 5 as a little Timbit, he could barely skate and after 3 months of the early wake-ups, the complaining that this was too hard and the helmet was heavy and itchy, and watching him flop on the ice and finish all of the drills last, that protective parent doubt began to creep in and I was beginning to think that maybe this was not such a great idea. Then, miraculously, in what seemed like the space of a week, he went from barely standing to flying across the ice. He was sliding, gliding, and having fun. He was hooked!

As a parent, I was happy for him that he was enjoying his new skills which I knew could provide him with a lifetime of opportunity for physical activity and comradery but even more so, I was thrilled that he was learning a very important life lesson. Without knowing it, he was learning so much more than how to skate: he was learning that even when something isn’t easy, you stick with it until you succeed. He was learning to be resilient. And, you know what? I was learning something, too. I was learning the importance of letting him struggle so that he could become resilient. I was learning that my role of Mom wasn’t just to protect him, but to provide him opportunities where he could learn to be resilient in a safe space.

Since these first beginnings, our learning has continued and Matthieu has blossomed. He has learned the satisfaction of belonging to a team and arriving at practice to welcoming cheers of, “Yeah, Matthieu is here!” and I have learned to be grateful that he has a space where he belongs. He is learning that you don’t always win your games, but that it sure is fun to play, and I have learned that it’s ok to let him be disappointed in his losses and to cheer him on anyways. He has learned the value of seeing the bigger picture (what all is going on around me on the ice); of collaborating on plays and of sharing (the puck, the defeat, and the glory), and I have learned to step back and let him have the space to try, to fail and to succeed.

Hockey has brought Matthieu a common ground for conversation with people of all ages, an excellent way to stay fit and healthy, and perhaps most importantly, a lot of joy. As a parent, aside from watching my son grow and learn about hockey and about life, and being happy that he has found an activity that makes him happy, I appreciate that the NMHA has brought us the opportunity to meet and chat with other wonderful hockey families. Hope to see you at the rink sometime, too!