School day hockey games have been around for a while, but there’s no question they bring a special energy to the home team. The Pembroke Lumber Kings completed a sweep of their school day series with the Ottawa Junior Senators when they doubled the Sens 4-2 on Friday, October 25th with about 600 school children cheering them on.
What makes these games special is the atmosphere. In a world where fans are stimulated by loud music, air horns and public address announcers who tell them when to cheer, school kids just like to make noise. There doesn’t have to be a great play or a big scoring chance for children to expel their energy with an impromptu Go Kings Go chant, or a high pitched scream that echoes through the building. It’s just kids being kids.
On the ice, the players feed off of that energy. It’s obvious! There is always a bit more spice to these games, including a lot of extra curricular activity, pun intended, after the whistle. The jostling among the opponents always gathers the attention of the youngsters in the crowd and sometimes it can lead to some ill advised penalties, but overall, the added crowd noise usually spurs increased scoring chances, bigger goal celebrations and a very special game day experience.
It’s even better if your team wins and that’s what happened this year. The Lumber Kings have the students of the Renfrew County Catholic District School Board to thank for helping spur them on to victory.
