Signs
I love the fan-participation element signs add to live hockey. Got something to say? Slap it on a piece of poster board and maybe someone will read it. Maybe it will even be on TV!
Signs come in all different types--from the colorful, kid-made "Let's Go Sabres" where the letters are all small and scunched up at the end because they ran out of room, to the professionally screen-printed sign directed at "OveCHICKEN" I saw at that game against the Caps. And they have all kinds of purposes: Some, like the now-defunct "My favorite Briere at the local Drury is Miller," just want to make you laugh. Others, like the ever-present "Dream and Believe," want to inspire you. (And yes, there are definite mis-steps, too. "Marry me Briere" sign-toters, I'm looking at you. Polygamists.) Then there are my favorites: The signs that line the back wall of the upper bowl--the Campbell's soup can, "Awinagainov," "Pominville Population X," "Goose's Roost," "Mair's Office"--which are permanent fixtures at games. There's just something so affectionate about players having a little section of the arena dedicated to them.
Even though most of them never see the light of day, I love trying to come up with good ideas for signs. I made two this season, though, and when Marty Biron revealed in the Buffalo News a while back that he likes to sit on the bench and read the signs people hold up, I was really miffed that my seats are behind the bench where he can't see me. (Although it's probably for the best that Yo-Yo doesn't know about my "Hecht! We're not Jochen!" sign, because he would just think I don't know how to pronounce his name. [Even though I do! Better than anyone, it seems! No, nhl.com, it is not "yo-KIN HESHT" as you would like everyone to believe.])
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"Mair's Office"--which are permanent fixtures at games.
At one of the games we went to - I don't remember if it was the last regular season game or the last playoff game, the PA announcer said, "Adam and Alli Mair would like to thank the fans in Mair's Office for their support this season" which I just thought was too adorable and awesome.
"yo-KIN HESHT"
yo-KIN? Goodness gracious!
I love your sign, Gambler. "You MUST be Jochen!" is one of my favorite Yo-Yo related jokes.
Dude, Mair is just skyrocketing further and further up my list of favorite Sabres. That is too awesome!
The misplaced accent is the least (but stupidest) of that pronunciation's problems, sadly. This is just the German nerd in me talking, but people: "ch" never sounds like a K or a SH in German. It's a hard sound for Americans to duplicate (kind of a breathy, back-of-the-throat, almost K), so those are good enough approximations, but still, any German would hear "yokin hesht" and go "Excuse me, what now?" It's kind of a pet peeve of mine. I dream that one day I'll meet Yo-Yo, and he'll fall so in love with me for pronouncing his name correctly that he'll draw tiny toe-circles in the dirt.
I'll admit if I hadn't been able to yell "I'm just Jochen!" whenever he had the puck (or, "Hecht was totally just Jochen about that shot," whenever occasion provided, which was usually pretty frequently) I might never have taken much notice of the guy. Which would be sad, because he's so much more than bad puns!
I am totally not Jochen when I say that Hecht is the cutest Sabre now. Between the green mouth guard and the circley-toe moves, he's completely taken over.
Now, excuse me while I spend the remainder of my evening racking my brain for clever sign ideas.....
Our first couple of seasons with season tickets to the Devils, we brought signs to hold up during skate around (our seats were right on the glass in the corner for the opposing team's skate around area). For some reason, we opted to make a new sign each game for a select player on the other team that said "[Player Name] For Mayor of Funkytown". No one, including us, had any idea what we were talking about, but we got some very nice quizzical reactions from illustrious players like Peter Bondra, Ed Jovonovski and Geoff Sanderson.
my "Hecht! We're not Jochen!" sign
Awesome sign Gambler!
Heather, it was game 5 of the Ottawa series. I remember seeing the same thing on the Jumbotron and thinking it was pretty cool.
And as for the Goose's Roost, the sign will be up for at least 10 games this year. Hopefully in the same place if the mini pack gods are with us...
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