Last Sunday night, while most people were watching the Oscars, I was at a Boston Bruins hockey game.  What can I say?  Hockey is my favorite sport.  Ordinarily my brother’s my hockey buddy, but he couldn’t make it.  A friend was eager to join me, much to the chagrin of her husband and children.  We brought a sign we thought would surely get us on camera.  It said,  COUGARS LOVE BRUINS. We were, after all, women of a certain age.  And my Boys are wicked cute.

When the roving cameraman ignored us, a couple sitting nearby shouted to get his attention.  He shook his head and said, “Can’t show that during prime time.”  Meanwhile, another live broadcast was underway where at least a half-dozen Hollywood starlets were dangerously close to having wardrobe malfunctions.  And my sign was too risqué?  Seriously?

My B’s scored first, but their puck luck didn’t last.  Suddenly they were behind 2 to 1 and it grew uncharacteristically quiet in the Garden.  That’s when I overheard the dad sitting behind us explaining the game of hockey to his two small girly-girl daughters.  “How many shots on goal do we have?” he asked one of them.  “Hear the tap tap of the stick on the ice?  That means pass me the puck…”

He reminded me of all the things I love about hockey.  The sheer speed and perfectly choreographed chaos of it.  The rattling of the boards.  How watching a game clears your head and gets your blood pumping.

Warriors on skates, my Bruins play with grit and grace.  At six-foot-nine, captain and defenseman, Zdeno Chara is the tallest player in the NHL.  When we say, “don’t poke the bear,” we are referring to Big Z.  Patrice Bergeron is the league’s best two-way forward.  He played Game 6 of the 2013 Stanley Cup finals with a cracked rib, torn cartilage, and a separated shoulder.  It’s been said:  If hockey was easy, they’d call it football.

Win or lose, I love these guys.  Sunday night’s match up with Tampa Bay was a crucial game in the standings.  The final score was 4 to 1.  My Boys didn’t just lose, they stunk up the ice.  But no worries.  We’ll make the play-offs.   Just add ice.  And drop the puck.

POST SEASON SHOCKAH — My Bruins didn’t make the play-offs.  Instead, they’re off playing golf, and I’m rooting for the Blueshirts.  Go Rangers!