I broke a long-standing vow of mine yesterday.

Well, kind of.

Long ago, as a freshman at Ohio State, I left a football game in the fourth quarter as my beloved Buckeyes trailed LSU by 13 points. The game looked hopeless to me and my mates, so we decided to pack it in and head home early. When I eventually made it to my dorm room, I noticed my roommate glued to the tiny television in our common room. He glanced at me and my friends and gave us a simple "you're not going to believe this." We knew right away that the Buckeyes had somehow made a game of it, and then sat and watched—on television—the last few seconds of what is considered one of the greatest games ever played in Ohio Stadium.

I missed it. And I vowed right then and there to never again leave a game early.

And I haven't. Whenever we go to a sporting event, we stay to the end, no matter what. Usually we even stay a bit longer, especially for hockey games—you've got to see the three stars, after all.

Well, I broke that vow last night. Sort of.

Our beloved Toledo Walleye are playing in the ECHL Western Conference Finals. I watched the first period at Renee's parents' house, and it was awful. It's probably the worst twenty minutes of hockey I've ever seen a Walleye team play. They were down 0-4 at the end of the first, and I packed it in. Hopeless, I said, and left.

I couldn't watch the game at home (it's minor league hockey…streaming is a bit of a challenge), but checked the score later as I was headed to bed (they're playing in Utah, so the game was on relatively late). 2-4 half way through the third period.

Interesting.

I checked again with five minutes to go.

Tied.

Again.

Overtime.

Again.

Still tied.

Again.

Walleye win 5-4, about five minutes into the overtime period.

Damn! Probably one of the greatest comebacks in Toledo hockey history, in a playoff game no less, and I missed it!

But, technically, I wasn't at the game, so I didn't break my vow to never again leave a game early.

Right?

Anyways, the Walleye play again tonight and could win the series on the road. I'll be at Renee's parents' house again, and there's no way I'm leaving early.

No matter what.

tags: toledowalleye hockey echl sports ohiostatebuckeyes

postposted by matt in Saturday, May 28, 2022