Yes I'm reviewing a hockey team on Yelp and giving The Edmonton Oil Kings 5 stars. Here is why.
1. I'm not a big hockey person, and I don't know everything about the sport (we like try to get the puck into the net, but not our net, the other one, right?) but my friend loves hockey. I've tagged along with her to a few games and always enjoyed myself. Last year I even went down on the fan bus to see a game against The Hitmen in Calgary (so maybe I'm a bigger hockey fan than I thought).
2. The Oil Kings are a great hockey team. I know you might think it's been some 20 years since a winning hockey team was in Edmonton, but you gotta look past The Oilers (nothing against the Oilers....this year I'm sure we're going to win The Stanley Cup), but The Oil Kings actually won The Memorial Cup last season, which is like the whole shebang for the junior hockey league.
Of course with that being said this year is a different year, and a lot of the player's from last year's memorial cup championship team aren't with the Oil Kings any more. This is a junior hockey league team, so there are a lot of new players this year, but this brings me to my third point which is.
3. See The NHL stars of tomorrow today. A lot of the players for the Oil Kings and other junior hockey league teams will get drafted by the NHL. Still don't think you're going to be watching a boring game. These players are athletes, and the games are quite entertaining. There certainly doesn't seem to be as much fighting at these games as at an NHL game, but the games are entertaining and have lots of energy. Even when the Oil Kings have lost (which has unfortunately been the case at the two games I've been to this year) I've still enjoyed the games.
4. They are very much family events. Not that seeing an NHL isn't, but you'll definitely see more kids and families at The Oil Kings Game. They often have peewee hockey teams, schools, and other youth organizations (gee don't I sound 100) at the games. Despite this Rexall isn't pack (although it gets busier when The Oil Kings get in the playoffs). Sometimes it can get loud, but whatever, you're at a hockey game, so what else can you expect?
5. Louie The Lion. He's the mascot and he rocks. You can even sit on Louie The Lion's throne (it's the big yellow chair by the store).
6. The jerseys. The older one is blue, red, and yellow with a crown, which is nice. The newer one (came out last year) is black and neon green and I quite like it. Despite this I probably won't buy a jersey, because the souvenirs/memorabilia like that is potentially the biggest expense of the game.
7. The price. If you can manage not to drop hundreds of dollars on jerseys and shirts then the actual price of a game ticket is super reasonable. Except for playoffs, which I think are a bit more, the most you'll pay for a single game day ticket is $37 plus tax. You get to see pro hockey, without the pro prices. Even the 50/50 tickets are reasonable, the biggest one is $10. And while the jackpot might only be a few grand since there are usually only a few thousand people in the stands (and 40% are probably kids who can't get 50/50 tickets anyway) you have better odds of #winning.
8. Lots of fan interaction and prizes. They give everyone a $5 Royal Pizza certificate if the Oil Kings get 5 goals in a game (I got 2 last year and I only went to a few games). They have t-shirt tosses, and giveaways during the games. Sometimes the players will give out autographs after the game or during period. The Oil Kings and there management know their fans and they do a great job with interacting with their fans and making sure people are entertained by a good team.
My one negative is the food and drinks, but that's not the Oil Kings...that's just a Rexall thing. It's overpriced and not great. They have Pizza 73 now, and standard concession stuff, but it's not great. And if you're lucky enough to get to sit in the fancy box seats the food is unbelievably expensive...unless your a business and then expensing everything, then I'm sure it's fine.
So I'll wrap this up by saying The Oil Kings are a great team, they treat the fans well, they play pretty good (even when they don't) and the price (assuming you don't go into debt buying memorabilia) is a great deal. I'll definitely be seeing a few more Oil Kings Games this 2014-2015 season. read more