What are your earliest hockey memories?

[Habsfan18]

My first specific memory is watching Hockey Night In Canada with my dad late at night in what would have either been 1991 or 1992. I remember bits and pieces of the intermission and the HNIC graphics as well as highlights from other games. I was either 3 or 4 years old.

I also remember bits and pieces of the Habs Stanley Cup clinching game vs the Kings in ‘93 when I was 5 years old. I remember struggling to stay awake and asking my mom as soon as I opened my eyes the next morning if Montreal had won. I remember us walking down the street to my uncle’s house and I ran past him holding a Montreal Canadiens flag or towel while he worked outside. He hated the Habs but I remember him having a big laugh.

The vast majority of my childhood hockey memories however, were with my grandfather. He and I watched Hockey Night In Canada together almost every Saturday and those are some of my most cherished childhood memories. He had a lot to do with my passion for hockey, more so than anyone else. If it weren’t for him I doubt I would have grown up to have such a love and appreciation for the game.

What about you guys? What are some of your earliest hockey memories?

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[NyQuil]

My Dad screaming at Steve Penney on TV.

 

[Khomutov]

The Izvestia Cup 1989. I was six years old.

 

[Jumptheshark]

watching Rick Blight and Ron Seldebaeur playing for the canucks

 

[Tarantula]

Hearing that Bobby Orr would not play in the 72 summit series. I'm old

 

[SealsFan]

A bit hazy but I had to have been aware of hockey in 1968 at age 10 because I still have 68-69 Topps hockey cards that I bought when visiting cousins in Brooklyn. The five-and-dime stores in Brooklyn had hockey cards and basketball cards, which I couldn't get on Long Island (first time getting hockey cards on L.I. was 70-71).

I also have a memory from 69-70 of a big picture spread on the back page of the NY Daily News showing Ed Giacomin being led to the bench with a towel to his face after being hit between the eyes with a Bobby Hull slapshot. Despite that I still knew that I had to become a goalie!

 

[Tad Mikowsky]

One of my favorites was as a kid, I got McDonald Hockey Cards, and I got a Packing Boy card because he just got traded to the Avalanche.

Turns out learning to read is fun and I was close: it was Patrick Roy.

 

[82Ninety42011]

Hockey cards in 70's in school yard playing knock downs and topsy lol. Actual games Broad Street Bullies beating everyone up.

 

[VanIslander]

Montreal vs. Boston on our black and white television (my hero Dryden in net). A year later we got a Zenith color TV and were the envy of my friends. I was impressed how the Habs red popped on the screen, as i had never seen one of their jerseys before (no one wore them on the street back then), only had a t-shirt with the logo and had admired a World Book encyclopedia photograph.

 

[Fixxer]

Habs with Vigneault and Koivu. Roy in Colorado.
Boston with the Bear jersey and..

 

[frisco]

1972 Summit Series. Everyone was in the assembly room in where my dad was principal watching. I was three.

Sabres-Canadiens 1973. Punch Imlach measures Dryden's pads for minor penalty. Everyone was going pretty crazy.

Tim Horton 1974. The guy I just watched on TV last nite is dead? What is death?

Getting my mother to stitch a "4" on all my clothes because of Bobby Orr. Probably four years old.

My Best-Carey

 

[The Panther]

My earliest memory is probably the book, The Amazing Oilers (1982?).

See it here:

Sometime during 1982-83, when I was 6, my Dad returned home from work and suddenly gave me this book. In those days, I didn't get a lot of things, so it was a big deal. It's really a wonderful picture book, and has those cheesy player profiles at the end.

The first game I remember watching in full was the Oilers' clinching the 1985 Cup over Philly, 8-3. I was nine by then.

 

[Terry Yake]

whalers practices at avon old farms

 

[alko]

Team Czechoslovakia destroyed team USA on WCH 1985 in final round 11:2. My older sister began to write the names of the players who scored.
Funny, now i realized, that USA beat Czechoslovakia in group game 3:1.
Second funny point: USA lost 3 games with 10+ goals in their net and vs Finland with 8 goals.

Then there are moment from school direct after 88 Olympics. Our Russian language teacher (older woman we were very afraid) was very disappointed with the results from Czechoslovakia team. One hour we talked about hockey, not about Russian language. At that time, that was very tough law break.

But the real ice-hockey boom was after the 1994 Olympics.

 

[Section337]

First hockey matters memory - Lived in Flin Flon, MB for a short time when little (started kindergarten there). It was right in the middle of the Flyers’ run, so the Bombers connection was alive and seemed important.

First hockey game watched memory - New Years Eve of 1975, at my cousins place with a baby sitter, while both sets of parents out at a party. Can remember watching the Red Army vs Canadiens sitting on the stairs, looking through the railing and living room door, watching the game. Why I was watching from there? Probably because of the tension and my belief that I could escape quickly if something bad happened. I was the type of kid that couldn't watch "embarrassing things" on TV, such as Three is Company.

First actual hockey play memory - Even though I remember the game just mentioned and likely watched other games, I can't really remember any specific plays until the 1976 Canada Cup, with Sittler going wide to beat the Czechoslovakian goalie.

 

[adsfan]

I saw my first minor league game in October of 1964. It was a Dayton Gems IHL game in their first season. I watched the Saturday NHL games on NBC in 1965 or 1966. Typically, it was Rangers versus Bruins or Chicago versus Detroit. I was a big Bobby Orr fan.

 

[HisIceness]

Attending Raleigh Icecaps ECHL games at Dorton Arena with my parents. I didn't know it was "minor-league", all I knew was it was cold, it was fast, it was physical, and it was fun.

I believe my first NHL memory would be the 1995 season. I do remember watching a Devils/Red Wings game on FOX that year so logic would indicate this was the Finals. What game and where I'm not sure, I just remember both teams wore a matching shade of red.

 

[MarkusNaslund19]

In 89, I was 5 or 6 and I saw the Soviet Red Army come to Vancouver and play the Canucks. Fedorov was on that russian team amongst others. I remember, even at that age, being struck by the differing play styles and how absurdly fast the Russian transition game was.

I think we lost like 6-3 and it was very flattering to the Canucks.

 

[Crosstraffic]

Was 6 or 7, 1980 or so, Kings Triple Crown line at the top of their game, road games were on KHJ 9, tape delayed for 8pm starts (Remember the only other team in the Pacific zone then was Vancouver), so I would get to see the first period before I had to go to bed.

 

[a79krgm]

-Watching hockey on television 1973 / NBC ? and patiently waiting for intermission when Peter Puck would appear.

-I vaguely remember one game where Bobby Orr's skates got locked with another player (Seals player perhaps) and thought it was the funniest thing I would ever see

-My Dad informed me of the rumor that Bobby Orr didn't wear socks in his skates. That totally blew my young mind!

 

[McRpro]

Watching the Stanley Cup finals in 88-89, Flames vs Habs.

 

[The Panther]

...so I would get to see the first period before I had to go to bed.

Man, that was the worst. I remember watching the first and second period of several Oilers' games around 1986, and then my parents would make me go to bed. Then, in the morning, I'd ask my Dad what happened, and he'd say, "Well, Gretzky scored one and got three assists in the third." And, I'd be, like... thanks a lot.

 

[Derg12]

I remember my family at a relatives house and sitting in the kitchen looking up at this big black and white TV watching something about body counts and helicopters. I vaguely remember a graphic of numbers killed, wounded... etc. It was unsettling, and I didn't quite understand what was going on only being a few years old but once the Sabres game came on, I forgot all about the news. The Sabres were playing Montreal that night.

 

[Tarantula]

Man, that was the worst. I remember watching the first and second period of several Oilers' games around 1986, and then my parents would make me go to bed. Then, in the morning, I'd ask my Dad what happened, and he'd say, "Well, Gretzky scored one and got three assists in the third." And, I'd be, like... thanks a lot.

Back in my day the games started at 8 pm, so I was often stuck missing the third. At least my transitor radio could pick up the CBC feed on the fm dial. I often caught the third at least this way, and was also able to get a AM broadcast of the Bruins as well.

 

[danincanada]

I looked it up on H-R and one was November 24, 1987 with the Leafs playing the Islanders. My father hadn't yet fallen off the Isles bandwagon and I was 8 years old so I was on it, too. He couldn't stand the hometown Leafs once Ballard got his hands on the team so this was a big game to us. Late in the game is was tied 3-3 and Al Iafrate scored on an individual effort to break the tie and the Leafs won 4-3. I went to bed very unhappy that night so emotionally it sticks out in my mind.

I remember waking up in the middle of the night to hear my father celebrating after Lafontaine scored in that quadruple OT game n the '87 playoffs against the Caps so technically that was earlier but the Iafrate goal sticks out in my mind because I watched the whole game and was "into it".