The moment felt surreal: we could look around and see thousands of fans in the seats of the stadium. When the Hurricanes players walked out to the ice for warmups, the crowd got so loud I had to scream to talk with the people around me.
Calvin de Haan, one of Carolina's defensemen, threw me a puck over the glass near the end of warmups. It felt unreal to catch a puck from one of my idols and share the experience with my other friends. It was a dream come true.
Surrounded by multiple large universities, Raleigh is heavily influenced by college sports. Hurricanes fans even have a tradition of howling after big goals or wins, something we picked up from North Carolina State University.
The Stadium Series game really leaned into that larger sports community, especially since the game was played in NC State football stadium. The university brought its huge marching band, filled a student section, and the stadium broke out into NC State songs multiple times. Singing along with nearly 57,000 other people is an amazing experience.
The game started with fireworks, light shows, and a jet flyover as the anthem ended. Everybody was on their feet, singing and screaming as the players took the ice.
The energy was electric even after the game ended. Every time the Canes scored, walls of fire rose behind the benches, and fireworks went off. At the end of the game, the Hurricanes ended with their famous Storm Surge, with a golfing twist to tie in with the pregame outfits worn by the players at their arrival. As always, the storm surge was a tribute to the fans.
The success experienced by the Hurricanes in the past few seasons has massively grown hockey in Raleigh, and the Stadium Series gave fans an opportunity to show up for our team together.
It was the best hockey game I've ever experienced, with the night ending in fireworks and a wild crowd celebrating the win.