Observations from UM-BU game in Worcester

While I haven't followed UM hockey as closely as I did as a student, I could not pass up the opportunity to take my 5 year old son to his first Michigan game only 45 minutes away from where we lived in Boston. I enjoy reading other first hand experiences from UM fans and thought I would share some observations:

----The game made me appreciate the challenge in getting decent attendance at NCAA tourney sites. BU has a huge hockey fanbase in Boston and they could not fill the upper deck of an arena ~45 minutes away from town. That being said (and acknowledgin a lot of BU students were out of town), the lower bowl was pretty full and quite lively. I would say the crowd was 70% BU, 20% UM, and 10% random hockey fans (including a few Northeastern fans who were actively rooting for the team that beat NEU the day before; it gives you a sense of how much BU is envied/despised by the other Boston hockey fanbases).

----While we had good seats pretty low at the blue line I made the command decision to move to seats right in front of the UM band. It was the first time I sat so close to the band and it was a great (if loud) decision. Not only could my son appreciate the fact that there were indeed woodwinds that provide important sound to Hail to the Victors, it allowed him to listen to the bands banter and chants which he got a real kick out of. They were very nice to hium and even posed for a selfie. I think the BU fans nearby were taken aback by how clean the UM bands chants and comments were (much like my adjustment to UM as a freshman who came from the east coast). The most I had to explain to my son was what "hit him with the chair!" meant. :) For fans who have the opportunity (especially if you have kids) I highly recommend spending some time near the band if the arena and seating allow it. 

----Side note: the BU band decided to troll with Hang on Sloopy in the third period while spelling OHIO. The UM band did not take up my suggestion to play "New York, New York", though I still maintain it would have been an appropriate response.

----I was really (really) impressed by how well Michigan controlled the puck and game flow. With the exception of the third period tying goal by BU, UM was clearly playing better. This was noted by a number of die hard BU fans sitting around us. They were commenting after the first period that BU was "in trouble"; that (their words) "well coached teams are kryptonite" for BU.After the game when the team came out for the team photo, etc, I was struck by how "happy" the players looked. What I mean by that is that they appeared joyful without necessarily being jubilant.

I'd share some video/pics I took but I am a luddite and could not find a decent html tutorial for OSX.