The Rivermen games are a key staple in Peoria. On Saturday, March 3rd, we attended the Rivermen game against the Knoxville Ice Bears to see what the experience was like at a game.
Grant:
When you walk into the arena the energy is electric. The energy first starts when the arena gets dark and the Rivermen intro begins. During the intro, the Rivermen have their very own theme song. After the Rivermen have their intro the players are introduced. Some players got regular cheers while others had the whole crowd going crazy. Players such as Zach Wilke and Alec Baer got strong standing ovations.
Once the puck dropped, the action started, and the Rivermen seemed ready to go. Although in the first period, no goals were scored on both sides. Both sides had great defense and were standing up strong. During the period of changes, the Zambonis drove on through. It’s always fun to see the Zambonies come out onto the ice. Nothing compares to seeing the zambonies work. It is one of the most satisfying things you will see. Once the zambonies finished, we had a solid ten minutes before the game resumed. You could walk around, watch a dance team perform, get food, or just sit down waiting for the action to start again.
In the game, the Rivermen scored four goals. I only saw two of them. From where we sat, we had good seats but it was at an awkward angle to where we couldn’t see that well. For the price of the tickets, they were very good seats, but we missed some of the action.
Overall the game was super fun. The Rivermen won 4-0. Though there were no fights, it was still a fun atmosphere with games and entertainment the whole time. The regular season is coming to an end soon, and the Rivermen will play their last game on April 5th before the playoffs begin.
Ethan:
When I went to the hockey game, in my opinion, the food was the best part. The arena has a variety of food choices, hot dogs, pizza, nachos, etc. Although the food was a little expensive, the quality was almost worth the money. I got four street tacos for the start of the game and ended with nachos with cheese. I would go to the hockey games just for the food choices. In the end, I would come back for the game and the food.
The game experience was electric with fans cheering on the home team as the music played before each play. The seating was by the corner glass, where we could see but not that well. Next time I go I would get a seat in the middle of the ice overlooking both goals. The arena was packed with fans near the lower rows. The fans were singing, dancing, and blowing their airhorns for the other team having the puck. At the beginning of the game, it was slow, but by the second period, the Rivermen scored two goals and by the third period they scored another two goals.
Tickets to Rivermen games can be purchased online or at the Civic Center box office. The Rivermen play at home on March 9, 28, 29, and April 5.
For more information, visit: https://www.rivermen.net/
