You don't often consider a frozen puck clanging off iron or a body crashing into the boards to be a soothing sound.
But to a hockey-deprived fan living in a world with an NHL lockout, these sounds were music to the ears.
Philadelphia joins Chicago and Edmonton as the only three cities blessed with an American Hockey League team to satisfy the fix of a tradition-rich hockey town.
Sunday night, the AHL's Philadelphia Phantoms defeated the Norfolk Admirals, 3-2, in overtime to run their franchise-record winning streak to 10 games.
Over 7,500 fans took full advantage of the opportunity simply to watch hockey at the Wachovia Spectrum, and they were sent home happy when Ben Stafford scored halfway through the extra session to keep the Phantoms in first place and perfect at home.
Even before the lockout, Phantoms hockey was a sensible, affordable alternative to its NHL counterpart across the street at the Wachovia Center.
Despite the NHL lockout, the Phantoms are still a farm team of the Philadelphia Flyers and are still run by Flyers General Manager Bob Clarke.
So Flyers fans will see some familiar names on the Phantoms' roster, including 22-year-old forward Patrick Sharp, who played for the Flyers last season and had a nine-game scoring streak to begin the season for the Phantoms.
Other Phantoms players in uniform from the Flyers' run to the Eastern Conference Finals last year include 21-year-old defenseman Joni Pitkanen and 25-year-old left wing Todd Fedoruk.
While NHL veterans have to seek out opportunities in Europe or other ventures -- Red Wings defenseman Chris Chelios has been training with the United States Olympic bobsled team --young players have found a niche in the AHL.
And as usual, these boys will be boys.
Sunday's game featured six major penalties for fighting as well as a roughing minor and an unsportsman-like conduct penalty. This was moderate by AHL standards, but downright gentlemanly compared to a Phantoms game last season against the Binghamton Senators.
In that hockey game turned fight night, the first of four major brawls broke out with 3:50 remaining in the game. With eight seconds left, the officials were forced to end play after issuing 379 minutes of penalties and ejecting 16 players. By that point, neither team had enough players to finish the game.
Only in the AHL can a game like that still come 141 penalty minutes short of the record -- the Hershey Bears and Adirondack Red Wings set the all-time mark in 1981.
The AHL is a 28-team league stretching as far west as Edmonton and Utah and as far south as San Antonio and Houston.
And it is the "only in the AHL" atmosphere and fan friendliness as well as the "only in the AHL" $14 tickets that draw so many people out to see the Phantoms, who rank near the top of the league and average 6,936 fans per home game.
So after the Sixers game Sunday afternoon, the lights went out at the Wachovia Center and the doors were closed.
No need to resurface the floor for the Flyers.
No need to bring out the Zamboni.
But right next door, in a building a little older and a little smaller, the lights shone brightly on the only hockey game in town.
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