Ah, you have to love these in-state rivalries…Houston, San Antonio, Dallas. Well, the Texas Stars did play the Dallas Stars once as an exhibition game to give us Central Texans a taste of what this crazy hockey game is all about. It was a great exhibition game and all, but I’m not sure a 5-1 defeat is a great way to start the season (well maybe it was with that Calder Cup and all)…anywho, back to San Antonio.
San Antonio is always a pretty good matchup, usually it’s always a chippy atmosphere with the rivalry between the two teams (I don’t think I’ve ever seen more fights per game against another team) and since a lot of their fans travel over to cheer on their team, it definitely puts a bit of tension in the air (ever been to an A’s vs Giants MLB game?). I’ve seen some pretty tense moments with overzealous fans but we’re all pretty respectful when it comes to visiting your neighbor’s house (sorry, but yelling TEXASSSS! STARRRRS! rolls off easier than yelling SANANTONIO…RAMMMPAGE!)
Since it’s pre-season, let’s take a look at the Texas Stars history with such games against the Rampage, these are all first match ups of the year:
2009: 2-1 (Texas)
2010: 2-1 (Texas)
2011: 4-0 (SAN)
Despite the pre-season game last year, Texas did a pretty good job of holding off San Antonio throughout the regular season We’ll see how the Stars do against the Rampage in 2012, should be a great Friday night game as Texas gets a feel for what San Antonio will offer this year. Yes, ex-Star Greg Rallo (who shot the winning goal against SAN in 2009’s game) should be there (he’s on the roster) so listen for some “motivation” from the crowd if you’re at the game.
Can’t you just feel the love? Photo courtesy: http://www.mysanantonio.com
Jesus Is My Goalie! 