valentine's day massacre

for a pre-valentine's day/pre-birthday date, i got a babysitter and we headed to the ice arena a stone's throw from our apartment to attend the tuck tripod league's valentine's day massacre - a guys vs. girls hockey game played annually. 

romantic, huh?

well, it did not disappoint. 

the line-up was comprised of couples from the various men's and women's tripod hockey leagues. they were all announced at the beginning of the game as they skated out onto the ice. this is the big leagues here, folks. we don't mess around. 

two of the referees were dressed up with red feathered wings and carried cupid's arrows. another was dressed up in an outfit i'm afraid i will never be able to erase from my memory. 

the game was played completely fairly - with the men's team getting penalties for things like "being short" or "being too canadian."  though there were no true hockey brawls, there was definitely some friendly couple tripping with hockey sticks and a few others mishaps. one girl even got "pucked" in the face {mask}. ryan assures me it doesn't hurt, "it's just really loud."

at one point in the game, chris "the wall" halstedt, the men's goalie, tried to woo his wife and distract her from making a goal by presenting her with a bouquet of red roses. 

better luck next time, christopher. that kind of distraction is no match for miss lauren. 

it was a close game, but the girls emerged victorious 13-0. 

here's some obviously unattractive proof that we were there:

we'll definitely be going back in 2013. and who knows, maybe we'll be out on the ice?