There are so many wonderful things about a hockey game. The sport itself is fast-paced and exciting, and the crowd tends to get quite involved and boisterous. Oftentimes the things that fans shout out during the game are entertainment in and of themselves. One of my favorites of all time actually belongs to our esteemed Fiver creator, who loudly heckled the Worcester Sharks thusly: “The City of Worcester has no viable economic plan!”

One aspect that might not necessarily be thought of as integral to a hockey game is the music that is used. Music can get us pumped up, encourage us, and make us laugh, all of which is part of the game. During my time in Tampa, I became a devoted Lightning fan (yes, there is hockey in Florida), and had the opportunity to observe through regular attendance how much fun the music chosen can be.

And so, to celebrate the beginning of hockey season, and the extra dimension that music can bring to the game, I present to you:

Top 5 Clever Choices of Song During A Hockey Game

1. “Yakety Sax,” Boots Randolph
There is nothing quite like hearing the theme to “The Benny Hill Show” as the opposing team skates onto the ice for warm-up. Priceless.

2. “Walking On Broken Glass,” Annie Lennox
What happens when two 230-pound men hit the boards simultaneously with momentum from skating across the ice? The glass above the boards shatters and falls out, that’s what. This is a song I would never expect to hear at a sporting event, but it worked quite well in this situation.

3. “Song from M*A*S*H (Suicide Is Painless),” Johnny Mandel and Mike Altman
Hockey can be kind of like war, right? And those boys certainly need to be stitched up sometimes. So why not use this classic theme during the announcement of scratches and injuries?

4. “The Waiting,” Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers
When a goal goes under review in an NHL game, the refs skate over to the sidelines and call the War Room in Toronto. So while the folks up there take another look at the play and hand down the verdict, the fans sit and … well, wait. It is, indeed, the hardest part. Except if you’re a Lightning fan, in which case the hardest part is hearing that Toronto has screwed you over again.

5. “Hook,” Blues Traveler
Oops! Someone got called for a hooking penalty. Now he’s got to go in the box, all by himself, for two minutes, and feel shame.

Hockey All The Time!