There’s one second left in the 3rd period and the Carolina Hurricanes and NJ Devils are tied 3 to 3. The stadium bellows with apprehension. 15,000 voices sing along to the Scorpions “Rock you like a hurricane” like it’s a battle cry. This is the kind of passion that makes your throat bleed from screaming until it’s as red as the shirts worn by nearly every man, woman and child in the building.

It was the 4th game in the Stanley Cup quarterfinals and my first hockey game ever. Taking it in, I wondered what in a world of canned laughter and multi-million dollar ad campaigns creates excitement? What makes nothing else in the world matter to thousands of people of every age and economic class except 12 guys and a puck?

Here’s what I found.

Excitement is human. Not every yell is a cheer, but the grunts and wails make them 100x more powerful.

It’s just as heroic to be a defender as an aggressor.

When you stand for something, the little details don’t matter all that much. People want the big picture. Hero wins. Hero dies. Ward blocks. Staal scores. During the game, I heard a father behind me explain hockey to his young son.

“We’re on one side and the Devils are on the other. We score by hitting the black puck in their net, they try to do the same. 3 periods of 20 minutes each.” That’s it.

Things may come at you from every angle, but there’s got to be a focal point to capture your attention and hold your suspense. Sometime’s its only 4” long. Like a banner ad. Or a hockey puck.

Never underestimate the appeal of a dancing pig. Err, “ice hog.”

It’s commonly acceptable to act like an idiot at a sports event and not be judged. And my god it feels good.

Lastly, a great ending always helps. That’s what happened in that last second of the 3rd period, when the Hurricanes and NJ Devils were tied 3 to 3. With .02 on the clock, Jokinen scored and the Hurricanes won.