I have a confession to make. I moved back home from the US a couple of years ago and Saturday night was my first Belfast Giants hockey game. I know I’m coming to the party late, but bear with me.

I’d planned to go plenty of times, of course, when friends were visiting or when the Giants might have been playing in a crucial cup-tie, but until last night the closest I got was attending a press conference in one of the VIP suites ahead of a game. I’d even bump into some of the players and staff in the supermarket when I lived next door in the Titanic Quarter. But I never got around to buying tickets until my girlfriend – a diehard Pittsburgh Penguins fan – was here this weekend and I thought she’d enjoy the show. Turned out it was the best date night we’d had in a long time.

Saturday’s matchup against the Sheffield Steelers was just a tremendously exciting game in front of a full house – report here from Love Belfast– which saw the home team come from going two early goals down to win 5-4 in overtime. As a spectator, you could hardly ask for more.

But the outcome wasn’t the only reason we left happy, and I’d like to talk about that for a minute.

Full disclosure: when I lived in New York, the company my ex-wife worked for had a box at Madison Square Garden and I was lucky enough to go to a good many New York Rangers games over the past decade or so. A few years before that, I was a regular at the University of Michigan’s games at their homely but imposing Yost Arena in Ann Arbor. So as a fan, I’d experienced hockey from two distinct perspectives – the corporate and the collegial.

And last night was kind of the best of both worlds. Being able to watch a live sporting event with a sold-out crowd in a comfortable, accessible arena where everything works is – especially at my advancing years – crucial. Other times, though, it really felt like I was back at Yost, with all the passion and humour that creates such a great atmosphere for college hockey in campus towns across North America.

Part of the reason for that was the presence of the band from Clarkson University in upstate New York, whose NCAA champion womens’ team had faced off earlier in the day against Northeastern as part of the Friendship Series, in what was the first meeting of women’s college teams outside the US.

It was also a special night for the Giants’ Colin Shields as he set a team appearance record and was recognized for his achievement before the game.

I’d been at the Garden a few years ago for the retirement celebrations for former Rangers captain Mark Messier and the special connection and mutual respect between fans and dedicated, long-serving stars on any team is obvious on nights like this. That connection is enhanced by effective community outreach and accessibility. One thing we noticed was the number of Giants shirts fans of all ages were wearing that had been signed either by individual players or, often, by the whole team.

And there were three other things on Saturday night that impressed us both:

Firstly, the visiting supporters. A huge, vocal contingent of Sheffield fans made for an even better atmosphere, while they get to enjoy the city for the weekend and have another chance on Sunday to make up for their setback last night.

Secondly, the inclusiveness. As my girlfriend pointed out, there were no flags or anthems, and an almost total absence of colours from any other sports. There were lots of shirts familiar to NHL fans – New York Rangers, Colorado Avalanche, Toronto Maple Leafs, a Minnesota Wild shirt bearing the name of the late Derek Boogaard and, to her delight, a Jaromir Jagr Penguins jersey.

All this among a good-natured crowd that could be trusted to drink responsibly with no incidents – if you don’t count the person who tried unsuccessfully to balance a pint on their big foam finger. That was only ever going to end one way.

But absolutely the most important thing was the sheer number of kids at the game. Some of them very young, some of them yawning by the end, but the vast majority of them engaged, excited and enthusiastic. Every ten or eleven-year-old in a teal jersey knew way more about their team and the individual players than I did. It was just great to see.

And all of that is what gives me hope.

At Northern Slant, we’ve written before about the role of sport and its connection to our local communities – most notably here and here – while my colleague Caolán Conroy’s ‘Game of Three Halves’ column regularly looks at the personalities behind the more high-profile local games.

But the importance of having a welcoming, cross-community sporting franchise that’s successful on the ice, well-run off it, and – crucially – puts on a really good show, can’t be overstated as we all try to get a handle on what a shared future might look like for those kids I mentioned earlier.

As we were leaving, my girlfriend was all smiles, her hockey craving more than satisfied. “That was just great,” she said. “We could have been anywhere in America.” While that sort of escapism is all well and good from time to time; it’s kind of missing the point. We were in Belfast. And this is just the best kind of Belfast night out. I’m only sad it took me a while to find it.

Find details of upcoming Belfast Giants games here.

Also published on Medium.