I’m sitting on a plastic seat with cold creeping up my legs. The air is crisp with the smell of ice and anticipation, while loud bangs resound around me, heating my blood.

No, I’m not stuck in a storm being pelted with hailstones.

I’m sitting in Perth Ice Arena, watching Perth Thunder and the Central Coast Rhinos warm up, striking pucks into the boards and glass with enough force to make me jump.

Well, no. I’m not.

Not anymore. I’m quite warm and snug, sitting at my laptop, nursing my ice hockey injury while doing my duty to humanity by writing this piece to spread awareness of a highly contagious virus called Ice Hockey Fever.

As for the knee injury: encroaching old age and my knee being fed up with all the spirited stomping I’d done in celebration of the goals has nothing to do with it! A hockey injury sounds so much cooler.

I’m sticking with my story.

And they say you cannot teach old dogs new tricks, right? That might be true, because I’m trying not to learn any new tricks other than not falling over my own feet and damaging my ego while walking… unless stamping my feet when my team scores, or when the announcer calls out the chant: “Here we go, Thunder, here we go!” and whooping along with the crowd around me, counts as a trick.

In that case, I’m completely onboard the trick-learning train!

The woman—too excited to freeze—described in paragraph one was me on Saturday, 12 July 2025, because I’ve discovered the beautiful world of ice hockey.

“Beautiful?” you might ask, and a couple of months ago, I would’ve agreed with that statement being even more strange than most of the things I generally say. When I heard the words ice and hockey in the same sentence, I used to imagine unruly thugs brawling on ice, with blood, guts, and lots of cussing assaulting the dasher boards.

That might’ve been true years ago—I don’t know, I didn’t catch the bug back then.

While doing research for a writing project, I stumbled upon an excellent ice hockey training YouTube channel (iTrain Hockey) in my quest for information on the game.
I was almost instantly mesmerized by the grace and the high level of skill the nimble instructor demonstrated while teaching kids to play ice hockey.

Somewhere during my open-mouthed binging sessions—where I devoured his videos as if I were actually planning on improving my edges and doing C-cuts like a pro (I’m not)—I realised that I’d been so wrong!

Ice hockey is not just a brawl on ice played by brutes. Not at all!

In reality, it is a beautifully graceful ballet sprinkled with some violence… and sometimes blood, danced to the symphony of blades crisply scraping on ice and loud thwacks of sticks on puck, punctuated by the delighted cheers of the fans.

It might not sound like it, but I know a lot about ballet and go to the theatre to watch it at least once a year. Therefore, despite all the evidence to the contrary, I know what I’m talking about.

Trust me when I say that ice hockey is where Swan Lake meets a bar fight, choreographed at 40 km/h. It is a show where the pirouettes end in body checks. Stunning!

What can I say? I am completely hooked.

It is pure poetry (yes, poetry is involved too) when a player breaks out, weaving the puck through enemy blades at top speed to the front of the net where he does a wrist shot and… doesn’t matter whether it gets blocked or not, the beauty remains.

The only difference is in the explosive thumping, cheers, and pain-rub requirements that accompany the scoring of a goal. Besides, goalies have a next-level, agile dance of their own, adding more verses to the beautiful poem.

While diving into the exhilarating world of the NHL Stanley Cup Finals, I went from being a woman on the wrong side of middle-aged with a casual interest in ice hockey to a die-hard fan who binge-watches old games to get to know the teams and players.

My beloved Maple Leafs didn’t make it to the final round, and no matter how fiercely I cheered those recordings while wearing my Leafs sweater, the outcomes remained the same. I finally gave up and grudgingly applauded when the Florida Panthers raised the Cup in ecstasy.

Good job, guys!

I also had to accept that the NHL had gone into hibernation until October, and I was facing long, empty days with no new games. Fortunately, my hockey craving had grown into an insatiable beast, and in desperation to feed it, I used my good buddy Google to help me find some more hockey to stop it growling at me.

My joy knew no limits (and I’m not exaggerating for a change) when I was introduced to the Australian Ice Hockey League.

Yes! Ice hockey! Right here in my backyard!

And that is how I met the new love of my life. Sorry, my three sons—we’ve had a good run, but my heart now belongs to Perth Thunder!

My youngest son kindly agreed to accompany me to one of their home games so that I could pretend to be at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto… just much smaller and way less flashy and high-tech, but who cares?

On the 12th, the two of us and his lovely girlfriend took our seats for my first-ever in-person ice hockey game. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect, and thought I would probably prefer watching online, because I can pause and rewind six million times when the play happens too fast for my eyes to keep up.

I also had a vague fear that the magic that captured my heart would somehow disappear somewhere between the bleachers and the ice, and I would leave the arena completely cured of that ice hockey fever.

Good news!

My affliction was not cured! It got worse! My obsession grew! Things turned ugly!
I bought a scarf during a break!!!

Actually, ugly is the wrong word, because the scarf is very pretty and we’ve bonded nicely.

The energy and the joyful vibe at the arena were highly contagious, only enhancing the excitement already streaming from my ears. Soon, I was stomping my feet and cheering my team—yeah, Perth Thunder is MY team now—along with all the other fans.

I loved the electric atmosphere, the cold on my cheeks, and even the old-socks smell of the ice when the Zamboni did its rounds during the two 15-minute breaks between periods. Hot mop water with a delicate blend of sweat, blood, and hockey juice might be my new favourite fragrance!

Bottled and sold at unhinged perfumiers everywhere.

While the NHL provides drama, bright lights, and glamour, the AIHL—despite being low-key and underrated (or perhaps because of it)—provides an abundance of heart and soul.

I take my hat off—or I will, as soon as I buy that Thunder beanie—to Perth Thunder for doing so well despite all the hardships they have to endure: spending many hours travelling thousands of kms, constantly dealing with time zone shifts, fewer rest days, and higher costs, to list only a few.

That takes real dedication. My sincere thanks for the effort.

Though I’m loyal to Perth Thunder now, I am not blind to the skills and dedication of the members of the other teams. I fully enjoyed watching the Rhinos play on the 12th and am grateful that they travelled so far just to make me happy… I mean, to take part in the hockey season.

Perth Thunder winning the game 8-2 was the cherry on top. Congratulations!

I’m pleased to admit that I might be a little bit obsessed. I needed a nice, healthy obsession in my life.

Mission accomplished!

I’ve always believed that if something is worth doing, you might as well do it with all your heart. So here I am, awaiting the arrival of a Perth Thunder sweater, while I watch old games, longing for the next time I can support the team from my seat at Perth Ice Arena.

That’s totally healthy, I swear!

Next time you’re having a low day, or are tired of suffering through one dreary weekend after another, and you want your blood to burn in your veins and pound through your heart—and you have some rub for sore joints and are not afraid to use it—why not check out your local ice hockey team?!

You just might catch the fever too… and you will love it!

A helpful table to help you find your team. You’re welcome.

Team Name	Home Rink	City
Adelaide Adrenaline	Adelaide IceArenA	Adelaide, SA
Brisbane Lightning	Iceworld Boondall	Brisbane, QLD
Canberra Brave (2025)	AIS Arena / Phillip Ice Skating Centre	Canberra, ACT
Central Coast Rhinos	Erina Ice Arena	Erina, Central Coast NSW
Melbourne Ice	O’Brien Icehouse	Docklands, Melbourne
Melbourne Mustangs	O’Brien Icehouse	Docklands, Melbourne
Newcastle Northstars	Hunter Ice Skating Stadium	Newcastle, NSW
Perth Thunder	Perth Ice Arena	Malaga, Perth (WA)
Sydney Bears*	Macquarie Ice Rink (currently inactive)	North Ryde, Sydney
Sydney Ice Dogs*	Macquarie Ice Rink (currently inactive)	North Ryde, Sydney

Please Note:- Sydney Bears and Ice Dogs are unfortunately not participating in the 2025 season due to rink renovations and are temporarily inactive.