Hockey Questions

Not sure about the spitting. Habbit for most I would guess. Also might have to do with some players mouth guards getting really moist. I remember playing a couple seasons of sports that required me to wear a mouthguard, and I had to spit to dry my mouth out before putting it back in, could be that as well. And whenever I sit near the glass I always bang in approval of something. A fight.. goal.. the beginning of a powerplay.. etc. Just as a noise making tool. Similar to people banging seat-backs during an NFL game. It’s louder than clapping, and I also bang on the glass whenever an opposing player is next to that area of glass, just to make him feel uncomfortable and let him know who’s house he’s in. Might not be the best or most accurate answers but I hope it helps.

No. 1 – sometimes it’s better to just rinse your mouth with liquids than actually drink when playing high energy sports. I think truheelzfan44 had a good reply as well.

No. 2 – I agree, I think banging on the glass is silly.

1. i know for me, my mouth dried out when i played sports. i played lacrosse which is very similar to hockey. when the mouth dries it gets pasty. thats the “cotton mouth” feeling you get. you drink water and spit it out to get rid of that dry/pasty feeling.

2. Banging on the glass is dumb. the players are so used to it. but its a good way to make noise if your arena wont allow noisemakers like cowbells and such.

For me, that damn mouth guard always made me feel like my mouth was full of saliva and hence I spitted all the time. Then it somewhat became a habit. I actually notice myself spitting a lot now too. Its a really bad habit.

Banging the glass is just stupid IMO. Its makes no sense.

I hate it when people bang on the glass at any time, but especially when I’m watching the game on TV. They have the boards mic’ed and it’s just obnoxious.

As for the spitting, I think it’s a combination of the two things most people have mentioned. A mouth guard catches saliva like you would not believe and it’s the grossest feeling in the world so they have to get rid of it somehow. Their mouths also dry out because almost without fail they breathe through their mouths when they’re on the ice. Swishing the water around in their mouth and then spitting it out gets rid of the extra saliva and cleans out the dry mouth taste.

what gets me is that the spit it out on the ice & guess where they fall trip and slid on their faces or backsides on ? especially near the bench…ewwww

I always thought banging on the glass was really stupid & annoying. And then at a Peewee game my son scored a big game winning goal, and I was going to express my excitement and approval as loudly and visibly as I could. Hooting and banging on the glass got me the release I needed. Guess you had to be there.

(Another kid story about banging on the glass, kinda cute: Last Spring we took my then-8-yr-old’s best friend – I’ll call him Joey – to watch him play a game at the Factory in Wake Forest. Joey spent some time in the locker room watching the squirts dress before I pulled him out to the stands with me while the coach talked to the players. As they came out in full gear, the team skated a couple warm-up laps around the ice – just like the pros – and my son and several other familiars, made it a point to bang loudly on the glass with their sticks as they passed by where we were watching. Joey was totally impressed and stunned at their loud rowdy behavior.

He asks me: “Are they really allowed to do that?”
HM: “Oh, yeah, definitely. Part of setting the mood”

Joey’s still working on his parents to let him play hockey. And all the other hockeymoms just love that story. Hockey families are not like other families.)