From playoffs to gravy, it's the Canadian way

CALGARY, Alberta - Being in a Canadian city for the Stanley Cup playoffs is something every hockey fan should experience.

The attention on the game is intense. In a city such as Calgary, or Edmonton, or Vancouver, there really is nothing else to share the spotlight, no major-league baseball or NBA.

The series with the Blackhawks is huge here. It leads off the 5 o'clock news and the Calgary Sun and Calgary Herald are packed with stories.

Going through customs at the airport is a trip. The agent first glares at you as if you are bringing some disease into their country, but after you tell him you're here for the hockey games, the subject quickly turns to what's wrong with the Flames' power play.

The Pengrowth Saddledome is a wonderful building in which to watch hockey. It's a throwback to the great old buildings where fans were right on top of the ice, and the sightlines are worth the price of admission.

Here the visiting teams are nearly as big news as the home team. That's because there are mostly Canadian kids who are from somewhere nearby.

With the Hawks, Andrew Ladd was a junior star with the Calgary Hitmen. Kris Versteeg is from Lethbridge, Alberta, and played at Red Deer, only an hour's drive away. Colin Fraser also played at Red Deer, and Matt Walker is from Beaverlodge, Alberta.

Jonathan Toews was a Canadian hero when he helped his country win back-to-back gold medals in the World Junior Championships, a tournament revered here.

So while Toews may have drifted off to the States to play for the Hawks, he's still a Canadian boy and likely future Olympian.

You have to eat beef while you are in Alberta, the beef capital of Canada. It's the law. At least that's what former Hawks coach and Alberta rancher Brian Sutter used to joke.

And when you order fries with that steak or burger, they come with brown gravy for dipping. How awesome is that?