Hockey Town in the Tar Heel State? Believe It!

Official Review by Jack Harver, Stadium Journey Regional Correspondent

On the surface, Raleigh is the unlikeliest hockey town in America.

Sure, the NHL's odd emphasis on American expansion has sent franchises to the southernmost point of sunny Florida and into the arid Arizonan desert, but at least Miami and Phoenix are "hip." The transition from roller blades to roller hockey to ice hockey is only a bit of a stretch.

But planting the puck among barbeques, tractor pulls, and decades of baseball, basketball, and football tradition in the hidebound heart of the muggy South? Now that's a big ol' leap of faith.

Against those odds, the Carolina Hurricanes have carved out a niche in North Carolina as one of the state's most unexpected sporting successes. Bringing a championship home in 2006 helped, but the game day experience at the RBC Center shines for more reasons than the lingering luster of Lord Stanley's Cup.

Food & Beverage    5

It starts in the hallways, where you're greeted with the unmistakable smell of slow-cooked pork shoulders as soon as you step into the building. For seven bucks, a big pulled pile of this North Carolina staple on a bun is yours to devour. (Pro tip: Get one.)

Grabbing a beer to go along with your sandwich will run you $6-8 more, depending on how "thirsty" you are. The Locker Room bar on the concourse features local brews from Foothills Brewing in nearby Winston-Salem, missing only the Torch Pilsner that'd go great with the 'cue. (Pro tip: Still, get one""or two, or three...)

With two intermissions to stretch your legs, the odds are good that the cinnamon buns ($5) are going to call out to you on the concourse, too. It's possible to satisfy an average appetite for $10-12 here, but the $20 tab we've just discussed will have you chowing down like a Carolinian champ.

Atmosphere    4

You want tradition? The RBC Center also houses North Carolina State's storied basketball program, which has put two NCAA championship banners and a handful of retired jersey numbers "" and legendary coach Jimmy Valvano's whistle "" in the rafters to go along with the Hurricanes' Stanley Cup season and other successes.

You want entertainment? Borrowing from football and basketball's familiar sideline shows, Carolina's Storm Squad (the NHL's first team of cheerleaders) entertains fans from the corners of the lower bowl.

You want something uniquely Southern? Three words: John Deere Zambonis.

There hasn't been time for the RBC Center to achieve the level of history that'd get a perfect score, but it's off to a great start.

Neighborhood    5

Most places, you're crossing your fingers for a low crime rate in the venue's immediate vicinity and maybe a sight or two to see nearby. Sometimes, the surrounding area will be a happening place to be with an upbeat nightlife.

For a variety of reasons, the feel-good ideal for most folks is a nice college town. There's the well-groomed campuses, the youthful energy, and the capacity to throw down in epic fashion a few nights out of any given week.

Raleigh's that times three: State, Duke in nearby Durham, and UNC-Chapel Hill "" the Research Triangle along Tobacco Road in the middle of North Carolina. Whether you're hitting Shooters II in Durham, walking Franklin Street in Chapel Hill, or checking out the new developments along Hillsborough Street in Raleigh, you'll have no shortage of options outside of game time.

Outsiders might be tempted to hunt down a standout smokehouse in town to earn a "BBQ" merit badge for their trip, and search engines might point them to The Pit, a critically-acclaimed restaurant in Raleigh's downtown area. Unfortunately, the tasty grilled vegetables there don't quite make up for 'cue that looks and eats like warmed-over grocery store slop. Instead, hunt down another pork place on the region's list (maybe Allen & Son in Chapel Hill) and tell us how it goes!

Fans    4

In the hour before the puck dropped, the RBC Center's parking lot and seats looked like an unusually warm and sunny scene from Detroit. Whether the locals were tailgating or just taking their time, most of the jerseys were the visiting Red Wings' red and white and most of the talk was in an almost-Canadian Michigander accent.

As the countdown clock ticked down, though, the Carolina faithful trickled into the building, slowly but surely filling swaths of empty red seats and raising the crowd volume right up to the blaring warning sirens for the Hurricanes' intro.

Loud enough to drown out every attempt at "Let's Go Red Wings!" with "Let's Go Hurricanes!" during play, yet polite in the best "Pardon me" Southern manner in the hallways, these fans proved canny enough to hang with some of the NHL's best-traveling supporters as their team put a 3-0 whooping on the pride of Detroit.

Access    5

There's plenty of parking around the stadium for $10, which is pretty much standard for this sort of event, and the post-game traffic is redirected out by cones in enough different directions to keep gridlock to an impressive minimum.

In this line on the report card, the absence of problem spots is noteworthy in itself.

Return on Investment    3

For a league with an 82-game season, NHL tickets are pretty expensive. Landing a seat in the corner of the lower bowl cost $75, which was a bargain compared to seats nearer center ice. If each of these games is roughly one-fifth as important as an NFL game, you'd figure they'd cool it on the ticket prices a bit.

Nevertheless, professional hockey at the RBC Center is a great experience""well worth finding a night when your favorite team's coming to Raleigh, stowing away $100 for a good seat, a parking place, and some great food, and making the trip.

Extras    3

Again, John Deere Zambonis. That's one.

Stormy, the team's hairy pig mascot, almost costs them a point, but the cheerleaders he hangs out with earn another plus-one.

Lastly, we'll throw in another point for the tee-shirt and hat giveaways that clothed this neutral visitor in the home team's colors, even if the shirt required filling out a survey card for Chevrolet. Here's hoping whoever's living at my old college address doesn't mind the incoming junk mail.