DELANEY FITZSIMMONS & GRETCHEN COPE

The Denver Cutthroats have taken the stage at the Denver Coliseum as a new professional hockey team.  As it is their first year playing as a team, people are just starting to hear about them yet their games are selling out of the deal tickets and clearing the shelves of merchandise in the Team Store.
“We are first in the league in terms of sales,” Cutthroats Team Store employee, Katie Carvill said.
The Cutthroats have started new tradition that rally in fans. After the second period, fans can purchase fake fish to throw onto targets on the ice. The fish closest to the center of the targets is the winner and goes home with money to the Fan Shop and free tickets. Customers can buy one fish for a dollar or six fish for five dollars.
Some people take them home for souvenirs or take the risk and the throw them onto the ice. Gunnar Nobel, sophomore, enjoyed these traditions and the fast pace of the Cutthroats hockey. ”They are good team with cheap tickets compared to the NHL. They have more contests, they give away money and have a fish toss. It was fun to go to a game.”
It is only the beginning for the Denver Cutthroats and they are sure to break the ice. The Mountain Vista Hockey team has also started up recently. “It started last year and it has some new kids. I love it. Club Hockey might be more competitive but you get more fans [for Vista] and its a lot of fun when we go to places like Regis because its packed,” Michael Ellis,senior, said.
The Mountain Vista Ice Hockey team has had quite the season. With ten wins under their belt and only three losses, they are confident in finishing the season strong, as the sixth-ranked team in Colorado. “We are pretty good so [students] people should come,” Ellis said.
The team is made up of students from other schools within the district. Bryan Hancock, sophomore, said, “Playing with guys that I would usually play against is my favorite part. We get to see a different side of the players as their teammates.”For many of the players, this is the first time they have played for a school team.
With the addition of the Denver Cutthroats team, Mountain Vista hockey players are very excited for their sport to be even more prevalent in Colorado. “It’s a really good thing to have a new team in Denver. It’s a chance for more people to be exposed to hockey” Taylor Kim, junior , said.