Stars, Coyotes treated to fun, intimate atmosphere at El Paso County Events Center

For the 1,200 El Pasoans at the El Paso County Events Center, Sunday night's Kraft Hockeyville exhibition game between the Dallas Stars and Arizona Coyotes was a once-in-a-lifetime event.

For the players, it was a throwback to a different time in their lives when they were working their way up to the 17,000-seat arenas they usually now call home.

"It's fun to get back in an arena like this," Dallas center Joe Pavelski said after the morning skate. "The ceiling is a little lower, the ice feels a little bit smaller. I spent a lot of time in rinks like this. This is a great game, a great weekend. We're excited to get out here. There were a lot of fans for the morning skate, it's good."

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Pavelski scored the goal that gave Dallas the lead for good in what turned into a 6-3 Stars victory in a game that featured four lead changes. Dallas scored all three third-period goals in a game that also treated the fans to two fights (scoreless draws both).

Dallas also won a post-game shootout 2-0, staged to entertain the fans.

If the venue was small by NHL standards, the event was large for El Paso's hockey community, which filled the Events Center, starting with the Sunday morning skate and obviously peaking with the 7 p.m. faceoff.

Many of the fans were in their hockey jerseys, with the hometown Rhinos the most prevalent, followed by the Stars then the Coyotes, but many teams were represented. The mascots, Dallas' Victor E. Green and Arizona's Howler, danced with fans.

"How often could something like this even happen?," mused Donna Herndon, a Rhinos season ticket holder in a Hockeyville jersey. "This is such a great night for El Paso. For everybody to come out and everybody watching on TV to see what we bring to hockey is amazing. We're so proud of everybody here."

She was there with several fellow Rhino fans.

"This is so great for the whole community, there are so many different people, new faces, out here," Sherri Morris said. "It's a true community event."

While Phoenix had plenty of loud fans, Dallas' did outnumber them. Some of the loudest cheers, though, were for Rhino youth team members who came on to shovel ice during breaks in play.

"It's amazing, it's great to see a game here in El Paso, I never thought I'd see them here," said Jerry Waker, wearing a throwback Minnesota North Stars jersey he got from his sister. "I usually have to travel to see the Stars. I don't get to do that very often, so this is so much fun."

Dallas coach Rick Bowness thought the crowd would be behind his team.

"Phoenix is a little closer than Dallas but we represent Texas in the NHL so it was good to have the crowd behind us," he said.

He was also happy with the show the two teams put on.

"It was a great atmosphere, it was a very entertaining game for the fans," Bowness said. "We gave them lots of goals, there were a couple of scraps. It was a great game for us, I know we really enjoyed coming in last night, we enjoyed our day today, we enjoyed the game, it was a wonderful experience for us to come to El Paso."

That sentiment was widely echoed.

"It was great to be here," said winning goaltender Jake Oettinger of the Stars. "I had never been to El Paso, I thought they did a great job of putting on a fun show and there was a great turnout. It was a success and we got what we came for, a win."

As to the Events Center Oettinger said, "We all grew up playing in rinks like this, it reminds me of when I played in juniors. It was a great crowd, a great atmosphere, it brought us all back to our roots. It was a fun experience."

Coyotes coach André Tourigny said the rink, with fans right on top of the ice, made the game more entertaining for the players and fans alike.

"The proximity (to the fans) was there, that was really interesting, really fun," he said. "It was great, a small rink, the fans were close to the players. The pace of the game was really fast, it was a great experience."

It was an experience El Paso's hockey community, and two pro teams, won't forget.

Bret Bloomquist can be reached at 915-546-6359; bbloomquist@elpasotimes.com; @Bretbloomquist on Twitter.