Hockey: This one's for the fans

I know most of you have witnessed it before in your lives.

A team loses a championship series on their home surface, and as the visitors celebrate their victory, large men bring out the trophies.

The commissioner of the league then comes out and makes a little speech and, for a cheap crowd response, he always says, "you can't find better fans in (insert sport) that right here in (insert city)," and most of the time, this statement is completely false.

On Sunday night in Wilkes-Barre, PA, it couldn't be any truer.

The commissioner of the AHL Dave Andrews said this to the fans at Wachovia Arena Sunday night after the Milwaukee Admirals won the Calder Cup 7-2, completing a sweep of the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins.

Face it -- Wilkes-Barre's fans are the best in the AHL -- bar none -- and they should be applauded for their efforts during this playoff season.

They were one of the main reason's their beloved Penguins got to the Calder Cup finals in the first place.

At every home playoff game, fans wore white.

Not just some of the fans, all 8,100 of them.

They provided the ultimate home ice advantage for the Penguins throughout the playoffs.

In a league in which the average attendance for a playoff series is about 4,000, the Pens sold out almost every playoff game.

The fan's cheered loudly, at times making Wachovia Arena sound like a 20,000-seat arena.

Wachovia Arena had turned into a hockey Mecca almost overnight because of the fans sitting in the seats.

The true spirit of Pens fans was shown in Game 4 of the Calder Cup Finals.

Down 3-0 to Milwaukee, the inevitable final loss was upon them.

Did this matter to the fans?

Nope.

Wachovia Arena was still a sea of white in a standing-room only sell-out, in which fans hung inspirational signs all over the building.

For all the beauty in the stands, the contest on the ice was ugly for the hometown folk.

Milwaukee made Pens goalie Andy Chiodo look like Swiss cheese, and he was pulled in the second period after giving up six goals.

As he skated off the ice, fans stood up and gave Chiodo a standing ovation for his efforts.

Of course, it wasn't for his Game 4 performance, but, instead, for his all-around playoff performance.

Most of the fans stayed for the entire game, cheering for the last two minutes and giving the entire Penguins team a standing ovation.

The buzzer finally sounded and Milwaukee had won the Calder Cup, but the fans in Wilkes-Barre didn't really care.

The Penguins were cheered until they were completely out of the fans sight.

This act by these fans proved a few things to me.

First, this area really cares about the Penguins.

Second, Wilkes-Barre is now an official hockey city.

Third, the entire hockey world should be thankful that cities like Wilkes-Barre do exist.

Thank you fans of the Wilkes-Barre-Scranton Penguins.

I think it's time for you to get a standing ovation.