I absolutely love the Spengler Cup. It’s on my list of must-attend-one-day events—a list that also includes the Superbowl, the Grey Cup, a Stanley Cup Final, any Olympics hockey game, and a World Junior Championship Gold Medal game.

About the Spengler, one of the reasons it’s so appealing is the timing: every year it wedges in nicely during that semi-downtime between Christmas and New Year’s, a time when it’s socially acceptable (or so I choose to believe) to spike one’s coffee every day and generally be a bit lazy. And for another bonus, Canada’s had a fair amount of success with the world’s oldest pro hockey tournament, winning 11 championships since 1984, which adds to my appreciation.

But the greatest thing about that tournament has to be that arena and the atmosphere.