Whether you’re planning a hockey birthday party for a child or adult athlete, or even just wish to host a theme party for a group of friends and neighbors, hockey themes are extremely popular. Follow these simple instructions to throw the perfect party:
- Hockey Decorations: You may either choose to decorate for the guest of honor’s favorite professional team or for the sport in general. If you decide on a specific NHL team, you may choose to hang pictures of the players throughout the room. In one corner of the room, place a photo stand of one of the top players, and allow guests to put their face in the stand for a photo opportunity. Or, for a general hockey theme, put balloon bouquets throughout the room and hold them down with weighted hockey pucks. You can also decorate hockey masks in the colors you’ve chosen for your place settings. Finally, on the dessert table, include a large cake shaped like a hockey stick or even a jersey, and allow this to serve as a decoration as well.
Centerpieces: Cascading centerpieces are always a hit, and they’re available on most party supply or novelty websites. Whether they include pucks or hockey sticks, you can order them in a variety of colors, and you can often find matching streamers, balloons, and napkins. You may also put mascots in the form of small stuffed animals in the center of each table, surrounding them with confetti and auctioning them off as door prizes. (This is particularly useful if you’ve chosen to decorate for a team such as the Penguins or the Mighty Ducks.) Finally, pictures of the guest of honor (or the entire hockey team) can be used as centerpieces. You can also enlarge these pictures and have them frames as though they are trading cards. Another option is to get these cute chocolate hockey favors skates on a stick, fill a glass vase with coffee beans, and place the sticks into the vase. The coffee beans keep the chocolate skates in place.
- Menu: For a truly sporty party, provide a menu that reminds guests of being in a sports bar. (You may even choose to label each food option with a clever name such as “Penalty Hot Wings.”) Popular sports bar items include finger foods such as wings and sliders. Slider bars are a fun option, as you can allow guests to build their own miniature burgers. Provide various cheeses, as well as grilled vegetables and numerous condiments. You may also wish to provide hot pretzel bites, fried cheese sticks, vegetables and dip, and nachos or miniature tacos. Then, on the dessert table, include cookies decorated like helmets, pucks, sticks, and jerseys.