Originally invented by bored henchmen looking to pass the time at Doctor Berserko’s secret Antarctic lair, hockey has since overtaken polo and unicycle jousting as America's pastime. Hop on the bandwagon with today’s Groupon, which gets you a ticket to see the Tampa Bay Lightning at the St. Pete Times Forum. Choose between the following options:

• $55 for a ticket to Lightning Launch Weekend, which includes a club-level ticket to the Stone Temple Pilots concert on Friday, October 8 at 7:30 p.m. (a $34.30 value) and to the home opener on Saturday, October 9 at 7:30 p.m. versus the Atlanta Thrashers (a $67.75 value), plus a hot dog and soda or beer at the game (up to a $14 value, for a total value of up to $116.05)
• $27 for a terrace-center seat at the Thursday, October 21 game against the New York Islanders at 7:30 p.m. (a $34.75 value), plus a free hot dog and soda or beer (up to a $14 value, for a total value of up to $48.75)

Winners of the Stanley Cup in 2004, the Tampa Bay Lightning's tight-knit team of ferocious foot-blades peppers each game with artful stickwork, Plexiglass-rattling body checks, and epic Shakespearean soliloquies. With a club-level ticket to Lightning Launch weekend, you'll enjoy a mid-tier view, plus a free hot dog and carbonated beverage, at the Lightning versus Thrashers season opener after pre-gaming the night before with a live concert courtesy of alterna-rockers Stone Temple Pilots. STP frontman Scott Weiland is a true rock star, with the pipes, tats, and gravel-filled veins to prove it. Should a strict aural diet forbid you from consuming the devilry of electrified music, opt for a rock-free ticket to the October 21 game against the New York Islanders. Your terrace-center ticket puts you in the upper seating tier, where you can watch forward Martin St. Louis deke the defense and sink the biscuit in the basket, while goalie Dan Ellis fiercely defends the cookie jar and franticly consults his pocket dictionary of hockey terms. With any luck, you'll witness a hat-trick, an all-out line brawl, or a rarely initiated can-can-dance diversion tactic.

The 670,000-square-foot St. Pete Times Forum provides clear sightlines and top-of-the-line amenities. Medallions Food Services serves up traditional arena fare including hot dogs and hockey-puck-shaped meat slabs encased in bread buns.