Happy Halloween!

As you're probably aware, today is October 31 - better known as Halloween - on the calendar. HBIC Headquarters will be a landing spot for candy collectors tonight, but I'm not sure there will be many kids stopping by thanks to the weather seen this week. There's a blanket of snow on the ground, the temperatures are dropping into the minus double-digit numbers tonight, and I suspect a lot of kids will opt for shorter candy-collecting trips tonight rather than freezing in the cold. I'm hopeful everyone will bundle up, but I suspect there will be fewer kids than other years when it comes to getting a handful of candy on my doorstep from this writer.

The thing about Halloween is that I give out candy that I'd want to receive. I stocked up on mini chocolate bars this year to hand out, and I'd be thrilled to get a Kit Kat, a Coffee Crisp, an Aero, or Smarties in my pillow case - yes, I'm old school - as I was navigating the neighbourhood. I know people hand out all sorts of different stuff, but stuff like candy corn or boxed raisins makes it seem like people hate kids. Or Halloween. Or both.

For those planning on handing out toothbrushes or raisins or candy corn, I'm just joking. Raisins are a good snack at times, toothbrushes are practical and useful for ensuring good oral hygiene, and candy corn makes for excellent packing material when shipping packages. All three serve their intended purposes when needed, so there's nothing wrong with receiving these on Halloween.

With only two NHL games and an NCAA game being played tonight in terms of games I can watch, HBIC is closed to focus on making Halloween awesome for anyone who arrives on my doorstep. Handfuls of candy will be handed out as that forecast of smaller crowds traversing the wintery landscape seems to be accurate. I should note that the first candy-collecting child showed up at 6:13pm CT - they got one each of the four named chocolate delights above. If you're first to the door, you get the benefits!

Happy Halloween, folks, and enjoy the candy!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!