Carolina Hurricanes Had to Postpone Game Because Ice Was Not Actually Ice

.@NHLCanes What are you waiting for, the ice to freeze? pic.twitter.com/0POO2owTPX
— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) December 20, 2016

HOT TAKE ALERT: Ice is an important component in the game of ice hockey. This may be controversial, I know, but you really need your water to be frozen by the time the ref drops the puck. Even the tutor from D2: The Mighty Ducks knew that.

That turned into a problem for the Carolina Hurricanes and the Detroit Red Wings on Monday night, as their matchup had to be postponed due to unfrozen ice (the very worst kind of ice) in Carolina's PNC Arena. The problem started when a compressor in the arena's ice-freezing machine blew out. Technicians scrambled to fix the issue, which I can only imagine looked a little something like this:

The technicians were up against the clock—the Red Wings play the Tampa Bay Lightning in Tampa on Tuesday, and per NHL rules, they couldn't start Monday's game with fewer than 22 hours remaining until Detroit's next game. Once the 22-hour threshold was crossed, after 9:30 PM ET, there was no choice but to postpone.

The Red Wings-Hurricanes tilt will be made up at a later, to-be-determined date. Fans who came to the arena hoping for a hockey game will receive refunds. Sure, they probably left the arena pissed about missing out on hockey, but at least they were treated to some quality Solitaire action on the jumbotron:

[Detroit Free Press]