Hockey is definitely much better in person, live, on the Ice; than on TV. Never a dull moment either.
The bright ice, hearing the skates whooshing, uniform colors contrasting with the white ice....oohs and aahs from the crowd after hard body checks and when a player breaks away free and heads towards the goalie. Watching teams/players passing the puck around maneuvering and avoiding opposing players is in itself impressive.
NHL/ Pro Hockey is the only team sport where fist fighting is "part of the game" and doesn't necessarily result in an ejection and the 1970s were the heyday of "hockey fights" with bench clearing brawls.
You actually had multiple isolated fights going on simultaneously between opposing players with crowd going wild.
The fans would anticipate and wait for individual matchups between certain players.
Each team had at least one enforcer (sometimes called goons and
policeman) who the coach would send on the ice to "correct" and "take care" of an opposing player who was taking cheap shots and liberties with one of your top skaters/scorers. The the enforcers/goons usually weren't one of your top skaters/scorers or penalty killers so it didn't hurt much when they served their penalty time in the penalty box.
You can still see occasional fights but the NHL has been and still is committed to cutting down on brawling and encouraging a more European-like style of hockey emphasizing more open ice skating with much less fighting.
I remember when the Calgary Flames moved to Atlanta and some had doubts about the game being welcomed and appreciated by a southern city/crowds....but I had an inkling those down to earth good old boys would like it...and they did.
The players are bigger faster than 40-50 years ago partly due to better equipment/skates and watching these players zoom around the ice is quite a spectacle.
Hockey is the fastest team sport - with hard body contact/collisions and "fighting" included. Great sport and fabulous to watch in person.