University of Michigan hockey fan Paul Kopas came all the way from Toronto for The Big Chill at the Big House Saturday.

And rather than warming up before the game, he cooled down by participating in a milk-shake-drinking contest.

"The concept is you drink a shake as fast as you can ... and the ultimate champion wins Arby's (food) for a year," he explained prior to the contest's first round.

"I've been stretching," he joked. "I expect to move on (from the first round)."

Kopas was equally confident that U-M would win the game.

"I am very much looking forward to the game," he said. "Absolutely, they've got a chance at winning. The defense has really matured over the last six months."

The Big Chill is expected to draw a world-record crowd for a hockey game to the corner of Main and Stadium in Ann Arbor and bring with it all the pageantry, and then some, of a Michigan football game.

Leslie Smith, an organizer for the Huron Booster Club, helped staff the fundraiser tent where the group sold snacks before the big game Saturday.

She said the group did not know what to expect in terms of the crowd, so they prepared as if it were a football Saturday.

"It's had a very, very slow start today," she said about 11:15 a.m. Saturday. "Since this was an unknown for us we just planned as a regular noon (football) game. "We're hoping for a good day," she added.

Though his group didn't have a tent, Jamie Hamilton, of Brighton, said he wasn't bothered by the cold while tailgating with friends near Pioneer High School Saturday.

When asked how tailgating before the Big Chill compares to football tailgating, the U-M fan said tailgating in December, when there's snow on the ground, requires dedication.

"Anyone can football tailgate," he quipped.

Ian Pizzo, 11, of Clinton, played in the snow with his friend, Kyle Staelgraeve, 12, of Tecumseh, while their families tailgated nearby.

"There's less people (than at a football tailgate), but it's a lot more fun," Pizzo said, taking a break from a snowball fight. "It's not as crowded and there's a lot more to do."

John O'Brien, of Northville, tailgated with his wife Kathren O'Brien and a few friends near Pioneer. They came prepared with snacks, drinks and brats — even a portable toilet and a small camouflage tent, which served as a makeshift restroom.

When asked how Saturday's festivities compared to those of a football Saturday, John O'Brien said, "I think it's the same damn thing, just colder."

"We're upbeat right now because (the U-M hockey) team has a lot better chance at winning than the football team," he added.

Dan Taber, a Farmington Hills resident and an MSU fan, celebrated before the game with friends who are fans of both teams.

He described the tension among the group as a "friendly rivalry."

"I football tailgate," he said. "It feels like a football Saturday. It's livelier than I thought."

Wearing green and white, Taber said he wasn't bothered by the weather. "It's not cold. When MSU won the Big 10 title at Penn State ... it was colder."

Heather Lockwood is a reporter for AnnArbor.com. Reach her at heatherlockwood@annarbor.com or follow her on Twitter.