Austin (left) and Mike Cook (right) pose for a picture with Tim Worth, their Blues Account Executive, during lunch at J. Buck's in downtown St. Louis. The Cooks became the team's 10,000th Season Ticket Holder when they purchased tickets in early September.   Video: 10,000th Season Ticket Holder   Photo Gallery: Lunch Surprise at J. Bucks

When Mike Cook took his 15-year old son, Austin, to lunch Wednesday, he never expected that it might be one of the most memorable father/son moments of their lives.

Sitting at J. Buck’s in downtown St. Louis, the Cooks were discussing season tickets with Tim Worth, their Blues sales representative, when Andy Murray, Erik Johnson, Carlo Colaiacovo and Alex Pietrangelo approached their table.

“This is awesome,” Mike said shortly afterwards. “I just thought we were coming here for a meal. I didn’t have these expectations.”

The Cooks purchased two full season tickets in early September, officially becoming the Blues’ 10,000th Season Ticket Holder for the 2009-10 season.

“I met Tim at Pro Orientation Camp (in July) and we started talking,” Mike said Wednesday. “Season tickets seemed like a great value, so I went ahead and got the full season plan, and here I am."

The Cooks were presented with personalized Blues jerseys and autographed sticks from the team.

“Life is all about making a difference and making people feel good about themselves,” Murray said. “It was an opportunity for us to reward a fan who purchased season tickets for himself and his son. We see (Austin) at Blues practice at St. Louis Mills, so we know they’re devoted Blues fans. To see the look on their faces as our players walked up was kind of special.”

“A little thing like this, just standing there, saying 'hi' and giving them jerseys goes a long way,” said Pietrangelo. “It’ll make their day. It’s part of being a professional and being in pro sports. It’s fun to do things like this.”

The Blues expect their base of season ticket holders to continue to grow. In fact, the team says they are likely to sell the most full season ticket equivalents since the 1995-96 season when Wayne Gretzky, Brett Hull, Al MacInnis and Chris Pronger donned the BlueNote.

“We’re very excited to reach this milestone and we’re so proud of the support the St. Louis community has given our team,” said Todd Lambert, Sr. Vice President of Sales. “Mike is one of many fans who sees the value in making a commitment to the Blues.”

Mike said getting Blues season tickets was a no-brainer.

“The great thing about this team is that there’s not one player in particular I go to watch,” he said. “They’ve got four lines of great players, the defense, Chris Mason in goal…I look forward to seeing the whole team play. It’s not an individual thing.”

For Johnson, he was just thrilled to be part of it.

“Ten thousand season ticket holders speaks volumes,” he said. “Fans aren’t going to come watch the team if it isn’t competitive or winning. We have a team that has all those elements and people want to come watch us play, which is great."