 The ice skating scenes were shot in an actual rink ; Carell 's talent at hockey was the reason the writers decided to set the episode there . Fischer had also learned to skate in preparation for the movie Blades of Glory , but the writers decided that there was no reason for Pam to be a good skater , so they had Pam lean on Jim . " Michael 's Birthday " was watched by 7 @.@ 8 million viewers and received mostly positive reviews from critics . 
