Travel | Jerseys and Hockey Love

Odessa Jackalopes vs Corpus Christi Rays: End to End Inaction

March 2, 2012 By James Leave a Comment

I’ve been meandering my way down to New Orleans, through Las Vegas, NM (where they shot the city scenes in Red Dawn) and Roswell, NM. Saturday night will see me in Ft. Worth, TX for a game between the Texas Brahmas and the Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees of the Central Hockey League.

On my way down, I got the nice surprise of a game on one of my bucket list teams, the Odessa Jackalopes. Yes, you heard me. Bucket list. Mind you, there are still a lot of teams on my bucket list, but this was one I wasn’t sure I was ever going to see. Odessa was on shaky ground before when they were part of the CHL, and along with several other team left the C for the financially friendlier confines of the NAHL. I would consider the N a step down from the C in that the CHL is a minor league while the NAHL is a junior league. Most of the kids in this league are playing for college scholarships or to be drafted. Many will not. The talent level in the CHL is well below the NHL, but in the NAHL, it’s still mired in development.

Still, Texas was, for a long time, the state with the most professional teams in the US. These days, it’s lost many of those teams to financial issues, some moving like the Jackalopes, and some shutting their doors completely (such as Lubbock). As the fortunes of the Dallas Stars have faded into the eventual bankruptcy and sale of the team, the rest of hockey in Texas seems to have followed suit. The junior ranks seem to be the right fit for some of these cities, at the least saving hockey from leaving completely in many of them (and wait to see how many more CHL teams leave next season).

So with that, let’s hit the road. First, the drive:

This is the World Arena in Colorado Springs, CO. It’s next door to the offices for USA Hockey.

Don’t get the people of Las Vegas, NM wrong. They don’t tolerate drinking and driving. They do make it rather convenient, though.

This is not racist.

On my way in to Las Vegas, NM (which is not as exciting as the other Las Vegas), I did see a bright streak across the sky. I did not see any aliens. At least, not until I got to Roswell, NM.

It’s telling that the name of a mini-mall is The Landings at Roswell. Also, the most popular restaurant might be the local IHOP. And I saw a guy clipping his nails at a Starbucks under his table. Stay classy.

I did learn one travel tip: if one of the touted features of a hotel is it’s indoor pool, or has an indoor water park, something else will suffer, and it’s usually the service. If you don’t have a surly front desk attendant, consider it a lottery win.

On the road from Roswell to Odessa, I passed though the saddest town I have ever seen. And yes, I have been to Cleveland and Detroit. This was worse. I will spare you the poor photos I took, since they don’t really do justice to the sorry state of the place. If you have a batch of plywood to board up windows, you might make a small fortune in Tatum, NM. But it did have one bright spot:

Moving on…

Oh…. OK….

But they also put ketchup on a chili burger. And that ain’t right.

I finally made it to Odessa, and was greeted with a rather… large… sight.

To call a venue a barn is somewhat of a complement. It implies a certain amount of character. This place is a shed.

Whoa. There are times I go to a venue for the first time and I worry about the sight lines. I don’t know what I’m getting when I buy a ticket. This place has plenty of unobstructed seating. Plenty. I’ve been in bigger places, but they rarely feel this cavernous.

This is the penalty box. We will get to the penalties in a moment:

The hallways of the Ector County Coliseum, which would not handle a capacity crowd:

There were plenty of framed jerseys sprinkled around the halls as well. Here are a few, including a WPHL All Star jersey:

A few action photos:

One of the Corpus Christi players was hit in the side while prone on the ice, and was in considerable pain. It turns out the Rays don’t bring a trainer on the road with them, so the Jackalopes trainer has to attend to both team’s injuries. The juniors are a different world from the NHL.

I said we would talk about the penalties. 3:27 into the third period, the ref called an interference penalty on the Jackalopes, and sent Tyler Minx to the box. The problem was, Minx didn’t commit the penalty, Ryan Doucet did. Minx argued the point until he got an unsportsmanlike penalty as well. So this would be four minutes of 5 on 4 play, right? No, the ref finally realized the mistake he had initially made and send Doucet to the box for the interference. Now we have two penalties at the same time on two separate players, which meant that it was now two minutes of 5 on 3 play. Of course, were it not for the initial mistake made by the ref, there wouldn’t have been any unsportsmanlike penalty, as there would have been nothing to get ‘unsportsmanlike’ about. Still, the penalties were handed out, and as you would expect, the Rays scored… the game winning goal. Of course.

Minx certainly earned the unsportsmanlike penalty, and should have either shut up and gone to the box, or calmly made his case to the ref. Instead, he let his mouth get him in trouble and cost his team. I don’t blame him for being upset. He’s a defenseman who would probably been on the penalty kill, and he had scored both goals the Jackalopes wound up with for the game. Instead, he was sitting. Unjustly. Oh, the humanity.

What didn’t help was that shortly after, a Jackalope player kicked the puck into the net and the ref immediately waived the goal off. It was a good call, but after what had happened earlier, the Jacks fans were none too pleased with the ref. And they let him know. They even waived money at him, saying he was bought off.

Moving on, is this the creepiest looking mascot you’ve ever seen? If not, it might be up there.

Sleep tight. Hopefully you won’t dream of this thing chasing you down on an ATV:

Words are said:

At least they care about the environment:

At Laredo Bucks games, they throw ears of corn on the ice. At Texas Brahmas games, they throw purple Brahmas, the team mascot. In Odessa, they throw… carrots.

Holy cow, that’s a lot of photos. Enough already. The Rays win it 3-2.

Boxscore

Tomorrow, on the Fort Worth to see a game with James O’Brien. You know there will be more posting. Oh yes, there will be more.

Filed Under: Hockey, Travel
Leave a Comment

Sioux Falls Stampede vs. Omaha Lancers: On the Road Again

January 4, 2012 By James Leave a Comment

It’s been a while since I’ve been to a game on the road and done a post game… post. So bear with me here, as I’m a little rusty.

I’m in the middle of a drive from Denver to Minneapolis, where I will be spending the next 6 weeks, and of course, I had to look for hockey along the way. The only game I could find was in Sioux Falls, SD, between the Sioux Falls Stampede and the Omaha Lancers of the USHL.

You would be forgiven for not knowing about the USHL, but if you’ve ever watched the NHL Draft, you have heard it mentioned. Along with the NAHL, the USHL is an American junior development league. Most of the players are looking for college scholarships or to be drafted. It’s the American equivalent to the CHL Canadian junior league, only smaller and less prestigious. Apparently, it’s more authentic to ride a bus around the prairies of Canada in the freezing cold than it is to do the same in Iowa, South Dakota and Nebraska. And probably a little more challenging. The US National Team Development Program plays in the USHL, so they have that going for them.

But we aren’t here to talk about practice, we’re here to talk about a game.

The arena is housed in the Sioux Falls Convention Center, and while the outside looks new, the inside looks anything but. First, the outside. which is attached to the Sheraton hotel.

Once you get inside, that’s when things look a little different.

Whoa. That’s a barn. Or a shed. Or a… thing. It’s hard to describe, but it has similar properties to the rink in Port Huron. Mostly in the quality of seats, and that the “upper” sections are truly upper. They are well above the ice.

That seating is about eight to ten feet above the ice. And it wouldn’t be that bad if the slope of the seats were at a severe enough angle to be able to see the action on the near boards. But it isn’t, so you are constantly wondering what is going on when the play comes too close. I recommend that if you go to Sioux Falls, you sit higher up where you seem to gain an advantage, or in the pricey seats along the boards. And I don’t normally recommend sitting along the boards. See what I mean?

Check out those Omaha Lancers jerseys. It’s like some weird hybrid of a Montreal Canadiens jersey and a Flyers jersey. How cool would that look in the right orange with a Flyers logo?

OK, on to the game:

Referee Kevin Curtis (the ref with two first names) was not well liked by the home crowd. He made one bad penalty call, and one tough goal call that was, in my opinion, the right call. The crowd disagreed, as the net came off it’s moorings, but as a Stampede player kicked the puck into his own goal, the goal was counted. The net wasn’t off enough to make a difference, so the right call was made. For a minor league ref, especially one without the benefit of a ‘War Room’ in Toronto, that is a pretty good night.

Action!

This is something you don’t see in the NHL, but you often see in junior and college hockey. When a goal is scored, the team congratulates the goalie as well.

Stampede Head Coach Kevin Hartzell did not look pleased the entire game. He was yelling at his players and trying to direct and motivate them, but looked like a coach with a losing record. Probably because he does have a losing record this season.

Your final, Lancers 3 Stampede 2.

It’s unfortunate that a controversial goal was the difference maker in the game, but I think the right call was made. In the end, that’s all you can ask for. And a little entertainment. And I was certainly entertained.

It’s good to be back on the road and seeing hockey outside the world of the NHL. I love it out here, and hope to see more games around the nation before the season is over. In fact, I have some other things coming up that I will update you on in the next few days.

Filed Under: Hockey, Travel Tagged With: Junior Hockey, Omaha Lancers, Sioux Falls Stampede, USHL
Leave a Comment

US Hockey Hall of Fame Part One

May 7, 2010 By James

Eveleth, MN isn’t on the radar for most hockey fans, or the hot vacation spot that online travel websites will be pushing deals for. Eveleth is up there, 3 hours north of Minneapolis. It’s not on the way to anywhere, unless you want to see where Christian hockey sticks were made (Warroad), or are into mining (a big industry around the Eveleth area)

I’m not trying to slight Eveleth (but I probably am, so I’m sorry to the residents), as I didn’t get a chance to explore the town much. But I was there for one reason, and one reason only. To visit the USA Hockey Hall of Fame.

(click any photos for a bigger version, and if you want to use any of them, go for it, just give me credit, please)

The hall was founded in 1973, and fell on some seriously hard times, to the point that a few years ago, they were thinking about shutting down. There has also been movements to move the hall to a more populated area. The hall remains in Eveleth, though, even though it could use a few more visitors through it’s doors. Right now, the hall is trying to fix the air conditioner it has limped along with since the building was built.

The hall was actually closed for the day (call ahead for the hours, since the winter and summer hours are quite different), but a phone call to the hall was enough for the nice people who run the place to open it’s doors for me.

When you walk into the hall, it doesn’t look like much. A lobby with a few hockey jerseys in it, a small gift shop, nothing much. But it opens up when you take the stairs to the first main floor.

First, those jerseys in the main lobby. One was the jersey Bobby Ryan wore when he scored the fastest hat trick in NHL history (3 goals in 2:21). The other was a Mike Modono jersey, on display with articles about him being the highest scoring US born player.

On to the hall. Meet Zamboni #4.

I’ve been around the first Zamboni before, and this one was just as cool. Built on the frame of an old Willy’s jeep, this one dates back to the early 1950s.

Beats the hell out of the old way of resurfacing the ice:

The hall had just finished putting up their Herb Brooks exhibit, and it was full of amazing memorabilia from his legendary career, and from the 1980 gold medal winning hockey team:

These are coats from the 1980 Olympics (I believe they were both worn by Brooks):

Photos of the team at the White House:

To save bandwidth for some of you, this all continues after the jump.

[Read more...]

Filed Under: Hockey, Travel Tagged With: HHOF, USA Hockey

Allen Americans vs. Rapid City Rush: Who’s The Home Team?

January 16, 2010 By James

When I’m on the road, and I am seeing two teams where I don’t care who wins, I try to pull for the home team. It’s fun to cheer with the fans, and live and die, for one night, with a team you don’t know much about.

But I found it hard to get behind the Allen Americans, and it took me a little but to figure out why. It was the jerseys.

If you were to take the style of the Phoenix Coyotes jersey, and combine it with the colors of the Red Wings, you have the Allen Americans. Just look at the font for the names and numbers on the backs of the Americans’ jerseys. It’s the leftovers from the Coyotes.

Yeah, I had a problem rooting for the home team. I wasn’t openly cheering on the Rush, but I did find myself a little more excited by their play.

The Allen Event Center is a nice, new building, but after you get inside, you could be in any new building. There isn’t anything to distinguish it from any other new arena out there.

I realize there is still some fascination with that Sacco kid that did the speech from Miracle, but this is getting a little ridiculous. He’s doing it for the Allen Americans in their pregame video? This kid has officially jumped the shark. Or jumped on a shark, or a shark jumped on him.

Look at the players in the background. Yeah, they are really feeling it.

Moving on, hey, where have I seen this before?

Oh, yeah, it was the at the Colorado Eagles vs. Laredo Bucks game, where the ref handed out two unsportsmanlike minors for abuse of the official. And look, it’s the same ref, and he handed one out in the first period of this game. A pattern? Maybe. Hey look, the ref does suck:

Slurp.

OK, on to the game pics. As ever, clicking on a picture makes it bigger, saving you the bandwidth and loading time of pictures you may not be as interested in. You are welcome.

It almost looks like this guy took a stick in the no-nos.

Moving on, the defense for the Americans weren’t doing their goaltender any favors. They weren’t clearing pucks when the goalie would make an initial save, and after the second or third whack at the puck, the Rapid City Rush would end up with a goal.

Even though there were no fights in the game, it got a little rough:

At the end of the second period, the puck took a strange bounce and got past the Americans goalie, prompting a change in net. It wasn’t his fault, but at that point, something had to be done.

It didn’t help. Take a look at the upper left side of the net. Yep, that’s the puck, and that puppies in there:

Everyone is looking to the right of the picture, except the goalie. OK.

The Rapid City Rush won the game, 6-1. Not much of a shock, considering how the defense was playing. After the game, I hung out with Ben Ellis from Big D Hockey, and talked some Texas hockey with him. You’ll hear that on an episode of The Rink Podcast soon enough.

I’m all caught up on games, but I still have one more Texas game to go to.

Filed Under: Minors, Travel Tagged With: Allen Americans, CHL, Rapid City Rush

Colorado Eagles vs. Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees: Wait For It…

January 16, 2010 By James

This is a little out of order, and certainly overdue (as is the 2nd Christmas jersey post, which I promise is coming). It’s the Eagles vs Killer Bees.

Welcome to Dodge Arena:

Dodge Arena is in the middle of nowhere, or at least, the only thing near the arena is the nicest Best Western hotel I have ever stayed in (and I have stayed in my share).

The Eagles came out with a strong start, but the Killer Bees goalie was on fire all night. The second period was all Eagles though, and they ended the period up 2-0. Unfortunately, that lead didn’t last, and the Bees came back to win the game 3-2, scoring the go ahead goal with half the final period left.

On to the pictures. Click on any images for bigger versions.

I love those new Eagles jerseys. I want one, bad.

The Bees mascot was nice..

For a moment:

Back to the game.

There’s your final. It looks like the Eagles can’t win when I’m around. Next time, maybe.

Filed Under: Minors, Travel Tagged With: CHL, Colorado Eagles, Untitled

Central Hockey League All Star Game

January 13, 2010 By James

I’m going a little out of order here, but I wanted to post the pictures from the CHL All Star Game from Laredo, TX. It was certainly an interesting game, or at least, the hoopla around the game was interesting (yes, I said hoopla). At the very least, I had a great time. Let’s go to the photos:

click on any photo to make it bigger.

Hey everyone, it’s my good friend, Lord Stanley’s Cup:

This is kind of a surreal picture, maybe because the background is a little more in focus than I am, or the Cup for that matter.

And for all you Avs fans:

The way that 2000-01 Avalanche ring looks a little weird, like it was compressed a little in transit? It doesn’t look like the same ring as the one I saw in Cleveland a few years back.
Still, it’s a thing of beauty.

And I got my picture with another keeper of the Cup.

This is the second Keeper of the Cup I’ve had my picture taken with, and oddly enough, I was wearing the same jersey.

I am here to tell you, you have not heard the Canadian National Anthem until you have heard a mariachi band do it (OK, yes, you have, but you still have to hear it to believe it). Hopefully, the video I took on my iPhone worked out, and I can share it with you later.

When you set off fireworks inside a closed arena, you should have a sufficient ventilation system to get rid of the sulfurous smoke that is left behind. I am here to tell you, they do not have such a system at the Laredo Event Center.

Hey, you know who doesn’t know how to do the Y.M.C.A.? These women.

OK, on to the game:

Surreal image of the night:

Yep, still hazy:

OK, back to the game:

One penalty was handed out, to this guy:

Yep.

The goals picked up in the third period, and it was looking like an All Star Game:

The South Texas All Stars (made up of players from the Laredo Bucks, Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees, and Corpus Christi Rayz) beat the CHL All Stars (all the rest of the teams) 9-4. Final SOG was 62-37.

Team MVPs get win really small HDTVs.

This guy deserved the CHL team MVP.

All that was left was the player salutes:

The Killer Bees salute their fans:

That does it for the All Star Game. I still owe you pictures from the Colorado Eagles vs. RGV Killer Bees game. Oh, they are coming.

Technorati Tags: CHL, All Star Game

Filed Under: Minors, Travel Tagged With: All Star, CHL

Colorado Eagles vs. Laredo Bucks: Away Games

January 9, 2010 By James

I have only a little time before I have to get on the road to Hidalgo, TX for the Colorado Eagles vs the Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees game, so this is mostly going to be a photo essay. I’m cooking up something else later.

Click on any photos you want to see bigger.

The sky over Laredo before the game was full of color.

The arena itself had a little more character than most new buildings, but was still new enough to be modern. It reminded me of where the Grand Rapids Griffins play, or where the Ft. Worth Brahmas played, due to the big wall at one end.

I really like this picture.

This was the guy who let in 3 goals on 5 shots and got pulled.

I have to say, I like these jerseys a lot. They are right in all the ways the new Avs third jersey is wrong. I think I may have to get one.

Action!

This led to repercussions later. The ref wasn’t taking any crap from anyone. The eagles took a few extra penalties for mouthing off to the ref early in the game. In fact, 7 total penalties, including both the 5 on 3 and a 4 minute stint in the box were directly thanks to players or coaches mouthing off to the ref.

Hey, those pictures? They almost didn’t let me in with my camera. They said it was a pro camera (it doesn’t have a removable lens, and I told them to bring a supervisor over to discuss the matter, which they then said it was OK). I don’t understand the policy. I get that you don’t want pro photographers bringing tripods and huge lenses into the building, but what harm does a good photograph of a game do? I’m posting my photos online, and you get to see hockey in a new building. It’s promoting the sport, and their team. What is the problem? People with teams, especially in the minors, need to realize that free promotion is their best tool, and the fans are the ones who will provide that.

Can you imagine an arena up north with the Mexican national flag hanging? But here they do Canada the honor of hanging their national flag. Good job, Laredo.

After each goal scored by the Bucks, the fans would throw plastic corn on the ice, which would stop the game, and have to be cleaned up. It took forever to do, but it was the local tradition. As it was explained to me, it was deer corn. They were feeding the deer. The Bucks?

Fans!

Hecklers! Yes, I was heckled at the game. They get the small photo.

The Eagles tied the game up in the last few seconds (18 to be close to exact), and the game wound up going to the shootout, where the Eagles were fairly awful. In the CHL, like most of the minor leagues, shootouts go five shooters deep, rather than the three in the NHL. I have no idea why the NHL went with three shooters, but they did.

Hey look, the pucks in the back of the net. Go figure.

Taunting the shooter:

Weirdest save ever? No, but still…

You should have seen it in person.

Losers have to skate off past the winners? That sucks.

That’s your final. The Bucks had a post game skate after the game, but I only had my iPhone with me, so the pictures aren’t as good. Still, I will post them. Just a little later.

I had a great time at the game, and will talk a little later about what it was like as an away fan, and talking with the fans at the game. For now, it’s on to Laredo.

Technorati Tags: Colorado Eagles, Laredo Bucks, CHL

Filed Under: Minors, Travel Tagged With: CHL, Colorado Eagles, Laredo Bucks

Texas Stars vs. Houston Aeros: A Study in Penalty Killing

January 6, 2010 By James

Tonight’s game between the Texas Stars and the Houston Aeros was more of an interesting affair then the majority of the game seemed. That sounds kind of strange, but it’s actually true. For the vast majority of the game, the Houston Aeros controlled the play, and the Texas Stars, who couldn’t make tape-to-tape passes to save their lives, looked fairly ordinary and disorganized. But for some reason, the Stars pulled out a 3-2 overtime win over the Aeros, who looked better the entire game.

The main interest for me was the different styles of penalty killing each team involved, and their effectiveness. The Stars, who were sloppy on the power play, felt the pressure of an aggressive Aeros penalty kill. That was most apparent from a five minute major penalty the Aeros had to kill off, which resulted in one goal for the Stars, and a lot of time for Texas chasing the puck down the ice. Houston, a more technically sound passing team, was able to keep possession of the puck, but was mostly kept to the outside by the Stars, playing more of a positional kill, and were effective in getting into the shooting lanes. Still, the Stars were 2 for 5 on the power play, but you wouldn’t know it from watching the game.

Wait, isn’t this a travelogue? You aren’t here to hear me spout off about a minor league penalty kill? Hey, I’m down with that. But before we get to the pictures, one more thing.

The Cedar Park Center, located in the middle of nowhere, charges it’s patrons ten dollars for parking. Ten dollars. Add that to your ticket price, because there is no other way to get there, and no alternative parking. It’s a monopoly, and it’s a ridiculous way to gouge fans for the privilege of going to the game. If there were a cheaper but less convenient alternative, I may not mind as much, but when you hold all the cards, and you are overcharging for nothing, it’s a piss poor way to treat your fans and clients. I complained to the customer service desk, and was told that it’s less expensive than other venues, including the Dallas Stars. I’ve been all over the nation, seeing hockey games in as many places as possible, and I can tell you this is absolutely not true. It’s a disgusting scam, and venues that have no alternative should end the practice, or charge a more reasonable amount.

OK, on to the pictures.

This won’t last:

The arena itself is nice enough, but a little bland. It lacks the character of an older arena, but that seems to be the case with most new arenas. I could have been in Ontario, CA, or Broomfield, CO, or even Gwinnett, GA. If that sounds like a criticism, it’s meant to. What the hell happened to character? Hockey is a sport of character, and old hockey barns have it in droves. New buildings barely have the chance to develop any character, unless it’s manufactured by the designer. These new arenas don’t feel designed so much as sanitized. It’s too bad really, as buildings like the War Memorial in Johnstown, PA (you saw it in Slap Shot, even though it was in “Charlestown” for the movie), the Igloo in Pittsburgh, or whatever the arena in Port Huron, MI is called.

Warmups:

Hey, if you are going to overcharge for parking, perhaps your Zamboni shouldn’t be a reminder of that fact.

OK, game time. You can click on any picture for a larger version.

Check out the puck just over the goalie’s glove:

Blood on the ice:

One of the Aeros took a match penalty for intent to injure. Moving on.

This took way too long to fix. So long we had to listen to an entire Def Leopard song. Other than that gaff, the Stars had the best alternative music mix I have ever heard at a hockey game. Ever.

This wasn’t a penalty. The refs put their whistles away for overtime. Like the hockey gods intended.

This is one of my favorite shots from the game. The puck is between his blocker and his stick.

This is your overtime game winner, in the back of the net.

So yeah, the Texas Stars win it in OT, 3-2. With the game winner:

As “nice” as the arena was, as acceptable as the game was, I had a good time at the game. I’m off tomorrow, but I hope to find some ice to skate on tomorrow.

Technorati Tags: Houston Aeros, AHL, Texas Stars

Filed Under: Minors, Travel Tagged With: AHL, Houston Aeros, Texas Stars

Spokane Chiefs vs. Everett Silvertips: Blowouts Happen

March 11, 2009 By James

I’m still two posts (for three games) behind on game posts, but I’m going to leapfrog Seattle and Portland for the moment, and put up my pictures from tonight’s Chiefs game.

I have had the distinct non-pleasure of seeing the Everett Silvertips lose three games this trip (and I only saw them three times), and I have to say, these guys are pacing themselves way too much. As in, they don’t even show up to the first period, and don’t find their legs until halfway through the second. It happened every game. And it certainly happened tonight in Spokane.

Let me tell you, Spokane is not a team you want to hold back against. The reigning Memorial Cup Champions (and if you don’t know what that means, do yourself a favor and click the link to find out) are a very tight team, with fast passing and creativity on offense.

Spokane has a nice arena, but it was sparsely populated for tonight’s gig. And that was a huge mistake on the fans part, since the Chiefs scored enough goals to win me some free eats for the thind time on the hockey tour (burgers at Tri City and Portland). And hey, I’m all for free food, but I’m all for a game as well, not a blow out. And the Tips were beaten before they even hit the ice.

You can click any of the smaller pictures for larger versions. I do this to save you some bandwidth.

Action!!!!
This is warmups, but this is roughly what the game looked like.

The Beer Garden. I wasn’t very impressed with the selection, but the view was great.

This can only end in tears.

What rivalry?

OK, how about some game pics?
Some youth hockey players joined the Chiefs for the National Anthem. First, the Austrian National Anthem was played, in honor of the singer. Then, the guy almost nailed the American National Anthem. Still, he was better than the woman in Bakersfield who blew the Canadian Anthem (“Oh, Canada. Sorry.”)

On to the game. This goaltender was so damn fast at getting back up from the butterfly. You see how he does it, one leg at a time, but he would go down and get back up so fast, it was like was simply sliding back and forth. The part I liked least about him was when he barked at his defenseman after the first goal scored against him. At that point , the game was beyond out of reach for the Tips. Stats are one thing, but if you are going to get this kind of goal support, you don’t have to worry about one goal (it was 7-0 Chiefs before they let one in, so come on).

OK, this is a funny sequence. The score was 5-0 Chiefs, and the Coach had enough from his starting goalie. Time to put the backup in. But the play started before the switch could be made. So the backup had to wait for a stoppage.

He’s just waiting there, waiting for a whistle so he can go out there. And what happened next was almost like it was scripted or fate. The Chiefs scored again before the whistle blew, making the game 6-0.

And his teammates don’t even get the door for him. Dude.

This one went in. This is the beautiful backhanded pass up the slot that was blasted in. Just a perfect play if I have ever seen one.

Fight!!!

Wait, what the hell? And why is there a bear who works at Subway watching? This is freaking me out. OK, real fight.

Back to the game.

And look, the Chiefs win. Final score, 7-2 (and the Tips were lucky to get two)

I got a chance to meet Wrap Around Curl very briefly, and she was nice.

Gamesheet. Note the three power play goals by the Chiefs, and the overlapping Tips penalties in the third period.

That does it for Spokane. Swag report has to wait, because I am super tired. But I’m not tired of hockey yet. This wraps up the west coast portion of the road trip. Next up is Rapid City on Friday. If anyone knows of a game happening in Billings, MT Thursday night, hit me up in the comments. I don’t care what level. I’m just not ready for this road trip to end.

Filed Under: Travel Tagged With: Spokane Chiefs, WCHT, WHL

Tri-City Americans vs. Portland Winterhawks: Old School meets New School

March 7, 2009 By James

Buildings are important for hockey. The tone of an arena can set the tone for the entire experience of a hockey game, or the tone of an individual game. Some of the NHL arenas follow this code, but too many ignore it, choosing nice amenities over individualism. The American Airlines Center in Dallas gets it right, combining an individual character with modern convenience. But when you go to places like Port Huron, Kalamazoo, Johnstown, Providence, Rockford, Wichita, and Indianapolis, you get a real feel for what hockey is meant to feel like. There should be history and character, and often, that only comes with quirks and age. And you can add the Tri-City’s barn in Kennewick, WA to that list.
Tricity228

This is one of those places that seems like a rink was shoehorned into it, but in reality, it’s got it’s own charm. This is where a community of hockey fans comes together.

Notice how some of the seats extend into the corridor.

My seats were one row from the glass, thanks to my host “Dave Shultz” from the blog “I Mean, We Got Guys…”

I took a ton of photos from the game. I will not subject you to them all here, but know they could pop up at any time. You have been warned.

Words are said.

Open for business.

This guy is in some pain. I believe he came back.

Dude, what are you looking at? Eyes on the prize, buddy.

Your final:

Overall, a much better game than the night before.

After the game, I got to take part in the post game skate:

Here is a jersey I wish I had. Oh well.

These are always a lot more fun after the home team wins.

Would I go back to Kennewick for a game? You freaking bet. All hockey games should be experienced in places this fun. It’s what hockey travel was born for.

Filed Under: Travel Tagged With: Americans, WCHT

Odessa Jackalopes vs Corpus Christi Rays: End to End Inaction

Sioux Falls Stampede vs. Omaha Lancers: On the Road Again

US Hockey Hall of Fame Part One

Allen Americans vs. Rapid City Rush: Who’s The Home Team?

Colorado Eagles vs. Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees: Wait For It…

Central Hockey League All Star Game

Colorado Eagles vs. Laredo Bucks: Away Games

Texas Stars vs. Houston Aeros: A Study in Penalty Killing

Spokane Chiefs vs. Everett Silvertips: Blowouts Happen

Tri-City Americans vs. Portland Winterhawks: Old School meets New School

The Rink Podcast

The Avs Hockey Podcast

Curse Word gear

Avalanche Blogs

Blogroll

Avalanche Links

Hockey Links

Categories

Archives

Blog World