Sing a song about the Heartland, the only place I feel at home. Sing about the way a good man works until the day light’s gone. Sing of rain on the roof on a summer’s night, where they still know wrong from right. Sing a song about the Heartland…sing a song about my life…”Heartland”, by George Strait.
After a (successful) 4-game home stand it’s time for the Trenton Titans to hit the road – this time we are back in the Hoosier State of Indiana for a pair against Evansville and Fort Wayne. So this blog will be a two-part, as-we-go-through-the-trip piece, which will hopefully culminate with a 4-point ride home for Christmas!
We have discussed the should-have-been-13-hour bus ride to Evansville in a previous blog, so all I will say is that we had the same delay issues as last time. PLUS, we drove through remnants of “Winter Storm Draco” in the Midwest. We didn't get the major snow that Madison, WI and other areas surrounding the Great Lakes did, but we had to travel the last couple hours through constant 50-60 mph winds. The wind was so strong that the large fiberglass cap that covers one of the AC units on top of the bus got ripped off and ended up hitting the roof of a woman’s car in front of us as we were stopped at a light! Fortunately no damage was done (other than to our AC cap!).
The start of the ride was fun, after capping off a 7-point home stand with a dramatic 5-4, late come-from-behind win over Elmira. Everyone was in good spirits and rolling with adrenaline – that is until that adrenaline wore off and bodies starting hitting the sack. Most bodies anyway.
I was still wired after doing my post-game responsibilities and trying to get some stuff together for Evansville in two days, and so were some of the players. As happens with teams a card game broke out in the back of the bus. So with my work done and nothing worth watching on TV, I snuck my way back to check out the action.
At a table there was Blake Kessel, Justin Taylor, Kory Nagy, Ryan Grimshaw and Connor Goggin playing Shnarps (sp?), a version of Spades…laughing, telling stories, busting on each other and having that fun and camaraderie that is unique to sports teams and locker rooms.
After watching a bit they invited me to play – I know Spades but this was a bit different, especially since you play by yourself and don’t have a partner to work with. But after a quick lesson and a mock hand to get the feel for it I was in neck-deep. I hung in there pretty well for a while and was even leading for a spell. Eventually some bad cards, bad choices and bad luck did me in (surprise!) and I was out first. Still, it was a blast…I hope I get the chance to play that game with them again. While I am with the team I am not on the team – it’s a different and understandably private dynamic with players. I remember that from my time playing ball in college, so I appreciated them bringing me in.
As for game day, I am writing this at ice level, just to the right of our bench at the beautiful Ford Center during the Titans pregame skate. As usual they are loose and fun loving as young guys are, but concentrated and professional in their preparation. As tends to be the norm, Ryan Hayes is the first guy out. It’s almost a superstition that he should be. While it may be only an hour skate, he will be one of the last guys off the ice too, as will Andy Bohmbach and whoever is scratched for the game, so they can get some extra cardio in (today that appears to be Alexandre Carrier (healthy) and Stephen Schultz (mouth injury)).
The starting goalie is always the first one off when he is done – tonight that is Niko Hovinen. Drills disguised as games go on to my left, with Scott Wedgewood as the “steady goalie”, getting his work in during the process.
Despite struggling in their first ECHL season, the IceMen (10-16-0-3, 5th North Division) have a loyal fan base which averages just over 5,000 per game (6th best in the league) and should fill this 9,100-seat arena pretty well.
The building is also the 12,000-plus-seat home to the University of Evansville Aces basketball program, whose men’s team has done well in the Missouri Valley Conference and the NCAA tournament. But unlike the hoops announcers who get to go on the floor, I will be over 70 feet in the air, looking down from just under the rafters. It’s a nice view and the broadcast booth is spacious and loaded – similar to the Huntington Center in Toledo. Both times we faced Evansville, we defeated them in one-goal games with a SHG early in the third period. You take them anyway you can, but it would be nice to get an easy win tonight. We will see…
Post Game – What a night at Ford Center! Titans come away with a 6-3 win and I lose my mind as usual. They lost the lead in the third, but roared back with 3 unanswered to end it. Five straight games with points – first time since the end of the 2009-10 season. This team may have found a little something out about themselves. Losing is contagious, but so is winning…
Right now it is 3 am and the bus ride is real bumpy. Some guys are still up – even Coach Williams, who is working his iPhone to death – due to the jolts. Hope that won’t affect the boys’ play. They will get dropped off at the hotel to get some well-deserved sleep, while Ross, Scott (both asleep) and I will offload the gear in Fort Wayne. It’s a thankless job to say the least and not one I was aware of in my job description as Director of Broadcasting and Media Relations!
As it stands I have received nothing from the gang in Fort Wayne, so I am currently flying blind with the Komets’ roster & stats. That means not only will I be sleeping through breakfast AND lunch (one look at me and its obvious I can skip a few meals!), but I will not be sleeping in too late either. I will have to get up & make sure I have my roster info ready to go, with or without their stuff. Plus, I can’t look like a schlep, so I will have to iron my shirt as well. Not the most time consuming thing in the world, but when sleep is limited, time is precious.
Come to think of it, I probably won’t have a chance to hit the gym either. Now where have I heard that one before…
Fort Wayne – Titans win 5-2
Allen County War Memorial Arena is an amazing mix of old and new. From ice level it looks like you flashed back to the 50’s or 60’s. The ceiling appears low, the seats dark and close together. Even the walls (indoor and out) scream “cool old-fashioned hockey barn”.
But after a lengthy walk and ride up two different elevators, you get an entirely different perspective. The new press box makes the players look like ants you are so high up. But it is roomy, modern and definitely gives you a different perspective of the arena.
When the lights come on and the suites come into view, everything looks brand new. Much of that is due to the fact that it really IS new. A few years ago they raised the roof – yes, actually LIFTED the entire roof off the foundation – in a process that took less than two days. New seats, suites, girders and a press area with updated connections and electronics were added. The seating was increased too – from about 6,000 to 10,900 – with most of them filled on any given night.
The concourse is amazing too, with wide walkways, good food, plenty of great concessions and plenty of rooms and displays that showcase the rich history of hockey in Fort Wayne. That is only part of that area of the complex, as there were several rooms and floors I never had a chance to get to.
I say complex because a brand new show arena was built next to and connected with Memorial Coliseum. Our area just houses hockey and hoops, while next door they have basketball, concerts, monster truck racing and more – sometimes at the same time as a hockey game! It is a cool mix of the old and new.
As for the game, our guys had to survive heavy Komets pressure in the first, dodging several misfired bullets in a scoreless period. Four goals in the second blew the game open for the good guys and Wedgewood was outstanding in the win. They tried to bully our boys a bit and get physical, but we held our ground and never bit. It was a mature win for a very young team before over 7,000 of Fort Wayne’s finest.
The ride home was long and tiring, but you hardly noticed it. The Titans were on a 6-game point scoring streak, winning 4 in a row. Plus it was the Christmas season and everyone was in a great mood and ready for a bit of a break. It may have been the most fun, 13-plus hour bus ride in history.
Well, I hope that give you a little insight to life on the road for a Trenton Titan. We have a good thing so far with this bus and are definitely better off than most teams in that respect. Hopeful it will pay off in more wins this season…and you will be able to catch a glimpse of it here with our View From Atop Mount Olympus!
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