Believe it or not, the 2010 Flames season is winding down. The Flames wrapped up their GSL regular season with a 4-2 win over Kearsarge on Sunday afternoon. Prior to that game, the Flames played the North Shore Shamrocks three times in twenty-five hours, at three different locations. The Flames lost on Saturday morning at JFK, 4-2. Then at West Side Arena in the afternoon, the Flames came back from a 3-1 deficit to tie the game, 3-3 and that is how it ended. The next morning it was an awakening 0°F when we left for Wilmington, MA for the third game of the weekend series. The Flames came out flying and jumped to a 4-1 lead before winning it, 6-1.
I took some pictures of the morning games each day and have shared those below. Click on the pictures you like to open the gallery and then click again to zoom in if you like. Enjoy.
Shamrocks at Flames, JFK, Saturday morning
- Honestly, I have a lot of Travis pics in this game because he faced a lot of shots. Here the puck misses his glove.
- The puck is on the ice and motion gets moving. Jordan isn’t convinced.
- It’s hard to get through layers of defense when all 5 skaters are back on D.
- On the first day of the weekend my hockey team gave to me, a shot on net and a wide open Pear Tree. Er, uh, Petrie.
- Teddy, in his best inner Rodney Dangerfield voice, “Uhhh, Hey! Who moved the net?!?”
- I think this puck went in but that’s a pretty solid effort from the goaltender.
- This is where the team told coach that their plan was to get better with each game of the weekend. Starting with this clunker on Saturday morning.
- Goalie drops and Austin fires one over the pad and into the net.
- One might argue, “Hey that’s a high stick!” The other side might argue, “Ref, the guy’s holding my stick with his face!”
- Travis stands tall on this save…or he’s caught on a hook or something.
- Travis gets in his best defensive position and stares down the competition.
- I am still unsure how this shot missed the net, but it was really close.
- Travis slides over to make a save between a pair of strobogrammatic numbers on either side of him. Look it up.
- Here we see Disney sensation, Pear Tree with a ‘skate-by’ backhand. This was performed at the request of the photographer.
Flames at Shamrocks, Ristuccia, Sunday morning
- The Flames get together before the third game of the series. Garrett holds up the boards for safety reasons.
- Austin keeps an eye on the puck whether an opponent is in possession of it or not.
- Drew looks things over while Jordan is there for support.
- Jordan wonders, “There is so much space out here. Why is this other guy right in front of me?”
- Teddy uses an old Scandinavian stick-handling trick that he learned in his years overseas.
- Just a picture of James following through on a shot down in Wilmington, MA. That’s what he does.
- Jordan yells, “Pass it! I’m open.” Garrett, perturbed with Jordan, “He knows! We’re all open, and we are only inches apart”.
- Put your hockey stick in. Put your hockey stick out. Put your hockey stick in…
- Travis stays calm while wondering, “What exactly are James and Colby doing over there?”
- Criss Cross, where is the applesauce?
- I got this picture while skating a shift with the referees.
- Drew works on his stick handling while Jax figures out his jersey laces are swaying in unison.
- And then as if nothing else existed, Drew was focused on this one thing.
- Teddy looks for an open teammate from behind the net.
- The pass found Ian who wasted no time pounding this puck on net.
- And there is the puck, in the net. Sweet Flames goal.
- Strings still swaying, Jax fights off the distraction to go on the offensive with the puck.
- I am not sure what that player is doing to Teddy, but he gets the puck over to Drew…
- …Just to be sure, Drew skates the puck into the net.
- Since the teams’ in-helmet communications gear is on back order, the players skate to the bench for further direction on each shift.
- Jordan uses his new and improved skating stride to get around. Jax, I’m sorry but all I can think of is a sway bar.
- Someone told the players there was free soda and burgers behind the other net.
- Being that I am so old, this picture made me think of the Kinks. Catch Me Now I’m Falling.
- Teddy uses strategy and mind waves in trying to guide this shot through traffic. Toe down, shot down.
- Scientific proof of the O zone. Stock face-off photo #236.
- James cranks out the good ole shot from the point for old time sake.
- On the next day of the weekend my youth hockey team gave to me, a defender to beat and a puck handling pear tree. Seriously Jax, the string has over swayed.
- Travis drops to his knees, shaking his goalie stick for all it’s worth to get the black disc off his blade. Or, it’s a stick save.
- The legend of The Mighty Fin grows, as she says, “It’s all good Travvie baby. I got your six.”
- As always, Fin leaves them shaking their heads. Travis calls out, “Wait. What?!? Haha! Ha! Huh?”
- Close up of Austin in action with four of his closest friends.
- This may not be as epic as the unveiling of the ‘moonwalk’. Time will tell. But Colby shocked the world when he unveiled this ‘shot dab’ during an actual game. Trending.
- Coach Scott says, “I’m not saying you did anything wrong. You just get to spend two minutes in your personal rest chamber”.
- Man your post. Okay, Simon says, man your post.
- One of my favorite things to watch this season has been anticipation. Jax plays at a whole different level when he commits him self to getting ready to be in motion. Seriously, not everyone gets this yet.
- No disrespect because I thought this ref did a great job and I told him so after the game. But this pic has to portray at least an inkling of what a zebra feels like when a pair of lions are on the hunt.
- Even with all of the passing, shots, and goals; Fin’s might was felt. Awesome game!
- I am pretty sure that this shot hit the iron in the back top of the net and came out. It was called no goal. Then again, I was pretty sure that both Milli and Vanilli were talented vocalists.
- Goalie parents and the rest of us have our own perspectives, then there is the perspective from the goalie.
- Toward the end of the morning Travis tried to rally a group of players to join him in the old classic, “Head, shoulders, knees and toes”.