Written by March 10-12, 2023 – Finals Weekend – 2010 Flames.
The Flames played 4 playoff games in a span of 35.583 hours starting in Canton, Mass. and finishing in Hartford, VT. Four intense games from Friday night through early Sunday morning. They only used NH to pass through. They played incredibly well over Finals Weekend.
Once the hockey train revs up and gains some speed, usually as November approaches (for me anyways), the next few months are kind of a blur. Planning, becomes a nearly hour by hour schedule planning event. Changes along the way are just dates and times that get plugged in and attended to. Then, Finals Weekend comes along, and I call it that, but my calendar just shows places to go and the times to be there, you know, minus the drive time, and the required time to be there before practices or games. Just backwards math, like figuring out +/-. It never occurs to me that this is the end of the season.
Well, not never, but not until it’s done and the season has, in fact, actually ended. I think part of this mindset for me is the remaining hope, possibility, or the fight that is still alive to advance through competition. Line em up and play em. The games, I mean. Then someone nearby remarks that it has been a great season, or that it’s all over, and I’m thinking, “What are you talking about? Look at next weekend’s games.” Except there are no more games. Practices are replaced with tryouts and the construction of next season’s team.
Ugh. I don’t like it. It gets me every time. I mean, I know it’s coming, but there is always hope until someone says it’s time to go home. Season done.
I like the time that gets returned to my (our) schedule, our calendar, but at first it seems like something is wrong. Like a series of snow days wiped something out, or we just messed up and missed a practice. Eventually, it hits me, that, yup the season is over. And, nope, the next event on our family calendar isn’t until sometime next week. Actually, I see the events stacked up like always, except when I look more closely, the dates between the stacked events are all further apart.
So, I attempt to slow down, gracefully. Only it looks and feels like Billy Bob Thornton in ‘Bad Santa’. I sit at my desk and ponder almost everything. I usually recap the hockey seasons that I have been close to over the winter. Primarily, that is my kids’ teams and Goffstown High School Hockey. This takes many hours, and even though I am not in a rink somewhere, I look at a lot of pictures of our kids playing at rinks in the preceding weeks. Ugh. I need the break just like the kids do.
Actually, I welcome the break somewhere along the line. But before then, a March snowstorm hits and I look at night time low temps to see if the backyard rink can be resurrected for a skate or two. Then on a Monday at 4:22PM, Coach sends out a message to the team with a “BREAKING NEWS!!!!” Headline. What! What?
*** 4:22 PM, March 13th – Breaking News from the Flames NW12U Network ***
A team from Connecticut backed out of Regionals, and our team was invited to the New England Regional USA Hockey Tournament. Wait! What? Really? That happened? Yup. And the calendar dates are all crunched together again. For now. I’ll take a break later. See you at the rink this weekend.
Friday, March 10, 2023. Canton Sportsplex.
Fed Finals Weekend.
Score by period:
Shamrocks Orange: 00 – 00 – 03 = 03
2010 Flames: 00 – 01 – 00 = 01
Flames goals in order:
- In a scoreless Final Four game, midway through the 2nd period, Logan McCain grabbed the puck behind his own net and turned the corner, heading up ice. Teddy Beal got out in front of him, you know, to block of course. McCain worked toward the net but lost the puck to teammate, Sean McGee. McGee squared himself up in the circle and shot the puck on net. McCain had stopped at the nearside post and batted the shot down and into the net on a beautiful redirection of McGee’s shot. 1-0, McCain from McGee.
The 2010 Flames took a 1-0 lead to the final period. The Flames were whistled for one penalty in the final period, but the Shamrocks were able to cash in with a power play goal. Seconds later, the Shamrocks netted another goal. Both goals were products of either more determination, or more muscle, or both. The Flames battled, and kept attacking everywhere they could even though they had run out of gas 10 minutes earlier. The Orange would add an empty net goal with 1:04 left to play.
The Final Score read, 3-1 in favor of the Shamrocks, but I was left with a lump in my throat, not because of the score. I marveled at the gutsy performance from both teams and from the 2010 Flames who were skating well past being empty.
Special Teams: 2010 Flames: 1 power play goal allowed. 1 empty net goal allowed.
Saturday, March 11, 2023. Wendell A. Barwood Arena.
GSL T3 Playoffs.
Score by period:
Rochester: 01 – 01 – 00 = 02
2010 Flames: 00 – 01 – 03 = 04
- Flames started on the power play, a 5-on-3 power play. Sean McGee won the offensive zone faceoff back to the left point. Logan McCain gathered the puck and put a shot on net. The Rochester goaltender saved it but the puck bounced off him and Ian Kaveney skated by and backhanded the puck into the net from a solid 2 feet away. Flames trailed, 2-1. Kaveney from McCain and McGee on the power play.
- Rochester dumped the puck out of their zone to relieve the pressure, but the puck went on net, to Travis Ingalls. Ingalls did what goalie’s do, and directed the puck to the side to his D man. The D man was Jacob St. Pierre and he passed the puck across to Logan McCain on the left. McCain took off, up the ice. By the time Logan was done skating the puck into the zone it was only because he was taking a shot from the slot. The shot was on net and it found the twine. The Flames had tied the game, 2-2 in the 3rd period. McCain from St. Pierre and Ingalls.
- It was a 2-2 game, in the final period. The 2010 Flames had an offensive zone faceoff. Sean McGee won it to Teddy Beal and Beal pushed a 4MPH pass back to Jaden Booth at the point, but that didn’t work. Booth pinched in a moved the puck up the wall. Beal tapped it to McGee. Sean took a bad angle shot but it had the desired effect. The puck squirted off of the goalie’s stick and Teddy Beal tracked it. Teddy pushed the puck over to Ian Kaveney who fired the puck into the net. Kaveney from Beal and McGee, and the Flames had their first lead, 3-2. There were less than 4 minutes left to play in the game.
- I don’t know what this means exactly, but if Teddy could choose, I think he would choose to live in an ’empty net world’. If there’s an NHL game on, and I mean any NHL game on when one team has their goaltender pulled, Teddy is glued to the action more than usual. So, when Teddy took his shift in the defensive zone for a faceoff, I know his mind was on one thing. Rochester won the faceoff but when the wing looked to pass across to the defenseman, Beal was already moving to the puck. He stepped into the lane and pilfered the puck. As Teddy got to the offensive blue line he was getting pressed by defenders, so he unloaded a shot that hit the back of the net. His ’empty net dreams’ had come true. The Flames led, 4-2 with 59 seconds left. Beal, unassisted, empty net goal.
Coming into this game, the Flames knew that a victory would put them into the Final 4 because Rochester had already lost on Friday night. Then, the 2010 Flames came out and fell behind, 2-0. Over the second and third periods the Flames dominated play. They had 30 shots in the final two periods, and scored 4 straight goals. They would be playing on Sunday, too.
Special Teams: 2010 Flames: 1 power play goal scored. 1 shorthanded goal allowed. 1 empty net goal scored.
Saturday, March 11, 2023. Wendell A. Barwood Arena.
GSL T3 Playoffs.
Score by period:
Granite State Wild: 02 – 02 – 00 = 04
2010 Flames: 00 – 00 – 00 = 00
Flames goals in order:
- There were no Flames goals in this game, as they were shutout by the best team in the league, 4-0. There were plenty of shots but no sustained pressure or cashing in on rebounds.
The Granite State Wild would go on to win the GSL T3 Title over the Hanover Wild. They are a good team. They play disciplined hockey as far as structure goes. I believe the Hanover Wild might be the best team in the league at making teams be aware of their transition ability from all areas of the ice. But, the Granite State Wild can make an offensive zone possession into a 3-on-2, then into a 2-on-1, in the blink of an eye. They are patient with the puck and confident in their puck skills.
Special Teams: All goals were scored at even strength.
The 2010 Flames faceoff against the Granite State Wild up at Barwood Arena. I was up on top of a nearby mountain capturing these shots.
Sunday, March 12, 2023. Wendell A. Barwood Arena.
GSL T3 Final Four.
Score by period:
Hanover Wild: 00 – 01 – 00 = 01
2010 Flames: 00 – 00 – 00 = 00
Flames goals in order:
- There were no Flames goals in this game. After 20+ minutes of scoreless hockey, the Wild broke in and scored a goal, a strength, their transition game, their bread and butter. The 2010 Flames had a 8-4 shot advantage in the final period and a handful of other close misses.
Special Teams: The lone goal was scored at even strength.
45 minutes. Awesome effort. 1 goal. Tip of the cap and a handshake to the Wild.
There are a lot of pictures here. Please click on the galleries and the pictures and enjoy them. The name of the file should give you a clue as to what the picture is about.
Finals Weekend – Fed Final 4- Canton Sportsplex – 2010 Flames vs. Shamrocks Orange
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- This is one of my favorite 12,000 pictures of the season. Actually, I really like this shot. Garrett just making a good hockey play.
GSL Finals Weekend – Barwood Arena – 2010 Flames vs. Rochester
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- Ian Kaveney – Forward – #2. Here he lifts a backhand pass off of the speaker, then the girder, and onto a teammates stick on the other side of the ice. Play was allowed to continue because Ian had ‘called it’. #2 Perfect.
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- Skating at Barwood in the GSL T3 Playoffs, Teddy Beal.
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- McGee at the dot, with McCain over his shoulder. Just McFaceoff stuff.
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- Logan “The Freight Train” McCain. If you ever leave our station, please make sure it’s a roundtrip.
GSL Finals Weekend – Barwood Arena – 2010 Flames vs. Granite State Wild
GSL Finals Weekend – Final 4 – Barwood Arena – 2010 Flames vs. Hanover Wild
You can find more 2010 Flames material in these pieces, here. 2010 Manchester Flames.
The current look at my ‘hockey office’. So many hours spent in this space, tracking numbers and capturing season after season. (C) 1inawesomewonder 2023.
The beginning of every article. (C) 1inawesomewonder 2017.
The thoughts and opinions expressed here are those of the individual contributors, mostly mine, and do not necessarily reflect the views of the schools, coaches, players, or characters listed in any of these blog posts. Or, maybe they do, but you would have to ask them directly.
Either way, “It’s a great day for hockey” ~ the late “Badger” Bob Johnson.