I am just a man. I am a father, a son, and a husband. I am a homemaker, caretaker, coach, writer, speaker, and photographer. I love God. I love my family. I love my country. God has blessed my family and I, and I am eternally grateful. Author of Generation Jumping: Losing those who are not lost. Downtime with my family is about as good as it gets for me. Being outdoors in nature, among the animals and the wilderness, the Created, comes pretty close. Baseball, followed by hockey, are my two favorite sports, with several others a close third. I would rather do it right the first time. Honesty, respect, and integrity are virtues that I hold dear, so I call it like I see it. Before we as a society attempt to re-define these words, I will be here telling the raw truth.
Nobody expected this to be a close game, or even a competitive game, perhaps. Goffstown gave their best team effort of the season, and came up one goal short in a 2-1 loss to Merrimack on Monday night. It was a highly skilled display of high school hockey. And the Grizzlies, reminded me at least, that there is a huge difference between being all in or out.
The 2010 Flames split a pair of games over the weekend. They lost, 4-1 to Providence, and then beat Mt. Washington, 3-1 later in the day. I came away from the action with two recurring thoughts or themes for the action that day at West Side Arena.
Goffstown went to Keene to play against the Monadnock-Fall Mountain-ConVal Huskies in a MUST win game, against an opponent they should beat with a solid effort. The Goffstown hockey team got the win, 4-1, all while battling through details that seemed just a bit out of sync.
If always you were even or getting ahead and never did you ever fall behind
Would the miraculous invention and the splendid depth of self ever you find?
Nashua South Pelham scored on the power play to take a 1-0 lead. The Goffstown hockey scored the next four goals and willed their way to a very tough road win. Falling back is only maintainable if the fall back is followed by a come back.
On Saturday, the 2010 Flames lost 3-0 in a game where they piled up 39 shots on goal. Sunday, in Rhode Island, they were down 2-0 in the second period. Somehow they kept plugging away, and tied the game going to the 3rd, 2-2. Then with 3 minutes left to play they scored, and won the game, 3-2. This team, they just kept giving their best effort, right til the end. This is truly one of the aspects of this team that I enjoy the most.
The month of January saw hockey games rescheduled because of illnesses and also because of weather. Overall, the 2010 Flames played 9 games (lowest amount since 9 games in September) in January, and they had a record of 4-4-1.
Dover scored a shorthanded goal just 33 seconds into the game. And for me, the theme of the day started. Too easy. Either Dover is that good, or Goffstown just didn’t play up to their talent level. Because, for much of the game, it just looked too easy for the Dover Green Wave. The Grizzlies dropped the decision, 4-3.
The Goffstown hockey team fell behind early out in Rochester to a solid Spaulding team and the prospects of a come from behind win looked more like a fall further behind loss. Then the second and third periods were played. As it unfolded, Grizzlies slip past Spaulding, 4-3.
A weekend with lots of hockey began and ended at West Side Arena. In between, the 2010 Flames traveled to Woodstock, VT and Henniker, NH for games. All in all, the Flames won 3 games and lost 1 over the weekend. The team played really well.
It was great to be back at Sullivan Arena for hockey. The Goffstown Grizzlies earned a 5-4 victory that left me scrambling to describe the full 45 minutes. I settled on, a win is a win. But it was probably more than that.
The 2010 Flames game time roster was almost full. Andrew Drumm returned to the lineup for the first time since late October. The Flames won a GSL game and then they tied their EHF game later the same afternoon. It was a good day. The active roster is almost full, and I hope it will be full again very soon.
The Goffstown Grizzlies played host to the Winnacunnet Warriors on Saturday afternoon. It was a home away from home game at Tri-Town Arena. After a promising first period despite the 3-1 deficit, Winnacunnet simply outclassed Goffstown while cruising to a 7-2 win.
On Saturday afternoon, the Goffstown Grizzlies traveled to Dover to play the St. Thomas Saints. Goffstown fell behind, 3-1 in the first period, and then scored a pair of goals to tie things up in the third period. Then St. Thomas scored with 77 seconds left and added an empty netter. Great game. Lots of chances. But the Grizzlies came up short.
The 2010 Flames played a pair of games in the Eastern Hockey League over the weekend. They ended up losing 4-3, and 3-2. Both games were obviously tightly played. But there was feeling (to me) over the weekend just didn’t seem quite right.
Since Christmas the Goffstown Grizzlies played three games in the Christmas Tournament and then a league game against Lebanon-Stevens-Mascoma on January 3rd, 2024.
They have two more games before returning to Sullivan Arena (seen below) on January 27th.
Out of four games scheduled for the weekend, only one was played. Between the flu going around and varying degrees of a snowstorm across the state, two games were postponed due to weather, and one because a team had no players due to sickness.
It’s the roster. They’re our kids. The ones we love and the ones we drive the miles for.
They all measure up whether we know it or not, remember, we aren’t the ones.
They wear the numbers on the line, if we did anything different, it would only be more.
We should give them space and take them home, odors, and all the gear, our loves, our sons.
For the first time in weeks, the 2010 Flames had most of their players in the line-up for a game. There are still a couple of dear players out, and we hold them in our thoughts and prayers. Yes, really, we do. Kids should be afforded the joy and unencumbered freedoms to be young, healthy, and active. So, yes, we really do hope, pray, and ache for a full roster again, healthy, and having the times of their lives.
It seems that the 2010 Flames team has not been whole for weeks and weeks now. With 2 t0 7 players missing from the lineup in any given game since early November, the wear and tear has taken a toll. The trip on the Saturday before Christmas left them with nothing up north.
After splitting the opening two games of the season, the Goffstown Grizzlies returned to home ice to play the Bearcats from Somersworth-Coe-Brown-Northwood. The Bearcats have been among the better teams in Division II, NHIAA Hockey the last few years, and on Wednesday night, Goffstown dug a deep hole for themselves before working to come all the way back.
Two weeks ago I wrote a piece on TSO that started the way you see in the following paragraph. Today I try to put into words, coming Back to Peace, as it relates to my two-plus decade relationship with the band, their music, and their fans.
Recently, I was asked by a number of people, if I would be writing anything about seeing Trans-Siberian Orchestra (TSO) again this year. The odd thing is that while I was sitting in the balcony watching the show, I was thinking that it was time to write about and share more of my TSO experience.
For the second game in a row, the Grizzlies allowed only one goal. This time though, it was too much to overcome as the Alvirne-Milford Admirals skated to a 1-0 victory over the Goffstown Grizzlies.
The 2010 Flames played just one game over the weekend which was a major blessing to the team. They were able to beat the Plymouth Panthers, 4-2 at JFK Memorial Coliseum.
There is a new face at the helm of the Goffstown Hockey program, and on opening night, the Grizzlies earned a 6-1 win.
With the annual Army-Navy (Army won, 17-11 at Gillette Stadium) game being played just up the road, the 2010 Flames played three games against the Providence Hockey Club in Rhode Island over the weekend. With Providence being closer to the stadium than Boston, the Rhode Island capital was buzzing with activity. On the ice, the Flames played their hearts out.
December, 2023.
Hockey Lane – Pallet Ceiling.
You will see in the before and after pictures, that this pallet ceiling in the hockey lane might not help our hockey players any, but it looks better.
In short, this is just about three pictures from a ladder. Actually, it’s not even about much of anything. It’s actually just three pictures from a ladder. Just some ordinary extra. …
For the second consecutive month, the 2010 Flames posted a 9-2 (won-lost) record. Going into the first week of December the team was 26-5 for the season. That’s a pretty impressive record for any team.
Can you believe it’s December already? The 2010 Flames kicked off the month of December with three games in 24 hours. All three were home games which was a bonus. Next week they play three games in Rhode Island.
I was asked recently, by a number of people, if I would be writing anything about seeing Trans-Siberian Orchestra (TSO) again this year. The odd thing is that while I was sitting in the balcony watching the show, I was thinking that it was time to write about and share more of my TSO experience.
I take many more pictures than I share. I am always looking for scenes, wildlife, and weather. Kind of a random glimpse of symmetry, if that makes sense. Then, some pictures are just taken to remember, respect, and recognize. Here are 21 pictures from October ’23.
For the team we have and the hockey family we are apart of, we give thanks.
Wins, losses, and games galore matter less than the people involved, if I may be frank.