The Green Grass of Home
I remember this song playing on our old record player. I have always liked this song, especially since my Dad was often nearby when this song was playing.
Goffstown Hockey 2021-2022: The Love Runs Out
Perhaps, as we walk quickly away from another season that our sons and daughters played,
we should pause for perspective, all the focus on them, and for our enjoyment, the prices they paid.
We all entered these overlapping eras the same way, from the back door, before dawn on a late November morn,
but did you get through the months that followed unmarked by the passion? Love of the game reborn.
Was all of this just another drive-thru moment, capture a picture here and there, passing by, out and about?
Or did you find a place to dig in, a connection to all-time, to make it better before the love runs out?
Backyard Refresher
The water remaining in what’s left of our backyard rink is a direct result of melting ice. It’s cold! Regardless of that fact, our youngest daughter was warm from being outside, riding her bike, and generally playing.
2010 Flames: Fed Tourney 2022 – The Season And Beyond
March 13, 2022. 2010 Flames: Fed Tourney 2022 – The Season And Beyond.
I stood at the bottom of the stairs, on the first floor of what was obviously once a Howard Johnson’s Motor Lodge. I had already packed our vehicle and I stood there motionless on a carpet that might be 50+ years old. My youngest son was next to me when I shook hands with one and hugged another to say good-bye, exiting from another hockey weekend. That is just when I think it hit all three of us, that this might be the last good-bye.
Tournament Hockey: Goffstown 2 at Portsmouth-Newmarket 3 (OT)
Grizzlies Go Down, But Not Without A Fight
Goffstown played their way to a 9-8-1 record in the regular season. Honestly, I don’t know of anyone who would have predicted Goffstown to win 9 games, or even to finish in the top six in the Division II standings. Yet, they did it, earning a #6 seed in the post-season. They played a very good Portsmouth-Newmarket team in the Quarterfinal on Saturday.
NH Hockey: D2 Hockey All-State Teams 2022
2022 NH High School Hockey Division II All-State Teams Congratulations to each of the players recognized, and to their teams as well. These awards don’t happen based on solo efforts in a team environment. These…
2010 Flames: GSL Tourney 2022
When we focus solely on the end game, the result, the scoreboard, we tend to lose sight of the things that are most important. The things that are necessary to get the desired result in the first place. We forget to put things in the proper order. It’s hard to get this process correct sometimes, but it’s critical to remember that taking the next right step, over and over again might well be more important than the end game anyways.
2010 Flames: Team Play Rules The Day
Well, the regular season came to an end over the weekend, with the 2010 Flames playing a pair of make-up games at home, and another one down in Bridgewater, Mass. The Flames dug deep and won all three games. They played with great energy and effort to sweep the final weekend before tournament play.
2010 Flames: Two Days, Two Games, Two Wins, Two Weeks Left
It was a quiet weekend for the 2010 Flames, they only played two games. They won both by beating the Crimson West team, 8-2 on Saturday at home and then beating a very tough Shamrocks team, 2-1 on the road.
Hockey: Goffstown 2 vs. Winnacunnet 6
Goffstown Can’t Solve the Warriors; Leave Their Post-Season Fate to Others
For the last home game of Goffstown’s season they had their best crowd of the year. They raised well over $200 for the NH Food Bank, and collected more than 10 bags of canned goods and food. They also played the Winnacunnet Warriors but were not able to get the four points needed in the standings. The Warriors have been playing excellent hockey since the Grizzlies saw them back in early January.
2010 Flames: Not All Ties Are Created Equal
It was only a few days ago, but it seems like it’s been a week or more since I was at JFK Coliseum for the Flames game against the Shamrocks. But, apparently the 2010 Flames tied the game against the Shamrocks. Then they tied the Crimson. Then they improved on a five-goal loss last week by tying Plymouth this week, before dropping a 5-3 affair to the Greater Boston Vipers.
Hockey: Goffstown 4 vs. Nashua North-Souhegan 1
Grizzlies Rebound With Team Effort In 4-1 Win
I described much of the first half of this game as Goffstown playing not to lose. Almost like they were waiting for the other shoe to drop. They powered through and played like a team that had each other’s backs, and that served them well. The Grizzlies were able to add a pair of third period goals and skate to a solid, 4-1 win.
Hockey: Goffstown 1 at Somersworth/CB 7
Somersworth Breaks Away From The Grizzlies
The BearCats turned open ice into breakaway goals and half ice celebrations en route to a 7-1 destruction of the visiting Goffstown Grizzlies on Saturday night. Goffstown could not cash in on any of their power play opportunities and were never really in the game from the beginning.
Hockey: Goffstown 2 vs. Oyster River 6
Goffstown Falls Behind, Battles Back, But Falls Short
The Oyster River Bobcats came to town on Wednesday night for a game with Goffstown. Goffstown came in to play with an 8-5-1 record while Oyster River entered at 9-3-0, so a win for the Grizzlies could allow them to gain on teams ahead of them in the Division II Standings.
Hockey: Goffstown 0 vs. St. Thomas 4
Grizzlies Blanked By The Undefeated Saints
For roughly 13 minutes the Grizzlies were holding their own against St. Thomas, trailing by a goal and getting as many shots on goal as their guests. Then the Saints scored a goal that included a player stick handling on his knees. The goal gave the visitors a 2-0 lead with less than two minutes left in the first period. What Goffstown didn’t know at the time was that they would only get 5 more shots on goal once the first period ended.
Hockey: Goffstown 2 at Dover 7
Goffstown Gets Flooded By The Green Wave
Dover scored just 22 seconds into the game, and never trailed en route to a 7-2 win over Goffstown. The win brought Dover’s record up to 6-6-1 on the season while Goffstown dropped to 8-4-1. Dover won the D-II Title in OT last season and despite a record that might appear to be lackluster, they are a very good team. They opened the season by playing 7 of their first 10 games against teams that are currently in the top 4 of the division and the top team in D-III.
2010 Flames Head North While Their Game Heads South
For the second half of the weekend, the 2010 Flames headed up to northern New Hampshire with stops in Plymouth and Berlin. It was a beautiful, winter wonderland the further north we went. With the miles, the scenery, and the time spent getting to and from, all part of the experience, it was a long day with plenty of excitement and upbeat moments. As for the games, well, the Flames were doused and brought down to earth, losing three of four games over the weekend.
2010 Flames Earn a Saturday Split
The 2010 Flames hit the road for four games away from Manchester this weekend. Today it was a morning trip to Hudson, NH and then an evening visit to Randolph, Ma. Tomorrow they hit the north country of New Hampshire. In Hudson this morning, the Flames skated to a 4-2 win. Tonight, though they ran into a feisty Crimson squad that out-skated the Flames, and upset them, 2-1.
Hockey: Goffstown 3 vs. Merrimack 2
Goffstown Makes It Two Tight Wins In A Row
On Saturday, what had been my full schedule for the day, which included my daughters’ figure skating, two youth hockey games, and one high school hockey game, were reduced to exactly zero events. We never even left the house, except to play in the snow. The snowstorm that caused blizzard conditions on the coast of New England dumped enough snow in Southern NH to wipe out pretty much all scheduled events, and also postponed Goffstown Hockey’s Senior Night events until the next day.
Hockey: Goffstown 3 at Merrimack 2
Grizzlies Grab the Lead and Skate To Win at West Side
On Wednesday afternoon at West Side Arena the Goffstown Grizzlies played a road game for the 6th time in their last 7 games. And the old rink on Electric St. was as cold as I can ever remember it. Something to do with the weather outside, the compressors inside, and maybe my age. It was cold, I heard it from people all over the rink. The ice was rock hard and fast. The game was highly contested at times, especially down the stretch.
Hockey: Goffstown 1 at Bishop Brady 1 (OT)
Goffstown Tackles D-I Brady in an Action Packed OT Tilt
It was a Saturday night in January, it was a hockey night. Goffstown went over to Hooksett to play against a Division I foe, in Bishop Brady. This was Goffstown’s fifth road game in two weeks. There was a pretty good crowd on hand for the game, and the two teams did not disappoint the fans, playing a well paced, action packed game. They even played an encore.
2010 Flames Win 3 Out of 3, Barely
It was -15F in Wolfeboro when the 2010 Flames arrived at Pop Whalen Arena early Saturday morning. The cold temperatures didn’t hinder the Flames but it did do a number on the Zamboni. Later on Saturday night the Flames visited Tri-Town Arena for a game with the Monarchs for 113th time this season. Sunday afternoon the folks from Berlin made the long trek south for a battle with the Flames at West Side Arena.
Hockey: Goffstown 10 vs. Timberlane 2
Grizzlies Return Home and Celebrate With a Ten Goal Outburst
After four straight road games, the Grizzlies returned home to play the Timberlane Owls hockey team on Monday night. Goffstown was able to win three out of four games over eight days, and looked forward to coming back to Sullivan Arena. Timberlane High School hasn’t fielded a varsity hockey team in each of the last two seasons. So, this visiting group from Plaistow is trying to get back into the swing of NHIAA hockey with a young team.
Hockey: Goffstown 4 at Portsmouth-Newmarket 2
After a lackluster effort down in Nashua on Wednesday night, the Grizzlies traveled to Dover to play the Portsmouth-Newmarket Clipper Mules in a Saturday morning game. What could go wrong? A morning game against a team that had won four straight games and entered Saturday with a 6-1 record on the season.
Hockey: Goffstown 1 at Nashua South – Pelham 2
~Grizzlies Go Missing in Action at Conway~
In recent years, the visits that the Grizzlies have made to Conway Arena have had all kinds of odd outcomes and scenarios attached to them. Okay, maybe it was just last year. Maybe it was just me. But in reverse order at Conway Arena for Goffstown, a single goal scorer hits 100 goals scored in their career, the start of the game is delayed more than an hour, an overtime loss, and a one-goal loss to a D-III team while dropping to 0-5 on the season. Check out any of these links and have a look for yourself. Do you see what I mean?
Hockey: Goffstown 7 at Spaulding 4
Goffstown Wins Big After School
It’s good to be young and to be able to adjust to the lack of structure found in today’s average hockey week. After a week of night games for the Grizzlies, they started the following week of games with a game on the road, right after school. Or in this case they were dismissed early enough to play in Rochester, right after school.
2010 Flames Tear Into The Terriers Twice
The 2010 Flames had a pair of weekend dates with the Boston Jr. Terriers, which meant an afternoon game on Saturday, and then a Sunday morning game, both in Rockland, MA. They played the games at Mark Bavis Arena. The first game was not pretty but the Flames came alive in the final period scoring 3 goals in two minutes, and getting a 5-0 win to begin the weekend.
Hockey: Goffstown Grizzlies Win 2 out of 3 to Start the New Year
Goffstown started the New Year with a pair of home games at Sullivan Arena. It is always good to be hosting games at one of the best facilities in the state. The Grizzlies have been tough to beat on their home ice over the years. On Monday night (1-3-22), the Grizzlies played host to the Manchester Kings. The Kings were not impressed by Goffstown’s home record in recent years.
Sunset From the Driveway
It was my 11-year old daughter’s turn to bring the barrel down the driveway, and to get the mail. The afternoon was getting later, and slowly losing light. The temperature was 17°F, and felt like…
2010 Flames Win the 2021 Winter Classic NH Title
2021 Winter Classic NH –
All game long, the 2010 Flames were on the attack in the offensive zone. They hounded their opponent, and pounded the net with shots of all descriptions. On Sunday they finished each of their two games, with the puck, in the zone, and never allowed either team to pull their goalie in favor of a sixth attacker. The Flames received timely, quality goaltending throughout their run to a 5-0 record in the tournament. In the championship game, the 2010 Flames beat Presque Isle, 2-0 to capture the 2021 Winter Classic NH Tournament title.
2010 Flames Win and Advance at the Winter Classic
You know you might be playing an early morning hockey game when you play the game, finish, and then look outside to see that it’s still not fully light out. Well, the Flames showed up to play the first semi-final game against the Monarchs at 7am. The 2010 Flames advanced to the finals with a 3-0 win over the Monarchs.
2010 Flames Swat the Hornets, 7-1 at the Winter Classic
With Christmas and now New Year’s Eve behind us, we all returned to Tri-Town Arena in a brand new year for the last game of pool play in the 2021 Winter Classic. The 2010 Flames played the Central Maine Hornets in an evening match up.
2010 Flames Come All The Way Back To Win In Concord
Happy New Year!!! Welcome to the year, 2022. Here in hockey land we only know one way to start a new year, and that is to spend some time at a local ice rink. Today it was the great old barn in Concord, NH for a game between the 2010 Flames and the Concord Capitals.