January 28-29, 2023 – 2010 Flames – Saturday the Flames came back from a 2-0 deficit to win, 3-2. Then on Sunday they played a great game, earning a 1-1 tie. The players were great,…
Some weekends look better on the ice than other weekends. These are pre-teen kids and sometimes they play up to competition, sometimes they play down to it. Either way, they give a lot of effort. Perhaps their tireless effort could be stretched much further as their ability to move up and down the ice as a team improves.
On Saturday morning they lost out in Dover, NH, then pitched a shutout win in Wilmington, MA in the evening. On Sunday morning they found a way to win in Vermont, and then won again back in Manchester, NH on Sunday night. But Monday night they saved their best for last with a 3-2 win at West Side Arena.
In my opinion, what we saw on Saturday was not the best version of the 2010 Flames in-game skills. It was not a true depiction of their improved development as players, as a team. I left West Side Arena late in the afternoon, muttering to myself, “Where are we, as a team?”, “What is their hockey IQ?” and “What a comeback!” all at the same time.
After defeating last year’s Winter Classic NH Runner-Up, Presque Isle, Maine on New Year’s Eve, the Flames earned a spot in the 2022 Winter Classic Championship Game and a chance to win this tournament in back to back years. It would take extra time to decide the winner, but what a game! What a finish!
On Saturday, the 2010 Flames were scheduled to play a pair of games in the 2022 Winter Classic. They opened with a convincing win over the Maine Gladiators-Black squad. Then they played last year’s Winter Classic Runner-Up from Presque Isle, Maine. The Flames dominated puck possession and limited the scoring chances for their opponent in a 3-1 win.
The 2010 Flames opened the 2022 Winter Classic with a Friday evening game against the Franklin Flyers. The Flames prevailed in this one and will play two more games tomorrow.
The 2010 Flames played an early morning hockey game on Christmas Eve. They played a familiar foe, in the Monarchs. The Flames were able to get a very early lead, and then they held the lead for the rest of the game. This time, there was no blown lead and the Flames skated to a 5-3 win at West Side Arena.
The 2010 Flames played games on Saturday, Sunday, and Monday. They did win one, almost came back in another, and got smoked in the last one. All I can say, and that I can hope, is that they are finding their way.
The 2010 Flames won a game on the road and lost a game at home, well kind of home. It was one up one down for the weekend. They are learning more every time they are on the ice.
This weekend’s time commitment was shortened by a pair of games being removed from the team’s schedule. Still, the 2010 Flames had all they could handle in the games they did play this weekend. They just seemed to be one step behind.
The Thanksgiving holiday weekend found the 2010 Flames competing in the Turkey Shootout 2022 hockey tournament. The Flames would end up playing five games in the space of 48 hours en route to a Championship bid.
The 2010 Flames have been back in NH for a pair of weekends since their unforgettable team trip to Lake Placid. Since they have been back in NH, they have a record of 0-2-2. Also, since they have been back in NH, they have yet to play a game with their full roster from Lake Placid.
Lake Placid 2022: Even before the sun was up in Lake Placid, it was team. Sunday morning arrived before sunlight hit the Adirondack’s. The 2010 Flames were playing in the Bronze Medal game at 6:30AM on the USA Rink at the Olympic Center. So they had to rise early and hope that they were ready to play despite walking into the Olympic Center while it was still dark outside.
Lake Placid 2022: Little did I know when I awoke on another beautiful morning in Lake Placid that this Saturday would be about rocking the boat. I will get to the ‘rocking the boat’ phrase as we go. Breakfast in the hotel was everything it needed to be. And I wanted to spend some time in the USA Hockey Store before the 2010 Flames played their final round-robin game against undefeated Braintree.
Lake Placid 2022: Friday in Lake Placid, NY brought us Skills and Hockey Thrills! And we were not short in supply of either one. What a day! The day started with a thrilling win! It included the beauty of the Adirondacks all around us. Then to top it off, the show of youthful exuberance displayed in exhibiting hockey skills to the best of their abilities. I call our families’ Friday in Lake Placid, a day of Hills, Skills, and Hockey Thrills!
Lake Placid 2022: Finally, the day we leave for Lake Placid had come. There was work to be done, school to be attended, and people to meet at the right time and place. We hit the road in the afternoon, our family, and another player on the team with his Mom. We enjoyed a beautiful ride to NY on a gorgeous day. We were finally on the road to Lake Placid, on the road to victory.
Lake Placid 2022: Sometime in the last months of 2021 our team, the 2010 Flames, had targeted Lake Placid, NY as the destination for our big travel hockey tournament in the 2022-2023 season. Several families had been up there before for hockey tournaments with older siblings of players on our team. Even the ones who had been there before and especially those of us who had not yet made the trip to the place of miracles on ice, could hardly wait to get to Lake Placid 2022.
The 2010 Flames dropped their first game of the weekend and then won the next two for the road. After being shutout by the Concord Capitals on Saturday, the Flames scored back-to-back 5-1 victories against the Crimson and the Terriers. Both of their wins came on the road, down in Massachusetts.
There was a shutout at the JFK on Saturday. The 2010 Flames and the Bridgewater Bandits found their way to the rink despite the traffic from a nearby accident, a football game next door, and the rush for the NH Food Bank supplies. It wasn’t the most aesthetically pleasing game, but a few timely goals and some great goaltending got it done. A 3-0 win for the Flames.
The 2010 Flames traveled to West Newton, Mass. on a gorgeous autumn Saturday to play the Crimson. The game ended in a 2-2 tie after a very physical contest from start to finish. Goals were at a premium in this game, and a 2-2 tie seems right. I say the tie seems right because in hindsight, and regardless of the scoreboard, it did not appear to me that either team did quite enough to outscore the other.
The 2010 Flames played three games over the weekend, and they went three for three. Earning three wins. They started in Wilmington, Mass. with a 7-6 win, a wild affair before playing a home game later on Saturday evening. The Flames won their home game and then again on the road at Concord (NH) on Sunday afternoon. The win made for a 3-game sweep of the weekend for the 2010 Flames.
The Manchester Flames, the 2010 version, went to Marlborough, Mass. to play their first road game of the season against the Minuteman Flames (MM Flames) on Sunday afternoon. And the 2010 Flames earned their first ‘W’ in the win column with a complete team effort, 3-1 victory over a very good MM Flames team.
All tied up it began, and so it ended. After an opening weekend that resulted in a pair of losses, both being good games, time passed and led to the second weekend of hockey. There was only one game this weekend, a home game against the Monarchs. The Monarchs hail from Tri-Town Arena which is just about 6 miles (as the crow flies) north of the Flames home rink at West Side Arena. These teams are generally pretty familiar with one another.