On a windy cool afternoon with shades of grey deepening by the minute, the baseball regular season came to a close. Goffstown and Londonderry paid a tribute to their outgoing seniors and then played a fast-paced, excellent baseball game. Goffstown walked off with a 1-0 win in the bottom of the 7th inning. Baseball: Grizzlies Walk Off, 1-0 To Beat Londonderry
I have been writing this piece for a few weeks now and it dawned on me recently that my once-rapid pace of putting words to this place had slowed to a mere trickle or re-reading of words already written. I quickly understood why. It’s because somewhere beyond reality I held hope of another game, another picture, another story, another chance to write about this group. Why must it end this way? Why must it end at all?
It was three weeks ago now, and in my mind, it went something a little bit like this. As the maestro held his baton high, coercing the grand finale in all of its glory, the final note played. Somewhere between stunned and proud, the maestro bowed his head and turned to face the masses and the feedback they levied on this collective piece of work. And those who witnessed it, they rose in unison to honor the performance and wished it never had to end.Goffstown Hockey 2017-2018: Sign of the Times
CONGRATULATIONS to the Grizzlies Honored This Season! The 2016-2017 Hockey Season was a special one, and there is a wonderful tradition building right here in Goffstown. Who will step up next season and take their… All-State Grizzlies 2016-2017
Mettlesome and gritty are a pair of words that come to mind when I look to describe the Bow Falcons in their game this afternoon. See, Bow entered the tournament as the #2 seed, and they owned an awesome regular season record of 15-2-1. As these kind of things often work themselves out, the pair of losses for Bow came at the hands of this afternoon’s opponent, the Keene BlackBirds. Bow lost to Keene 3-0 just before Christmas, and then they lost again, 5-3 in mid-February. In today’s Division II State Championship game, the #1 BlackBirds (18-0) looked to remain undefeated, and cap their perfect season with their first ever hockey title. Though, as we have learned over the years, in sports, and in rivalries, it is very difficult to beat a good opponent three straight times, especially in the same season. Today was no different.NHIAA Hockey: Div. II Final: Bow Hands Keene First Loss, 4-2
Mumbled and garbled audio aside, the atmosphere in Exeter was electric. The Bow student section was in place early. The Windham throngs seemed to show up at exactly the same time. Keene packed their side with orange and black. St. Thomas showed their various blues. Before long the seats were full. The areas all around the glass where people were allowed to stand, were accounted for. The crowds for all of the Final Four teams were loud, present, and noticeable. Despite my hometown Grizzlies being absent from the semifinals, it was fun to watch some good high school hockey. Storylines run in every direction when there are a few of us, or more, gathered at events like these. Then, there comes the time when the game is played, and legends are born.NHIAA Hockey: Div. II Semi-Finals, It'll Be 1 vs. 2
I heard it in the voices of the returning families, I saw it in the smiles on the players faces. I felt it being around the rink and witnessing the countless gestures of kindness and support.
Obviously, no team is any hotter than the white-hot Tomahawks. Then again, they haven’t played a meaningful game since Feb. 25th. By tomorrow, that will be 16 days since they last played. The Grizzlies are now 6-2-1 in their last 9 outings and have started to generate some momentum themselves. Anything can happen as we all know, and tomorrow we will find out if any of these numbers mean a thing.
It wasn’t too long ago, when the Goffstown Grizzlies Ice Hockey team found themselves mired in mediocrity. They were hovering at .500 with a 5-5 record, and were in the bottom half of the standings. It was the end of January and they were looking up at most of the division, with games against perennial powerhouses, Dover and Spaulding staring them in the face.