Hershey Bears 2 at Charlotte Checkers 1 (SO) - December 10, 2010

After stopping in Fredericksburg, VA for the night, I woke early and made the 6-hour trip to Charlotte, arriving in plenty of time to see the first-year Charlotte Checkers host the defending champion Hershey Bears.

The Teams

The Charlotte Checkers were a franchise in the ECHL last season but the owners bought the Albany River Rats and moved them to Charlotte, taking the Checkers' identity and giving the ECHL franchise back to the league. They are Carolina's AHL affiliate and a couple of their notables are Brett Sutter (recently arrested in Phoenix after an alcohol-fueled altercation and subsequently traded from Calgary) and Ottawa native Jon Matsumoto (in black below), who enjoyed a 10-game stint with the Hurricanes earlier this season.

Hershey has won the past 2 Calder Cups and is Washington's farm team. Their most famous name is Sheldon Souray, who is on loan from Edmonton after being unclaimed on waivers before the season due to a rather bloated contract.

The Checkers play in Time Warner Cable Arena but I'm not going to write about it here as I'm going to see the Bobcats play there tonight. The top deck is closed off so you can't tour the whole thing, as you can see below. As well, one end of the seating bowl is closed off, so it can be difficult to find really good seats here; I found the seats near the top of the seating bowl had views that were partially obstructed by the glass over the benches or penalty box. I moved around a few times before I found a seat that I liked.

The Game

It was "Black-Out Night" and the Checkers were wearing their 3rd jersey, a black number that you can see in the Mastumoto photo above. Fans were encourage to wear their black jersey, but few did.

Former Leaf prospect Justin Pogge was in goal for Charlotte while the Bears started Braden Holtby (making a save below), who was up with Washington for 5 games earlier in the year. Holtby was 4th in the league with a 1.86 GAA.

Hershey got off to a quick start when Andrew Gordon converted a nice pass from Brian Willsie just 1:05 in. Charlotte got it back when Holtby poke-checked Chris Terry, but the puck went right to Jerome Samson who backhanded over the sprawling goaltender and into the net.

After that the goaltenders took over, stopping everything that was thrown at them. Pogge was particularly impressive, facing 49 shots and stopping 48. For the third time on the trip, overtime was played and again nothing was decided. So it was another shootout.

Charlotte went first and Jacob Micflikier deked Holtby but pushed the puck just wide (below).

After Gordon missed for Hershey, Holtby saved Zac Dalpe. Lawrence Nycholat then scored for the Bears. When Zach Boychuk missed for Charlotte, I thought it was game over, but the AHL shootout uses 5 shooters, not 3 as in the NHL, so we kept going. Willsie went for Hershey and converted to make it 2-0. Terry had to score to keep Charlotte alive but Holtby saved it easily and Hershey escaped with the 2-1 shootout victory.

I always find shootouts a bit of a letdown; it is much more exciting when a goal is scored in overtime. This was an interesting game with Hershey clearly a better team but Pogge's play provided his pals a point.

Notes

There were two promotions during the game. The first was "As Seen On TV" where you had a choice of three useless products: a pasta box, bottle tops, and buttons that you can use to make your pants bigger. Given my heavy reliance on fast food during this trip, I chose the buttons.

The second was Teddy Bear night, where fans were asked to bring a teddy bear and throw it on the ice after the Checkers' first goal. Despite being told not to throw from behind the goal, where the netting would prevent the bears from making it onto the ice, several fans did just that, throwing their toys over and over again into the netting. Eventually they figured it out and moved to the sideline where they could reach the ice more easily. This the second time I have seen this promotion and it is always fun for the fans and a great cause.

Next Up

The Boston Celtics, the NBA's hottest team, are visiting the Charlotte Bobcats tonight. I've then got to drive about 6 hours to Jacksonville to see the Raiders and Jaguars do battle at 1 pm the next day. It will be tough with no room for error, so check back Monday to see if I made it.

Best,

Sean

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Hershey Bears 2 at Toronto Marlies 3 - February 25, 2010

After lunch with an old colleague (Thanks Rob) and a much-needed nap to cure the jet lag, I boarded the streetcar to head over to the Ricoh Coliseum to watch some AHL hockey. The Maple Leafs' affiliate is the Toronto Marlies, and they were hosting Hershey, who are the farm team of the Washington Capitals.

The Arena

The Ricoh Coliseum is located on the Canadian National Exhibition (CNE) grounds just west of downtown. Two streetcar routes, including the 509 from Union Station, terminate here at the Exhibition Place stop; from there it's just a minute walk to the main entrance. With a TTC ride costing $3, a group of 3 might be better off driving as there is parking on the CNE grounds.

The arena was built in 1921 and served primarily as an agricultural facility for the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair since then. It didn't become a hockey rink until the Toronto Roadrunners were relocated there in 2003. That team served as Edmonton's affiliate for only a season and after the lockout, the Maple Leafs moved their farm team here from St. John's, Newfoundland. The Marlies have played here since then, even achieving a division title back in 2008.

So that's what a Toronto championship banner looks like

There are two seating levels here - a "platinum" level that comprises the first 7 rows ($38), and the rest of the seats, which are divided into sides ($30) and end zones ($18). There's even a single row known as the red zone which is only $10. All prices are for tickets bought before game day; it's $4 more if you buy on game day. Tickets are also available at the Air Canada Centre. Given the lack of fans there, buy a cheap ticket and sit where you want.

In the main entrance there are several trophies that are presented annually to the Marlies' MVP, best defenseman, etc. It's interesting to note that almost none of the players have made an impact with the Leafs, which illustrates just how poor their farm system is. Having said that, there is a display that rings the ice surface just below the suites which is called "Developing Leafs since 1927" and lists dozens of Leafs who must have played in the AHL.

The concourse offers some displays on the other AHL teams including a great map that is a must for any roadtripper (shown below). Food options are typical and I didn't eat anything while I was there. There was a poutine stand that I'll try on my next visit.

Above the seating bowl is a wide concourse that encircles the rink. I spent the third period wandering around here watching the game from various angles. Seemed to be a few scouts that use this area as it is quite spacious and provides a good view of the ice. There are even TV's at one end; the picture below shows the Marlies scoring their 3rd goal just as the Canadian women were being presented with their Olympic gold medals (below - check out the red light at the far end).

If you enter the club area, you can see the Marlies going to and coming off the ice. Below is distant relative Joey MacDonald smiling after being announced as the 2nd star.

The Ricoh Coliseum is a good place to watch a hockey game. There are no distractions and no bad seats here. Easily accessible by transit and offering reasonably priced tickets, it's a mystery why the Marlies aren't more popular in the so-called "Center of the Hockey Universe".

Fans? Where are you?

The Game

The Bears are the top team in the AHL with a 44-12-2 record while the Marlies lie 6th in the North Division with a 24-27-10 mark. The league actually separates overtime and shootout losses, which I hate, so I've combined them above. Regardless, the Bears had to be favoured in this battle, and they started quickly. A giveaway in the Marlies end was poked by MacDonald right onto the stick of Andrew Joudrey who potted the easy goal for a 1-0 Bears lead just 64 seconds into the contest.

The Marlies fought back and tied the game midway through the period when Kyle Calder scored on a rebound. In the second, Toronto added another when defenseman Juraj Mikus found himself some open ice in the faceoff circle and snapped a shot that beat Bears' keeper Braden Holtby high to the glove side.

Holtby saved this Mikus shot

In the third, Hershey got into penalty trouble and Calder added his second on a 5-3 advantage to make it 3-1 Marlies. The Bears got one back when Steve Pinizzotto tipped home a point shot, but despite a flurry at the end, they could not get the equalizer and Toronto escaped with a 3-2 win.

It was fun to see a Toronto team hold a lead for a change. MacDonald played well and made a great toe save in the final couple of minutes to preserve the win.

MacDonald with another save

The game itself wasn't that exciting, a lot of chippy neutral zone play, but I can't complain - seeing a Toronto team win a game over the best team in the league is not something I'll enjoy often.

Other Thoughts

Where are all the hockey fans in Toronto? The Marlies are averaging just over 3,600 per game and only 2,725 showed up to watch this tilt. Maybe the weather and the women's gold medal game kept some at home, but still, it's terrible that Toronto is smitten only with the Leafs. Tickets here are reasonable and the on-ice product is good; the game crew puts on a good show to entertain fans during the intermissions and time outs. I really don't understand how minor league hockey can be so completely ignored here. Hey Toronto fans: get out and support the Marlies!

Too many empty seats

Next Up

LeBron and the Cavaliers are in town tonight but there are no good tickets and I'm not going to pay over face value from scalpers. With the Canada/Slovakia game starting at 9:30, I might skip the Raptors and make my way to a local for the hockey game instead. Either way, I'll update you tomorrow.

Best,

Sean

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