May 30-31

Thursday morning lunch in Quarryville with Jenny and her mother, in the evening we finished up week #7 of street hockey. Yorgo's beat the Amvets and the Killbots defeated Fisher's Distributing. Don and Derek refereed, Devyn ran the clock. The hot and humid conditions continued on Friday, the Barnstormers returned from a three-day road swing to open up a weekend set with the Bridgeport Bluefish. The Stormers broke on top in the first on a Blake Gailen double and a Travis Denker sac fly. The Bluefish went ahead 2-1 in the third, one inning later the Stormers took the lead back for good. Gustavo Molina doubled to start the rally, outfielder (and Lancaster native) Austin Gallagher singled him home to tie the game. Kody Kirkland followed with a double to score Gallagher, he would score later on an Olmo Rosario groundout. In the sixth the Stormers added an insurance run on a Kirkland triple and an RBI hit by Gailen. Bridgeport got one back in the eighth but that was the extent of it as the Stormers won it 5-3. Horacio Ramirez worked into the eighth inning for the win, Jason Urquidez picked up the save. Dick Myers and I are planning to attend the game in Wilmington on Saturday, the ladies will probably come into the Stormers game on Sunday night, Take care, thanks for reading.

May 29

The weather took a sharp upturn on Wednesday, daytime temperatures were in the 80s. In the afternoon the ladies and I made one final trip to the Sovereign Center for the conclusion to this championship season. Doors opened to the public at 5:30, the Kelly Cup parade stepped off at 6:00. It formed in the parking lots of the VF Outlet Center in West Reading and proceeded along Penn Avenue crossing the city line into Reading on Penn Street and straight ahead to the arena. The inside festivities started at 7:00, general manager Mark Wallace took the stage and introduced several local dignitaries. After the club's usual game-time intro video played I took the mic from my usual spot at the penalty bench and introduced the players, coaches and support staff individually. That was followed by a special end-of-season video featuring footage from the Cup-clinching game in Stockton. From there radio broadcaster Mark Thompson took over as on-stage emcee and brought each player forward to personally address the crowd. The night concluded with an autograph session on the arena floor (the ice having been removed the day before). All in all it was a great experience which will be remembered for a long time. In the interests of history, here is the Royals' 2013 Kelly Cup championship roster-Goaltenders: #1 Mark Owuya, #30 Riley Gill. Defensemen: #2 Dominic Jalbert, #3 Bryant Molle, #4 Mark Mitera, #6 Patrick Wellar, #8 Brock Shelgren, #9 Dustin Stevenson, #20 Brett Flemming, #25 Bobby Shea. Forwards: #5 Nikita Kashirsky, #10 team captain Yannick Tifu, #12 Julien Cayer, #13 alternate captain Kirk MacDonald, #14 T.J. Syner, #15 Stanislav Galiev, #16 Ian O'Connor, #19 Barry Almeida, #23 Evan Barlow, #24 Joel Champagne, #26 David Vallorani, #28 alternate captain Ethan Cox, #29 Alex Berry. Head coach Larry Courville, assistant coach Tim Branham, goaltending coach Darren Hersh, athletic trainer Brian Grogesky and equipment manager Pat Noecker. It was once said that members of championship teams walk together forever, after twelve years of waiting the Royals fanbase will make that trek as well. Take care, thanks for reading.

May 27-28

One of these days the weather is going to become somewhat consistent, over the last week it's been remarkably unpredictable. On Memorial Day Monday it was warmer but still breezy and brisk, in the evening I was at the ballpark as the Barnstormers finished their series with Sugar Land. The Stormers broke on top in the first inning on an RBI double by infielder Olmo Rosario and a run-scoring single from ex-big leaguer Daryle Ward. Kevin Howard's home run in the second made it 3-0, in the fourth Rosario delivered another RBI double, Travis Denker followed with a two-run homer to up the lead to 6-0. The Skeeters got two back in the sixth and added one in the ninth but the Stormers held on for the 6-3 victory. Dwayne Pollok pitched seven innings for the win, Brian Tallet and Derrick Loop worked an inning each in relief. It began to rain overnight into Tuesday, when I left the house in the morning it was chilly and raw. We had three games of street hockey scheduled for the evening, at 2:00 with the rain coming down it looked like there was no way we would play. As the afternoon wore on the rain moved out, temperatures rose and the games went on without incident. The Dek Dawgs beat the Killbots, Yorgo's defeated Fisher's Distributing and 915 Cafe won over Whitmoyer Auto via shootout. Ron and Derek officiated, Devyn ran the clock. We have three games set for Wednesday, I will be at the Sovereign Center for the Royals' Kelly Cup celebration. Take care, thanks for reading.

May 24-26

ECHL hockey update: IT'S ALL OVER. For the first time in the franchise's twelve-year history the Reading Royals are the Kelly Cup Champions. The boys took a 3-0 series lead into Friday's game in Stockton but the Thunder staved off elimination with a 4-3 win. In game #5 on Saturday the Royals finally nailed it down in resounding fashion. Mark Mitera scored the only goal the club would need in the first period to make it 1-0, in the second period the Royals ended the competitive aspect of the game in no uncertain terms. Brett Flemming, Ian O'Connor, T.J. Syner and Stanislav Galiev all lit the lamp as the club took a 5-0 lead. In the third period Joel Champagne put the cherry on the sundae as Riley Gill slammed the door at the other end, the Royals took it by the final count of 6-0. Gill was named playoff MVP for his efforts, in the postgame ceremonies ECHL Commissioner Brian McKenna and Commissioner Emeritus Patrick Kelly presented the trophy bearing Kelly's name to team captain Yannick Tifu. It was announced on the radio broadcast that there will be a public celebration at the Sovereign Center on Wednesday the 29th. Many in the club's fanbase have waited a long time for this and I count myself among that number. The Royals' championship was easily the highlight of the weekend, the weather was largely unpleasant. On Friday morning it was rainy and windy, in the evening the rain was gone but it was just plain flat-out cold. Saturday wasn't much better although not as damp, the Barnstormers were at home both nights but I elected to stay in and stay warm. On Sunday the winds finally diminished, in the evening Jenny, her mother and I were at the ballpark on North Prince Street. The Sugar Land Skeeters were the opponent, after splitting the first two games of the series the Barnstormers won on this night 3-0. The Stormers scored twice in the first inning on a Travis Denker sacrifice fly and an RBI hit by outfielder Ryan Harvey, they made it 3-0 in the second on a run-scoring hit by outfielder Jerry Owens. Starting pitcher Horacio Ramirez worked six innings for the win with relief support from Yoslan Herrera, Jason Ricardson and Jason Urquidez. The series concludes with a Monday evening holiday game, I may be there if the weather holds up. Take care, thanks for reading.

May 22-23

The last few days have been very warm and humid, I installed my AC for the season earlier in the week. On Wednesday night we had four games of street hockey, the final three crossovers on the schedule plus the odd-night Midwest game. Whitmoyer Auto defeated the Misfits, the UniLords won over Dominion Pizza, 915 Cafe beat Jr's Cycle Shop and Yorgo's won over Fisher's Distributing. Ron worked the first two games with Bop and the last two with Don, Wally ran the clock. Just as the last game was ending it began to rain so we got done just in time. It was cloudy and cooler on Thursday morning, I was with Jenny and her mother for lunch in Quarryville. On the way back into town it started raining again, for several minutes it came hard but by late afternoon it was long gone. In the evening we were back at Reservoir Park as we wrapped up week #6. The Dek Dawgs beat Fisher's Distributing and the Amvets defeated the Killbots. Precipitation returned just as the second game was starting, most of it was played in a steady rain. Don and Derek refereed, Devyn ran the clock. They are calling for record low overnight temperatures on the weekend as a cold front moves through the area. Take care, thanks for reading.

May 20-21

ECHL Kelly Cup update: the Royals won game #3 of the series on Tuesday night in Stockton, the final score of 3-1 gives the club a 3-0 series lead. Stockton scored early for a 1-0 lead but Yannick Tifu replied in short order to tie the game. It stayed 1-1 until eight minutes into the third period when Tifu struck again to give the Royals the lead. Kirk MacDonald hit the empty net with six seconds remaining to clinch the win for Riley Gill. The game started at 10:00 our time and wound down shortly before 12:30, I was following radio broadcaster Mark Thompson's account closely despite the late hour. Game #4 is on Friday night in Stockton (10:30 eastern time), a possible game #5 would be on Saturday. For me the new week began (as it almost always does) with Monday lunch at the mall, in the evening we started week #6 of street hockey at the rink. This was a crossover night between the East and West divisions, three games were on the schedule. Jr's Cycle Shop beat Whitmoyer Auto via shootout, the UniLords defeated the Misfits and 915 Cafe beat Union Station. Ron and Derek refereed, Wally ran the clock. On Tuesday we had another three-game night, two Midwest games plus a crossover makeup game. The Killbots beat Yorgo's via shootout, the Dek Dawgs prevailed over the Amvets and in the crossover game Whitmoyer Auto beat Dominion Pizza. Don and Derek refereed on this night, Devyn ran the clock. We were done around 9:45 or so, I got home and showered as quickly as I could so I wouldn't miss too much of the game from Stockton. Take care, thanks for reading.

May 18-19

Lunch with Jenny and her mother in Quarryville on Saturday morning, from there we were headed north to Reading for a momentous weekend of hockey at the Sovereign Center (in case you were wondering: the Royals' arena and the ballpark in York are indeed named for the same financial institution). The Stockton Thunder visited the SC for the first time ever in game #1 of the 2013 Kelly Cup Championship Series. If you enjoy roller-coaster rides in amusement parks this night was for you, there was a season's worth of anxiety in just one game. The Royals held four separate one-goal leads and were caught each time, the Thunder led once and that didn't hold either. Early on the Royals struck first on a goal by Ethan Cox but Stockton answered to tie it at 1-1. In the second period T.J. Syner scored to make it 2-1 but again the Thunder knotted maters at two apiece. In the third period all hell broke loose. Stockton took a 3-2 lead but Yannick Tifu replied to make it 3-3. Moments later Nikita Kashirsky gave the Royals the lead again but Stockton retaliated in kind to square things at 4-4. With two minutes left in regulation the Royals were awarded a power-play opportunity, Alex Berry lit the lamp with forty-eight seconds left on the clock for a 5-4 Royals lead. The Thunder simply refused to go away, they showed their championship mettle by netting the tying goal just twenty-six seconds later to force overtime. In the OT the Royals had the better of the play, in the tenth minute Kashirsky's second goal of the night nailed down sweet victory as the Royals finally prevailed 6-5. Had this been a major-league game it would be talked about for years, it will certainly be remembered around Reading for a long time to come. After the myriad of emotion on Saturday night one had to wonder what would happen for an encore in game #2 on Sunday afternoon. On this day all suspense was removed early as the Royals scored three goals in the first period and cruised to a 4-0 win. Alex Berry, Brett Flemming and T.J. Syner led the barrage in the opening period, Evan Barlow put the icing on the cake in the second period. From there Riley Gill and Company were in complete control as he picked up his third shutout of the playoff season. As the game wound down the crowd was absolutely deafening, I've never heard the building as loud as it was during the final minute and as the horn sounded. The Royals take a 2-0 series lead to California for the middle three games on Tuesday, Friday and Saturday if needed, a possible game #6 would be back in Reading on Tuesday the 28th. Take care, thanks for reading.

May 17

Had a haircut appointment on Friday afternoon, after supper Marty and I met at his place for the drive west to York. The Barnstormers were in town to meet the Revolution in the opener of a weekend series. The Stormers-Revs rivalry started with the advent of the York franchise in 2007 although I must admit I've always viewed it impartially from a personal standpoint. On this night at Sovereign Bank Stadium the Revolution raced out to an early 6-0 lead. A two-run double by outfielder James Shanks and a bases-loaded triple from infielder Andres Perez made it 5-0 in the second inning, another run scored later on a wild pitch. The Barnstormers got on the board on a seventh inning sac fly, a two-run homer by catcher Gustavo Molina made it 6-3 in the eighth. The Stormers got another in the ninth on a double-play groundout but it wasn't enough as the Revs took it 6-4. The starting pitchers were involved in the decision as former big-leaguer Brett Tomko won it for York, the Stormers' Dwayne Pollok took the loss. The series continues through the weekend, the Stormers are at home over the Memorial Day holiday. Take care, thanks for reading.

May 15-16

It was still cloudy and windy on Wednesday morning, in early afternoon rain moved through the area. Between 1:00 and 2:00 it would have been hard to believe we would play hockey in the evening but the rain moved on, the sun came out and things dried off rather quickly. At 6:15 we were good to go, the night started with the Killbots over the Dek Dawgs via shootout in the evening's Midwest game. In the West Jr's Cycle Shop beat Dominion Pizza and Union Station defeated the Misfits, the East game saw the UniLords over Whitmoyer Auto Group. Ron and Derek refereed the entire night, Devyn ran the clock. The unsettled weather conditions brought another rain shower around midnight, it was still raining on Thursday morning. Jenny had an appointment in Quarryville, we had lunch after she was done. In the evening we finished the week at Reservoir Park, the Killbots beat Fisher's Distributing and the Lancaster Amvets won over Yorgo's. About ten minutes before game time Don called, he had been stuck in traffic and was running late. Ron said he had no qualms in starting the games on time, since Devyn was there to run the clock we elected to initiate Plan B. I ran the clock until Don arrived and Devyn refereed with Ron. Devyn has been playing the game practically his entire life and he has experience as an ice hockey referee, since he was willing and able it all worked out nicely. We have five makeup games on the schedule for Sunday, I will be absent since I'll be in Reading with the Royals. The battle for the Kelly Cup (named for Pat Kelly, the ECHL's first commissioner) begins on Saturday night at the Sovereign Center, game #2 is on Sunday. Take care, thanks for reading.

May 13-14

It was chilly and windy on Monday morning, I had my usual lunch visit at the mall. In the evening we were at Reservoir Park for street hockey. Derek and Bop officiated the first two games, Ron worked the last game with Bop since Derek's team was playing in it. When Ron arrived around 8:00 he facetiously asked if this was the spring league or the fall league, a fair question since it felt more like October than May. In the West division games Dominion Pizza beat Union Station via shootout and Jr's Cycle Shop defeated the Misfits, the UniLords won the East game over Whitmoyer Auto. By the time the night was over I was glad to go home, it was just flat-out cold. Tuesday's weather was somewhat better only because the wind wasn't as strong, we had our usual three-game night at the rink. Ron and Don refereed, Wally ran the clock for the second consecutive night. The UniLords beat 915 Cafe in the East game, in the Midwest it was Yorgo's over the Dek Dawgs and the Lancaster Amvets beat Fisher's Distributing. It began to rain lightly just as the last game was ending, by the time I was home and out of the shower the streets were very wet. I guess we got out just in time. It's supposed to warm up over the rest of the week with showers and thunderstorms in the forecast for Wednesday. Take care, thanks for reading.

May 10-12

We'll get the good news out first: for the first time in franchise history the Reading Royals will play for the ECHL championship. The boys punched their ticket to the finals with wins in Cincinnati on Friday and Saturday to take the series four games to one. On Friday the Royals took a 2-0 lead before most of the Cincinnati fans were even in their seats but the Cyclones rallied to tie it in the third period. In the closing moments of regulation time the Royals received a power-play opportunity, Yannick Tifu scored with eleven seconds left on the clock for a dramatic 3-2 win. On Saturday the Royals once again got out to a 2-0 lead, Cincinnati got one back before T.J. Syner scored the clincher as the boys closed it out with a 3-1 victory. As champions of the Eastern Conference the Royals will meet the Western champion in the finals, that opponent was determined on Saturday night in Stockton, California as the hometown Thunder defeated the Idaho Steelheads in the West finals. Stockton has been in the ECHL since 2005, the championship series will mark their first-ever appearance at the Sovereign Center. The first two games are Saturday the 18th and Sunday the 19th with the next three in Stockton, a possible game #6 would be back at the SC on Tuesday the 28th. The Thunder was the fourth seed in the West playoff bracket, along the way they eliminated the top seed so their presence in the finals is well-deserved. Since the clubs did not meet during the regular season it's almost impossible to handicap this series, we'll just drop the puck on Saturday and hope for the best. The weekend was otherwise uneventful outside of a lunch visit with Jenny on Saturday morning. The Barnstormers were at home over the weekend but I elected to stay in and follow the hockey games, had I been at the ballpark I would have been completely out of touch with the Royals and that was someplace I did not want to be. It turned out to be a smart move as thunderstorms hit the area and washed out Friday's game, they played a doubleheader on Saturday that started late because of another storm. It turned windy and cooler on Sunday, that trend is expected to continue through the early part of the new week. Take care, thanks for reading.

May 8-9

Wednesday afternoon weather reports indicated showers and thunderstorms all around our area, by 5:00 nothing had happened. With four games on the schedule we headed to the rink with the idea that we would go as far as we could. We got a break as the rain stayed away, we never had a drop all night. The UniLords beat 915 Cafe in the East game, in the West division Union Station defeated Jr's Cycle Shop and Dominion Pizza won over the Misfits. The night wrapped up with a Lancaster Amvets victory over Yorgo's in the Midwest game. Ron worked the first game with Des Deeter and the last three with Don, Wally ran the clock. When I got home I saw where the Royals game in Cincinnati was in overtime (again), on this night the Cyclones prevailed to cut the Royals' series lead to 2-1. Games four and five are in Cincinnati on Friday and Saturday. On Thursday morning I was in Quarryville, Jenny had an appointment and we had lunch after that. In the evening we finished up the week at Reservoir Park with two Midwest games. The Amvets won their second game of the week with a decision over the Killbots, the Dek Dawgs beat Fisher's Distributing. Don and Derek refereed, Devyn ran the clock. There was a brief mist in the air during the early part of the second game but it never came close to threatening play. They're calling for warmer temperatures and more stormy weather on the weekend. Take care, thanks for reading.

May 6-7

Monday morning at the mall for lunch, in the evening we were at Reservoir Park for the start of the season's fourth week. In the East game Whitmoyer Auto beat 915 Cafe, the West games saw Jr's Cycle Shop over Dominion Pizza and Union Station over the Misfits. Ron and Derek refereed, Devyn ran the clock. Tuesday was a good day weather-wise until late in the afternoon when showers moved through the area. I called Don at 5:00 to discuss strategy, since it was raining at that time and more was forecast we postponed the evening's schedule. There are showers and thunderstorms in the forecast for Wednesday as well, maybe we'll get lucky. Take care, thanks for reading.

May 5

On the road early on Sunday afternoon as the ladies and I returned to the Sovereign Center. For a second consecutive game the Royals worked overtime and the result was once again to the good, a 3-2 victory to go up two games to none in the series. Cincinnati took a 1-0 lead in the first period, early in the second period Bobby Shea (the Game #1 overtime hero) continued his hot hand as he found the back of the net to draw the Royals even. It stayed 1-1 into the third period when the Royals finally got a chance to play with a lead, defenseman Dustin Stevenson (never known as a goal-scorer) lit the lamp to put the club ahead 2-1. The Cyclones battled back to tie matters at two as we headed into extra play. In game #1 it took almost thirty minutes of overtime to decide it, on this occasion  it took less than fourteen. The Royals carried play through most of the OT, it finally ended when Alex Berry (AKA "the Big Bearcat") took a feed from Kirk MacDonald and fired home the GWG. The victory was the club's fourth in OT in the playoffs thus far (against no losses), the Cyclones have been involved in six overtime games (3-3). Berry's effort earned him the game's #1 star, winning goalie Riley Gill was #2. The game started at 4:05 (our usual Sunday afternoon faceoff time) and ended at 6:59, clocking in exactly one hour shorter than Friday's game. The Royals will take the 2-0 series lead to Ohio for games on Wednesday, Friday and Saturday. This finishes a stretch of four games in six days at home, the next possible home date is not until May 13. Take care, thanks for reading.

May 3-4

Friday evening at the Sovereign Center for the opening game of the ECHL Eastern Conference finals as the Royals hosted the Cincinnati Cyclones. To say that these franchises have a playoff history is an understatement, Royals fans can recall the pain of playoff losses to the 'Clones in 2008 and 2010. Sometimes unheralded players become key figures in postseason play, this game was a classic example. In March the Royals' defense corps was depleted by injury and reassignments, the club signed two youngsters from the collegiate ranks as reinforcements. Dominic Jalbert joined the team from the University of Ottawa, fellow blueliner Bobby Shea arrived from Bowling Green State. In the playoffs they have been playing regular minutes partly by necessity but also because they've earned their spots. On this night in Reading the Royals went one-up in the series with an epic 5-4 win in double-overtime. The Royals never led in this game until they won it, on four occasions the Cyclones took the lead and four times the Royals fought back to tie. Evan Barlow pulled the club even at 1-1 in the first period, T.J. Syner's marker tied it at two in the second stanza. Later in the period Barlow struck again to make it 3-3. In the final two minutes of regulation play the Royals once again found themselves down by one, with the pressure on Jalbert found the back of the net thanks to a weird carom to tie the game at 4-4. Into overtime we went, the first twenty-minute period resolved nothing. After nine minutes of play in the second overtime Shea took a pass from Yannick Tifu and ripped it home for the game-winner as the Royals faithful exploded in relief. It was Bobby's first goal as a professional and it came at just the right time. Riley Gill picked up the win in net as the Royals take a 1-0 series lead, the game from start to finish took three hours and fifty-four minutes. Game #2 is at the SC on Sunday the 5th as the Royals seek to go two-up. Since Friday and Sunday are game days Jenny and I did our Saturday lunch a day early, Saturday itself was a day of quiet. I hadn't planned on anything special and the events of Friday evening clinched it. Take care, thanks for reading.

May 1-2

Wednesday night in downtown Reading as the Royals advanced to the Eastern Conference finals with a scintillating 4-1 victory over the Florida Everblades. Where postseason play is concerned there's no other sport quite like hockey, when a playoff series is extended to its ultimate game your heart is in your throat from start to finish. This game (much like Tuesday's) stayed scoreless until early in the second period when Joel Champagne broke the deadlock to give the Royals a 1-0 lead. A few minutes later Barry Almeida lit the lamp to make it 2-0. It stayed that way until the midpoint of the third period when the 'Blades were presented with a two-man advantage power play for a full two minutes. As the defending league champions you knew Florida would not go quietly, they threw everything they had and a little bit more at the Royals but Riley Gill and the defense corps absolutely refused to be beaten. As the penalties expired the crowd roared its approval, just seconds later Ian O'Connor (one of the penalized players) scored to make it 3-0 Royals. Kirk MacDonald added another goal to put the punctuation on it at 4-0, in the closing minutes the 'Blades finally got on the board but it mattered little as victory was already assured. The traditional handshake line after the game was the first at the Sovereign Center since 2010 when the Royals eliminated Kalamazoo in the conference quarterfinals. That year the Royals faced Florida in the conference semis and Cincinnati in the conference finals. In 2013 the script has been virtually identical as the Royals will meet the Cyclones in this year's conference final as well. Cincinnati advanced by defeating Toldeo and Gwinnett, they come to Reading for the first two games on Friday the 3rd and Sunday the 5th. The middle three are in Ohio, a possible game #6 would be at the SC on May 13. After the emotion and euphoria of Wednesday night Thursday was a rather mundane day by comparison. Jenny had a morning appointment in Quarryville and we had lunch afterwards. In the evening I made my lone appearance of the week at Reservoir Park. Two Midwest games on this night as the Dek Dawgs beat the Lancaster Amvets and the Killbots defeated Yorgo's. Don and Derek officiated, Devyn ran the clock. Three weeks are in the books, we'll be back there for week #4 on Monday the 6th. Take care, thanks for reading.