December 24-28

Wednesday morning: had lunch with Jenny and her mother since everything would be closed on Thursday. I gave Jenny the option of opening her gift on the 24th or waiting until she would be in town again on Saturday, she elected to open it early (it was a music CD she has wanted for some time). The actual holiday itself was the usual zero it always is, my feelings on the subject are well-known and there's no need to go over it again. The fact that Jenny is a part of my life is the only reason it even registers on my radar. On Friday the world returned somewhat to normal, Jenny was in town on business and I saw her over the lunch hour. A friend of hers is in the hospital and is not doing well, she asked me to take her there for a brief visit. Saturday was a hockey night in Reading as the Royals returned home from a 4-1 road trip. The trip ended on Friday with a noteworthy win in Elmira, it was the 500th regular-season victory in the franchise's fourteen-year history. During the trip the club lost both Connor Knapp and Martin Ouellette on recall to the AHL thanks to injuries in both Philadelphia and Allentown. Colorado College product Joe Howe was acquired as goaltending insurance, on this night he earned the win as the Royals defeated Elmira in the back end of the home-and-home set. Rookie defenseman Jordan Heywood (from Merrimack College) scored his first pro goal to give the Royals a 1-0 lead in the first period but the Jackals scored twice in the second to take the lead at 2-1. Late in the period Pat Mullane evened the score, midway through the third Olivier Labelle found the net to give the Royals the lead. Moments later Heywood struck again to make it 4-2, a late Jackals score made it close but the Royals held on for the 4-3 win. The victory is the club's fifth in a row and eighth in the last nine games, the overall record stands at 17-9-2. The 2014 portion of the schedule wraps up with a New Years Eve game at the Arena, Elmira is the opponent for a special 5:30 start. Take care, thanks for reading.