March 24-26

Friday evening: back at the Arena for a weekend back-to-backer with the Adirondack Thunder making their final regular-season appearances. Before the game Jenny found out that the party she helped out on Wednesday refused medical treatment at the hospital, she was upset about it and felt like she had wasted her time trying to help. I told her that she did what any decent human being would have done, what the other party does from there is not her problem. It's like the old saying about leading a horse to water but you can't make them drink. In the game itself the visitors from upstate New York took a 1-0 lead into the third period, midway through the Royals pulled even on a score by Ryan Penny. The deadlock remained into overtime, in the final seconds of OT Adirondack broke through for the clincher and the 2-1 win. Mark Dekanich was the goalie of record for the Royals and deserved a better fate. On Saturday it was Scout Night at the Arena, it took two separate stoppages in play for me to get all the various troops in attendance verbally acknowledged. On this night the Royals went up 1-0 on a score from Derik Johnson, ADK replied with two straight and carried that advantage into the final period. Matt Willows found the net early on to tie matters at 2-2 and for the second straight night the game required extra time to determine the outcome. In overtime both teams had their chances, Matt Willows was responsible for thwarting a Thunder breakaway opportunity. In transition Matt found Steven Swavely who made no mistake scoring the OT GWG and giving the Royals the 3-2 decision. The weekend split (literally, since each team earned three points out of four available) puts the Royals at 37-24-5, 19-13-1 at home. The club has off until the last day of the month when the Norfolk Admirals visit. Take care, thanks for reading.

March 20-23

Had my tax returns filed on Monday morning, there's no point in waiting until April 15 because they're going to get you one way or another. Had Wednesday lunch with Jenny, in the afternoon we made our way north on 222 for the first time "officially" since March 5. The Royals' last five games were on the road thanks to the home postponement on the 14th, they went 2-2-1 on the trip. A number of new faces are on the roster, this is the time of year when youngsters from collegiate programs and Canadian junior hockey get an opportunity to impress and earn a pro contract. On this night the Manchester Monarchs made their last regular-season visit and left town with a decisive 5-1 win. Steven Swavely (back from a stay with the Phantoms) scored the lone goal for the Royals, Martin Ouellette got the start in net and took the loss. The club's record stands at 36-24-4 (18-13-0 at home), the homestand continues with a back-to-back versus Adirondack on Friday and Saturday. After the game I learned that earlier in the evening (and completely unbeknownst to me since I was working) Jenny was credited with saving a life. She went into a ladies room on the concourse and saw a woman behaving in a very erratic manner, she summoned an usher who called arena security and medical assistance. Apparently the other party was having a narcotics-related episode, an ambulance was called and she was taken to a local hospital. Jenny was told that it's a good thing she walked in when she did or it could have been much worse. At first she felt good about her involvement but on the way home it hit her and she became emotional with concern over the other person's well-being. I told her that we may never know how it comes out but one thing is for sure: in my opinion Jenny is a hero, I'm proud of what she did and I am proud of HER. Take care, thanks for reading.

March 18-19

Saturday afternoon at the Arena in Reading, for the second consecutive season the Flyers Alumni visited. In February of 2016 the team played an "Orange vs White" inter-squad game but on this occasion the Flyers had an actual opponent as the Pittsburgh Penguins Alumni participated. The Flyers and Pens entered the NHL together in 1967, both franchises are celebrating their fiftieth anniversary season. Longtime Flyers PA announcer Lou Nolan was in the house, he and I "shared the pulpit" as we had at the 2016 game and for us it could not have worked out any better (there is something to be said for professional courtesy and cooperation). The Penguins were represented by ex-NHLers Greg Malone, Kim Clackson, Phil Bourque, Mitch Lamoureux, John Chabot, Dan Frawley, Jay Caufield, Hal Gill, Tyler Kennedy, Aaron Asham and goaltender Jean-Sebastien Aubin, the squad was rounded out by Christian Hanson and Chris Clackson (son of Kim). Serving as coaches were ex-Pens Duane Rupp and Pierre Larouche. Skating for the Flyers were Doug Crossman, Larry Goodenough, Brad Marsh, Bob Kelly, John LeClair, Dan Carcillo, Joe Watson, Paul Holmgren, Jim Watson, Dave Brown, Brian Propp, Terry Carkner, Todd Fedoruk, Danny Briere and Eric Lindros plus goaltenders Ray Emery and Brian Boucher. On the bench as coaches were Dave Schultz, Bill Clement and Bernie Parent. The Flyers won the game 8-6 but in the long run the result won't be remembered, what counted for the fans was the chance to see their old favorites play one more time. It's safe to say that the Flyers Alumni will be back on an annual basis for as long as the Royals and Flyers are associated. Take care, thanks for reading.

March 6-17

Every once in a great while comes an occasion where it doesn't pay to come online and blog, the last ten or twelve days constitute a grand example. Basketball season at McCaskey is long since over, spring activities haven't started yet and the Royals have been away as well so there simply hasn't been much to speak of outside of the usual morning runs and my lunch visits with Jenny. On Thursday the 9th daytime temperatures were in the mid-60s but by the weekend we were back in the freezer with highs in the 30s. There was a major snowfall in the forecast for the Monday overnight hours into Tuesday the 14th, as a result the Royals home game on Tuesday night was postponed in advance on Monday afternoon. This game was originally scheduled for a Sunday back in October, before the season started it was moved to March 14 and now to Wednesday April 5th (when it is finally played it will be a makeup of a makeup). The snow moved in overnight as scheduled, I went nowhere on Tuesday which was just as well given that the city posted a snow emergency banning all unnecessary travel. By late Tuesday afternoon the storm was just about over and by all accounts we were lucky, the snowfall amounts were much less than had been predicted. Here in town we got about seven or eight inches, the worst of it was more to the north and west (some of those areas got as much as a foot or more). On Wednesday I went south to see Jenny, when I arrived they were plowing the lot in front of her building. There was blowing and drifting snow on roads all over her area, not unusual given that the southern part of the county is largely rural. Temperatures rose into the 50s on Friday, all the better to get rid of the ugly white stuff. Take care, thanks for reading.

March 4-5

Back at the Arena on Saturday night as the marathon weekend continued with Monarchs/Royals Round #2. This was the organization's Autism Awareness night, the club wore special sweaters that were auctioned for the cause. We refrained from using the goal horn and had the sound system's volume at a lower level, I even attempted to be less bombastic although I don't feel I'm terribly egregious in that area to begin with. On this night the visitors from New Hampshire scored early in the second period to take a 1-0 lead, midway through the stanza Mike Pereira lit the lamp to draw the Royals even. The deadlock remained in place as the game moved into overtime, in the extra session Ryan Penny found the net to give the Royals a crucial 2-1 victory. On Sunday we were back at it early, the annual Battle Of The Badges faced off at 1:30. This game began in 2006 and has always been between the Reading Fire vs Police Departments, for this edition a new wrinkle was introduced as the first-responders from Reading/Berks played together against a similar squad from the Allentown/Lehigh Valley area. It was an entertaining game, the Reading team won it 8-6. At 5:00 the Norfolk Admirals made the third of their five appearances and another low-scoring game was in store. Goals by Matt Wilkins in the first period and Matt Willows in the second staked the home team to a 2-0 lead, in the third Norfolk got on the board but could not notch the equalizer. Mark Dekanich picked up his second win of the weekend, he was in goal on Saturday night as well. The long weekend ends with the club's mark at 34-21-3, 18-12-0 at home. The boys play the next three on the road, we're back home on Tuesday the 14th (and I'm sure we'll all be recovered by then). Take care, thanks for reading.

March 1-3

The third month of 2017 began on a Wednesday and that meant lunch with Jenny in Quarryville. They say March is supposed to come in like a lion but on this day temperatures topped out at 69 degrees. The morning errand run was the extent of Thursday activities, on Friday The Lion finally arrived (albeit two days late) with windy conditions and a daytime high of 37. It was a hockey night in Reading as the Royals hosted the Manchester Monarchs in the fifth of the Mons' seven scheduled visits to the arena. The Royals entered play having lost five of their last seven on home ice, on this night that dropped to six of eight in the form of a frustrating one-goal defeat. Ryan Penny gave the Royals a 1-0 lead late in the first period. midway through the game the Monarchs evened it at 1-1. Mike Pereira's score with six minutes left in the period to put the Royals back ahead but Manchester answered back with two of their own, the second coming with eight seconds left to go up 3-2. Neither team found the net in the third as the Mons held on for the win, Martin Ouellette was the goalie of record. The club's record stands at 32-21-3, 16-12 at home. The homestand continues on Saturday (the Monarchs again) and Sunday (vs Norfolk), Sunday is actually a doubleheader with the annual Battle Of The Badges game at 1:30. Can you say BUSY? Take care, thanks for reading.