Royalty w/o 2/3 in review

Monday February 3rd after work I went out to Newark, NJ to see the Devils host the Colorado Avalanche at the Prudential Center. I got to meet up with my pals, the King & Frank Anichiarico aka Duck who were also in attendance that night.

As for the game we saw, the Devils scored a goal late in the first period to a take a 1-0 lead. It appeared they were going to make that goal stand up for the victory. That was wishful thinking for the home crowd. The Avalanche wound up getting the equalizer with just 1:47 left in regulation time to knot the score at one. The game went into overtime & the Avalanche scored just 28 seconds in to beat the Devils, 2-1 in sudden death. It wasn't a total loss thanks to modern NHL rules. The Devils by getting to overtime still got credited with a point in the standings even though they blew the game late then lost it in the extra session. As the King likes to say & I quote "they reward teams for losing." In addition, he likes to say "when is a loss not a loss." This game is a classic example of that.

Tuesday night after work I came home. I wound up making myself dinner & I took it easy for a change.

Wednesday night after work I went to the Transformed MSG to see the Knicks welcome the Portland Trail Blazers to the Big Apple. I sat up in the West Balcony where I usually do for games there these days. On this night, I wound up being by a group of people who were from Portland, Oregon. They were all decked out in their Trail Blazer gear. 

As for the game I saw, the Knicks did their best to hang with the surprising Trail Blazers most of the night. In the end, the Trail Blazers escaped the area with a 94-90 victory much to the delight of their fans who came all the way across the country to see them play on the road.

Thursday night after work I went to the Barclays Center in downtown Brooklyn where I met up with the King. That night the Nets took on the shorthanded San Antonio Spurs who played without their star players, Tony Parker & Manu Ginobili who were hurt as well as Tim Duncan who was given the night off. When I heard that, I was furious. People spend good money to see these guys play. Injuries are part of the game. As for Tim Duncan needing a night off, I thought that was a bunch of nonsense. 

As for the game we saw, the Spurs got off to a fast start despite being without their key players. As the game went on, the Nets came back. Once they took the lead they didn't look back as they cruised to a 103-89 win.

Friday night after work I returned to Newark, NJ to see the Devils battle the Edmonton Oilers with the King who I met at the Rock.

As for the game we saw, it was similar to the Avalanche game except both teams scored 29 seconds apart midway through the first period. It stayed that way as the game wound up going into overtime again. This time however the Devils came away with the two points as defenseman Jon Merrill lit the lamp midway through the extra session to give the Devils & their faithful something to cheer about on their way home, a 2-1 decision over the Oilers.

Saturday the King & I took the Long Island Railroad out to Lindenhurst where we met up with our pal Eddie Pelle who drove us to Stony Brook to see a college basketball game between his alma mater, the Seawolves & the New Hampshire Wildcats at the Pritchard Gymnasium.

Stony Brook Seawolves basketball at Prichard Gymnasium

As for the game we saw, it was a close contested from start to finish. Unfortunately for Eddie, the Seawolves came out on the short end of the scoreboard as they lost to the Wildcats, 73-69.

As a positive note, it was Wolfie their mascot's birthday. As a result, everybody in attendance were treated to cupcakes to celebrate the special occasion during the halftime intermission. 

After the game, Eddie drove us to Smokin' Al's which is a barbecue joint that he's gone to a number of times in the past before Islander games in Massapequa Park for dinner. Ironically we were on our way to the Nassau Coliseum that night too. Luckily we had enough time to do so. Eddie wet my appetite a few weeks beforehand. He painted a picture that couldn't be beat.

Full rack of Monster Bones at Smokin' Al's

As for the meal we had, I was so stuffed when I got done I felt sick to my stomach. Eddie wound up taking a doggie bag home. My stomach devoured the food & then some. I had burnt ends to start along with a full rack of monster bones which were massive sized ribs. They were so good I didn't want them to go to waste. 

After we ate, Eddie drove us to the Nassau Coliseum where we saw the Islanders play the Colorado Avalanche. It was the last game before the NHL shut down due to the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia.

As for the game we saw, the Avalanche raced out to a 3-0 lead midway through the game. The Islanders broke the shutout midway through the third period but they fell short by a score of 4-2. 

I want to thank Eddie again for taking such good care of the King & I.

Sunday night the King & I went to the Barclays Center to see the Nets play the New Orleans Pelicans. More importantly, I got to see my pal Mark Chesna who flew up from Atlanta to see the game. Mark needed to see the Barclays Center for the first time. I was able to get him a ticket a few months ago. He was joined by an old friend of his, Lars Wigren who lives within walking distance of the arena. 

As for the game we saw, the Nets went up early which set the tone for the rest of the night. They wound up beating the Pelicans, 93-81. 

As for me the real highlight was getting to see Mark again. In addition, I got to meet & greet his friend Lars.

Stay tuned for a few more posts that will recap the rest of my adventurous month of  February.

Thank you for reading & following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman