Royalty sees Stadium Series at Yankee Stadium!‏

The NHL started an annual tradition back on January 1, 2008 when they played their first outdoor game in the United States. The Pittsburgh Penguins played the Buffalo Sabres at Ralph Wilson Stadium in Orchard Park, NY. It was an overwhelming success. They called it the Winter Classic. The NHL had played a similar game back in November 2003 in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada which they referred to as the Heritage Classic.

As time has gone on, the Winter Classic as become a mainstay on New Year's Day here in the States. As for the Heritage Classic, the NHL had another one in Calgary in February 2011 which the King & I attended.

With that being said, the NHL decided to expand its plans to having more games outdoors this season. As a result, the Stadium Series was born. The league decided to have games in the three largest markets in the States. New York, Chicago & Los Angeles. They also added another game in Vancouver which is part of the Heritage Classic series. 

As for the Stadium Series, the King & I got to go to both of the games they decided to play at Yankee Stadium. The New York Rangers wound up being the visiting team in both games. That way they didn't lose any home games at the Transformed Madison Square Garden. In other words, it was a financial issue. They played against their local rivals, the New Jersey Devils & the New York Islanders.

National Anthem from our seats in section 420B row 5

The first game was on Sunday afternoon, January 26th. Despite the brutal winter we've experienced here in NYC, the game was played. It was delayed an hour at the start due to sun glare on the ice. The game time temperature was a balmy 24 degrees of which an announced crowd of 50,105 people braved the elements to be a part of history. Besides the King & I, a number of people we know we're there as well including Greg Venuto & his pal Paul Bosler who I arranged to get tickets for. They couldn't thank me enough for helping them out. I was more than happy to do so because that's who I am. If I can make a difference, I will. 

As for the game we saw, the Devils scored the game's first goal to take a 1-0 lead. They went up 3-1 late in the first period. The Rangers added a late goal to make it 3-2. In the second period, the Rangers scored four unanswered goals to take a 6-3 lead. They added one more in the third period thanks to Derek Stepan who scored on a penalty shot midway through the period to round out the scoring as the Rangers beat the Devils, 7-3 in front of a mixed crowd of hockey fans. Since the Ranger season ticket holders were forced to buy tickets to both games, there were slightly more Ranger fans at both games.

Wednesday night January 29th the King & I decided to do it again. I met the King there after work. We dressed for the occasion & we survived without a problem despite a game time temperature of 22 degrees. I wound up meeting my pal Eddie Pelle who went to the game too. We had dinner together at the New Sunflower, a Chinese restaurant a few blocks from Yankee Stadium. When I got up to my seat with the King in section 424 row 2 we had an empty seat which was filled by our other buddy Andrew Van Cleve who came up from Philadelphia to see the game.

View from section 424 row 2

 As for the game we saw, the Rangers & Islanders played a scoreless first period. The game remained that way until late in the second period. The Islanders got on the scoreboard first as Brock Nelson got one by Ranger goalie Henrik Lundqvist to give the Islanders a 1-0 lead. It was short lived as the Rangers got the equalizer 40 seconds later to even the score at one with 47 seconds left in the period. In the third period, Dan Carcillo lit the lamp to give the Rangers a 2-1 lead. That's the way it ended as the Rangers won again outdoors. They're now 3-0 when you include the win they had over the Philadelphia Flyers in the 2012 Winter Classic at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia.

Stay tuned as I plan to do the rest of my w/o 1/27 in review when time allows me too.

Thank you for reading & following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty goes to Prudential Center to see NJ Devils' Home Opener!

When September ended so did the regular season for baseball. As for me, my baseball games were going to be few & far between if I got to see any more.

With that being said, it was time to gear up for the fall & winter sports on a regular basis.

With a limited number of sporting events in the area during the month of October, I had to find a way to keep myself busy. Luckily I was able to go out to Newark, NJ after work on Friday, October 4th as the NJ Devils played their home opener against their local area rival, the NY Islanders at the Prudential Center. The Devils lost their first game the night before in Pittsburgh as the Penguins shut them out.

I wound up meeting my pal Mike Carroll who bought the King's ticket for the game since he wound up going to Boston to see the Red Sox play the Rays in the American League Division Series at Fenway Park instead. After I got delayed due to signal problems on the Path train, I finally got to meet up with Mike outside the arena around 6:40PM. As a result, I decided to get a spinach stromboli at the Rock for dinner. It turned out to be a wise move since it was getting close to game time.

Home Opener at Prudential Center

When I finished eating, I went up to my seat in section 226 row 6 where I was joined by Mike Carroll & my other buddy Vincent Ascanio who was present & accounted for. After the first intermission, I walked around the concourse & I saw Domish, the hockey king if you will.

As for the game we saw, the Devils scored their first goal of the season 2:59 into the first period when Damien Brunner lit the lamp to give the Devils a 1-0 lead. The Islanders tied the game at one later in the period when Michael Grabner of the Islanders got the equalizer. Both teams exchanged goals in the second & third periods as Michael Grabner got two of them. As for the Devils, they tied the game at three 7:34 into the third period when Damien Brunner added his second goal of the game. After playing a scoreless five minute overtime session, the game was decided by a shootout. In the skills competition, both teams showed their incompetence. Neither team could score for the first five rounds. Finally in the sixth round, Matt Moulson of the Islanders scored the one & only goal of the shootout. As a result, the Islanders emerged victorious, 4-3.

Stay tuned for a series of special posts that will recap my memorable weekend getaway to the Southeast over the first weekend in October.

Thank you for reading & following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty gets a long awaited return to the Stanley Cup Finals!

Prince at Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Finals

Saturday night the King and I got to go to see the NJ Devils play the Los Angeles Kings in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Finals at the Prudential Center in Newark, NJ  with our pal Bryan Gilligan who drove us there.

The last time we saw a game in the Stanley Cup Finals was back in 2003 when the Devils beat the Anaheim Mighty Ducks in Game 7 to win their third Stanley Cup at the old Meadowlands Arena. Mike Rupp of the Devils at the time and current NY Ranger had the game of his life.

This time around the Devils lost the first game in overtime, 2-1 to the Kings.

The Devils played a similar game in Game 2. They fell behind 1-0 again when the Kings' Drew Doughty put a shot past Devils' goalie Martin Brodeur 7:49 into the first period. The score stayed that way until 2:59 into the third period when the Devils' Ryan Carter redirected a pass to tie the game at one. With the equalizer, the crowd at the Prudential Center finally woke up. They were nervous that their Devils were down a goal.

The game wound up being decided again in sudden death overtime. Unfortunately for the Devils, they came out on the wrong side of the scoreboard as late season acquisition and former Philadelphia Flyer Jeff Carter lit the lamp with 6:18 left in the first overtime. As a result, he may have ended the season for the Devils at home as the Kings won again, 2-1.

As for my personal attendance in Stanley Cup Finals games, I've been to 12 over the years including this latest one.

The others are as follows:

1989 Calgary Flames at Montreal Canadiens Game 4
1994 Vancouver Canucks at NY Rangers Game 7
1998 Detroit Red Wings at Washington Capitals Game 3
2000 Dallas Stars at NJ Devils Games 1, 2 & 5
2001 Colorado Avalanche at NJ Devils Games 3, 4 & 6
2003 Anaheim Mighty Ducks at NJ Devils Games 1 & 7

If and when you get to go one of these games, it's a great experience. I've been very fortunate to have seen what I have. For that, I'm very grateful.

Stay tuned for the recap of the baseball I saw over the weekend as well.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty w/o 2/27 in review

This was another week where I just fell short of having a royal week of Stadium Travel.

The week started rough because I had to starve all day Sunday into Monday morning so I could be ready for a colonoscopy that I had scheduled for Monday morning. I could only drink liquids. With that being said, I didn't go to work.

I wound up meeting my sister Abbey who took me to the doctor's office. I needed her to take me home because I wasn't allowed to leave on my own.

As for the colonoscopy, I got an injection that put me into the twilight zone so I didn't feel a thing during the procedure. When it was all said and done, I checked out with a clean bill of health. Due to family history, I was told to take the necessary precautions just in case so I wisely listened to that advice. I'm good for another three to five years now in that regard.

Despite the fact I've been everywhere there's no need to let up yet so I don't want to suddenly have a health issue if I can do something to prevent it. Unlike many people I know, I incorporate visits to the doctor when it's deemed necessary into my rigorous work and play schedule. For example, I always go for a yearly check up. By doing so, I increase the chances that I can live longer and enjoy what life truly has to offer.

In order to have a full life barring a freak incident along the way, you need to make your health your top priority. In that case, my lifestyle needs a break once in a long while so I can continue on for the long haul I hope.

After starving for so long, I took my sister out for a late breakfast on the way back home. After I rested up during the afternoon, I went on my way back to living the life of royalty.

I went to Madison Square Garden that night to see the NY Rangers play their cross town rival, the NJ Devils. The game itself was rather boring. Both teams barely had any shots on the goal throughout the game. The Rangers got an early goal which proved to be the difference as they added an empty net goal late to beat the Devils, 2-0 as their goaltender Henrik Lundqvist recorded his eighth shutout of the season.

Since it was a rivalry matchup, tempers flared during the match as the Rangers' Mike Rupp, who used to play for the Devils and the Devils' David Clarkson both were in and out of the penalty box for causing havoc on the ice a number of times during the game.

Tuesday I went back to work and afterwards I came home to relax since there were no sporting events in the area to attend.

Wednesday night after work on "Leap" day I went back to Madison Square Garden for another dosage of Lin-Sanity as the Knicks were hosting the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Before the game, I treated myself royally as I indulged in a huge corned beef and pastrami sandwich on rye bread from the Carnegie Deli stand at the Garden. I know how to get the both of all worlds when I have the time and money to do so.

After enjoying my meal, I went to my seat to enjoy the game.

As for the game, I got to see Lin-Sanity as he paced the Knicks with 19 points and 13 assists. Steve Novak came off the bench to drain five three point baskets in the second half to help sink the Cavaliers who had a twelve point lead at halftime. The Knicks went on to over take the Cavaliers as they raced off with a 120-103 victory.

I did get to see rookie Kyrie Irving, the Cavaliers number one draft pick out of Duke play for the first time live. He was impressive as he scored 22 points. Unfortunately the Cavaliers ran out of gas in the second half. It should be noted that the officials didn't help their cause either. That's the way it is in the NBA when you're the road team.

Thursday night after work I went to downtown Brooklyn to see LIU aka Long Island University Blackbirds play the Pioneers of Sacred Heart in the Northeast Conference quarterfinals.

I was there with the King and our friends Frank Anichiarico and Larry Peim who graduated LIU back in the day.

As for the game we saw, the Blackbirds managed to beat the Pioneers, 80-68 to advance to the next round.
Stay tuned for a special post that I'm going to do that will recap my royal birthday celebration weekend.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty returns to Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada to see the "new" Jets play hockey!

Winnipeg Jet Hockey is Back 

The King and I continued our memorable weekend getaway in the upper Midwest as we departed St. Paul, Minnesota after the Wild game against the Devils Friday night.

We proceeded to drive 470 miles to Winnipeg to see the return of the Jets. After a 15 year absence, one of the smallest markets in Canada finally got its beloved hockey team back. They were welcomed with open arms to say the least.

I'll elaborate more in a moment.

On our way up north of the border, we decided to drive halfway there. We spent the night in West Fargo, North Dakota at Super 8 where got some sleep before we continued on to Winnipeg.
When we got up in the morning, we had a hearty royal style breakfast at a local diner called Kroll's, where they say and I quote "sit down and eat." We were more then happy to do so. We stumbled across another great eatery by accident. I'm very glad we did. The food and service was excellent. If you know my style, you know I'm not lying.

If you happen to be out in that part of the country sometime, stop in and see for yourself.

While you're there you make want to visit the Roger Maris Museum which is located right nearby in Fargo, North Dakota. More importantly, the price is right. Admission is free. Due to time constraints, the King and I couldn't go there and see for ourselves. We'll keep it in mind if and when we get to go back there some day down the road.

We got back on the highway and we drove up towards Winnipeg. We did make a quick stop at a "Hockey Palace." I'm referring to the University of North Dakota where the Fighting Sioux play. Our pals from Buffalo, Andrew Kulyk and Peter Farrell have seen a game in this unique venue. I hope we get back some time so we can too.

We got back on the road and off to Canada we went. We got across the border thankfully with minimal hassle and delays.

The next stop was the MTS Centre, home of the new Jets, in downtown Winnipeg. We arrived there at 4:30PM. We paid a dollar to park by a meter a few blocks from the arena. We had plenty of time to grab dinner outside before we headed over to the arena for the 6PM local time start.

We saw the Devils again as their road trip continued in Winnipeg. For our purposes, it worked well that the Devils were out there. We secured single tickets from Ticketmaster the week before.

Tickets for a Jet game aren't cheap at the box office. Since they're in such high demand, the secondary market prices are outrageous to say the least. That's if you can find any. Stub Hub only has a very limited number for sale each game. In other words, it's a very tough ticket. Please feel free to consult me for advice.

This was a must see for us because we needed to maintain our royal status of having seen a hockey game in all the current NHL rinks. This one notwithstanding.

Unless another team decides to relocate somewhere we're safe for the time being for hockey.

As for the game we saw, it was a seesaw battle but when it was all said and done, the Devils dropped another game on their dreadful road trip as they fell to the Jets, 4-2.

After the game, the King and I drove back to West Fargo, North Dakota to get some sleep which was cut short thanks to the NFL flex scheduling. We planned to go back to Minneapolis to see the Vikings play the Denver Broncos at 3:05PM but the time was changed to 12 Noon central time instead.

Did that prevent us from getting there on time? Check back and see as I recap the rest of the weekend that we spent out in the Twin Cities.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty enjoys long awaited return to St. Paul for Wild hockey!

Opening Face Off at Xcel Energy Center 

Late Friday morning the King and I departed NYC from LaGuardia airport on American Airlines. We arrived in the Twin Cities early in the afternoon as we gained an hour since their in the central time zone.
We proceeded to rent a car from Alamo for the weekend. We got an upgrade since they didn't have any more mid size cars available so they gave us a full size car instead. We got a Chevy Impala. I've rented a number of those in the past so I was used to the controls.

After we left the car rental, we proceeded to the St. Paul area since we were going to see the Minnesota Wild play the NJ Devils that night.

Since we were hungry and we had some extra spare time, we decided to go to a familiar place to see to eat. I'm talking about Shamrock's. We were introduced to this place the last time when we went to Target Field in July 2010.

Shamrock's is a local bar and grill. For more details, see the special post under my restaurant reviews section.

After we had another great meal, we headed to the Xcel Energy Center which was only a few miles away. I wouldn't recommend walking there from Shamrock's though. I was told that by Natalie Kaess, who works for the Minnesota Wild and was kind enough to arrange to get the King and I tickets for the game. I spoke to her during the week and I gave her my credit card number and she charged up the tickets for us. An assist goes to Josh Morozowski, my Devils ticket representative who helped by getting one of his co-workers named Chris involved who had meet her in Nashville at a conference recently.

Upon arriving at the arena, I went to will call and I picked up the tickets. When I went inside I went over to the guest services booth located at section 105 where Natalie said she would be working that night. I had the privilege of meeting her and we chatted for a little while. I thanked again for arranging to get us the tickets without a hassle. In addition, she told me about a restaurant in Woodbury, Minnesota which was about 15-20 minutes East of St. Paul heading towards Wisconsin.

I'm referring to the Machine Shed. I ate there on my way to Des Moines, Iowa back in September. I'll be talking about this restaurant again in another post. Please stay tuned.

As for Natalie, she was very helpful and if indeed you decide to go to Minnesota to see the Wild play, I'll make sure that I get you in contact with her so she can treat you royally.

As for the game we saw, the Devils struck first early to make it 1-0 but the Wild answered back fast and furiously as they chased future Hall of Famer Martin Brodeur after they scored three quick goals just 8:17 into the first period.

The Devils got within one at 3-2 but they blew numerous scoring chances throughout the game as the Wild added an empty net goal late to win the game, 4-2.

Stay tuned for the next installment from this memorable journey.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty makes the most of the long Thanksgiving weekend!

Me on the Zamboni 

After I returned the car I rented at Avis, I took a few buses out to the Nassau Coliseum where I met up with the King and our friend Bryan Gilligan who drove out there.

We saw the Islanders take on their cross river rival the NJ Devils in a mid afternoon tilt on Black Friday.
Apparently the game started too early for the players because goals were few and far between. In matter of fact, there was only one goal scored in this game. The Devils were the team that found the net as they beat the Islanders, 1-0.

After the game, we all went back to Donovan's Pub and we had a nice post game dinner.

Saturday afternoon the King and I went to Newark, NJ to see the rematch of the Islanders and Devils in the back end of their home and home series.

We were joined by my Cousin Andy who wanted to get another sample of royal treatment. He always enjoys our company and this day was no different.

This time he got to see me ride the Zamboni before the game as they resurfaced the ice. I got to do so because I renewed my Devil season tickets early so I was given this special perk. It was really cool being able to take a joy ride around the ice. I would like to personally thank Josh Morozowski who is my ticket representative for arranging to make this happen.

As for the game we saw, this time more goals were scored but the Devils came up short as they lost, 3-2. With 2.1 seconds left, a goal was disallowed because it was directed in by Zach Parise's skate in front of the net.

After the game, the King and I said goodbye to my Cousin Andy who went home and we took a NJ Transit train down to Trenton, NJ to see a minor league hockey game in the ECHL. We saw the Trenton Titans play the Chicago Express.

We saw a good battle as the Titans built a 2-0 lead which they held going into the third period. The Express managed to comeback and they forced an overtime session. Just past the midway point of the overtime, the Titans lit the lamp as they came away with a 3-2 victory.

After the game, we took a NJ Transit train back to NYC.

Sunday the King and I wrapped our busy sports weekend by going to MetLife Stadium where we saw the Jets take on division rival, the Buffalo Bills.

As for the game, it wasn't a pretty one but I was satisfied with the end result as the Jets squeaked by the Bills, 28-24. Luck once again was on their side. As a result, they kept their playoff hopes alive.

After the game, we went home and rested up after running around all weekend.

We had a great time but it did take its toll on our bodies so the needed rest came in handy.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty w/o 10/31 in review

View from Center Ice

After experiencing a winter preview over the weekend, Halloween officially arrived that Monday.
I went to work on Halloween tired and all. After work, I found a way to get up the energy to go to Madison Square Garden to see the Rangers play the San Jose Sharks. It was my first game there since they started the Transformation of the Garden.

Stay tuned for the special post I'll be doing to give you an idea of what to expect if and when you have a chance to go to the World's Most Famous Arena.

As for the game I saw on Halloween night, the hometown Rangers gave their fans a treat as they beat up the Sharks, 5-2 after the game started with a fight just seven seconds into the contest as the Sharks' Ryane Clowe and the Rangers' Brandon Prust dropped the gloves.

After the fight, the Rangers raced out to a 2-0 lead in the first period. The Sharks got on the board late in the period to cut the lead in half 2-1 after the first period. The Sharks got the equalizer almost midway through the second period. After that, the Rangers scored three unanswered goals including two from newly named team captain Ryan Callahan as the Rangers cruised to the victory.

It was nice to see many of the regulars that were in attendance. Over the years, I've seen my share of Ranger games at the Garden so familiar faces aren't hard to find. I recognize many different people even if I've never spoken to some of them. It's nice to see many of them are back for another season.

Tuesday night I went home after work to catch up on much needed rest.

Wednesday night after work, I went to Newark, NJ to see the Devils play the Toronto Maple Leafs at the Prudential Center. Ironically four years ago to the day on November 2, 2007, I saw my first Devil game at the "Rock" against the Maple Leafs no less.

The only difference between the games was the outcome. The Devils won, 3-2 back in 2007 but this time the Maple Leafs emerged victorious as Joffrey Lupul scored a hat trick that included goals to break a 2-2 and 3-3 tie as the Leafs turned back the Devils, 5-3.

Thursday night after work I went back to the Garden to see the Anaheim Ducks who were in town to play the Rangers on this night.

This time the Rangers lead 1-0 until late in the second period when the Ducks tied it up at one. The score remained that way through the third period and the overtime session.

This game was decided by a shootout and the Rangers managed to win the skills competition if you will. As a result, they won the game, 2-1 in a shootout.

Friday night I went home after work to rest up since there were no games in the local area. I got to rest up for another busy weekend that was ahead of me.

For all the details, please stay tuned for the special post that I'm going to write recapping my latest adventure. It may take some time but it will definitely be worth the wait. Please bear with me.

As always, I want to thank all my readers and followers for taking your precious time to read about me and my whereabouts.

Needless to say, if and when you need my assistance and/or advice please feel free to consult me. If you don't, I'll feel insulted.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty w/o 10/10 in review

Abbey, Jeremy, Taylor and Scott

It was a slow start to the week for me as I went home after work Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday night.
Thursday night I broke the string of eventless days as I met my Cousin Andy out in Newark, NJ. We met up for dinner at Subway then we went over to the Prudential Center to see the New Jersey Devils play the Los Angeles Kings. We were joined by the King who met us there.

As for the game we saw, there was a lot of action throughout the night despite a lack of goal scoring. The game's only scoring came in the first period as Simon Gagne drew first blood for the Kings 1:47 into the game. The Devils' Patrik Elias answered later in the period to even the score at one.

After playing two scoreless periods and an overtime session, the game was decided by a shootout as the Devils prevailed, 2-1. Ilya Kovalchuk and Zach Parise scored the only goals in the shootout as the Devils came away with the extra point.

My Cousin Andy was so grateful for the opportunity to join us again. He wrote me an e-mail the next day thanking me for treating him like royalty. It's always a pleasure to have his company. He doesn't get to get out that often so when he does I always like to make sure I go over the top so he can take in the full royalty experience. His appreciation makes me feel like I did a good deed. It's a great feeling when somebody takes advantage of my willingness to help out. That's what life's all about.

We parted ways after the game at the train station and we said we look forward to doing it again next month.

Friday night was another night off for me. After getting some more rest, I was ready for my busy weekend ahead.

Besides going to sporting events on a regular basis, I do take good care of my health as well. With that being said, I went to the dentist for a check up and a cleaning. Everything checked out well. As usual, the dentist said and I quote "you have good teeth." I work very hard to maintain them on a daily basis so I'm happy to hear it's paying off.

After I got done with the dentist, I went out to Long Island to visit my sister Abbey, my brother-in-law, Scott and my adorable niece Taylor and my nephew Jeremy who just turned six years old on Tuesday. Abbey was having a birthday party for him so I went to join in the festivities. It was nice to see the family again and especially the kids who are getting so big so fast.

After the party, I met up with the King at the Nassau Coliseum as the New York Islanders were hosting their arch rivals, the New York Rangers. As usual, it was a feisty and heated affair with a playoff like atmosphere. The game was very entertaining to watch. The arena was jam packed with fans of both teams.

The game itself went back and forth. The Islanders emerged victorious 4-2 as John Tavares scored the empty netter to seal the deal late in the third period. By doing so, he completed the hat trick as he scored his third goal of the game sending the Islander fans home happy.

Stay tuned as I'll be doing a special post describing the game we saw Sunday afternoon with two great roadtrippers who were in town for a special return visit.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty w/o 10/3 in review

Hockey's Back!

Now that baseball regular season is over, my schedule has been changed dramatically for the time being.
I had high hopes for the Phillies and Yankees just because it would have meant a chance to see some more baseball games this year.

After going home after work Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday night it was finally time to see another game up in the Bronx Thursday night after work.

The Yankees managed to force a deciding game in their American League Division Series with the Detroit Tigers.

The winner moved on to play the Texas Rangers in the ALCS and the loser went home for the winter.
Well the Tigers got two solo home runs on back to back pitches in the first inning off Yankee starter Ivan Nova to give the Tigers an early 2-0 lead. Don Kelly and Delmon Young did the honors.

The Tigers tacked on another run to make it 3-0 before the Yankees sliced the lead to 3-2. Unfortunately for the Yankees they were unable to get the big hit they needed to tie the game against the Tiger bullpen as they fell short as Alex Rodriguez strike out swinging to end their season and mine for that matter.

It was my 160th baseball game I attended in 2011. My lowest total since 2002 when I saw a mere 162. It was a tough year for me between the schedule and things at home which restricted me from seeing more. Given the circumstances, I did well all things considered.

After going home from work Friday night, I shifted gears on Saturday.

The King and I and our friends Frank Anichiarico and Bryan Gilligan went to see the Columbia Lions play the Sacred Heart Pioneers in Upper Manhattan at Robert K. Kraft Field at Lawrence Wien Stadium.
The winless Lions stayed that way as the Pioneers beat them in a shootout, 34-25. The Lions' place kicker Luke Eddy missed two point after touchdowns and he had another one blocked.

After the game, the King and I said goodbye to Frank and Bryan then we headed out to Newark, NJ to go to the Prudential Center to see hockey as the New Jersey Devils play the Philadelphia Flyers on Opening Night.

The Devils inability to put the puck in the net reared its ugly head again. The Devils got shut out by the Flyers, 3-0.

It could be a long year for the Devils. I'm hoping it was just an aberration and hopefully they'll get their offense in gear sooner than later. Time will tell. Stay tuned to my blog to see if indeed the Devils can get it going since I plan to see a lot of Devil games in the winter months ahead.

Sunday the King and I and our friend Rich Wolber aka Staten Island took a bus ride from the Port Authority Bus Terminal to MetLife Stadium to see the Giants play the visiting Seattle Seahawks. The Giants came in to the game riding high with a 3-1 record. The Seahawks were the opposite at 1-3.

As for the game we saw, the Giants didn't look like they came to play. They let the Seahawks hang around throughout the game. The Giants had taken a lead at 22-19 in the fourth quarter as second year wide receiver Victor Cruz from UMASS who the King and I saw play in November 2009 made an acrobatic catch deflecting the ball in double coverage and catching it with one hand as he took it into the end zone for the go ahead score.

The Seahawks came back and tied the game at 22. The Giants we took the lead, 25-22. The Seahawks once again came back thanks largely in part to back up quarterback Charlie Whitehurst who we saw play in college at Clemson in 2005. Whitehurst replaced starter Tavaris Jackson who left early in the third quarter with an injury. The Seahawks regained the lead 29-25. The Giants appeared to be on the verge of scoring the winning touchdown but this time Victor Cruz couldn't hold on to the ball as it popped up in the air and was intercepted by Brandon Browner who returned it 94 yards for a touchdown that sealed the deal for the Seahawks as they came away with a 36-25 victory.

Stay tuned for the special post I'm going to do about Gio Gonzalez who had a solid season for the Oakland Athletics.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty w/o 1/3 in review‏

Monday night I came home after work to catch up on lost sleep and I geared up for the week ahead.

Tuesday I went to Madison Square Garden after work to see the NBA's best team, the San Antonio Spurs take on the Knicks. The Spurs came in with a 30-4 record.

The new and improved Knicks made them look rather ordinary on this night. They used their fast pace style to perfection as they ran the Spurs off the court. They beat them, 128-115. It was an exciting game to watch for a change.

The Knicks were lead by Wilson Chandler who had 31 points. Amar'e Stoudemire and Raymond Felton added 28 points each.

As for the Spurs, Tony Parker scored 26 points in the losing effort.

Wednesday night I went out to Newark, NJ to see the Nets host the Chicago Bulls.

The Nets held off the Bulls in this one and they won 96-94. Sasha Vujacic hit the game winning shot with 5.3 seconds to go to give the Nets the victory.

This game was close in the first half. In the third quarter, the Nets opened up a big lead. In the fourth quarter, the Bulls stormed back to tie it but the Nets were fortunate to make the last shot to come out with the win.

Kris Humphries had 20 points and 11 rebounds while Devin Harris finished with 18 points and he dished out 11 assists to pace the Nets.

Derrick Rose was the high scorer for the Bulls with 21 points.

Late in the game I got a text message from my new found traveling friend, Eddie. He said he was at Rutgers and he asked me if I wanted a lift home. I wrote him back and I told him that would be fabulous.

The Net game looked like it may go overtime which would have helped since I wound up waiting a short time for him to come at Newark Penn Station.

Despite that, thanks to Eddie's kindness and thoughfulness I got home 35-40 minutes earlier than I would have if I took public transportation.

Needless to say, I was very grateful to receive that text message.

Thursday night I was back in Newark for the Devils and Flyers.

The Devils have had a dreadful season thus far. On this night their nightmare continued as the Eastern Conference Champion Flyers beat the Devils, 4-2!

Daniel Briere and Scott Hartnell each scored two goals to lead the way for the Flyers.

After a night off on Friday night, I went back to Newark Saturday night. I would have loved to have been in Indianapolis for the Jets but unfortunately I can't afford to go everywhere.

Instead of staying home and watching the Jet game on TV, I decided to get the best of both worlds.

I got to see the Nets and Bucks at the Prudential Center live and I followed the Jet game on my phone so I was well aware of what was happening.

As for the Net game, they got blown out by the Bucks, 115-92!

Former Net, Chris Douglas-Roberts aka CDR scored a game high 24 points. Ersan Ilyasova poured in 22 points and grabbed 13 boards and Corey Maggette added 20 points for the victorious Bucks.

As for the Nets, Kris Humphries had 22 points and Jordan Farmar finished with 20 points and 10 assists in the defeat.

Sunday the King and I and our friend Rich Wolber aka Staten Island Rich went down to Philadelphia to see the Eagles play the Packers in the Wild Card game.

It should be noted that Rich was making his first visit to the "Linc" aka Lincoln Financial Field and Royalty made sure he got there finally.

In addition, we met up with our good friend Frankie Centola who lives in Philadelphia at the game.

By going to the Eagle game I was able to extend my playoff game attending streak. I've now seen at least one playoff game every year since 1997.

As for the game, the Eagles fell short 21-16! Michael Vick threw an interception in the end zone on the Eagles last drive that sealed their fate and ended their season.

The Eagles were fortunate to get a number of breaks throughout the game but they tried to force the issue and they came up short in the end.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Triponi's Pizza & Grill




Triponi's Pizza & Grill



When I go to see the NJ Devils and now the NJ Nets play at the Prudential Center in Newark, I always stop off here to get my dinner before the game.

It's conveniently located right in Newark Penn Station where the train station is.

They're on the lower level once you get off the train.

I usually get the pizza when I go there. They offer a great deal. You can get two regular slices and a drink for $6.00.

If you prefer a topping on your slices it's $7.50.

That's a bargain when you consider what it costs to eat at the arena.

In addition, they serve burgers and other hot dishes if you prefer something different.

You can ask for Syed and tell him Royalty sent you. He'll make sure you get treated right.

I do have season tickets for the Devils and the Nets so if you need tickets and/or assistance going to and from the Prudential Center, all you have to do is ask.

Thank you for reading.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty w/o 10/11 in review

Monday after having to work on Columbus Day, it was time to go back to the New Meadowlands Stadium for another Monday night football game.

This one was going to be interesting since we knew for a few months that former Jet quarterback Brett Farve was returning as a member of the Minnesota Vikings. In addition, the Vikings in deseparate need of a wide receiver decided to reacquire Randy Moss from the Patriots.

The addition of Moss added to the MNF matchup.

The game was scheduled to start at 8:30PM but thanks to mother nature the game was delayed 45 minutes due to lightning in the area.

The fans were asked to get out of the seating area and to stay in the concourses for safety reasons.

Royalty came prepared for the possibility of rain by bringing a poncho just in case. That turned out to be a wise decision since the rain let up and they were finally able to play. But as the game and the night wore on, it rained again so I didn't get totally drenched like some other people who didn't plan accordingly.

As for the game, the Jets wound up hanging on for a 29-20 victory.

Brett Farve threw a few touchdown passes. One to Randy Moss and another to Percy Harvin.

In the end, Brett Farve gave the Jet faithful the last laugh when he threw his only interception of the game that Dwight Lowery took to the house for a touchdown that secured the win for the Jets.

Royalty had company on this night as my friend Jack Erbs and his girlfriend Wendy met me near the Port Authority Bus Terminal and we went to and from the game together.

We wound up meeting the King there since he went to the Devil game in Newark that started at 4PM.

Furthermore, I got to see Hans Steiniger, who was visiting the New Meadowlands Stadium for the first time. Hans is a huge football fan and he loves to tailgate before and after every game he attends.

For further details about Hans, please check out his great website, http://www.nflfootballstadiums.com/.

His site is also on my blog list. I strongly suggest that you take a look at his site. He's known for his "Quest for 31".

It was great to see Hans again. I met him for the first time last year at Giants Stadium when he came in for the Jets/Patriots game.

I do plan to see him again in Cleveland and New England when the Jets play in November and December.

After catching up on some much needed rest Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday I went to Newark Friday night after work to see the NJ Devils take on the Colorado Avalanche at the Prudential Center.

The Devils fell behind 2-0 in this one and they couldn't catch up, they got within a goal but they fell short and lost to the Av's, 3-2.

Saturday morning I flew out to Denver, Colorado for the weekend to get a Rocky Mountain High on United Airlines.

After a false start, we finally took off from LaGuardia. We were going to be 25 minutes early going to Denver but believe it or not just before we were going to take off we were informed by the pilot that we needed to come back to the gate because there were bags that didn't belong on our flight. That's amazing considering nowadays they charge you to check your bags.

Thanks to that delay, we landed in Denver almost 25 minutes late which was a blessing in disguise for me.
Upon arrival, I rented a car from Alamo at the airport. I got a Toyota Corolla which was perfect for my needs. I didn't leave there until around 12 Noon Mountain time.

I was hoping to do the absolute impossible. I was hoping to stop in Fort Collins, Colorado to see the Colorado State/UNLV game that was starting at Noon. Thankfully I didn't get the opportunity to do so.

Instead I proceeded to drive to Laramie, Wyoming where I was planning to see the University of Wyoming Cowboys play the Utah Utes at 4PM Mountain time.

Sunday I went to the Jets/Broncos game at 2:05PM.

Please check back for all the details from this adventurous weekend.

Please bear with me as I try to play catch up. I've been very busy lately. When I have some free time I plan to go into further detail about this journey.

Stay tuned.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Devils fall to the Stars in OT on Opening Night!

Opening Night at the "Rock"

After resting up all week, it was time to shift gears on the fly from no baseball games on a daily and nightly basis to the start of the new hockey season.

The weather here in the Northeast has four seasons, royalty covers all four major sports.

After work, I took the subway to the Path train from NYC which terminates at Newark Penn Station. Upon arrival, I walked over to the Prudential Center for Opening night between the NJ Devils and the Dallas Stars.

Since it was opening night there was a big crowd going into the building. The entrance in the front that's closest to the train station was mobbed so I wisely walked around to find a less crowded way in.

I was somewhat successful until it was time to go through security, that seemed to be the reason for the slowdown of people entering the building. The setup in this building is stupid. First they have to wand you then if you have a bag like I normally do they search it and then finally you go to get your ticket scanned to enter.

Most arenas like the one in Philadelphia you get a quick security check and you proceed in the building. In Newark, they give you a harder time. After all, we're just attending a sporting event. If you plan to see a game there, please remember to pack your patience with you. Royalty knows the drill, the working media doesn't. They turn a "blind" eye to the nonsense that really goes on when you attend sporting events especially here in the NYC area.

Like everything else in life, you need to run into the right person to be successful. If not, good luck.

As for the game I saw, the Devils came out flying they build an early 2-0 lead, thanks to their 100 million dollar man Ilka Kovalchuk, who they resigned over the summer. He set up the two goals beautifully. His line mates Travis Zajac and Zach Parise did the finishing. The visiting Dallas Stars got back into the game when Brendan Morrow lit the lamp to slice the lead in half at 2-1. It stayed that way until the Stars evened it up when Loui Eriksson scored the first of his two goals of the night. The Devils regained the lead 3-2 when Jason Arnott in his second tour of duty with the Devils found the net on the power play just past the midway point of the game. Shortly thereafter, the Stars tied it up again when Brad Richards put the biscuit in the basket. The score remained that way until it was time for a five minute sudden death overtime. The Devils did put alot of pressure on in the third period but they couldn't score. In the end, Loui Eriksson won the game for the Stars when he got his second tally of the night just 1 minute and 36 seconds into overtime.

The Devils lost, 4-3!

It was an exciting game start to finish. Unfortunately for the Devils they started fast and fizzled in the end. Thanks to the modern rules of today's NHL, they were still awarded a point for getting the game into overtime. I don't agree with rewarding a team for losing but I don't have a say in the matter.

At least for their fans, hockey's back!

Thank you for reading.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman        

   

    

Royalty w/o 10/4 in review

This wasn't an eventful week during the week as expected but there was an indirect surprise.

I did secure a sheet of paper that the King used to get into Game 1 of the NLDS at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia on Wednesday afternoon.

The rest is history as they say.

After a very busy month of September, October is off to a slow start event attending wise for me.

With the Yankees not finishing in first place I had no extra games to add to my schedule during the week.

On the other hand, the King was blessed with the opportunity to see history.

After catching up on needed rest Monday-Thursday nights, it was time for to see hockey return on Friday night.

I went to the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey for Opening night between the NJ Devils and the Dallas Stars.

I'll go into further detail in a separate post.

Saturday I rented a car for the weekend then I rested and cleaned up during the day as I waited patiently until it was time to go back to the Bronx for postseason baseball.

I'll write a special post describing that experience.

After the Yankee game that ended just before midnight, the King and I drove 183 miles towards Washington D.C. to be in position to get to FedEx Field in Landover, Maryland to see the Green Bay Packers play the Washington Redskins at 1PM.

We stayed over at a Super 8 in Aberdeen, Maryland which put us only 65 miles from our final destination in Landover. We checked in to the hotel at 3:15AM.

We got a 9:30AM wake up call.

We left the hotel at 10:15AM.

I'll do a special post that will show you exactly how royalty rolls.

Please stay tuned as another adventurous weekend was put in the books.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Prudential Center

This building was named after the Prudential Insurance Company which is based in Newark, NJ.

They are known as the "Rock".

Hence most people affectionately refer to the building the same way.

As for the arena, it's the current home of the 3 time Stanley Cup Champion New Jersey Devils.

Starting in late October and/or early November later this year it will serve as the temporary home of the NJ soon to be Brooklyn Nets.

The Nets are suppose to play two seasons at the "Rock" before moving to Brooklyn, NY to call the Barclays Center their new permanent home in October 2012.

They just broke ground on March 11th for that new building.

It should be noted that basketball has been played at the "Rock" by the Seton Hall Pirates.

As for the building itself, it holds 17,625 for hockey and it should sit more than 18,000 for basketball.

It has two levels which is separated by a significant number of luxury boxes which is a must these days for professional sports teams to survive.

The concourses are very spacious on both levels.

They have a restaurant/bar built into the lower bowl for its upscale clientele which is part of the fancy Club seats they offer.

It's a nice place to view a game and a way to spend some quality time with good friends, acquaintances and clients.

It's easily accessible by public transportation.

It's located in downtown Newark within a short walk of Newark-Penn Station.

NJ Transit trains stop there from all different parts of New Jersey.

In addition, people who live and/or work in New York City can take the Path train there as well.

Driving is always an option of course.

Furthermore, you walk through the Gateway Center en route to the arena where you'll find a number of places to eat along the way.

Moreover, there's a district in the vicinity called Ironbound where fans go to hang out before and after the game.

I have full season tickets to both the Devils and the Nets.

If you're interested, let me know and hopefully we can work somthing out in the future.