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

Royalty sees a hockey/basketball doubleheader on Martin Luther King Day!

Prince at Sovereign Center

On the day we remembered the man behind the Civil Rights movement, the King & I and our pal Vincent Ascanio spent the day watching hockey and basketball.

After I spent another night with my parents in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, I went to Super 8 and I picked up the King & Vincent. We drove to Reading, PA aka Baseball town and we stopped off at First Energy Stadium which is the home of the newly named Reading Fightin Phils of the Eastern League to show Vincent the ballpark which we think is one of the best in the minor leagues.

We wound up going to Zabala's Sports Diner for breakfast which was located right across the street from the ballpark in right field. We had a very nice meal there which consisted of bacon, eggs, home fries and toast for $2.25 each. What a deal that was.

After we ate, we drove to downtown Reading to the Sovereign Center, home of the Reading Royals. We got to see a rematch of the teams we saw play there Saturday night. I'm referring to the Elmira Jackals who were visiting the Royals again for a special holiday matinee affair.

As for the game we saw, the Royals scored first late in the first period to take a 1-0 lead. A minute and two seconds later the Jackals tied it up at one with just 26 seconds to go in the period. In the second period, the Royals went back ahead midway through the period to take a 2-1 lead. In the third period, the Jackals score four unanswered goals including an empty netter with 2:15 to go to beat the Royals this time, 5-2 in front of a crowd of 4,253 which was slightly smaller then the one they had Saturday night..

Prince at Wells Fargo Center

After the game, we drove to Philadelphia for game two of our two sport doubleheader as we saw the Philadelphia 76ers host the San Antonio Spurs at the Wells Fargo Center.

Before the game, we stopped off at the Oregon Diner for a great pre game meal since our pal Vincent wanted to see it for himself. He had trouble finishing the two massive breaded pork chops he ordered. With that being said, he was a very satisfied customer. As for me, I had the broiled fillet of flounder that was stuffed with crab meat again. It was delicious. When we were done, we drove over to the sports complex area and I parked the car.

We proceeded to walk over to the Wells Fargo Center. Upon arrival, we headed inside to our seats in section 221A that our pal Frankie Centola arranged to get for us. Shortly thereafter, we were joined by our buddy Andrew Van Cleve and his new born son Micah. It was great to see him again.

As for the game we saw, the Spurs led the 76ers, 25-17 after the first quarter. They extended their lead to 14, 49-35 at halftime. In the third quarter, the 76ers cut the lead in half to seven, 71-64 after three quarters. In the fourth quarter, the 76ers ran out of gas as they fell short in their comeback attempt as they lost, 90-85 in front of a crowd of 15,346. I was surprised they didn't have a bigger crowd on hand. I guess since the 76ers have been struggling lately, people decided to stay home.

After the game, we drove back home as the holiday weekend getaway came to a close.

Stay tuned for the rest of my w/o 1/21 in review.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty w/o 12/31 in review

Prince at Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza in Wilkes-Barre, PA

If you're a regular reader and/or follower, you know what happened on Monday New Year's Eve and Tuesday New Year's Day.

As for the rest of the week, here's how it went:

Wednesday before I went back to work I returned the Dodge Avenger I rented for four days from Avis. I wound up driving 1,901 miles safely. 1,195 miles to finish 2012 with 17,745. The other 706 miles counted for 2013. After work I went home and I did my laundry. No rest for the weary I might add.

Thursday night after work I went to Charley's Subs for dinner before I went upstairs to Madison Square Garden to see the Knicks play the San Antonio Spurs who were playing their fourth game in five nights.
As for the game I saw, the Spurs looked like they were sleep walking throughout most of the game. As a result, they managed to lose to the Knicks, 100-83. The Knicks got them at the right time. The schedule makers weren't kind to the Spurs. Tim Duncan and Tony Parker wound up playing half the game and they both only scored 11 points. I was looking forward to seeing a great game. I didn't know at the time the Spurs were coming in exhausted.

As for the Knicks, they took total advantage as they sent the sellout crowd home happy after opening 2013 with a loss to the Trailblazers on New Year's night. Carmelo Anthony led the way scoring 23 points while J.R. Smith added 20 as the Knicks beat the tired Spurs.

Friday night after work, I went to Jersey City, NJ to see St. Peter's basketball as the Peacocks hosted the Manhattan Jaspers at the Yanitelli Center. I stopped off at McDonald's for a pre game meal before I walked over to the gym from Journal Square where the Path train drops you off in Jersey City. When I got to the gym, I was joined by the King and our pal Manny Morales.

As for the game we saw, it was a tight one right throughout. The Jaspers wound up coming away with a 55-53 decision as they held off the Peacocks to emerge victorious much to the delight of our pal Bryan Gilligan who went to college there. Unfortunately he couldn't join us but he was there in spirit nonetheless.
As for the announced crowd of 984, which was probably half of that, the Peacock fans were sent home unhappy.

Saturday morning I went back to Avis to rent another car for the weekend. This time I got a Hyundai Elantra which is great on gas. It's gets close to 35 miles per gallon.

I went back home to pick up the King and we went to Wilkes-Barre,PA to see a minor league hockey game at the Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza which is the home of the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins of the American Hockey League. They were playing the Worcester Sharks.

Since we got to the area very early, we wound up going shopping at Walmart which is one of the many stores in the huge shopping area that's right up the road from the arena. After we went shopping, we had a nice dinner at Logan's Roadhouse which was practically next to Walmart. After we enjoyed a hearty dinner, we then drove over to the arena.

When we got inside, we decided to sit near center ice in the second level since the crowd was a lot smaller than in years past. They announced a crowd of 5,884 which was a little more than half full. Back in the day, they would sell out with no problem on a Saturday night. Amongst them was our pal Alvin Pachter. He was there with people who invited him to go with them. With that being said, he came over during the game and he spent some time with us. It was nice to see him again. As always, we enjoyed his company.

It should be noted they installed a new scoreboard this season which is a nice addition to this arena. Too bad they don't draw crowds like they used to.

As for the game we saw, the hometown Penguins got a rare win. They've been playing horrible lately Alvin said. On this night, they looked a winning team as they shutout the visiting Worcester Sharks, 3-0.

After the game, the King and I drove a few hours to York, PA where we spent the night at Super 8.

Stay tuned for some special posts that will recap the memorable day we had in Baltimore that Sunday.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty w/o 2/6 in review

Nets and Spurs on Hardwood Classics Night 

Another royal week of stadium travel is in the books.

 Here's how it turned out:

Monday night after work I went to Madison Square Garden to see the Knicks play the Utah Jazz with the King. There was some good news and some bad that came out of this game. As for the good, the Knicks rallied around the troops that they had on this night since they were shorthanded. With the aid of somebody named Jeremy Lin who made his first NBA start they found a way to win. They won, 99-88 as they beat the Jazz.

As for the bad news, they played without superstar Amar'e Stoudemire who tragically lost his older brother, Hazell who got killed in a car accident in Florida. To add insult to injury, Carmelo Anthony came up lame early in the game. He was diagnosed with a pulled groin. As a result, he was finished for the night and for the next few weeks as well.

Tuesday night after work, I stayed home so I could do my laundry.

Wednesday night after work I went out to the Prudential Center in Newark, NJ with the King to see a rematch from the week before as the NJ Nets hosted the Detroit Pistons again. This time the Pistons emerged victorious, 99-92. By doing so, they avenged the loss from the week before.

Thursday night after work the King and I went back to Newark to see hockey as the Devils faced off with the St. Louis Blues who were making a rare visit to the area. As for the game we saw, it was a good seesaw battle as both teams exchanged goals during the game. The Blues got the equalizer with 5:50 left in regulation time to knot the game at three. After a scoreless overtime session, the game was decided in a shootout. The Blues' T.J. Oshie scored the first and only goal of the skills competition as the Blues came away with the 4-3 win.

Friday night after work the King and I went back to Madison Square Garden to see more basketball. It was a special night since Kobe Bryant and the Lakers were making their only local area appearance. With the Lakers in the building, the Garden was really rocking. There were a number of Laker fans as usual in attendance.

As for the game we saw, the Knicks were still without their big guns, Amar'e Stoudemire and Carmelo Anthony. Despite that, once again somebody named Jeremy Lin emerged as the hero on this night. He lead the way as the Knicks got passed Kobe and the Lakers, 92-85. Kobe shot awful early on in this game. He perked up in the second half but it was too little too late as his team fell short on the big stage.

Saturday afternoon the King and I went out to the Nassau Coliseum to see the Islanders play the LA Kings. I want to personally thank our friend Larry Peim who was kind enough to pick us up and drive us out there. Royal treatment indeed.

As for the game we saw, the Kings and Islanders fought hard in a very physical affair. The game was tied at one after regulation time. Captain Mark Streit of the Islanders netted the game winner 1:36 into overtime to give the Islanders the 2-1 victory.

After the game, Larry dropped off the King and I back home on his way to Bridgeport, Connecticut where he was going to see the Sound Tigers, the Islanders farm team play. He would have gladly taken us with him but since the Nets were playing the Spurs, the King and I wanted to see them play.

In addition, I arranged to have my Cousin Andy join us as well. Our friends Frank Anichiarico, Ralph and his son Vincent Ascanio were also there. It made for a nice social gathering at the arena.

Furthermore, we got to see the San Antonio Spurs who have been a powerful team over the last decade with their silent assassin Tim Duncan and great play making point guard Tony Parker. They made it look easy as they cruised past the Nets, 103-89 on Hardwood Classics night as both teams turned back the clock and they wore old school uniforms which was an added treat. It was also my 1,200th NBA game that I've seen live in my life.

Sunday afternoon the King and I trekked back out to the Nassau Coliseum by public transportation to see the Islanders take on the Florida Panthers on Marvel Comic Book Day. It was a fun day for all the kids that were in attendance. They were able to meet and greet some of their favorite superheroes. The Incredible Hulk, Spiderman and Thor were on hand to keep the children amused during the game and between periods.

As for the game we saw, the Islanders drew first blood as they scored the game's first goal but it went down hill after that as they gave up the next four goals as the Panthers went to win easily, 4-1.

We did have company at the game as our friend Dennis Barbera was there. After the game, he drove the King and I home. More royal treatment. I would like to thank Dennis for taking us back. It was very nice and thoughtful of him.

Stay tuned for the special post I'm going to be do about somebody named Jeremy Lin.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Nets win for the tenth time, 90-84!

It's was college night at the IZOD Center.

The Nets responded with a professional performance.

They hung with the San Antonio Spurs, one of the elite teams in the NBA the past decade.

In the end, the Nets were able to overcome the Spurs, who played without Manu Ginobili who had back spasms.

The Nets reached double figures in victories guaranteeing that the Nets won't be part of history for futility.

Brook Lopez led the way for the Nets with 22 points to go along with 12 rebounds and Courtney Lee had 19 points as well.

George Hill added 19 for the Spurs and former Net Richard Jefferson finished with 16.