Red hats off to our 57 hockey enthusiasts who ventured down to the Verizon Center last night and “Rocked The Red” for the Caps-Hurricanes game. And, wow, what an ending!
Alexander Semin scored on an amazing pass from Alex Ovechkin and the Caps stole a 3-2 win with less than 11 seconds remaining in regulation, beating goalie Cam Ward and turning the rink into a joyous celebration.
We had kids, families, moms, dads and most surprisingly, MANY people who had never been to a hockey game before. We watched “Slap Shot,” gave away autographed pucks, ate Captain Harvey’s yummy sandwiches and brownies and talked “old time” hockey.
I suppose I’m a little spoiled having had hockey here in Baltimore most of my childhood. It’s been almost 15 years since we lost the puck, so I guess there really are a LOT of people who have never experienced the joy of hockey live. It’s kinda cool watching a kid see live hockey for the first time.
Many folks asked me if we’d be doing more “Puck Bus” trips this season. Given the quick sellout of our trip last night, I think we’ll be offering a multi-game “season ticket” for a Baltimore hockey fan club, which we’ll be starting here at WNST.net.
Stay tuned for more details…
But rest assured: After 17 years, I’m not done pimping the puck!
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So, I got home last night just in time to watch the Browns’ most recent meltdown.
There were four minutes left in the game and the Broncos had the ball near midfield and were locked down at 4th and 1. They ran a draw, got a first down and I told my wife: “They’re the Browns. They’ll screw this up,” not realizing they had a 13-point lead earlier in the game.
Of course, the Browns defense caved in, allowing the game-winning score after watching Broncos quarterback Jay Cutlet scamper 20 yards on a draw play.
I don’t know what’s more of an embarrassment: the way the team plays or the way their fans behave.
They’ve now blown two-touchdown leads at home TWICE in the last four days!
I noticed that Phil Savage signed a major extension last year, so I doubt that he’ll be the one going out the door but Romeo Crennel has become public enemy No. 1 in Cleveland and I can’t think of a worse place to be a head coach than in Cleveland, where the fans boo the home team on first down in the first quarter virtually every week.
Sure, the football hasn’t been pretty. But I’ve said it for years – the Browns fans are the worst enemy of their own team, mercilessly booing and crushing their team in their own stadium year after year.
Given their two-game advantage over the Browns and the possibility of an emergence of the Broncos, it might’ve been better for the Ravens if the Browns would’ve won last night. With the 5-3 start for the purple, I’ve officially opened “scoreboard watching” season in my condo.
Heck, if it helps the Ravens, I’ll root for the Steelers or the Redskins or the Colts at this point.
I just want this team to get to the playoffs. A major step is this weekend, locking down a sixth victory and a road win deep in the heart of Texas.
I’m off to Houston on Sunday morning – we’re doing a “same day down and back” trip.
We’ll have the videos and blogs up on Sunday.
We’re striving to be YOUR place for Baltimore sports every day here at WNST.net.
Feel free to feed back with your comments here on my blog.
