Manatee deshell Loggerheads, 5-2 | ||
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Game commentary and unofficial boxscoreBy TidalsharkRyan Kiley had two goals and an assist as the Miami Manatees defeated the Lakeland Loggerheads, 5-2.The fan turn out was light and I was told that they really weren�t expecting a big crowd as the W.T.O is in town and they have streets blocked off and there�s going to be a riot and didn�t I hear about it on the radio? No, I had not, actually, and was completely oblivious to the entire thing up until Shawn came over and asked me about it. I informed him that I�d been listening to the World�s Smartest Striper contest on the radio this morning and was otherwise living under a rock. Manatees� right wing Eric Perricone was named the WHA2 player of the week for the first week of play. Prior to the game, the Manatees signed goaltender Jean-Francois Laniel, and released goaltender Mark Scally. The parking in Lot 1 was back to $5.00. Mark told me to go in through the South Entrance and take the elevator up and that ended up being fine. No one checked my bags; no one told me I couldn�t have camera. I was expecting a hassle on the camera bag this time around, or maybe the photo album or possibly the Advil. Nope, they took my ticket and I went for a ride up in the elevator. I�d picked up a friend off the Loggerhead message board who was coming over from England and when I got to my seat he was sitting in it. I mentioned that I believe I�d said he should come visit me at my seat not sit in it. But he was very amicable about it and moved. It seems that he asked for a seat near or around Section 109-K-1 and they sold him my seat. This is the same problem that Eric had last game. I don�t know what, if any sort of perks we get with our season tickets, but I did think that sitting in the same seat for the whole season was one of them. I really don�t know what kind of concession deal the Manatees have with the Miami Arena, but if I�ve learned one thing in all my years as a minor league fan, it is that if they team is going to survive, they need to sell BEER and a lot of it. Having ONE brand of beer at $6.00 a bottle is not cutting it. I don�t care if they are your sponsor. If you�re receiving a kick back from the concessions, then all you�re going is cutting off your nose to spite your face. Needless to say, the Bud and Bud Lite had vanished and we were stuck with Molson. ::sigh:: There was one concession stand open on each side of the arena. Sammy Miami�s was also open and they were selling coffee. I don�t know about hot cocoa, but they did have coffee. The cheerleaders where out welcoming people into the arena. The bad part about coming through the south entrance was that they didn�t have magnet schedules, but they extras at the program booth, so I got one there. I did not get a program however, and I still don�t know if they have inserts with line-ups for games because I�ve yet to actually see one. I printed out the Lakeland roster from the website. Lakeland had a #23 on their team, but I don't see a #23 listed on their roster. As for the cheerleaders, I don�t care if the weather in the Arena does resemble Buffalo, New York, in the springtime, cheerleaders are supposed to show some SKIN. They�re supposed to be jumping around and the movement is supposed to be keeping them warm, not long sleeve shirts! I was able to find the memorabilia auction on the concourse this time. The girl that was minding the booth was on loan from the league office. There was small but energetic group of Lakeland fans that make the trip over and were disgusted by the $6.00 beer. I don�t think the game left them really happy either. On to the Game: Score by Period: Lakeland 2 0 0 -- 2 Miami 2 0 3 -- 5
First Period � Scoring:
Penalties: Lakeland�s power play goal, was technically a 4-on-5 powerplay as Vanc�s penalty had just expired, but it was coming at the end of a 3-on-5 powerplay. Miami�s goal was on a 3-on-5 powerplay. Some of the penalties were blatantly bad; Vanc�s being a good example. All he did was redirect a turtle into the boards and they called him for roughing? The period was slow and I think the officiating was slowing it down with all the stoppages of play. (Yes, I�m so glad they gave you whistles. Let the boys play now!) I finally had a look at the red Loggerhead sweaters. And I thought the white ones look Christmasy. I swear my grandmother had a tablecloth with that exact pattern on it. Hatty came over to say �Hi� during the intermission and offered her services for the booster club. Shawn made his rounds shortly after that early on in the second period. Second Period � Scoring: None
Penalties: Migliore talked himself into the 10-minute misconduct. After Vincent got done yapping at the ref, I�m surprised it wasn�t doubled. McCarthy�s high stick drew blood, hence the double minor. Tony tells me they don�t give double minors in the British League; they just throw you out of the game. Some GREAT penalty killing by the Manatees. Now they really need to work on the power play... For the most part, the guys forgot they�d abolished the two-line rule in this league and were NOT taking advantage of the extra room. Took Eric his pictures during intermission. Then RJ and Trevor stopped me on the way back to my seat. They agreed with me on both the officiating the two-line pass issue but said that�s something that will take while to get used to. (And darn...I had them both to myself and forgot to get my hat signed!) They also looked at the photo album and said �Hey, I saw these pictures on the internet!� Wow! What do you know! Hockey boys with computers. How times are changing!
Third Period � Scoring:
Penalties: Shots on Goal: Lakeland 11 23 7 -- 30 Miami 17 16 12 �- 45
Power-play Conversions:
Goalies:
Referee: Galloway A: 250 (Estimated actual) Tony has been getting around on public transportation in Miami, and evidently no one had informed our British visitors that they public transportation systems in South Florida sucks eggs. I drove him back to his hotel in Miami Beach, which was pretty much on my way anyway. Both Mandy and Manny were working the crowd and I surprised Mandy when I opened the door and found her standing at the head of my section. Either our mascots can�t skate, or they didn�t order flippers with skates on them. On the whole it was an enjoyable game, and I�m just saddened to see such a poor turnout. The win ties the Manatee in first with the Jacksonville Barracuda, who will be visiting the Miami Arena for tonight�s game. I�m definitely looking forward to this match up.
Web posted on Nov. 15, 2003
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