Kickin it with Reed

So in between game one and two of the playoffs up in Detroit I spent a little time with my little cousin Reed.  I had a blast playing with him and hanging out with some family.  Also good to see family.   

Al the Octopus

I love going to games at Nationwide Arena, but there is just something about the Joe.  If you are a big hockey fan you have to watch a game in the Joe.  There is just a different feel up here during a game.  I hope the Jackets can hang in there tonight and spring the upset.  Al the Octopus is a bad ass.   

In Hockeytown

Yesterday the puck-rakers team of Aaron Portzline, Tom Reed and Michael Arace and myself rolled into Detroit for the first two games of Jackets/Wings series.  Walking into the Joe for the first talk was unreal, the first thing you look at at are all the banners hanging down from the top.  I had to count all 65 banners they had hanging.  So after the Jackets practice we checked into the hotel and tried to find a place to eat and watch hockey around 8 in the evening.  The task was a lot harder then one would think.  Arace wrote it best last night while drinking a few beers, I can't write like him so enjoy.

" OK. But our problem with Hockeytown was exacerbated after we left the arena. The sun was going down and we were looking forward to a good sports bar with large-screen televisions and a night of watching playoff hockey. This is the stuff that sustains a pilgrim on the road during the NHL playoffs. We ventured out, on foot, and walked five blocks. Our destination was the Hockeytown Café, which ESPN2 describes as “the No. 2 sports bar in America.” When we got there, at 8:20 p.m., it was closed. We tried Cheli’s Chili Bar, owned by current Wing Chris Chelios. It was dark. So was another sports bar a block away. Finally, we stumbled on a Cuban restaurant, Vincente’s Cuban Cuisine. It was a life saver. An absolute life saver.

It’s not right to crack on Hockeytown. But I can say this from experience: On the first night of the NHL playoffs, we couldn’t find a hockey game. The sports bars in the vicinity of our hotel were all closed, well before 9 p.m. on Wednesday. This had something to do with the bars handling a heavy volume of baseball fans, and then shutting down early, after an afternoon Tigers game. But I know this: You can find a bite to eat, and a cold lemonade, at hundreds of establishments in Columbus, Ohio, up until 2:30 or 3 a.m., no matter what events are in town. I guarantee you could watch all the hockey games you could want, somewhere, somehow, on Wednesday night in Columbus." 

Jackets Goal Cam

So for the last two years I have been wanting to place a camera in the goal of one of the Jackets game.  On Sunday with help of my good friend Adam Cairns we placed a camera in goal for the Jackets and Blackhawks game.  We also lucked out and getting the Jackets goalie Steve Mason to turn towards the camera and make a save.  We also set up the remote camera in the goal to go off with the lights.  When using the lights we limit the amount of shots we can take since the lights take about 2 seconds to recycle.  I think that the lights add a something to the picture.  Also we were using a fisheye lens which allowed us to get a shot from post to post.  Hope you like the shot.   

Columbus Crew 2009

The Crew was back in action in their home opener against Toronto FC.  The game was an 1-1 tie and the Crew missed about 10 chances to score but glad that the Crew are back and playing.  The TFC fans were crazy, they threw about 25 smoke bombs onto the field while the game was going on in the second half.  The smoke bombs were flying over my head and one got really close and almost hit me.