Sunday, March 23, 2008

Tournament: Game Dates and Times


Our first game is on Friday (3/28) at 3:30 pm.

Our second game is on Friday (3/28) at 9:30 pm.

Our third game is on Saturday (3/29) at 8:20 pm.

Because the Mites play very early Friday morning, I will be arriving on Thursday Night.

Depending on arrival times, maybe we can try to have a pre-game team meeting around 2:00 pm or so at the rink?
And, finally, thank you to all who particiated in the Gadsden Flag Poll. The Gadsden Flag is now the Unofficial Emblem of the Berkshire Tri-State Rattlers Peewee Minors (2007-08), and Conquest by the White Stripes remains the official team song.

Friday, March 21, 2008

No Practice This Weekend

See everyone in Marlborough.

Tuesday, March 18, 2008

Team Videos

Links to team videos on Youtube.com are now contained under the Useful Web Links section of this Blog (on the right of this screen). There is one video for Mites and Squirts and a second for Peewee, Bantams and Midgets.

Thursday, March 13, 2008

Marlborough Tournament Schedule

http://www.nes.com/Schedule.asp

* Friday (3/28) at 3:30 pm vs. wolfpack hockey club
* Friday (3/28) at 9:20 pm vs. new hartford
* Saturday (3/29) at 8:10 pm vs. triboro

The Championship Game will be played on Sunday at 7:50 am.

No doubt, Spencer will ask the following: What do we know about these teams? Are they good? What is their style of play? Research and scouting has begun. I will report information as it becomes available.

Sunday, March 9, 2008

A Few Items

First, for those who were at practice this weekend, excellent work by all. The Marlborough Tournament is a few short weeks away. Unfortunately, we are not likely to skate as a team between now and then. Please grab any chance you have to skate. And don’t forget the fundamentals of our game.

Second, this is a formal apology to the Sisters. The crack about their sudden interest in the Midgets was unwarranted and based on the paranoid perceptions of an over-protective father. To the extent any of the Sisters took offense, I am truly sorry. (I sound sincere, don’t I?)

Third, thank you all for the wonderful gift. I will wear the t-shirt with pride and I will treasure the card.

Finally, I just wanted to state one more time what a pleasure it has been to have Bobby Noonan as part of the team. He is a player that set an example for all to follow. He worked hard at every practice and on every shift. He was always respectful of each and every member of our team. He never quit but also never forgot that this is about having fun. I am proud that Bobby will represent our program and our team in Maryland. He will forever be a member of our squad, and will always be welcome to play hockey with us. And I also want to thank Bobby’s parents for their tremendous support over the last 5 or so years. They have consistently been gracious and giving.
The entire Noonan Clan will be missed.

Wednesday, March 5, 2008

Bethlehem Weekend Ice: March 7 & 8


We have ice at Bethlehem on March 8 & 9 at 11:30 am on both days.


Hope to see you all there.

Monday, March 3, 2008

Important Correction: Conquest is Unofficial Winner But Questions Remain About Election's Validity

Late tabulations show that Conquest won by a vote of 44 to 43. Nevertheless, given the curiously high number of votes and a final tie breaking vote that seemingly arrived after the polls closed, the matter remains under review.

Sunday, March 2, 2008

Conquest: Voting Results and Related Suspicions


The results of the voting are curious. Although we have 13 members of our team, 86 votes were cast. 86 Votes? Hmmmm. In the end, the vote was tied: 43 for Conquest / 43 against Conquest.


For the time being, the results have been impounded. No official result will be reported until a full investigation is conducted.


More as the story develops.

What next. . . ?


All Players and Parents, please let me know if you will be participating in the tournament in Marlborough, Mass.


Saturday, March 1, 2008

A Number of Important Items on a Snowy Saturday

Item 1: In a last minute change of plans, tomorrow's game will be against the Berkshire Bruins Bantam C Team. No doubt, you recall that this is the very same team that manhandled us for 2 periods last weekend, before we woke up. We need to put in 3 solid periods against this squad of behemoths in order to prevail -- and I know we will. The game is at 10:30 am, at the Berkshire School.

Item 2: I would like the kids to linger for a few minutes after tomorrow's game in a last ditch (and perhaps futile) effort to put together a video for the Banquet. No promises, but our production team will give it a shot. To that end, if anyone has any digital video that was shot during the season, or any digital photos (not on shutterfly or photobucket but the actual files), they would be much appreciated. We can discuss how best to get the digital images to the team.

Item 3: The Banquet is next weekend. It also happens to be the Annual Meeting of the Berkshire Rattler Youth Hockey Organization. The events are one and the same. At the meeting, there will be an election for next year's Board Members. Several of our own folks are running. There are 2 important points to keep in mind. First, both parents get to vote. Why?Because the by-laws define "voting members" to be any parent or legal guardian of a player currently registered. Two Parents -- Two Chances to Vote. By the way, for those who are wondering, two kids in the program does NOT get you an extra vote. It's one ballot for each and every parent or legal guardian. Second, it is extremely important that you come and vote. As crazy as this may sound, who is on the Board really does matter and these elections tend to be close. If you don't want to attend the Banquet (and that would be a shame), please stop by and vote anyway. And if for some reason you are not available, please contact a Board member about your ability to cast a ballot without attending. I don't know how the Board will handle the request, but I assume it will be considered. Also, I would like to speak very briefly after the game tomorrow about who is running for Board, etc.

Item 4: What's with the freaky jerseys and bizarr-o head gear on Aaron?



Item 5: Voting on Conquest as Official Team Song is about to close. If you have not yet voted, please do so now. Meanwhile, concerns have already been raised about the validity of the vote. It seems that voting is far in excess of team membership and a preliminary inquiry by a sophisticated forensic computer expert (retained at my own expense) has suggested that a disproportionate number of votes have been cast from in or around West Stockbridge, Mass. More on this story as it develops.