A triumphant return to the ice

Last night I returned to organized hockey after a 3-year hiatus. Back during my time in NoCo, I was very involved in both roller and ice hockey. I was playing, at one point, on three teams: the Brew Crew, Proformance Auto, and the "Red" team. I had every intention of keeping up some level of involvement when I got to Albany, but it was not to be. I could not find a rink that I liked or a league that fit my skills. That all changed last Sunday when I went to the Albany County Hockey Facility, located just off of Runway 10/28 at Albany International Airport. Last Sunday, while I was waiting for drop-in to start, I saw the end of the game of a league that seemed to match my skill level and speed to a T.

Short story shorter, I played last night in front of a packed house of four fans, one of which was decidedly cuter than the others.

And what a match it was. The team I played for, the "Black" team, snatched victory from the jaws of defeat, winning 4-3 after coming back from 3 one goal deficits. Yours truly assisted on the game-winner 47 seconds into the final period.

It was not all grood times last night. It took me just about the first two periods to get some rhythm, and I felt like I had no legs all night. In drop-in hockey, there is a decidedly lack of interest in hustling back for defense, so I was not used to all the intense up and down skating required when you are actively interested in the results.Of special note, the wonderful people at Albany International were using Runway 1 (opposite end pictured above) as the active, which means that players and spectators alike were treated to two takeoffs almost immediately above the facility during the course of the game.