Hanging Out in the Neighborhood

Parade Ice Gardens is not really in the neighborhood of Washburn or Richfield, not being particularly close to either of them. But for those of us whose kids played for Washburn (as opposed to Richfield) it feels like home turf. It was certainly home ice through the mite years.

It's also the practice rink for the Minnesota Wild. Every once in a while the Wild has an open practice, as you will recall from some earlier posts. Today, when we showed up 45 minutes early for the game, as we must per Coach McCoy's instructions, one of the Wild players was still signing autographs after their earlier practice.

Like many of the Wild players, Niklas Backstrom comes from Europe, in his case, Helsinki, Finland. Like Coach McCoy, Backstrom played in the Olympics. He was part of the Finnish national team that took the silver medal in 2006. After a successful career in Finland, he joined the Wild for the 2006-7 season. He still lives in Helsinki during the off season. He was signing autographs when I showed up, and was there long enough for me to get out my camera and get a few photos.

Many of the boys had him sign pieces of their equipment. Andy P., one of our goalies, got his blocker signed. Here's Wyatt waiting his turn. Don't know if that's his stick Backstrom is signing.

Backstrom even signed Bruno's jersey. Bruno is the brother of Max D., one of the Richfield Spartans. As you can see, Bruno is a veteran when it comes to meeting Wild players. Thanks, Jeff, for suggesting that they pose together.

And many thanks to Niklas Backstrom for staying around after practice to hang out with some fans.

Second Scrimmage v Mound, Part 5

A few last photos from the scrimmage against Mound at Richfield Arena on Sunday, February 1.

Andrew S. taking a shot.

Marco got caught by an errant puck.

Max B. at a face off.

Max B. goes into the game with his eyes open and he keeps them that way. Eyes wide open.

Second Scrimmage v Mound, Part 4

Many of the players have really improved in defense, shooting and passing over the past few months.

Here's Henri with a pass under the watchful eye of Coach McCoy.

Our opponent's second goal sailed right over Andy P.'s head or shoulder and into the net.

Andy P. stopped a lot of other shots during the second and third periods.

Teams don't always seem to pay attention when they should. Here most of them are too busy watching the shift change to be alert to Dylan's progress toward the goal.

Jacob waiting for a face off.

Second Scrimmage v Mound, Part 3

This next set were all taken after the first period.

Here are Marco and Jacob mixing it up in front of the opponents' net.

Marco looking for a chance at a breakaway.

Andrew S. with a shot.

Gavin, who likes to shoot from a wide angle, with another shot on goal.

Here's another shot on goal from Matthew, who was playing defense at the time.

Second Scrimmage v Mound, Part 2

Almost everyone on offense had a pretty good day. Marco and Jacob didn't play for the first period, which slowed us down quite a bit, but they had several shifts during the second and third. Many people took shots on goal.

Gavin played well, and scored our first goal.

Max D. scored our second.

Here's Max K. moving the puck up the ice.

The next two shots look very similar, but they were taken a few minutes apart

For a defenseman, Matthew gets plenty of shots on goal.

Neither of these shots scored, but Matthew really puts the pressure on the other team.

Second Scrimmage v Mound, Part 1

We played Mound several weeks ago on their ice. It was an exciting game, but we tied. We looked to today's match up to give us a decisive victory. Winning has gotten to be a habit for the Richfield team; confidence was high. Alas, our habit was broken, and we still don't definitively know which team is better. Once again, we tied 2-2.

Our offense had many shots on goal. But their goalie had a preternatural ability to keep the puck out of the net, even on several occasions where it looked like we would score.

Our goaltenders also got a work out, although their offense was harried in their shot making by our defense and offense alike.

Gavin at the opening face off.

Garrett.

Wyatt defending the center.

Jackson about to snag a shot.

Perspective can be tricky. This was not a shot by Max B., whose back is to the camera, but by some other player to the right and out of the picture. The puck traveled across the front of the net, but the shot was wide enough so that the goalie's apparent inattention was never a real risk.

Second Scrimmage v Shakopee, Part 5

Jacob and Marco in characteristic formation as they skate toward goal.

Max D. in the offensive zone...

...and shortly thereafter, celebrating a successful shot on goal.

No post featuring the offense would be complete without Max B., so here he is.