Adirondack Phantoms @ Albany Devils 2/15/14

This past Saturday, February 15, I went back to the Times Union Center in Albany to try and get some autographs. The Philadelphia Flyers AHL team, the Adirondack Phantoms, were in town, and I had some stuff for a few of those players. It was a good game for the Devils, as they got the win by a 4-1 score.

I barely got to the spot where the bus leaves behind the arena before the players started walking out. I didn't have stuff for everyone, but I did have my camera so I took a few photos of other players signing for a group of Phantoms fans that assembled outside. I wish I could tell you who these guys are, but I just don't know. If you know, any help would be appreciated.

The first person who I got was Oliver Lauridsen. One of the kids in the photos above knew who he was, and I know that he played a few games in the NHL. I had printed out a couple basic Flyers 4x6 photos for this reason, and he signed one of them before boarding the bus.

The next person who signed something for me was former Islander Bruno Gervais. He came out, signed a few photos for me, and then went on to the bus. One of the photos I got signed is from when I met him at an Islanders children's foundation event back in 2010. It was his birthday when that photo was taken, and he told me that he liked the old photo.

The only other player who I got from the Phantoms was another former Islander, goalie Yann Danis. He signed a photo which I also got Gervais to sign, and a photo I took with him earlier this season. He was the last Phantoms player to come out, he had a rough game in net and just wanted to get on the bus and go. I thanked him, and he went on the bus.


After Danis got on the bus, it drove away. There weren't many other people who I wanted to get on the night. One person I did want to try and get an autograph of was Johan "Moose" Hedberg. Keith Kinkaid was out with an injury, and Albany had signed Hedberg, 40, to a tryout contract.

After standing out in the cold and chatting with other players like Joe Whitney and Brandon Burlon, Hedberg came out the door with some other players. I asked someone else to make sure it was him, then I called Johan over. Right when he was about to sign the photo I brought, a gust of wind nearly blew it away. Thankfully, I kept it in place for him to sign it. He also signed a puck for me and a card for someone else before walking to the nearby parking garage. I asked Hedberg what it was like to be back in the AHL. He said he liked it and he was having fun. Hopefully I'll get Kinkaid to sign the photo as well, as it is from his NHL debut in relief of Hedberg last season.

I had brought my Devils yearbook with me to try and get some missing players on it. I didn't get any players to sign it, but I did get assistant coaches Tommy Albelin and Sergei Brylin to sign their pages in it. Albelin smudged it slightly before signing it, but it's good anyway.

That's all I have for this entry. Thanks for reading! Good luck graphing!