Hartford Wolfpack @ Albany Devils 3/22/15

I'm really falling behind on these entries, I'm sorry. School and life have been pretty busy, but I'm starting to catch up.

About a month ago, I attended the Albany Devils game on a Sunday afternoon when they hosted the Hartford Wolfpack. The Wolfpack were one of the first teams I ever got autographs from in Albany, so I figured I'd try my luck with them again.

The game was also scheduled as the last autograph signing for the Devils, which was good because I was looking to get a few photos signed from some players.

The game itself was a pretty good one, as the Devils scored four goals in the third period to come back and beat the Wolfpack. I got a few of them on video, as you could see HERE, HERE, and HERE.

Directly after the game, I went to my usual spot outside the Times Union Center and waited for the Wolfpack to come outside.

It was pretty cold, so I don't have any photos of the Wolfpack outside, but here's the quick story of what happened. Defenseman Michael Kostka came out and I instantly recognized him because of his long blonde hair. He quickly signed the photo on the right for me before boarding the team bus. Longtime AHLer Chris Mueller also came out and signed a photo for me. I rarely print out photos of people in AHL jerseys, but I liked this one so I got him to sign it.

Eventually, someone I actually recognized walked out the door. Dylan McIlrath signed a program for a kid, and I instantly recognized his signature from the last time I met him. He signed a nice photo for me. One of the last guys to walk out the door was Joey Crabb, and a fellow collector pointed him out for me so I could get him to sign the photo on the right.

I had printed out a Hartford Wolfpack team logo 4x6 photo to get a few random people to sign. I got a couple of players to sign it, but I'll get to them in a second. Assistant coach and 1994 Stanley Cup Champion Jeff Beukeboom walked out the door carrying some food, and when a couple collectors asked him to sign, he went on the bus and said he would be right back. A lot of people say that, but few live up to their word. But thankfully, Beukeboom but his stuff down on the bus and came back. He signed a cool 1994 Stanley Cup Championship puck that I had, as well as the Wolfpack logo sheet. Here are both items with the other people who signed the logo sheet.

Beukeboom signed it on the top right corner.
74-Nick Tarnasky 29-Danny Kristo
2-Mat Bodie 48-Carl Klingberg

After that, I went back inside for the Devils autograph signing. The first table I got in line for was that of the day's winning goalie, Scott Clemmensen. I met Clemmensen the first time he got sent down back in November, but he wasn't coming out the usual back door since then. I took a photo with him that first time, and I printed it out and tried to get it signed. When I handed him the photo, he said that we look like a couple of handsome men. Then, he said he liked the photo of him playing on the Cats, aka the Florida Panthers. Here are the two photos he signed for me.









The other Albany Devils' player who I had an individual item of was Joe Whitney. I printed out a photo from his first NHL goal in Detroit earlier this season.  I told him that I've never seen anyone look so happy in a hockey photo, and he said he remembers how happy he was after putting the puck in the net. Judge how happy he is for yourself, the photo is on the right.

The giveaway at the game was a team poster. They gave posters out last year, and I was there for that game too. This year's poster was significantly smaller, which made it easier to carry around. After the game, I got everybody that was there to sign the poster. I don't have a specific list of names, but here are a few photos I took at the signing.

And below is the team signed poster. I put pucks on the corners to hold it down. Click on the photo for a closer look.

That's all for this entry, I'll have another one coming up soon. Thanks for reading! 

Worcester Sharks @ Albany Devils 1/24/15

I'm back in Albany, and within a week of moving back, I had a prime opportunity to get some good autographs after an Albany Devils game. They had just played the Worcester Sharks, AHL affiliate of the San Jose Sharks. The Sharks won the game 2-1 in overtime, and after the final goal was scored, the ink started flowing.

Way back in 2013, I met former Islander Micheal Haley after a game in what was one of my first experiences getting autographs after a Devils game. He was famous for being in the middle of the infamous Islanders/Penguins brawl in 2011.

Shortly after that game in 2011, I bought a Haley t-shirt from the Islanders team store. Shortly after, Haley wasn't an Islander and I had no use for the shirt. However, this past week, I found out Haley was on the Worcester Sharks, so I brought the shirt back to Albany with me. After watching a few other Sharks walk out the door, Haley walked out by himself. I immediately recognized him and called him over. First, I asked him to sign a photo of him fighting current Albany Devil Rod Pelley that Pelley already signed at an autograph signing last year. Then, after trading sharpies, I took the shirt out of my pocket and held it out. He signed it beautifully on the number nine. He didn't talk much, and I thanked him before going onto the bus.










Since the weather forecast was ominous, I didn't print out many things to get signed on this day. However, once I heard Tomas Hertl got sent down to Worcester, I knew I had to print stuff and try to get his autograph. Does the name not sound familiar to you? Click HERE and you will remember who he is. After nearly the whole team walked out the door, Hertl finally emerged into the sunlight. He immediately started signing before even he could realize what was happening. Here is a brief video that I took of him signing for some people.


Shortly after I turned off the camera, Hertl signed a photo for me. He also signed a Worcester Sharks team logo sheet that I had printed out. However, it wasn't a full size logo sheet, it was just a 4x6 logo sheet because I didn't plan on getting too many Sharks. After taking a selfie with Hertl that you can see on the right, Hertl kept signing for the mob of people that formed. After another minute or two, I grabbed a puck and silver sharpie out of my pocket and got Hertl to sign that as well. He was a humble, nice guy. He took every photo and signed every autograph. Class act. Hopefully he will stay that way.

 Below is the Worcester Sharks logo sheet with everyone that signed it in the space they signed it.

2-Dylan DeMelo  20-Matt Taormina 26-Willie Coetzee 

38-Mirco Mueller 12-Freddie Hamilton 48-Tomas Hertl

Soon after Hertl got on the bus, others got on and the bus tried to depart, but it couldn't because of a few obstacles. Union College and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) were scheduled to play a college hockey game at the Time Union Center just a few hours after the Devils game ended. So, as the Sharks were leaving, the RPI bus showed up and their players were entering. Eventually, the RPI players left and their bus got out of the way so the Sharks could go home. As players from both colleges showed up to the arena, Devils were still walking out. 

I didn't get many autographs from the Devils, but I did get a few. The first one I got was of Pelley, who signed a pocket schedule from last season for me. I figure those could be good to get signed if I don't have anything else for a Devils player. The only other I autograph I got from a Devils player was from Seth Helgeson. Helgeson played 21 games for New Jersey so far this season, and I found a cool picture of him from Jaromir Jagr's hat trick earlier this season. As the sun started to set, Helgeson came out and signed the photo for me. He said he liked the photo. 

While Devils players were coming out, a couple other people getting autographs noticed Union head coach Rick Bennett walking towards the arena. Bennett coached Union to a stunning National Championship last season, and he also played 15 games for the New York Rangers during a brief NHL career. I stopped Bennett on his way in and he signed a blank autograph card for me before signing similar blank cards for others. One other person getting autographs told him, "No fights this year," in reference to the infamous Union/RPI Brawl in 2014 where Bennett got into a physical fight with RPI's coach. Bennett chuckled before telling us there would be no fight. In case you're wondering, there was no fight.

Then, it was just time to wait for the Devils coaches. Former New Jersey great and Stanley Cup Champion Sergei Brylin came out and signed a card that I had found while home for a month. It's always nice to get cards signed as I don't get many signed in person. 

Later, Johan Hedberg came out. After signing about 30 cards for someone else, he signed a card and photo for me. I then took a picture with him and thanked him for stopping. I may end up printing out the picture of me and Hedberg and try and get him to sign it. 

That does it for this entry. Thanks for reading. Good luck graphing. 

Bridgeport Sound Tigers @ Albany Devils 11/23/14

Before Thanksgiving, I went to one more Albany Devils game before going home for the break. Unlike a couple other times this season, I went to the game between the Sound Tigers and Devils on November 23. It was a Sunday afternoon with nothing to do, so my friend and I got some cheap tickets and were off to the Times Union Center. I had already met most of the Sound Tigers and Devils earlier this season, but this was likely going to be the last time I saw the Sound Tigers this season, so I figured I'd go.

The game was a tough one for the Sound Tigers, they lost 5-2. I got one of the Albany goals on video.  
It was a rough night for Bridgeport. I'm pretty sure goalie David Leggio got hurt during that game. But, after the game, I was back outside in the usual spot to try and get some autographs before I went home.

One of the first guys going to the bus was recently sent down Colin McDonald. He was the captain of the Sound Tigers during the NHL lockout in 2012-13, and he was sent down a few games into the season. He signed two 4x6 photos for me before signing for everyone else and going on the bus. I also met him during Islanders clean out day in April.

One of the next Bridgeport guys to walk out the door was Harry Zolnierczk. He signed a photo for me last time, and I didn't really have much for him. Before he got on the bus, I got him to sign an index card because I figured I'd get him on something if I don't see him again for a while.



Shortly after was defenseman Ryan Pulock. He was called up to the Islanders for less than a day last weekend. He will be playing on the Islanders real soon. He signed a picture from his Barclays Center goal for me.


The last Sound Tiger whose autograph I got was that of starting goalie David Leggio. Like I mentioned earlier, he had a rough game in the loss. I took a picture of him at Barclays Center, and I was very happy to get him to sign it, even though the signature is very thin. He probably won't play a regular season game for the Islanders, but it was cool to get my own picture signed.

Since the weather wasn't too cold out, my friend and I figured we'd stay and get some Devils autographs as well. I had a photo that I took at the end of a Devils game last season, and I wanted to try and get that signed by some of the Albany players. I ended up getting eight Devils to sign the 4x6 photo that I printed out, as you can see below. It was signed by the following players:

15-Paul Thompson (He wasn't even on the Devils last year, oops.)
19-Mike Sislo
8-Dan Kelly 9-Joe Whitney
29-Raman Hrabarenka
23-Darcy Zajac
25-David Wohlberg
18-Stefan Matteau




That was it for the Albany players. We waited for the coaches as well. I got goalie coach Johan Hedberg to sign an index card. I also got assistant coach Sergei Brylin to sign a pocket schedule from last season. I have a bunch of those and that was the first one I got signed. That was it for this game.

Now, here's something I forgot to write about a few weeks ago when it actually happened. Longtime backup Scott Clemmensen was sent down to Albany in early November. I went one day after a game to try and get his autograph, and I got it. He was extremely nice, signed everything for everyone, and even took a photo with me. He signed the only 4x6 I had with me.

That's it for this entry. Thanks for reading and good luck graphing!

St. John's IceCaps @ Albany Devils 4/25/14

For the first time in my life, I attended a playoff hockey game. The Islanders haven't helped my cause, so I went to the Albany Devils game instead. They were hosting the St. John's IceCaps, AHL affiliate of the Winnipeg Jets, in game 1 of the first round of the Calder Cup Playoffs.

The game itself was a very exciting. St. John's got on the board early off of an Albany turnover. The crowd at Times Union Center was large, as the upper deck was open to fans for the playoffs, unlike the regular season.

I had heard on twitter that New Jersey Devils President and General Manager, Hall of Famer Lou Lamoriello, was at the game. At the first intermission, I went looking for him. After walking around the upper level, I spotted an older man wearing a suit sitting in the front row. After a quick google image search confirmed that it was Lamoriello. I went up to him. He was sitting in the front row by himself, and I asked if he could sign something for me. Once he said yes, I handed him a puck and silver sharpie. He signed it nicely, writing out every letter of his name and adding the Hall of Fame inscription that I asked for. I shook his hand, thanked him, then took a blurry picture of him as I left the upper level. When I got back from the game, I scanned the puck and you can see both below.

After I got back to my seat, the Devils began their second period charge. They got a power play and got their chance to tie the game. See what happened below.


Unfortunately for Albany, the visitors would win the game on a long range goal in the final minute of regulation. The game would end with a 2-1 IceCaps final score. Here are some pictures I took after the go-ahead goal got past Devils goaltender Keith Kinkaid.

After the game, a slight drizzle began to fall and I went to my usual spot out back. Surprisingly, there was no team bus for the IceCaps. I learned that all the players would be walking to their hotel which is just a few blocks away. I got a few autographs from players on the IceCaps walking to the hotel. I was mainly staying under an overpass to not get rained on. A few of the IceCaps said they liked my photo. Here is the photo I got signed with a list of everyone that signed it.

44-Julian Melchiori 1-Tyler Beskorowany 19-Kyle MacKinnon 30-Eric Comrie

32-Cody Lampl 27-Will O'Neill 6-Josh Morissey 7-Kris Fredheim

14-Eric O'Dell 34-JC Lipon 17-Jerome Samson 10-Andrew Gordon

25-Blair Riley 18-Ben Chariot

That's all I have for now. I hope Albany wins so they play another home game here at the Times Union Center. Thanks for reading. Good luck Graphing. 

Springfield Falcons @ Albany Devils 4/19/14

For their last game of the regular season, the Albany Devils hosted the Springfield Falcons. I had already met many of the Falcons back in December. After the game, I was at my usual spot by the back door near the bus. 

I only had some stuff for a few of the Falcons, and they started coming out quickly after the game. There were a bunch of people outside in the back, and it made me wonder where those people were back in December when it was freezing out. 

The first Falcon out that I had something for was Tim Erixon, a former New York Ranger who was a part of the Rick Nash trade in 2012. He was very nice, signing everything for everybody. He signed the 4x6 photo I had. I'm pretty sure he signed six or seven cards for one of the other people that was there. I got a good photo of him signing for one of the other people that wanted his autograph.

The next person whose autograph I wanted was goalie Mike McKenna, a former Albany Devil. He came out, and signed for people who asked. He even stood and talked to the fans outside for a good 15 minutes. One person was wearing a McKenna jersey, and he seemed very happy to see someone was wearing his jersey. He signed that fan's jersey and signed everything for anyone else that wanted, including my photo. I also took a good picture of McKenna, in the backwards blue cap, signing for another person.

The last Falcon autograph I got was Dana Tyrell. As soon as he left the building, he walked far away from everyone to make a phone call. When he walked back to the bus, he signed very quickly. He only signed one item per person, good thing I only had one photo. It seemed like he made an effort to sign some cards for people as sloppily as he could. I thanked him for the autograph, and then he boarded the bus, which soon drove away.

I did get a couple autographs from the Devils, but I didn't have much for most of the team. The main person I was hoping to see was Jon Merrill. I printed out a picture from his first NHL goal, which was actually an overtime winner as well. He added the inscription that I asked for. He will most likely be with New Jersey for next season, but since New Jersey didn't make the NHL playoffs, he was back in Albany. He signed for the mob of Devils fans that assembled in the warm spring weather, then ducked into the parking garage and left.




The last autograph on the day that I got was of Tim Sestito. I had taken a picture with him back in January. I printed it out, and when he came out the door. He signed for everyone, including myself. I wished him good luck in the playoffs, and he went to his car and drove away.

That's it for now. I will be going to one of the Albany Devils playoff games this weekend. Thanks for reading! Good luck graphing! 

Albany Devils Autograph Signing 3/30/14

I went to the Albany Devils game back on March 30. It was followed by the last post-game autograph signing of the season, and I wanted to finish as much of the Albany Devils stuff that I had.

Before the game, I went to the Albany Devils tunnel and got assistant coach Sergei Brylin to sign a card I recently found. Unfortunately, it got smudged when he passed it back to me, but it is still a good autograph from a Stanley Cup Champion.

During the game, I got a good video of Reid Boucher scoring a goal. Check it out below. That's me with the play by play.

The game was a good one, that went to a shootout. Unlike the New Jersey Devils who are 0-11 in shootouts, Albany is pretty decent in the shootout. Captain Rod Pelley scored the only goal, and Scott Wedgewood didn't allow a goal. The Albany Devils look like they are going to the playoffs, and they got the win on this day 3-2.

After the game, I got in line for the 45 minute signing. The first table I went to had Chris McKelvie, Keith Kinkaid, Kelly Zajac, and Mike Sislo. I took a picture with Kinkaid, Sislo, and McKelvie last time, and they all signed a 4x6 that I printed out of it. Kinkaid also signed the photo of him and Johan Hedberg that Hedberg signed in February.

The giveaway for this game was a very large Albany Devils poster, and I got everyone to sign that as well. The next table I went to had Reid Bocuher, David Wohlberg, Scott Timmins, and Corbin McPherson. They all signed my poster, and I got Wohlberg to sign the program I started getting signed in October. I got a few more people to sign the program throughout the afternoon. Here is a photo of Wohlberg signing a hat and Boucher signing a program with Timmins and McPherson in the background.

When I reached the table featuring Stefan Matteau, son of Stephan Matteau, I stopped for a minute to grab a puck out of my bag. Matteau is one of the Devils top prospects, and has the potential to be a regular in the NHL in the next year or two. He signed the puck with my gold sharpie, the poster, and his photo in the program, which you can see at the bottom of this entry. Unfortunately, I don't have a photo of Matteau signing, but the evidence is good enough.

I also got to a table that had winning goalie Scott Wedgewood, Reece Scarlett, Harri Pesonen, and a fourth player whom I can't remember right now. They all signed the poster after what seemed like a long wait. Of all the Devils autograph signings I've been to, this one was by far the most crowded.

Another table had shootout hero Rod Pelley, Cam Janssen, and another player who I can't remember. I wish I had the list of who was at what table, but I didn't get one for this day. I just walked in a circle and got everything signed. They signed my poster as well.

That's all the pictures I have from the signing. Here is the poster. You can see who signed it under the picture of the poster. The two hockey pucks are shown for scale. Everyone that was at the signing signed the poster.

Here's everyone that signed the poster. The number next to their name is the number that is on they jersey they are wearing, not the number they signed with. It's easier to identify them that way.
8-Mattias Tedenby 1-Keith Kinkaid 22-Cam Janssen 26-Mike Hoeffel 32-Alex Urbom
7-Brandon Burlon 23-Darcy Zajac 28-Dan Kelly 19-Mike Sislo 14-Reid Boucher
10-Rod Pelley 18-Stefan Matteau 33-Corbin McPherson 2-Seth Helgeson
17-Scott Timmins 29-Raman Hrabarenka 16-Chris McKelvie 11-Kelly Zajac
15-Harri Pesonen 34-Reece Scarlett 25-David Wohlberg 31-Scott Wedgewood

Lastly, here is my updated signed program. I got a bunch of people to sign it at the signing. The names are near the photos and signatures, so there isn't a need for another list.  Click on the photos to get a bigger look.

Overall, another well organized signing by the Devils. If you are in Albany, go to a game and try to get some autographs, you won't be disappointed. The AHL playoffs start in a few weeks, and some players currently on New Jersey should be sent down once the Devils are out of NHL playoff contention. That's all I have for now. Best of luck graphing and thanks for reading!