Here we are in the Big City! It’s a crisp and chilly but sunny day here in New York, and traffic from New Jersey and through the Holland Tunnel was surprisingly light and stress free. We got down to the Madison Square Garden neighborhood and the next challenge was scouting out parking.

In Manhattan, that is no easy task. Private lots are few and far between, the ones that are available are very pricey ($25+) and on street parking is metered every day but Sunday. But we checked around are eventually found a location on 26th and 8th, about 6 blocks from the arena for $15. We snapped a few pics, got our credentials, had a nice brunch, and here we are in the north pressbox, halfway up the seating bowl sitting right amidst the fans.

1st period:

0:10 - Game is underway, and 10 seconds in Sean Avery buries a rebound past Ryan Miller. Just like that it’s 1-0 New York and fans are on their feet clapping and chanting a cool “oh oh oh oh hey hey” song. Not the beginning we wanted.

4:31 - First whistle in the game and we already got our first “Potvin sucks” chant. Get over it Rangersfan! Martin Straka then gets an assist to make it 2-0 Rangers, his 700th career point.

9:05 - %$%#@!!!! I think we may be seeing Jocelyn Thibault before long….arrrgh.

12:25 %$%#@!!!! And here comes Thibault……useless USRT stat: The Sabres have been outscored 18-4 in the last four games that we’ve been in the press box for, including two yankings of Ryan Miller. Blame us….go right ahead we can take it.

:40 - Final minute of play….can’t come quickly enough here and shorthanded as well.
sog’s NY 11 - Buf - 7. I can see the Knicks here anytime if I wish to see my favorite team get hammered. Not good, not good….

2nd Period

15:00 - No Ranger goals, hey that progress. And now I’ve finally got internet back up and running, sorry folks. I’ve just been reminded by the fans that Dennis Potvin still sucks here. Losers….they’re just irked knowing that they’re already fourteen years into their nexty fifty four year Stanley Cup hex.

12:37 - Break in the action to gush about MSG. While it’s the fifth MSG that’s been in use, the venue still is one of the older venues in the NHL(oldest in use in the NBA). So if you like old school sports from the days of fuzzy color photos this is certainly a place to soak in.
Well, except if your team is getting hammered right about now……

Still, the banners, the visuals of Willis Reed hobbling onto the court here. Multiple Big East tournament/St. John’s games. Yes, and Messier holding aloft the Cup.

12:13 - %$%#@!!!!! Ya know, I’m getting really sick of this whoa-oh-oh-oh! song…..and then Pratt heads to the box. Uglier than….than….ummmm….just ugly.

5:48 - noticeable 1st period stat: Campbell(-4) if I could pick Darcy’s brain off to my right here…..6M…..5.5M…..5M….down…….hmmmm.

Press box note- the people who are in charge of passing out game notes generally fall into two categories. A- smoking hot interns for the traditional male(Buffalo falls under example A) and B. Old codger usher who’s been employed by the team since their inception. Unfortunately tonight falls into category B.

End of 2: Rangers 5, Buffalo 0 Sog’s Rangers 12(23) Buffalo 9(16). Still an ass kicking, and worse yet, !@#$ing Sean Avery is just one goal away from a hat trick. I’d rather lose 30-0 than see that happen.

3rd period

3:17 - sighting of an endangered species - Buffalus Sabris powerplayus.

10:55 - Another useles USRT stat: The home team/team we want to win in the three games we’ve witnessed on the current roadie have gone over 117 minutes without scoring a goal. For the good of the team, this may be the final Sabres road game that we sit in the press box for.

13:03 - Damn I’m good at reverse jinxing! The streak ends at 121 minutes and 7 seconds when Thomas Vanek lights the lamp. Right about now I’m looking for some “let’s send a message to those guys” type of scrums….

16:30 puck gets caught in netting just out of the reach of a fan. The peanut gallery boos him mercilessly until he reaches jusssst a big further to get it by the fingertips. Welcome to New York! The things you notice when a game is a snooze….

18:00 Guess we’re too far behind to pull the goalie..

19:00 - Final minute….couldn’t come soon enough.

20:00 - finito. 5-1 Rangers. Sog NY 9(32), Buf (30)…to the dressing rooms I go. 4 and a half hrs to face off in Bridgeport….

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