Resident PA announcer extraordinaire, Roger Hyde, took some well-earned vacation time and followed the Inferno on their recent road trip through the Gulf Coast. Stopping in Pensacola and Biloxi, Hyde took some notes and pictures to commemorate the experience and share with all of yas.
Gulf Coast Road Trip
Greetings from the Voice of the Inferno, Roger Hyde! My wife and I just
returned from a trip to Biloxi, Mississippi and Pensacola, Florida following
our favorite ECHL hockey team. Four hockey games, 2 Mardi Gras parades, and
several nice restaurants later, we're back in the Palmetto State ready for
Friday night's game with the Texas Wildcatters. We left our home in
Lexington on Wednesday morning (1/30) and made the trek to Biloxi. Other
than a half hour standstill due to an accident on I-10, the trip was quite
pleasant. We arrived at the Holiday Inn on the beach about 5 minutes from
the Mississippi Coast Coliseum at around 8 PM CST.
The next day we spent poking around the Biloxi/Gulfport area. We were
amazed at the amount of damage still left over from Hurricane Katrina.
Originally Beach Blvd. was a strip of beautiful old antebellum homes, with
beautiful trees and landscaping. The casinos were all literally "on the
water" on huge barges. Hurricane Katrina saw to it that all casinos were
moved to the land. One landed directly on another Holiday Inn and one came
down on one of the old mansions. Most of the debris has been moved away,
leaving vacant lot after vacant lot. The casinos have been rebuilt as
high-rises on the land (no more barges) and some of the homes have been
replaced with replicas of the mansions or newer designs. The Coliseum where
the Sea Wolves play shows no sign of the damage she incurred. In fact, it's
a pleasant place to see a game or two, and would have been even better had
we won a game or two. In both games in Biloxi, the Inferno could
have/should have won, but were frequently their own worst enemy, turning
over the puck at the worst times (anyone remember Travis Lisabeth), and
going 0-7 on the power play in game one, including a 4 minute PP with only 1
shot on goal! The second game saw more of the same, but with a little
better effort on the part of our boys. An empty netter was the only reason
that wasn't a one goal game as well.
Claire and I spent Saturday morning in Gulfport at our first ever Mardi Gras
parade. As you can tell by the pictures, we managed to get a few beads!
Sunday we made the short drive to Orange Beach/Gulf Shores, Alabama, about
45 minutes from Pensacola. Monday's game started at 12 noon for some
unknown reason, and my wife and I and about 500 Ice Pilot fans witnessed
another 2-1 Inferno loss. In what appeared to be a replay of the first
Mississippi game, we couldn't get enough shots on the Pilots goaltender, and
they played just well enough to beat us. I had the opportunity to chat with
Coach Mann before the game, and he expressed his concern with our power play
as well. "No matter who I put out there, they pass the puck around the
perimeter, but don't get the puck on net!"
Tuesday was spent on the beach, and at another Mardi Gras parade, and, of
course, more beads! Dinner before the game at McGuire's Irish Pub was
grand, as was their micro-brewed root beer (hey, I was driving). Game two
with the Ice Pilots started well as things began to click on the PP. We took
a 1-0 lead midway through the 1st period, only to be trailing 2-1 after two.
The Inferno scored on the power play (thank Heavens!) to tie the score with
just over 2 minutes to play. How they scored is still a mystery to me and
the Ice Pilots and their fans. After a scrum in front of the net, and a
couple guys pushing and shoving behind the goal, the puck suddenly appeared
in the back of the net. The referee signaled a goal to the protests of the
Ice Pilots. The linesmen checked the twine for holes but found none, and
the ref pointed to center ice. Our own "Phil the Conductor" would have been
proud of the Pilot fans at that point, as the vocally displayed their
opinion of the referee. My wife and I and the Inferno actually felt that
the ref was a fine upstanding young man, who clearly showed wisdom beyond
his tender age! Off to overtime, and, much to the dismay of the boy in front
of us who wanted to see his first shootout, Reid Cashman slammed home a
rebound that the Pilot goalie couldn't cover in time, and the Inferno had
the two points! Wednesday we packed up the Expedition, and headed back home,
happy to be on a one game winning streak! We met some great people in both
arenas, and hope to return next year.
If you folks ever get the chance to
see the Inferno on the road, and you don't mind a little driving, the Gulf
Coast is a great place to chase away the winter blahs! See on on Thursday! LET'S GO INFERNO!
