The Jamestown Jets announced today they will be holding an open try-out on Labor Day weekend at the Jamestown Savings Bank Ice Arena.
The Jets will be competing in the Tier II Junior A Greater Metro Hockey League based in Ontario and are expecting to attract the best junior players available. The GMHL does not have import restrictions, allowing players from around the world to have an opportunity to showcase their skills to college coaches and scouts from across North America.
“We anticipate a good turn-out and we look forward to building our team to compete in the GMHL this season” Head Coach Dennis Canfield said.
The Buffalo Stampede has officially joined the Atlantic Coast Professional Basketball League (ACPBL). The Buffalo Stampede is entering the teams third season of professional basketball play and this upcoming season will mark the teams first season of play in the Atlantic Coast Professional Basketball League.
The Stampede is owned and operated by Buffalo Pro Hoops Inc. with Buffalo native Vincent Lesh entering into his third season in the front office serving as team president. Lesh has brought in a new face for the teams third season of professional play by announcing that Richard Anselmo has been appointed as the teams “Managing Partner” and will assist Vincent Lesh with the team’s finances while Anselmo also takes over the majority of the teams day to day operations.
Douglas J. Gladstone, the author of A Bitter Cup of Coffee; How MLB & The Players Association Threw 874 Retirees A Curve, will read excerpts from his book at Talking Leaves Books on Friday, August 20, 2010 beginning at 5 P.M. Mr. Gladstone will also take questions from the audience and sign copies of the book for all those individuals who purchase it that afternoon.
With a foreword written by the Emmy Award-winning broadcast journalist, Dave Marash, A Bitter Cup of Coffee tells the true story of a group of former big-league ballplayers denied pensions as a result of the failure of both the league and the union to retroactively amend the vesting requirement change that granted instant pension eligibility to ballplayers in 1980. Prior to that year, ballplayers had to have four years service credit to earn an annuity and medical benefits. Since 1980, however, all you have needed is one day of service credit for health insurance and 43 days of service credit for a pension.
Here’s, in part, what the Midwest Book Review had to say about the book in its official review, which was published nine weeks ago:
The Jamestown Jets announced they will be holding a pair of evaluation camps in preparation for the 2010-2011 season. The camps will be held in Buffalo, NY at the Amherst Pepsi Center on August 11 and August 18. Each session will begin at 7:30 pm. and will conclude at 9:30 pm.
The Jets will have successful players from the past in attendance to take the ice with the camp participants. Some of the players expected to be at the camp include, Tyler Underhill (NAHL – Texas Tornado), Tyler Nelson (OJHL – Trenton Golden Hawks/Robert Morris University), Sean Cirbus (Northfield Prep) and Mike Robertson (St. Mary’s University – NCAA Div. III) . The Jets will also have current contracted and invited players on the ice to participate.
The Jamestown Jets announced today that they will have new ownership upon transfer of the team. Head Coach and Vice President of Operations, Dennis Canfield reached an agreement to buy the organization from long-time associate Barry Soskin, who had been the majority owner of the organization.
A native of Buffalo, NY, Canfield has a long history in the sport of hockey and has been the Head Coach and VP of Operations the past two seasons. “This is a proud day for me and the organization” said Canfield, “I see this as a stepping stone for the future of this organization and hockey in the Jamestown Community”.
When it comes to Western New York, it seems three things in life are certain; death, taxes, and that the Western region will dominate in the annual Empire State Games.
The 32nd edition of the games closed in Buffalo on Sunday and for the 29th time Western led in the medal count. The 104 gold medals were by far the most of the six regions competing throughout the state. In fact, the final tally more than doubled any other region.
Arguably the most satisfying, and certainly the biggest headlines drawn from the games were the men’s open basketball team capturing gold after defeating Hudson Valley Sunday at Canisius College. Kyle Downey, a junior at Sienna College, led the way with 21 points.
It was sweet revenge for the Western men’s open basketball team, as they defeated Hudson Valley — who they lost to the previous night — by a final of 86-81 to win the gold medal on the final day of the Empire State Games.
Western’s three-point loss the previous night was their only loss of the tournament, but was torched by a pair of Division 1 players in Mookie Jones (Syracuse) and Tony Taylor (George Washington) who combined for 54 points.
“We told the guys after the game and all morning that we had to play better team defense if we were going to win,” Western head coach Bill Bowe said. “We told the guys if we can keep them under 80 points, we’d be in good shape.
Kyle Downey hit six three-pointers on his way to 25 points, while UB’s Mike Clifford added 21 points as Western open men’s basketball team coasted to 91-64 blowout over Central.
Even without big brother Kevin nursing an ankle injury, Kyle Downey and Co. had little problem disposing an overmatched Central squad.
“My teammates were getting me some open shots and it felt good getting into a rhythm,” Kyle Downey said.
Things started shaky though, as Western fell behind 6-0 early, but quickly went on a 16-4 to seize the lead for good. Kyle Downey hit a three to give them a 7-6 lead and after back-to-back buckets by Clifford, Cory McAdam hit a three to move the lead to 14-10.
The Western scholastic men’s basketball team fell 72-61 to Central in the second round of pool play Friday night and will be in a must-win situation Saturday to get into the medal round.
Despite a confident start that saw Western up for virtually the entire first half, the team was plagued by turnovers and poor shot selection, and unlike their first game, their size was not there to save them.
“I was really disappointed with our rebounding,” head coach Larry Jones said. “It was tough to get the ball inside, we had some poor shot selection, but we simply didn’t rebound well enough.”
Western New York got the ball rolling in baseball with victories over Adirondack and New York City to sweep their first two contests Thursday at the Empire State Games.
Shortstop Chris Bostic went 3-for-4 with two RBI to pace Western to a 7-6 opening round win over Adirondack. Zack Lauricella, Trey Pascazi, Vinny Bomasuto III and Zachary Lander each had two hits for Western. Lauricella also drove in a pair of runs.
Adirondack led 4-0 after two innings and were clinging to a one-run lead before Western move ahead for good with three runs in the bottom of the sixth inning.
With a dominating second half performance, the Western scholastic men’s basketball team came from behind to beat Long Island, 67-55.
Western trailed 26-21 at halftime, and were behind by as many as eight at multiple times in the first half, but came out firing after the break led by Irondequoit’s Josiah Heath and St. Joe’s Connor Rehbaum.
“I think we were a little nervous at the beginning,” Western head coach Mike Haskell said. “At halftime, we focused on getting the ball inside so we could use our size advantage.
It was a rough start for the scholastic Western New York boy’s lacrosse team at the Empire State Games. Long Island dominated the second half in handing the host region an opening round 10-4 loss in front of a raucous crowd at Canisius College.
Western New York trailed by just one, 3-2 at the half but Long Island came out much more physical and asserted themselves in the trenches and eventually, on the scoreboard.
Kyle Keenan led Long Island (1-0) with three goals and two assists. James Pannell added a goal and two assists.
Zack Reed, Greg Coholan, Doug DeJoe and Ryan Yunker scored for Western New York, who will face New York City in their second game of the round robin tournament tonight at 8pm.
For the fifth time in its history, the Empire State Games returned to Western New York with opening ceremonies taking place Wednesday evening at UB Stadium in front of a near-capacity crowd of over 15,000, according game’s director Fred Smith. The crowd is believed to be one of; if not the biggest opening ceremony crowds in the game’s history.
Over 6,000 of the best athletes from throughout New York State took the stadium field. Conceived in 1978, the Games didn’t take place for the first time last year in Hudson Valley due to state budgetary problems. The last games took place in 2008 in Binghamton.
The last time the games were in Buffalo was in 2003.
Buffalo native and Olympic champion Steve Messler led the Western New York contingent into the stadium.
This is a big week for amateur sports in New York…and it’s centered right here. The Empire State Games are back! After missing a year because of the state’s budget crisis, the Games resume this week…and they’re back in Buffalo, which means thousands of athletes and fans will be here from around the state, pumping millions of dollars into the local economy. As for the Games themselves, there’s a good chance at least one of this year’s athletes will go on to become a big sports star. Here are just a few who have already done that.
It’s highly unlikely the TSC Maryland Red Devils and FC Buffalo will engage in a game like this one ever again.
After the Red Devils (3-0-7) came out strong and nearly put in three shots in the first five minutes, the Blitzers (4-2-4) came out of their shells by scoring the first seven goals of the contest en route to a 7-1 win in front of nearly 200 fans at Robert E. Rich All-High Stadium.
Several club records were broken in the win. Richie Wilson scored three goals, the first hat trick in club history. Daniel Stevens added two goals to notch the Blitzers first ever brace, while John Grabowski snagged two assists for the first multi-assist contest by a single players. David Thoin and Stevens became the first players to notch a goal and an assist in the same game — Stevens had two — while the four players with multi-point games set the club’s standard as well. Mike Unwin also tallied in the win.
International recording artists Third Eye Blind, best known for the single “Semi-Charmed Life”, will headline the Empire State Games Opening Ceremonies on Wednesday July 21 kicking-off four days of gold medal athletic competitions.
The 2010 Buffalo Games will run through Sunday July 25 with more than 6,000 athletes from across the state descending on Western New York to compete in the country’s oldest amateur, multi-sport competition.
“We are a little more than a month away from one of the greatest events to be held in Western New York,” said Jack Quinn, Empire State Games Buffalo 2010 Honorary Co-Chairman. “Athletic history will be made on the sports fields and arenas throughout our community. Buffalo has risen to the challenge of bringing the Games back to life when they may have been lost forever. This accomplishment is a true testament of Western New York’s dedication to its community and the state.”
For the second-straight week, 300-plus supporters witnessed FC Buffalo take the Robert E. Rich All-High Stadium field for an NPSL contest Sunday afternoon.
For the first time, they saw a ‘W.’
Andrew Tiedt made a dazzling run through several New Jersey Blaze defenders and Scott Zorn fired a laser past Blaze GK Kevin Gramatta as FC Buffalo (1-0-1) earned a 2-0 Sunday win.
If you critique the FC Buffalo Blitzers soccer debut this past weekend solely by the scoreboard, you’re going to give it a failing grade. In its National Premier Soccer League (NPSL) this past Saturday at All-High Stadium, the team was held off the scoreboard in a 3-0 shutout loss to the high powered Erie Admirals, a team that made the league championship game last season.
Buffalo seemed outgun from the opening seconds and were nearly behind just 28 seconds into the game; a rarity for outdoor soccer. They were down a pair before halftime, never really in the game and finally put out of misery in the 72nd minute. They didn’t threaten at all in the first half, only did a handful of times in the second and when they did, were shut down by Erie goaltender Danny Mudd.
But for now at least, the real story wasn’t what happened on the playing field. High level soccer is back in the Queen City and fans who crave the sport are past appreciative. They’re simply fanatical.
One of the things Western New York has lacked for quite some time is a soccer team to root for. That changes when Memorial Day weekend rolls around.
The National Premier Soccer League now has a franchise in Buffalo. FC Buffalo opens their inaugural season Saturday afternoon at Robert E. Rich All-High Stadium with a match against Erie.
Game time is 3:00pm. Tickets are just $5 at the door and as a Memorial Day weekend special, all veterans and military personnel that show ID will get in for free.
Co-owner Nick Mendola, also an on-air personality at local radio station WECK, has long been infatuated with soccer. He cites the organization’s mission statement as the reason behind bringing the sport back to Buffalo.
The 2010 Empire State Games Local Organizing Committee (LOC) has launched a social media campaign that consists of a Web site and interactive Facebook page.
The Web site, www.esgbuffalo.com, was created to be an information portal for athletes and the community wishing to attend the games or people looking to volunteer for athletic and non-athletic activities. In addition, the Web site will house information and details about the Opening Ceremonies, a link to Sport Nation to purchase advance tickets and visitor and tourism information. The site will also be linked to the official Empire State Games web site, www.empirestategames.org, for full details on all athletic events, eligibility requirements and try-out dates, competition schedules and venues.
The Local Organizing Committee (LOC) for the 2010 Buffalo Empire State Games announced 17 Buffalo area companies to date have pledged close to $600,000 in cash and in-kind support for the July Games. First Niagara, which kicked off the first-of-its-kind, private sector Games fundraising effort in late March with its own $500,000 donation, challenged the local business community to chip in at least another half million dollars in cash and in-kind sponsor donations.
Western New York athlete Scott Moser has built quite an impressive resume over the past seven years throughout his high school and collegiate career. Being a multi-sport athlete and an outstanding scholar in the classroom, Moser has had many accomplishments and experiences when it comes to Western New York sports.
One of those experiences he’ll never forget is participating and winning a gold medal in the Empire State Games.
Moser, a Tonawanda native, played on the Western Men’s Scholastic hockey team in the 2006 games. He was selected after having a great year helping lead his Kenmore West high school team to a Western New York Federation Hockey Championship.
The name Tim Kennedy is certainly a familiar one to hockey fans in Western New York. A graduate of Bishop Timon-St. Jude High School, Kennedy became a left wing mainstay for the Buffalo Sabres this past season. He was also a member of the Western Region hockey team that won the gold medal in 2002 and 2003. During the games he scored a total of six goals and assisted on eight others.
Tim played several years of his youth hockey career with the Buffalo Regals, where he led his team with a future teammate at Michigan State, Chris Mueller. He turned down a contract with the OHL because he wanted to play NCAA hockey.
For those looking for your summertime floor or roller hockey fix, you’re in luck.
MilSher Hockey is now accepting registration for teams and players in both their summer floor and hockey leagues. The summer season begins May 24 and features roller hockey on Monday, Wednesday and Friday nights. Floor hockey leagues run on Tuesday and Thursday nights.
There’s also a Sunday roller hockey league that begins play in early June.
Owner Tom Mangione tells me that are price breaks for teams that play in two or more leagues and there’s also a second-shift league for guys that work late during the week.
The fine folks from the Labatts Blue Pond Hockey have released a video highlight of this year’s event held in Buffalo this past February.
Although inclement weather prevented the tournament from reaching its conclusion on the final day, you must admit it looked like a great time. We especially like the Chiefs uniform at the 2:39 mark.
Check out the clip and if you’re on the fence about participating when it comes to town next year, this should put you over the top.
The Jamestown Jets announced today they will be holding an open try-out on Labor Day weekend at the Jamestown Savings Bank Ice Arena.
The Buffalo Stampede has officially joined the Atlantic Coast Professional Basketball League (ACPBL). The Buffalo Stampede is entering the teams third season of professional basketball play and this upcoming season will mark the teams first season of play in the Atlantic Coast Professional Basketball League.
Douglas J. Gladstone, the author of A Bitter Cup of Coffee; How MLB & The Players Association Threw 874 Retirees A Curve, will read excerpts from his book at Talking Leaves Books on Friday, August 20, 2010 beginning at 5 P.M. Mr. Gladstone will also take questions from the audience and sign copies of the book for all those individuals who purchase it that afternoon.
The Jamestown Jets announced they will be holding a pair of evaluation camps in preparation for the 2010-2011 season. The camps will be held in Buffalo, NY at the Amherst Pepsi Center on August 11 and August 18. Each session will begin at 7:30 pm. and will conclude at 9:30 pm.
The Jamestown Jets announced today that they will have new ownership upon transfer of the team. Head Coach and Vice President of Operations, Dennis Canfield reached an agreement to buy the organization from long-time associate Barry Soskin, who had been the majority owner of the organization.
When it comes to Western New York, it seems three things in life are certain; death, taxes, and that the Western region will dominate in the annual Empire State Games.
It was sweet revenge for the Western men’s open basketball team, as they defeated Hudson Valley — who they lost to the previous night — by a final of 86-81 to win the gold medal on the final day of the Empire State Games.
Kyle Downey hit six three-pointers on his way to 25 points, while UB’s Mike Clifford added 21 points as Western open men’s basketball team coasted to 91-64 blowout over Central.
The Western scholastic men’s basketball team fell 72-61 to Central in the second round of pool play Friday night and will be in a must-win situation Saturday to get into the medal round.
Scholastic Baseball
It was a rough start for the scholastic Western New York boy’s lacrosse team at the Empire State Games. Long Island dominated the second half in handing the host region an opening round 10-4 loss in front of a raucous crowd at Canisius College.
For the fifth time in its history, the Empire State Games returned to Western New York with opening ceremonies taking place Wednesday evening at UB Stadium in front of a near-capacity crowd of over 15,000, according game’s director Fred Smith. The crowd is believed to be one of; if not the biggest opening ceremony crowds in the game’s history.
This is a big week for amateur sports in New York…and it’s centered right here. The Empire State Games are back! After missing a year because of the state’s budget crisis, the Games resume this week…and they’re back in Buffalo, which means thousands of athletes and fans will be here from around the state, pumping millions of dollars into the local economy. As for the Games themselves, there’s a good chance at least one of this year’s athletes will go on to become a big sports star. Here are just a few who have already done that.
It’s highly unlikely the TSC Maryland Red Devils and FC Buffalo will engage in a game like this one ever again.
International recording artists Third Eye Blind, best known for the single “Semi-Charmed Life”, will headline the Empire State Games Opening Ceremonies on Wednesday July 21 kicking-off four days of gold medal athletic competitions.
For the second-straight week, 300-plus supporters witnessed FC Buffalo take the Robert E. Rich All-High Stadium field for an NPSL contest Sunday afternoon.
If you critique the FC Buffalo Blitzers soccer debut this past weekend solely by the scoreboard, you’re going to give it a failing grade. In its National Premier Soccer League (NPSL) this past Saturday at All-High Stadium, the team was held off the scoreboard in a 3-0 shutout loss to the high powered Erie Admirals, a team that made the league championship game last season.
One of the things Western New York has lacked for quite some time is a soccer team to root for. That changes when Memorial Day weekend rolls around.
The 2010 Empire State Games Local Organizing Committee (LOC) has launched a social media campaign that consists of a Web site and interactive Facebook page.
The Local Organizing Committee (LOC) for the 2010 Buffalo Empire State Games announced 17 Buffalo area companies to date have pledged close to $600,000 in cash and in-kind support for the July Games. First Niagara, which kicked off the first-of-its-kind, private sector Games fundraising effort in late March with its own $500,000 donation, challenged the local business community to chip in at least another half million dollars in cash and in-kind sponsor donations.
Western New York athlete Scott Moser has built quite an impressive resume over the past seven years throughout his high school and collegiate career. Being a multi-sport athlete and an outstanding scholar in the classroom, Moser has had many accomplishments and experiences when it comes to Western New York sports.
The name Tim Kennedy is certainly a familiar one to hockey fans in Western New York. A graduate of Bishop Timon-St. Jude High School, Kennedy became a left wing mainstay for the Buffalo Sabres this past season. He was also a member of the Western Region hockey team that won the gold medal in 2002 and 2003. During the games he scored a total of six goals and assisted on eight others.
