The Allen Americans Open Training Camp

October 10^th, 2011, the Allen Americans open up training camp at the Allen Event Center.

The Americans enter their third year in the Central Hockey League, and in the previous two seasons, the Americans have captured their Division Title, made it to the League Finals in just their FIRST YEAR, and last year won the Governor’s Cup, which is for the best record in the league. However, they exited the playoffs early, and had to watch eventual champion Bossier City/Shreveport lift the championship trophy… now the irony of it all.

The league has seen teams come and go, and Bossier City is one of them, so their one and only championship in the Central Hockey League is the last one for them, some of those players along with other teams that had to close operations have scattered into the league and Allen was fortunate enough to pick up a few players from other teams, to improve their skills and speed.

Some familiar faces have returned to this team from last year, such as Colton Yellow-Horn, Bruce Graham, and Mike Berube just to name a few, some others have left, like Chris Whitely who manned the goal for the Americans last year, he is now in Europe tending goal for a team in Scotland.

Minor League Hockey has its good points and its bad, the down side, obvious is that fans get attached to some of the players, and they move to the next level or to another team that can use their services, much like Minor League Baseball does with trades and players to be named later.

However in Allen, where this team has actually built a pretty good fan base with putting in an average of 3500 per game during the season then selling out over 6000 seats for the playoffs, this team has solidified itself as part of the community.

They are one of the few teams in the league that has a broadcast team that not only does their home games but also their away games, and all of them can be heard through the internet with the help of a local radio station, KLAK in McKinney, Texas just up the road from Allen.

Tommy Daniels will be in his third year behind the microphone for the Americans, a true hockey fan first, but more so, his knowledge of the game, and his ability to paint the picture in your mind about what is going on the ice without losing the listener. His broadcast partner from last year will return as well Jarred Yost, a young man who played college hockey at Oklahoma University, as well as works with youth hockey teams in the Metroplex, as their coach, has a great knowledge of the game and brings that to the analyst seat in the broadcast booth.

Family atmosphere helps a great deal with being a part of the community, and the Allen Event Center has great sight lines, not a bad seat in the house, and more so, FREE PARKING and lots of restaurants and entertainment area to give the fans a place to go before or after the games every night.

Good rivalries help as well, with the Texas Brahmas across town in Fort Worth, helps the league, when you have two teams close in proximity, and able to give good games in both their home arenas… however if you put the Allen Event Center up against other arenas, this one will win every time, its built for comfort, for every event!

The Americans will have a new affiliation as well, the first two seasons they had the Dallas Stars as their National Hockey League affiliate, this year they will change and be associated with the Colorado Avalanche, so these young men will work hard to be a part of the NHL some day, but for now, they will learn from one of the very best in Coach and General Manager Dwight Mullins, and continue to strive to be the best they can be at this level, and maybe move up to the next level of the American Hockey League.

Come out to the Even Center, tickets are priced for families to enjoy the evening, and the players are available to talk to, and get to know, and that makes it even more special for the kids!

Just a thought!

THE RED RIVER RIVALRY!

Its that time of year once again, the second Saturday in October, the State Fair of Texas, the sounds, the smells, the feel of fall in the air... yes boys and girls-- its TEXAS- OU weekend!

For those of you that are new to the area, allow me to give you a little insight to this little annual shindig... Its the Sooners for Oklahoma University going up against the University of Texas Longhorns in a battle that dates back to the early 1900's... it has been played inside the famed Cotton Bowl since 1932-- prior to this, the two schools played home and home games.

What makes this game so unique and considered to be one of the top five rival games in the country?

Pure-- unadulterated HATE! Yep.. I used the word HATE! Sooner Nation despises anything that wears BURNT ORANGE-- and Longhorn fans can do without anything in Crimson!

Back in the day (we are talking a mere 30 years ago) the tradition of the Friday night revelry was to walk up and down Commerce Street in Downtown Dallas, flash the upside down 'Horns if you were a Sooner Fan or the Hook 'EM Horns sign if you were a Texas fan-- then the fights were on-- usually ending up with someone going to jail and losing their tickets to the game because they couldn't make bail in time to make the kick off!

Many stories about how the bonfire at the end of Commerce street would start and then end up with the Fire Department coming in and putting out the flames before they reached buildings- (though this is more myth then fact)... though in those days-- at the hour of midnight-- water trucks would be seen coming down the streets to spray the party goers to indicate that the Party Was OVER! and to disperse from the area!

Now there are planned pep rallies around the Downtown area, as well as other locations in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area.. its a little more sedate and calm, but the fun times of those early days-- thats what defined Texas-OU!

The game itself, prior to 1996 the game was a non conference game-- since Texas was in the Southwest Conference and Oklahoma was part of the Big 8... after 96, this became a conference game when the two conferences merged to create the BIG XII... This game still has the same intensity as it did during the early years.

Players who have played in this game, will tell you that the feeling that they get standing in the tunnel of the Cotton Bowl, before they run out onto the field, there are no words to describe it. The hair on your arms and the back of your neck rise up-- the sounds of 90 thousand fans screaming and the sounds of your fight songs being played by the bands-- the chants of BOOMER-- SOONER-- or TEXAS!!! FIGHT!!! is heard throughout the stadium-- the 50 yard line acts as the Red River itself, as half the stadium to the north is bathed in Burnt Orange and the other half is colored in Crimson! NO other rivalry is this unique, maybe Army- Navy which plays on a neutral site, but this game-- was the granddaddy of them all to be held 3 hours from either campus.

Bragging rights, the chance to know that you beat your neighbor, and possibly have them go on to win a National Title, its been proven on the floor of the old lady known as the Cotton Bowl... Texas snapped a five game losing streak in 2005 to the Sooners-- handing them a 45 -12 defeat-but then went on to run the table and go undefeated and winning the National Championship with a win over USC... however there are other National Championships that were won by Oklahoma under Bud Wilkerson, and Barry Switzer as well as Bob Stoops, it was Darryl Royal that won Three National Championships in the 60's and 70's... and Mack Brown who won the crystal football in 05... the game sets the tone-- it creates the urgency-- and when the dust settles three hours after kick off.. the party starts for one school and ends for the other!

Just to give you some perspective about this game-- and the impact it has on the Dallas/Ft. Worth area, 30 million dollars is spent in hotel, rental cars, restaurant, bar, and club money! YOU saw it right--30 MILLION DOLLARS per year!

Now for anyone that is not savvy with economics-- that's a WHOLE LOT OF MONEY! and if this game were to EVER leave the Cotton Bowl... well you can imagine that we would take a major hit for the second Saturday in the month of October!

Spoke with a local taxi driver in Dallas.. and they informed me that they make their entire year on that one weekend! Imagine just one independent, cab driver-- will make his YEAR on three days! I would say thats a pretty damn good reason to fight and keep the game right here in Downtown Dallas!

So whether you're a HOOK 'EM HORNS or a BOOMER--SOONER... the Red River Rivalry beats them all!

ENJOY!

Just a thought (oh by the way-- HOOK 'EM HORNS!)