We left Bemidji on Wednesday afternoon and stayed in Bloomington that night. I got the chance to meet Kristi King’s parents, Michelle and Rick, for the first time and visit again with Rachael Kelly’s mom Kathleen. The parents and I, along with Kristi, Rachael and their teammate Kristin Huber all ended up playing a card game called 31 in the hotel lobby after the team checked in at the hotel. It was a lot of fun!

It was great getting a good night’s sleep at the hotel before heading to the airport Thursday morning for our flight into Pittsburgh.

Photo courtesy of Natasha Kostenko.

Thursday, Day 1 in Pittsburgh:
We landed in Pittsburgh in the early afternoon and headed to the RMU Island Sports Arena for practice. The Beavers wrapped up their practice a little after 4pm and we headed to the hotel.

For dinner that night we had Primanti Bros. I was told by my husband, Brian (a.k.a Schultzie, “Voice of the Beavers”) that I had to have the famous Pittsburgh Cheese steak Sandwich. Yes, it has French fries, coleslaw, steak, cheese and egg on it. The only thing missing was the hot sauce. Delicious, but very filling.

After eating dinner that night, a few of us on the BSU staff (Andrea Nichols, Kassi Goranowski, Steve Sertich & I) got back on the bus and headed to the Consol Energy Center for the big NHL game.

Photo courtesy of Mackenzie Thurston

It was the first time I got to be an official member of the media at an NHL Game, and witness one of the classic interstate rivalries between the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Philadelphia Flyers.

Granted, I had to basically beg with the Penguins media department for a credential for that game, but in the end it was the Flyers media communications department that convinced the Penguins to hook me up. Not only was it a huge game between two heated rivals, but it was also four days before the NHL Winter Classic in Philadelphia. HBO and every other major media were represented there at the Consol that night.

The hallway of the Penguins press level was decorated with photos of great moments in Pittsburgh hockey history, including this one (which brought back bad memories for this North Stars fan)…

I was so excited to get the opportunity to watch former BSU men’s hockey player and rookie forward for the Flyers, Matt Read. But I was even more excited to get a post game interview with a guy who’s the epitome of Beaver Hockey. “Reado” even quoted R.H. “Bob” Peters during the interview. Here’s a photo taken right after he scored the game winning goal…

I have to admit I was a bit nervous about doing an interview in an NHL locker room. It was my first time, but surprisingly I was treated very respectfully by everyone in and around the locker room. The security staff at the Consol was also very helpful in pointing me in the right direction, so I didn’t accidentally go into the Penguins locker room; rather I was looking for the Flyers.

It was crazy, a complete media frenzy surrounding Jaromir Jagr, current Flyer and former Penguin. During the game, every time Jagr touched the puck the crowd booed. Jagr scored and saluted the crowd, a classic celebration or “celly” as it’s called in the hockey community.

I was completely surprised when I walked into the Flyers locker room to see the game winning goal scorer #24 Matt Read standing alone with no other reporters around him. Instead, there were about 50 reporters around former Penguin and now current Flyer veteran Jaromir Jagr. Sadly, I wasn’t even able to catch a glimpse of #68, who I was a fan of during his early years, and owner of all of his rookie hockey cards.

It was great visiting with him about life in the “Pros” and how much he appreciates all the people back in Bemidji who helped him get to where he is today. The last thing he said in the interview was “Go Beavers!” (Thanks Matt!)

After the interview I headed back up to the main concourse to track down my BSU group that I came with. Matt’s girlfriend Erin Cody (former BSU women’s hockey player) and her sister had made the trip out east to see him play that night. They were waiting for him in the stands with the rest of our group. I couldn’t resist but get a photo with all of us and Matt before we all parted ways and he headed back to Philly to prepare for the NHL Winter Classic.

Left to right: Andrea Nichols (Women’s Hockey Equipment Manager), Erin Cody (Former BSU Women’s Hockey Player), Kassie Goranowski (Women’s Hockey Athletic Trainer), Matt Read, Kelly Schultz (Beaver Radio Network Women’s Hockey Play-by-play Announcer), and Steve Sertich (Women’s Head Hockey Coach).

Friday, Day 2 in Pittsburgh:
Game 1 between Bemidji State and Robert Morris was at the Consol Energy Center. Our women’s game was the first at the RMU Hockey Showcase. We arrived at the rink about two hours before face off. The team did a little exploring and picture taking, like these…
BSU freshman forward Natasha Kostenko outside the Pittsburgh Penguins locker room.
Equipment Manager Andrea Nichols & Athletic Trainer Kassi Goranowski.
Andrea Nichols standing in Penguins’ Sidney Crosby’s stall.

Andrea & Kassi took the following photos from within the Penguins locker room…








GAME ONE – BEAVERS VS COLONIALS
I headed up to the 7th floor of the Consol to set up my broadcast. Yes, seven floors up from ice level. Thankfully, I’m not as afraid of heights as I used to be. Coach Steve Sertich actually made a comment in the post game about how high up the press box is. Kudos to the guys broadcasting NHL games. I don’t know how they do it. I could barely see the numbers on the jerseys from all the way up there.

I took this photo from my seat way up in the Penguins press box.

I was in Booth C, which is typically for visiting radio. It was very reminiscent of my trip with Schultzie and Biss out to Washington D.C. when the BSU men’s hockey team played in the 2009 Frozen Four at the Verizon Center.

I got all set up; thanks to a little help from the Penguins audio engineer “Duff” who was so hospitable. He made sure I was able to plug into their public address announcer and ice microphones for ambient noise.

Unfortunately my first game broadcast of the weekend wouldn’t go as smooth as the set up. My computer crashed the minute I pushed the button to play my hockey open. Thanks to a little help back at the Beaver Radio Network studio from Shannon and Brian who threw in a couple commercials and songs. I had to completely reboot my laptop, but I finally got on air with plenty of time for my pregame show.

Photo taken by Andrea Nichols from the BSU bench.

Starting lineups were announced, anthem played, the puck was dropped and we were in for a thriller. BSU took a 2-0 lead after the first period with both goals scored by freshmen (Whitney Wivoda & Natasha Kostenko). RMU answered back to tie it up in the 2nd, but the Beavers would get the game winner from a beauty of a shot from senior Kimberly Lieder. Final score was 3-2. Net minder Zuzana Tomcikova helped the Beavers win their 11th game of the season.

After the women’s game, the team went to Buca for a hearty post game meal while I met up with Emily Tong, a former Grad Assistant Athletic Trainer for BSU women’s hockey who now works with the Robert Morris women’s team. Emily and I went to explore downtown Pittsburgh. She had to get back to the rink after the men’s game we ate so she could help the RMU staff tear down and get their equipment back to the Island Sports Arena.

Me & Emily Tong, my friend and BSU women’s hockey roadtrip roommate from 2008 to 2010.

Emily & I went on a mission to find someplace to eat and relax between games. We ended up walking around outside the arena, and realized there wasn’t much around that part of town. We ended up asking for directions from a really nice police officer. He told us we had about a 15 minute walk to where we wanted to be.

We ended up walking in a circle, but finally ended up in Pittsburgh’s Market Square.

And ate at Diamond Market Bar and Grill. We shared a couple different menu items including pierogi, lamb sliders and the best grilled cheese sandwich I’ve ever eaten! The pierogi was our favorite!

Lamb sliders on the left, pierogi on the right. YUM!

That’s some serious grilled cheese & tomato soup! Delicious!

If you ever get to Pittsburgh or are lucky enough to live there, I highly recommend going to Diamond Market. The service was amazing and the food was extraordinary. I wish we had a Primanti Bros. or Diamond Market back in Bemidji!

After eating, Emily and I walked back to the Consol Energy Center to wrap up the day and then get me back to the hotel for some much needed rest. This time we didn’t get lost.

On our way back to the rink, we saw this; an outdoor skating rink and a store window filled with gingerbread houses:

Saturday, Day 3 in Pittsburgh:
Game 2 between the Beavers and the Colonials was back at the RMU Island Sports Arena. What a night and day experience. We went from playing at an arena which seats over 18,000 to one where I was practically on the ice for my broadcast. The RMU Island Sports Arena was buzzing with hockey players of all ages. There was a big holiday tournament going on, which would explain the odd and late 5:15pm start of our college game that Saturday.

GAME TWO- BEAVERS VS COLONIALS

All set up for the broadcast, much closer to the ice.

The Beavers take the ice, looking for the sweep.

The game was much like the day before where the Beavers scored first and took a 2-0 lead before RMU answered back, tied it up and forced the Beavers to work hard for a win and a sweep on the road. Senior defender Marlee Wheelhouse set up the game winner on a blast from just inside the Colonial blueline which was tipped in by sophomore forward Tess Dusik. It was great to also see senior captain Alana McElhinney get her chance to start between the pipes. She recorded her 4th win of the season and continues to be unbeaten this year.

After the game, “Mac” told me her brother Curtis, who plays goaltender for the Phoenix Coyotes NHL team also recorded a win that same day. The McElhinney family must be so very proud!

After the game, we packed up and headed over to Quaker Steak & Lube for dinner. I know what you’re thinking; no we weren’t going to fill up with fuel, just more great Pittsburgh food. Quaker Steak & Lube is famous for their hot wings and the hottest sauce in the country. I settled for a Pittsburgh cheese steak sandwich; I figured I better get my fill of the local delicacy before heading back home. Before leaving, I couldn’t leave without picking up a bottle of their hot wing sauce for my husband Brian, who’s not only known as “The Voice of the Beavers” (men’s hockey radio announcer), but is also known to most in Bemidji as “Brian in the Kitchen” from the Mix 103.7’s Morning Stretch.

As is a tradition when the Beavers sweep, we went out for ice cream after dinner.

After ice cream, we went back to the hotel and the coaches gave the team a curfew of 12:30am so they could celebrate New Year’s Eve together in their rooms.

I ended up meeting up again with my friend Emily in the hotel bar and watched Ryan Seacrest and Dick Clark ring in the New Year on TV. It was weird celebrating New Year’s Eve in the same time zone as New York. I’m used to being an hour behind the ball drop. The rest of the staff met up with Emily and I downstairs for a 2012 photo op.

From left to right: Me, Emily, Kassi, Andrea & BSU Grad Assistant Coach Casie Hanson.

Sunday, Final Day in Pittsburgh:
6:30am came way too quick for all of us. We packed up the bus and headed to the airport. Got back to Minneapolis later that morning and got onto the bus headed to our final destination of Bemidji, Minnesota. We got back home around 3:30pm. It was a long day, but a very fun weekend! I can’t say it enough, but I truly feel blessed to be part of this Beaver hockey family. From top to bottom, this is the best group of coaches and young women in all of college hockey. They work hard, look out for each other, love each other and treat everyone with respect. Even our Pittsburgh bus driver told Coach Sertich that he has never worked with a nicer group or team. That says it all!

Traveling days do get long, but they are totally worth it when the end result is a Beaver hockey sweep!

Happy New Year Beaver hockey fans!!

GO BEAVERS!!

~ Kelly ~