Bakotopia

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I put on a back luck jersey hoping it was good luck: a Condors jersey signed by the much hated Scott Gomez of the New Jersey Devils who played for last year’s Alaska Aces. I was hoping it would symbolize a 3rd round match-up between the Condors and Aces. Instead, wearing the jersey symbolized fiery words, emblazoned on cloth: that Alaska was all over the next round, not the Condors.

What was I thinking?

And I brought chingpea, whose curse has been attending four straight Condors losses. She even warned about the curse, threatened to stay home.

What was I thinking?

The road to Fresno isn’t nearly as long as the road home. I put up my share of trash talk throughout the series in a fun online bout between myself and Fresno blogger, Mike Seay. Heading into Fresno I made sure to call Mike to see if he was coming to the big game in the big "NO". He was trapped in Modesto on work and so we had to settle for a little bit of trash talk and a friendly wishing of good luck to each blogger’s opposing team.

“Good luck to your freakin’ Condors,” Mike grumbled.

Before the game, chingpea, Matildakay (Smalltown Girls Podcast)and I ate across the street from the Save Mart Center at the Dog House Grill. Condors president Matt Riley was in the house and asked if I had been to the game the night before.

I also said hello to Joel Irving, a scratch for the night (does that mean benched if they’re healthy?). He seemed a bit bugged, gave me a short reply and said, “Let’s get out of here,” to his buddy who had been standing in line. This was a much different Condor than I saw in the locker room after game 7 with Long Beach. But then, Puck had been doing the interviewing that night. Most of the Condors have no clue that I help promote them. And I typically don’t wear a team jersey. So I probably looked like an annoying fan looking for an autograph. Either that or he was already annoyed for possibly being benched and didn’t want anyone to ask why he wasn’t playing.

The game was exciting with an intense battle that kept the game within one goal. There were a lot of Condors penalties which gave Fresno the upper hand. That didn't mean the game wasn't close, intense, and great. But then the unthinkable happened, and I’m still trying to figure out just exactly what I saw. Condors player Scott Borders skated past the blue line in toward the Fresno goal when he just went down, slid across the ice and smashed into the boards, his leg possibly shattered. Rumors flew into the stands that it was his fibula. Was it? Chances are, if that’s the case, then his tibia may have broke as well. The way he pounded the ice, myself and a nearby Fresno fan knew his leg was broken.

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