Icers Open Report

Despite the best efforts of Mother Nature, the 21st Annual Icers Open Golf Tournament went off without a hitch today, with 54 "golfers" hitting the White Course at the Penn State Golf Courses.

I've got to say, the day did not look like it was going to be a day for golf, at least at 5 a.m. Heavy rain that began overnight continued until Barb and I arrived at the course to set things up, but the worst of the weather moved out of Happy Valley before everyone began to arrive.

The rain softened the greens, inviting us to go for the flags -- too bad most of couldn't find the greens with GPS!

The soft and sometimes soggy surfaces made for some putts that needed a bus to get to their intended destination and some interesting shots and missed shots.

By late morning the sun started to peek through the clouds, the wind came up at times to add some interest and make club selection a challenge. It also helped to dry out the greens, adding to the putting woes for some of us.

After brutalizing the course, everyone enjoyed a lunch provided by the G-Man, some great friendship and laughter and a whole bunch of door prizes and awards..

There was some skill exhibited. Your on-course contest winners are:

Straightest drive: Jordan Fleming
Longest drive: Tim O'Brien (sorry Timmy, but you didn't hit a 400+ drive from the ladies' tee!)
Closest to the hole: Timmy (prize hog!)
Closest to the hole: Brian Dolan (just 4 feet closer than your humble scribe)

The O'Brien/Dolan foursome (Tim Sr. & Jr. and Brian Sr. & Jr.) took the low net award, while the low gross foursome was.....

WAIT FOR IT.......

Clark Dexter, Joe Battista, some duffer named Penstone, and Mario Lemieux, who came disguised as JoeBa's son Ryan. Ryan drained a 25-foot putt after the rest of us missed our chances for birdie!

Thanks to all of the golfers for their generosity that will help to support the team in the upcoming season. A very special thank you to the volunteers for making this event another successful Icers Open.

And finally, thanks to Barb for capturing some of today's finer shots on video -- video that will no doubt never make it to the Golf Channel!

Ready to Roll

Rodney Martin and your humble correspondent dropped by the hockey offices today to meet new Assistant Coach Josh Hand. Josh is still getting settled into Hockey Valley, but he's hit the ground running.

Rodney and I are looking forward to working closely with Josh, who already has a lot of good ideas about how to use the Internet to promote Penn State hockey and bring in new recruits.

Icers and Ice Cream

Thursday was a perfect day for a little ice cream, so what better way to satisfy a sweet tooth by helping a deserving charity.

Four Icers and Coach Balboni dropped by the State College Dairy Queen this afternoon to help long-time Icers sponsor and fan Don Boller raise funds for the Childrens Miracle Network.

This is another example of how the team gets out into the State College community to support sponsors, charities and schools.

The results speak for themselves, and are just as important in the big picture as the results on the ice.

Tee Time!

The 2010 Icers Open Golf Tournament is now less than a month away. The 21st annual gathering of duffers and weekend hackers (and a few good golfers, too) will be held on the White Course at the Penn State Golf Courses on Sunday, August 22.

The event kicks off with a 9 am shotgun start, with a BBQ lunch to follow at the course. There will be prizes for good shot-making on the course, as well as numerous raffle prizes.

This is the major fund-raiser for the Booster Club, so your support is appreciated. Even if you are not a golfer (as some of us claim to be) you can support the guys by joining us for the BBQ.

Full details are on the registration form, which can be downloaded here.

If you need more info or have any questions, don't hesitate to e-mail me.

Camp Chat with Coach Balboni

Today was another scorcher here in Hockey Valley, and after 18 holes of golf in the morning, I couldn't think of a better place to chill out (literally) that at the Greenberg Ice Pavilion.

OK - going home to central air conditioning might have been a better idea, but dropping by the home of the Icers gave me a chance to catch up with head coach Scott Balboni and chat about the summer hockey camps, the incoming freshmen and an in-conference transfer, as well as the signing of a new assistant coach.

Josh Hand joins the Icers family from College Station, Texas where he most recently held the position of director of hockey at the Arctic Wolf Ice Center. He also was an instructor in the Kinesiology Department and assistant coach of the men’s ACHA Div. II hockey team at Texas A&M.

Before working at the Center, Josh spent over 15 years playing and coaching hockey. He began his playing career with the local travel hockey organization in Reading, PA.

As a junior in high school he made the move to Junior level hockey, playing first in the Philadelphia area and then accepting a position to play for the prestigious Boston Bulldogs coached by former RPI Head Coach Mike Addesa.

Spotted during a tournament, Josh was invited to the Dallas Stars' training camp, where he skated for Coach Dave Tippett. After being drafted by the Thunder Bay Bulldogs of the Superior International Junior Hockey League, Hand played in Thunder Bay, Ontario, before being recruited by Concordia College, a Division III NCAA program, in Moorhead, Minnesota.

A four year starter playing for Hall of Fame coach Steve Baumgartner, Josh graduated with a double major in Communications and Political Science. After graduation Josh turned down offers to play pro and took the job in Texas.

Hello Mudda, Hello Fadda....

We're not "here at Camp Granada" -- rather, we're at the Penn State Icers Hockey Camp on one of the hottest days of the Summer of '10.

This is the second week of the camps, with the elite high school players in town to learn from past and present Icers.

Since I needed to beat the heat, I dropped in and caught up with Chris Cerutti and Paul Daley, along with former assistant coach Bill Downey.

As I mentioned, the Icer Open is set for Sunday, August 22 on the White Course at the Penn State Golf Courses. It's move-in weekend, so you should book your hotel rooms soon.

Full details on the tournament, including registration and sponsorship forms, are available on the Icers website.

Speaking of former Icers players and assistant coaches, congratulations to Brian Gratz, who has been named as the new Coach and General Manager of the Dayton Gems of the Central Hockey League.

Happy Birthday, JoeBa!

Former Penn State head coach and ACHA Hall of Famer Joe Battista hits the big 50 today!

Happy Birthday to my friend, and the 'face' of the Icers family. It's been a long road from this

to this



and now to this!


Gee whiz, this guy is EVERYWHERE!!