No Day at the Beach for Ice Raiders Against FDNY

By Phillip Goodman

March 10, 2025

CONEY ISLAND, NY - The Reno Ice Raiders did not get to ride the Cyclone, legendary Coney Island's iconic wooden thrill ride, as the park was still closed for the winter. Instead, the Ice Raiders were forced upon other less-fun yet equally nerve-wracking adventures.

"The Confusion" was the unwelcome attraction experienced by a couple of players and Coach Jamie Tebbe – weather delayed flights for some while others were diverted to Newark, NJ instead of JFK Airport, causing some temporary logistical nightmares.

"The Disappointment" was the stomach-dropping, headache-inducing heartbreaker on Friday evening ridden by both teams and fans. A Zamboni malfunction prior to warmups left the ice in such a treacherous condition that it jeopardized player safety. While a second Zamboni collected dust in a corner and master mechanic Tony Tyrell of Lone Wolf's Chop Rodz offered his services for a quick repair, staff at the 55 year old Abe Stark Rink refused the assistance forcing the match to be cancelled.

The Zam was repaired late Friday and the rink maintained Saturday's full slate of youth games prior to the Ice Raiders boarding one final ride, "The Firehose."

From the outset of Saturday's sun-filled puck drop, the Ice Raiders drank from the proverbial fire hose as FDNY bombarded Justin Sand with 17 shots on goal in that first frame. FDNY knew full well that the sunlight pouring in through the west windows was in Sand's face so they launched at least five sneaky dump-ins on net from the blue and beyond hoping to catch a ray. Sand was privy to their strategy and he let none through. Still, it was somewhat taxing on the veteran netminder.

FDNY moved the puck well and showed some slick hand-eye coordination. The first goal by The Bravest at 12:40 was a shot from the right point that was redirected by Joe Gilhooly in the high slot past Sand.

With two seconds left on an FDNY power-play, another shot from the blue line was inadvertently tipped in past Sand off a Reno defender in front. Sand might not have seen the puck because the sun was still in his face with five minutes left in the period. 

The sun fell below the level of the windows with 30 seconds remaining in the intermission, a conveniently timed home-ice advantage as the teams traded ends of the ice for the second.

Trailing 2-0 to start period two, the Ice Raiders came out charged up. Just 17 seconds in, Bobby Watson motored down the left wing and left a pass in the slot for Johnny Garrity who roofed it over Nick Battaglia cutting FDNY's lead to 2-1.

FDNY pushed the lead back to two after a seemingly harmless dump-in that might have been icing. The puck rimmed around the boards then was rifled to the left wing for a one timer that beat Sand just under the bar. 

Trying to kill their second penalty of the night, the Ice Raiders generated two shorthanded breakaways but Watson and Garrity both were denied by Battaglia. With 20 seconds left in the advantage, FDNY's John O'Brien cranked another one timer from the right circle pushing the lead back to 4-1.

With six minutes to go in the second period, an FDNY attacker whacked the glove of Sand as he made a save and covered the puck. Even Sand went into the corner after that not-as-Bravest, but Julian Herrera stepped up for Sand. Both FDNY'er and Hererra earned roughs plus the extra unsportsmanlike conduct to the FDNY man. On the ensuing Ice Raiders’ power-play, Reno mustered just two shots on the power-play but nothing dangerous.

Still late in the second, Jim Brown of the FDNY jumped Jake Minton in the Ice Raiders’ attacking zone. After a lengthy discussion, the four officials assessed a double minor to Brown but Reno could not convert and only landed two shots on the PP.

Five minutes into the third period, Andrew Peterson floated a wrister from the high slot that may have been deflected and went in over the blocker of Battaglia cutting the lead 4-2. Johnny Garrity was not credited with an assist on the scoresheet even though he should have, according to Peterson.

The next eight minutes were fast and furious with Reno getting more of the chances. But after a collision in the corner that sent a Reno defender to the ice, the puck squirted out to the left wing and a slap shot by Michael Scotko trickled through for the 5-2 FDNY lead. At this point FDNY was out shooting Reno 38 to 19.

With three minutes left in the game, the Ice Raiders took an interference penalty at the defensive blue line effectively shutting down any chance of a comeback. Billy Pascalli's power play goal was the final spiral into the station for a 6-2 FDNY win and slamming of the brakes on a wild weekend of rides.

"I thought we played well, just some unlucky bounces and bad puck luck," said Ice Raiders' Coach Jamie Tebbe. “It’s the same thing with road games. We never get bounces our way with the important games. The ice was still a little wavy from Friday, but you can’t use that as an excuse because they played on the same ice as we did."

Saturday's ticket sales, 50/50, and chuck-a-puck benefited the FDNY Fire Family Transport Foundation. This volunteer-run, non-profit organization transports firefighters, family members and department personnel to and from medical institutions both for care and family support. The Foundation bussed in a few hundred fans and these men, women, and even some of the young kids were incredibly generous dishing out complementary adult beverages, hot dogs, and snacks most of the night.

Only four games remain in the Ice Raiders' regular season. Celebrate St. Patrick's Day weekend at Reno Ice as your Ice Raiders battle the San Diego Hockey Club (formerly the Super Hornets) presented by Reno Tattoo Removal. Make sure to be on the alert list for tickets to the final series against the McCall Mountaineers when TNT Yard Service presents the jerseys paying homage to the Reno Aces senior-A club of the 1970s. These black-and-gold beauties will make a nice addition to anyone's jersey collection.