On Thursday night, I went to see the Devils and Islanders here in New Jersey for a preseason game.
The arena holds 19,040 for hockey games. I don't think there were more than 5,000 people there. There is a security fence around the perimeter of the arena, and for the first time ever as I walked through the gate, a security person used a handheld metal detector on me and everyone else who passed through. When you paid for parking that night, they handed you a slip of paper warned that umbrellas were no longer permissable in the arena and all bags and briefcases and backpacks were subject to search. Those refusing to be searched would not be allowed entrance. Very large state troopers were visible at all the entrances, and they checked bags as you entered the arena itself. (I had gone into the box office and entered the arena from there).
The crowd was quiet, even for its size. The NYPD color guard presented the flag and that was the loudest the crowd applauded that night. The ovation for them was a few minutes. The dasher boards, usually host to advertising, were covered with thank you messages to the police and fire departments and volunteers along with flags. In one of the digital ad spaces on the Jumbotron the words "God Bless America" were written for entire game.
The Islander fans usually show up in force so the crowd is usually loud regardless, but that night, even when the Devils scored, no one seemed into the game. Because it's preseason, none of the tv timeout promotions or intermission games and giveaways took place, and the crowd was pretty somber. The most energy shown was when the "USA! USA!" chant was taken up for a minute....
And as I drove home, the clouds from the night's storms were thick across the river, giving everything a crisp black and white film feeling.... the lone color in the skyline came from the red white and blue lights of the Empire State Building.... And in the gaping hole where two towers once stood, the eerie glow of the searchlights made the buildings along the shore seem to stand like cut-outs against the still-rising smoke behind them....
The arena holds 19,040 for hockey games. I don't think there were more than 5,000 people there. There is a security fence around the perimeter of the arena, and for the first time ever as I walked through the gate, a security person used a handheld metal detector on me and everyone else who passed through. When you paid for parking that night, they handed you a slip of paper warned that umbrellas were no longer permissable in the arena and all bags and briefcases and backpacks were subject to search. Those refusing to be searched would not be allowed entrance. Very large state troopers were visible at all the entrances, and they checked bags as you entered the arena itself. (I had gone into the box office and entered the arena from there).
The crowd was quiet, even for its size. The NYPD color guard presented the flag and that was the loudest the crowd applauded that night. The ovation for them was a few minutes. The dasher boards, usually host to advertising, were covered with thank you messages to the police and fire departments and volunteers along with flags. In one of the digital ad spaces on the Jumbotron the words "God Bless America" were written for entire game.
The Islander fans usually show up in force so the crowd is usually loud regardless, but that night, even when the Devils scored, no one seemed into the game. Because it's preseason, none of the tv timeout promotions or intermission games and giveaways took place, and the crowd was pretty somber. The most energy shown was when the "USA! USA!" chant was taken up for a minute....
And as I drove home, the clouds from the night's storms were thick across the river, giving everything a crisp black and white film feeling.... the lone color in the skyline came from the red white and blue lights of the Empire State Building.... And in the gaping hole where two towers once stood, the eerie glow of the searchlights made the buildings along the shore seem to stand like cut-outs against the still-rising smoke behind them....
