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H.S. School: Hazleton Area boys soccer downs Weatherly in overtime

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MAC Football: Delaware Valley rolls past Wilkes, 52-10

<p>WILKES-BARRE - Forty-five minutes before the puck dropped for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins season opener on Saturday, Brian Coe rushed down the steps and into the basement of the Mohegan Sun Arena.</p><p>Fifteen minutes later, he sped through the hallway in the suite level, with papers in hand and people to see.</p><p>And when it came time to introduce the Penguins players before the start of the game, Coe, who is the vice president of operations for the team, rushed back downstairs to oversee the process.</p><p>It was a hectic night, but it&#8217;s not something that Coe hasn&#8217;t come to expect as Saturday marked his 12th season opener with the Penguins.</p><p>&#8220;There are a lot of moving parts, and it&#8217;s about making sure they&#8217;re all in the right place once the game starts,&#8221; he said. &#8220;I&#8217;ve been to the arena three times today before the game, beginning this morning to go over introductions with the players.&#8221;</p><p>While Coe scrambled throughout the arena taking care of last minute details, Barry Tenenbaum walked into a room in the basement to re-unite with his fellow off-ice officials for another season opener. Tenenbaum, who has worked as an off-ice official for 16 years, said each season opener is exciting regardless of how many he has worked.</p><p>&#8220;You&#8217;re without hockey for a few months, and you&#8217;re anxious to get back and see it again,&#8221; Tenenbaum said. &#8220;I look forward to seeing the new players, and I enjoy seeing the guys during the pre-game meal. I like the camaraderie.&#8221;</p><p>But as the clock ticked closer to opening puck drop, Tenenbaum and the other off-ice officials wrapped up their conversation and headed onto the ice. Tenenbaum took his familiar spot in the visitor&#8217;s penalty box, a job he said requires him to pay attention to every second of the game.</p><p>&#8220;When a player is in the box you have to know when they&#8217;re supposed to leave &#8212; on a whistle or on the fly,&#8221; he said. &#8220;You also have to watch for the ref to hand you broken sticks and be ready to replace a puck if one goes out of play. You want to do things quickly and not impede the game.&#8221;</p><p>While there was plenty of action going on behind the scenes before Saturday&#8217;s game, fans eager for action on the ice began filing through the arena doors at 6 p.m. They picked up game programs, lined up at concession stands and filed to their seats to see the 2016-17 Penguins.</p><p>Andrea Grilz, of Ashley, brought her children, Ella, 4, and Jase, 1, to their first season opener and said the kids were excited to see Tux and one Penguin player in particular.</p><p>&#8220;Ella&#8217;s favorite player is Jake Guentzel. She cheers &#8216;go forty forty&#8217; for his number, 44,&#8221; Grilz said, adding Saturday was her seventh season opener.</p><p>&#8220;We love that it&#8217;s hockey season again. It gives us something to do as a family and the kids love cheering.&#8221;</p><p>Tradition was a common theme with many of the fans that poured into the arena before the game. Jason Iacona, of Harding, has been attending season openers, and nearly every home game, since he became a season ticket holder eight years ago.</p><p>On Saturday, Iacona took his customary seat in Section 104 behind the benches and got ready for business. Not only does Iacona watch the game as a fan, he writes about it as well in his blog Chirps from Center Ice, something he has done since 2005.</p><p>&#8220;It feels like New Year&#8217;s Day,&#8221; Iacona said. &#8220;It&#8217;s really exciting to see how (head coach) Clark Donatelli can blend all this talent together into a winning team.&#8221;</p><p>While the game action is a big part of the night, fans were also interested in the short videos that played during stoppages in play and the intermission activities &#8212; all of which was designed by Coe during his hectic week of preparation.</p><p>&#8220;The visual stimulation is always fun and interesting to see,&#8221; Iacona said. &#8220;It has to be. If you&#8217;re not entertained the entire time, what&#8217;s the point in going?&#8221;</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Fred and Judy Benson, of Kingston, and their 2-year-old grandson Abraham applaud the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins during player introductions. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/web1_PenguinsFans_2.jpg</photo0><caption0>Fred and Judy Benson, of Kingston, and their 2-year-old grandson Abraham applaud the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins during player introductions. </caption0><photoCredit0>Bill Tarutis | Times Leader </photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/web1_PenguinsFans_1.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Ten-year-old Alexander Strausser, left, and his mom Rebecca, both of Scranton, cheer a Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins goal in the team&#8217;s season opener at Mohegan Sun Arena in Wilkes-Barre Township on Saturday night. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/web1_PenguinsFans_1.jpg</photo1><caption1>Ten-year-old Alexander Strausser, left, and his mom Rebecca, both of Scranton, cheer a Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins goal in the team&#8217;s season opener at Mohegan Sun Arena in Wilkes-Barre Township on Saturday night. </caption1><photoCredit1>Bill Tarutis | Times Leader </photoCredit1></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/web1_PenguinsFans_1-1-.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Ten-year-old Alexander Strausser, left, and his mom Rebecca, both of Scranton, cheer a Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins goal in the team&#8217;s season opener at Mohegan Sun Arena in Wilkes-Barre Township on Saturday night. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo2>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/web1_PenguinsFans_1-1-.jpg</photo2><caption2>Ten-year-old Alexander Strausser, left, and his mom Rebecca, both of Scranton, cheer a Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins goal in the team&#8217;s season opener at Mohegan Sun Arena in Wilkes-Barre Township on Saturday night. </caption2><photoCredit2>Bill Tarutis | Times Leader </photoCredit2></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/web1_PenguinsFans_2-1-.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Fred and Judy Benson, of Kingston, and their 2-year-old grandson Abraham applaud the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins during player introductions. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo3>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/web1_PenguinsFans_2-1-.jpg</photo3><caption3>Fred and Judy Benson, of Kingston, and their 2-year-old grandson Abraham applaud the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins during player introductions. </caption3><photoCredit3>Bill Tarutis | Times Leader </photoCredit3></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Tom Venesky</p><p>tvenesky@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><factboxMeta></factboxMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Tom Venesky at 570-991-6395 or on Twitter @TLTomVenesky</p></shirttailMeta></div>

While staff works, fans enjoy the end result during Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s season opener on Saturday