Section 14 Relocates To Arena For A Night
By Chris Elsberry / courtesy of The Connecticut Post
Saturday, October 19, 2002 edition Link to the article
BRIDGEPORT - Drew from Section 14, Row 3, Seat 7 was handing out copies of his favorite person Friday night to anyone who would take one.
"We're putting these in the restrooms," Drew said with a grin.
The New Haven Coliseum is closed, the Knights are the latest team to go the way of the dodo, and Drew and everyone one else from the Coliseum's Section 14 knows exactly who's to blame for the death of 75 years of New Haven hockey history.
Mayor DeStuffed Shirt.
Drew's stack was going fast. The photocopies of New Haven Mayor John DeStefano had a big, red 'X' across his face.
"Here," Rich said. "Here's the guy that killed hockey."
You can't blame Drew for still harboring a grudge. Like so many before (and after) him, he grew up sitting in Section 14 and falling in love with the raucous atmosphere of the Coliseum. Now that the building is scheduled for demolition, there is nothing that will ever bring those times back. Not even coming to Bridgeport.
But Rich and his Section 14 brothers and a lot of other Coliseum faithful did come to the Arena at Harbor Yard Friday night to watch the Sound Tigers skate against the Hartford Wolf Pack and to remember what it was like when the Jungle roared and hockey in New Haven was more than just a sport, it was a passion.
"I don't think there will ever be anything like what we had in New Haven," said Bob Zyskowski, who called Section 10, Row 9, Seat 6 at the Coliseum home throughout many of the Nighthawks seasons. "Those guys were maniacs. ... The Jungle they didn't call it that for nothing."
No, they called it that for a reason. Only the crazed need apply. That section was what made the Coliseum famous or infamous, depending on whom you ask. The chants that came from Section 14 would make a sailor blush. They screamed. They swore. They stomped. They made a difference.
And we won't even mention the beer.
"We were the section that kept it (hockey) going," said Rich Bickley, of Milford, who sat in Section 14, Row 3, Seat 12 just five seats away from Drew. "What made it so special was that it was the same faces. The group we had never changed too much over the years. They were always an active part of hockey in the city."
There was just something about the building that stuck with Bickley over the years. The first time he decided to go to a game, he ended up getting tickets in Section 14. "I must have been OK," he said. "They didn't kick me out."
He stayed and the next game he bought tickets in Section 14. Again and again, Bickley came back. He became one of the Jungle.
On Friday night here at the Arena, Section 112 became, at least for one night, Section 14. The New Haven fans sat and cheered, wearing their old Nighthawks sweaters, the white and silver and black ones from the days with the Los Angeles Kings, and the even older red, white and blue ones when the Rangers called the Coliseum home. There were Knights jerseys and, yes, even those awful Beast sweaters.
But it was the Beast that first made fans of Rich English, 51, and his son Mike, 18. Rich had first started to take Mike to the Hartford Civic Center see the Whalers play, but after they bolted for Raleigh, N.C., the Beast came to New Haven and father and son started to make the trek down from Newtown to watch.
"We'd sit directly across from Section 14," Rich said. "Even though there weren't that many fans, they were loud and a lot more intense. Even though the building was run-down, there was a lot more history. You don't have that feeling here."
There was a closeness to the Coliseum. Back in the 1980s, players were a lot more approachable. Bob Zyskowski became close friends with the goal judges (George and Ozzie) and brought his movie camera to several games. He drifted away from hockey after the Nighthawks left.
"I didn't like what was going on with the teams," he said.
But he was here Friday night, wearing a game-worn Dave Gagner sweater from the 1982-83 season.
"The Sound Tigers jerseys are kind of cool," he said, "but I don't think I'm giving this one up."
Neither are any of the other members of Section 14 anytime soon. They wore their sweaters proudly. They Displayed their feelings about Mayor DeStefano publicly and remembered what it was like when the Jungle ruled.
"This place is nice, but I can't just walk into a building and fall in love," Bickley said. "I did once, but ..."
That building is gone. Closed up. Destined for the wrecking ball. Friday night, the guys from Section 14 came to Bridgeport and sat in Section 112.
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