Athens Rock Lobsters forward Cole McKechney drives with the puck in the third period of the Rock Lobsters’ 3-2 win against the Mississippi Seawolves on Dec. 13. The game was the Rock Lobsters’ first at home in the newly-opened Akins Ford Area. “I didn’t think we were as sharp, I didn’t think we moved the puck as well, but one thing: I thought we were physical,” Rock Lobsters head coach Steve Martinson said. “That helped us with the fans, and when the fans make noise, the players feel it.” Photo by Wyatt Meyer
The Athens Rock Lobsters, Athens’s new professional hockey team, beat the Mississippi Seawolves 3-2 in their long-awaited home debut at the new Ford Akins Arena on Dec. 13..
Two months, several delays and one cancellation after the team’s planned home opener, Athenians finally got to enjoy some hockey.
The Athens Rock Lobsters, a new addition to the professional Federal Prospects Hockey League in the 2024-25 season, beat the Mississippi Seawolves 3-2 in a long-awaited home debut on Dec. 13. The back-and-forth, physical game marked the Rock Lobsters’ introduction to a raucous crowd of Athenians piled into the newly-refurbished Akins Ford Arena.
“We want to be a heavy team, it’s one of the things I live by. We want to be offensive, and we want to be hard to play against,” Rock Lobsters head coach Steve Martinson said. “I thought the fans were really loud and they responded to the big hits.”
Kate Pierson, Keith Strickland, Fred Schneider and Cindy Wilson (from left to right), four members of iconic Athens band The B-52’s, pose after a ceremonial puck drop. The Athens Rock Lobsters took their name from a B-52’s song, “Rock Lobster.” Photo by Wyatt Meyer
The Rock Lobsters hosted several pregame events outside the arena to commemorate both the founding of the team and the new stadium. Rock Lobsters Executive Vice President Scott Hull led a ribbon cutting ceremony before fans were treated to red-carpet player entrances and a performance from a band composed of students from the University of Georgia, The Asymptomatics.
“I think (the arena opening) is great. We’ve really been waiting for this for a long time,” Rock Lobsters fan Mark Yurco said. “It was a great ribbon cutting ceremony, it was great to see (Athens-Clarke County Mayor Kelly Girtz) here and the Akins Ford owner, so it’s (been) a good community and a good event.”
Doors opened to fans an hour before the game started, but there was one final celebratory event on the ice. Kate Pierson, Keith Strickland, Fred Schneider and Cindy Wilson of iconic Athens band The B-52’s, who wrote the song “Rock Lobster” for which the Athens Rock Lobsters are named, were honored with a ceremonial puck drop and personalized jerseys.
After the game started, however, the environment was far from ceremonious. In the first period, Rock Lobsters defenseman Matthew Garcia and Seawolves forward Chuck Costello traded goals in a feisty, tense encounter.
An on-ice brawl involving several players from both teams occurred in the second period after a late hit on Athens Rock Lobsters forward Garrett Milan. Two players from each team were ejected from the game as a result of the scuffle. Photo by Wyatt Meyer
Sparks truly began to fly in the second period, as a fight initiated by Justin Portillo led to a brief stoppage. Moments later, a late hit on Rock Lobsters forward Garrett Milan led to a larger brawl between several players on both teams, egged on by the crowd. Ultimately, a total of four players – Rock Lobsters defenseman Riley Robertson and forward Malik Johnson, Seawolves defenseman Andrew Stacey and forward Blake Keller – were ejected to the crowd’s cheers and boos, respectively.
“They’ll think twice about hitting Milan like that. That guy’s going to be in for a long year, (because) I got a memory and I keep score,” Martinson said. “We got more games against them and I’m a ‘two eyes for an eye’ kind of a person.”
In the shadow of the second-period fistfights, the Rock Lobsters went ahead 2-1 through Milan before the Seawolves equalized again through Matt Stoia.
“We want to be a heavy team, it’s one of the things I live by. We want to be offensive, and we want to be hard to play against.”
— Steve Martinson,
Athens Rock Lobsters head coach
Ultimately, though, it would be the Rock Lobsters – and Milan – who had the last laugh. The forward’s second goal of the game with five minutes left to go in the third period put Athens ahead for good, sending the crowd home happy and giving the Rock Lobsters a 10th win from 12 games this season.
“I thought we played a real physical game, and I thought the fans responded to it. Every time we had a big hit, we could hear the fans cheering, so I think they enjoyed it,” Martinson said. “(We’ve) been a long time waiting for it.”
