A little late, but chicken for breakfast?

I've been trying to post this for a week, but had a little problem with Blogger not working. Apparently, it appears to be somewhat functional today. So here we go.

Last Sunday, to much dismay from most of those affected, we were watching a ridiculous hockey game on Sunday afternoon of the long weekend. San Jose and Vancouver were playing at noon Pacific in the Shark Tank. What the eff -- I felt like I should be watching an Eskies game, not hockey. (I later found out it's because if they want NBC to show the game, they have to make sure it is over by the time the news starts in Eastern timezone aka 5 p.m. EDT ... Not that I was watching NBC ... any opportunity I don't have to listen to Pierre McGuire, I'll gladly take it.)

So, Glenn Healey had a little quip about it during the broadcast, and said he felt it was unfair at this point in the season to make the players play a game at noon and screw up their routine. And then said, "And I don't know if I would want to be eating pasta and chicken at 8:30 in the morning."

Pasta and chicken.

After doing a little bit of research and talking to a few of my hockey-playing buddies, I have discerned that this is what nearly everyone eats before hockey. Some also throw in a salad, and the type of pasta depends on the person ... but it seems fairly standard across the board.

I quote this directly from two goalies who both said the exact same thing. Former WHL netminder Kyle Stanton: "pasta with chicken and maybe a salad... usually 4 hours before a game"
Former AJHL netminder, Adam Melon: "Chicken with pasta 4 hours before and then a PB and J right before I leave for the rink"
Former WHL and current SJHL d-man Kyle Kyrzaniak echoed, citing his preferred pasta as Lipton Sidekicks.

Pictured above is a pre-game dinner I whipped up on a busy game-night, chicken is brushed with a sweet bbq sauce (beer, apple and maple yummm) then grilled on a Foreman grill. (I brush them with the sauce and blacken to sear in the juices. I find the Foreman dries out chicken breasts otherwise.) Lipton sidekick penne and quick tossed salad. Dinner's ready in 15 minutes, so I can make it out the door.

Another quick and easy chicken and pasta combo I like for game night is fresh fettucini with pesto and grilled chicken. That Foreman grill has been one of the handiest tools to my pre-game life, especially on a night I have an hour to get home from work, change and get to the rink.

This coming season, my plan is to get a slow-cooker. Fresh pasta cooks in literally 5 minutes, so if you've got your chicken ready to go, a hearty meal doesn't have to take a long time to whip up.

I also like to keep the necessary goodies to put together a caesar salad on hand: real bacon bits, whole grain crutons, fresh parm, fresh dressing (Bolthouse Farms makes a great vegetarian option without any fish) and a pepper grinder. Grab a bag of romaine lettuce and you're ready to go.

If you've got any time-friendly pre-game meals to share, let me know and I'll get 'em up here.