Month: March 2025

By Paul Post

The Adirondack Thunder set a three-game franchise attendance record of 14,869 during a March 8-10 weekend series against the Wheeling Nailers, highlighted by a crowd of 5,426 that turned out for Country Night festivities.

The Thunder have already had 13 sell-outs and are expected to surpass last year’s regular-season total (14) with six more home games on tap including Stick it to Cancer Weekend (March 28-29) and Fan Appreciation Weekend (April 11-12).

More than 900 season tickets, almost half this year’s total (2,150), have already been sold for next year including 90 new customers

The Thunder won’t make this spring’s Kelly Cup playoffs, but are battling hard to build momentum for a successful 2025-26 campaign. Adirondack’s beat Wheeling, one of the ECHL’s top teams, twice with shutouts including a dramatic 1-0 victory in overtime.

“Finishing strong and competitive is very important to the team and our fan base,” Thunder President Jeff Mead said. “For the players, it allows them to continue to showcase their talents to the organization and for future opportunities. To our fans, we need to make sure they are aware that we understand it’s our job and obligation to give 100 percent until the very end.”

By Paul Post

Don’t let Matthew Killian’s very Irish sounding name fool you.

There’s a great deal of Italian influence in his family, which explains the name of his new restaurant, Buono Notte Café & Catering, opening next month at 6 Maple Street in downtown Glens Falls.

“Not all Italian cuisines are the same,” he said. “Everyone has a different style of cooking. I feel like I can bring a very good Italian ethnicity here. That’s my main goal, to bring in Italian food that we can improve on by adding to what other people have done.”

“We’re using creativity,” he said. “We don’t want to offer the same specials over and over again. What’s going to set us apart is specials like Chicken DiCapo – red-brown sauce, spinach, chicken tender breasts.”

Steak and seafood specials will highlight the menu, too.

The 21-year-old Killian grew up surrounded by good food. His father, Robert, worked at several New York City restaurants and was head chef at the former Orfino’s in upscale Briarcliff, Westchester County.

“Being that close to the city there’s a lot of culinary experiences, a lot of cultural differences,” he said. “I couldn’t find some of the things I found in the city when we moved up here. I began thinking, maybe there’s a way we could bring different styles of cooking to what people here are already offering.”

By Paul Post

Trump Administration tariffs, scheduled to take effect April 2, threaten to undermine New York’s thriving maple industry as most of the equipment producers need is manufactured in Canada.

In addition, much of the syrup consumed in New York City comes from Quebec, the world’s biggest maple producer, because upstate New York sugar makers can’t make enough to meet demand. If tariffs boost the price of Canada’s syrup 25 percent, American producers might charge the same, possibly generating more short-term revenue, but discouraging sales over the long run as consumers grapple with constantly rising food prices.

“That’s certainly not one of our goals,” said Mary Jean Packer, marketing manager of Mapleland Farm in Salem, Washington County.

Canadian maple equipment manufacturers are sending tractor-trailers across the border now and stockpiling it in northern Vermont warehouses, to keep from losing business from U.S. customers after tariffs take effect.

“As long as you have the equipment now you’ll be fine, but it could be hard to get into the business if suddenly the cost of equipment is 25 percent higher,” Packer said. “Maple is a relatively easy agricultural crop to get started with. To be viable all you need is 100 taps, collecting and boiling it with a small evaporator after coming home from an off-farm job. There aren’t many agricultural pursuits that you can get started with such a low cost of entry.”