WELCOME! Hello Everyone! I’m Derek Landmesser, Head Coach of the Mississippi RiverKings, and I want to welcome you to the Face Off Field Trip! I would like to thank everyone very much for coming out. We hope you enjoy this unique experience! We plan on talking a lot about hockey, but we also plan on covering some of the same material you are learning in the classroom! Students, this is the moment you’ve been waiting for a while now. As a father of three girls, I know how loud kids can be. I also know you aren’t allowed to be loud in school, and the same probably applies for most of the fi eld trips you go on as well. This is different! We encourage you to be as loud as physically possible when cheering our guys on to victory! Teachers and chaperones, we appreciate the work that you do for your students and are grateful to have individuals such as yourself in our community. I believe it takes a special person to be a teacher, and the entire RiverKings organization would like to thank you for your hard work and dedication. I would also like to thank you for making it possible for these children to experience this hockey game. Most young people in this area have never seen a professional hockey game or watched a live professional sporting event of any kind. Therefore, we plan on making this one the most enjoyable experience possible for both you and your students! I hope you enjoy your game, and we hope to see you back again soon! Go RiverKings! Derek Landmesser Head Coach, Mississippi RiverKings Face Off Field Trip is one of the Mississippi RiverKings’ signature events! We want to know your thoughts about this year’s event. Letters regarding the Mississippi RiverKings Face Off Field Trip should be addressed to: Community Development Department Mississippi RiverKings 4560 Venture Drive, Southaven, MS 38671 [email protected]1
Transcript
WELCOME!Hello Everyone!
I’m Derek Landmesser, Head Coach of the Mississippi RiverKings, and I want to welcome you to the Face Off Field Trip! I would like to thank everyone very much for coming out. We hope you enjoy this unique experience!
We plan on talking a lot about hockey, but we also plan on covering some of the same material you are learning in the classroom!
Students, this is the moment you’ve been waiting for a while now. As a father of three girls, I know how loud kids can be. I also know you aren’t allowed to be loud in school, and the same probably applies for most of the fi eld trips you go on as well. This is different! We encourage you to be as loud as physically possible when cheering our guys on to victory!
Teachers and chaperones, we appreciate the work that you do for your students and are grateful to have individuals such as yourself in our community. I believe it takes a special person to be a teacher, and the entire RiverKings organization would like to thank you for your hard work and dedication. I would also like to thank you for making it possible for these children to experience this hockey game. Most young people in this area have never seen a professional hockey game or watched a live professional sporting event of any kind. Therefore, we plan on making this one the most enjoyable experience possible for both you and your students!
I hope you enjoy your game, and we hope to see you back again soon! Go RiverKings!
Use the chart below to answer the questions. Distances are miles from Southhaven.
1. Which team is closest to the RiverKings?2. Which team is farthest from the RiverKings?3. How many miles round-trip is it for the RiverKings to travel to Pensacola to play the Ice Flyers?4. If the RiverKings played Knoxville and Columbus in one road trip, what would the team’s total mileage be?5. How many miles is it round-trip for the RiverKings to travel to Fayetteville, NC to play the FireAntz?6. If the RiverKings travel to Peoria to play a game, then travel from there to Huntsville, then make a final stop in Louisiana before heading home, how many miles will they have traveled in total?
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All About LandmesserRead the following and answer the questions below. Underline where you find your answers.
This season marks Derek Landmesser’s 15th season with the Mississippi RiverKings organization, his fifth as the team’s Head Caoch. Landmesser started his professional career in 1996 as a defenseman with his hometown team, the Thunder Bay Thunder Cats in the Colonial Hockey League. He went on to play 15 seasons in professional hockey, 10 of them with the RiverKings.
For the RiverKings, Derek registered 101 goals, 462 assists, and 953 penalty minutes. Landmesser holds many team records, including: season points by a defenseman (81, 2005-06), season plus-minus (+59, 2000-01), career regular-season games played (624), career assists (462), career penalty minutes (953), and career points by a defenseman (563).
He was named the CHL’s Most Outstanding Defenseman for the 2000-01 CHL season and was named to the All-CHL team three times. In addition, he was a key player on the CHL Championship team in 2002-03. In 2009-10, Landmesser led team defensemen in goals scored (11), assists (40), and points (51). He also led the team in plus-minus (+10), power play assists (27), and game-winning goals (4). His 51 points ranked him second in the CHL and his 40 assists put him in a first-place tie among league blue liners.
Another milestone Landmesser reached during the 2009-10 season included reaching 400 career CHL assists, becoming the 10th CHL player to reach that achievement. Derek was also the RiverKings’ representative in the CHL All-Star Game that year, his seventh All-Star appearance. During the 2009-10 season, he was also named as a starting defenseman to the CHL All-Decade team.
Following Landmesser’s retirement in 2011, the long time captain accepted the offer to become the 13th Head Coach for the RiverKings. In each of his first four seasons as head coach, he led the team to the playoffs. In 2015, Landmesser coached the RiverKings to their first finals appearance since he won the CHL championship as a player in 2003. Landmesser enters the season with 113 wins, 15 wins shy of Doug Shedden’s franchise-best 128 wins. With a record of 113-94-17, Landmesser aims to bring a championship back to the Memphis area and cement his legacy as one of the city’s all-time sports greats!
1. When did Landmesser begin his professional hockey career?
2. How many assists did Derek collect during his playing career with the Mississippi RiverKings?
3. List two of the accomplishments Landmesser achieved during the 2009-10 season.
4. How many All-Star games did Derek appear in?
5. Which of Landmesser’s records was the highest, numerically speaking: games played, assists, or penalty minutes?
6. How many seasons has Landmesser been the head coach of the Mississippi RiverKings?
7. How many wins did Landmesser have as a coach before the 2015 season started?
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Hernando de SotoHernando de Soto was a Spanish explorer and conquistador who led the first European expedition in to modern-day United State. De Soto was the first documented European to have crossed the Mississippi River.
Hernando de Soto was born on October 21, 1496 in Jerez de los Caballeros, Spain. He was born to parents who lived in Extremadura, an area of great hardship and poverty. Growing up he achieved military fame exploring new lands.
In May of 1539, de Soto, 620 men, and 220 horses land at Charlotte Harbor, Florida. The expedition then traveled north through the peninsula of Florida where they endured native ambushes along the way. By 1540, de Soto had reached Georgia and South Carolina, in pursuit of gold mines rumored to exist in the region. No gold was found in these regions so de Soto and his men traveled to North Carolina then Tennessee to continue their search for gold.
After the winter, de Soto’s expedition traveled southwest. On May 8, 1541, Hernando de Soto discovered the Mississippi River, although de Soto was not exactly thrilled with the finding. It took them over a month for them to cross the river. Once across the river, the expedition continued into Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Texas. On May 21, 1542, Hernando de Soto himself died of a fever.
1. When and where was Hernando de Soto born?
2. How many men did de Soto bring with him on his expedition?
3. What was de Soto searching for in his exploration through America?
4. In total, how many states did de Soto travel to?
