Disclaimer: I do not own the Ducks or Crosby.
Chapter 7
The next couple of months were especially hard for Adam and me. Germaine's treatments kept him in and out of the hospital. Adam and I were suffering from both mental and physical exhaustion. It was hard to have to sit and watch our son get worse and worse, knowing there wasn't a thing we could do about it.
Life with the Bruins wasn't easy either. We had practice in the mornings, the hospital in the afternoons and then games at night. Germaine wasn't able to go with us on most road trips. On those occasions Connie kept him instead. I threatened to quit on several occasions, only to look into my son's eyes and regain my courage to continue. The only bright spot of the ordeal was that the Bruins improved dramatically since I became the goalie. The playoffs were still a long shot for us, but then again, you never know.
Germaine couldn't have been happier when he found out I had been named the starting goalie for the All star team. I was more shocked than anything. The game had recently switched from a World versus United States matchup to an East versus West matchup. The commissioner also decided to do the unthinkable; taking the lead of the MLB, the commissioner decided that the winner of the All star game would have home ice advantage during the Stanley Cup Finals.
The game was being held at Madison Square Garden and luckily Germaine was healthy enough to attend the event. The whole thing ended up being a family reunion. Guy, Adam, and I were all playing for the East. Jesse, Charlie, and the Bashes were all playing for the west. The other ducks had managed to make it down as spectators. I had never been more excited as I was when the game began. It almost felt like old time Duck scrimmages and I was determined to pitch a shut out.
The game began with Charlie and Adam battling in the opening face off. No one was surprised when Adam won the duel. Guy gained control of the puck and passed back to Adam. Adam skated up the left side and passed back over to Guy. Guy took the shot only to have Charlie deflect it before the puck even got close to the net. I had to admit; Charlie's defense really had improved dramatically since those first run ins with Coach Orion, who was also watching from the stands. Charlie sped up the ice with the puck, dropping a quick pass to Jesse, who hit a wide open Fulton. Fulton fired the puck hard at me. While other goalies may have been intimidated, I held firm. Fulton's shots never scared me. I smiled as I felt my glove move as I caught the puck in the webbing. There would be no puck palm print for this girl.
I got the puck quickly out of my glove and over to Adam. He took the puck across the center line and passed over to Guy. Guy slipped by Charlie and fired the puck just over the goalie's stick and into the back of the net. The rest of the first period ended up being rather dull, and the period ended with the East leading 1-0.
The second period proved to be much more entertaining, at least for my team. In what was probably the only time I ever cheered for Rick Riley, yes that Rick Riley, he put the East up 2-0 with a slap shot 8 feet from the goal. The score remained the same until about ten minutes later. Adam intercepted Jesse's pass to Portman and headed down the ice, on a two on one break. One quick pass to Crosby and the East was leading 3-0. By this time, I felt more than confident that we had the game in hand; my thoughts were further solidified when Adam put the puck in the back of the net at the 2 minute mark. The West's best chance of scoring came from Charlie. He had won the face off against Guy and came at me hard. After employing his patent triple deke, he fired a shot in my direction.
"Nice try Spazway," I teased him as I easily stopped the puck. I smiled at the knowledge that I was still the only goalie consistently able to block Charlie's triple deke.
The third period started with the East leading 4-0. Unlike most all All-star games, our defense had been steady. I faintly wondered if a shut out had ever been achieved in an All star game before. Eventually, I surmised that it probably had and extinguished the notion that I may be the first to do so. In the midst of my thoughts, Portman sent a shot flying towards me. I came out of my thoughts just in time to block the shot with my pads. I breathed a sigh of relief as I saw Crosby head up the ice with the puck. Adam took the pass and fired a slap shot into the back of the net for what proved to be the final goal of the game.
After the game I searched the crowd for Germaine. I found him sleeping soundly in Connie's arms. I listened vaguely as the crowd roared when the MP was announced. No one was more surprised than I was when it was my name that was announced as the winner. I skated with shaking knees to center ice where I was handed the trophy. I held it high in the air as the crowd cheered once more. I declined the interview as I felt the tears stinging my eyes. The only person I wanted to talk to was my son.
I know it's been a while, but the review button is feeling lonely. So if you will all push it and leave a comment, it would make me and the button happy!
