I don't know why, I think I play better after I hear the American national anthem. I had a ten point game this season against the Plymouth Whalers, so maybe that's skewing the data a little bit but still… There was last night's game against Everett where I levelled poor Billy Gillis. I still feel bad about that. I was watching Sportscentre this morning with the guys and the commentator compared it to a Mack truck hitting a rickshaw. Sportscentre also went down the list of injuries that Gillis had sustained. With one hit, I managed to break his collarbone, separate his shoulder, crack two ribs and give him a concussion.
The only thing saving that from being the banner headline for the Sports section this morning was the fact that Josh Stafford has stopped all 103 of the shots fired at him in this tournament and he's on the verge of being the only goalie in the history of the Canadian Hockey League to post a 1.000 Save Percentage and a 0.00 Goals Against Average in the Memorial Cup. That's something that everyone on the team knows and we've all resolved to not bring up in front of Josh or even say out loud until after tomorrow's game.
This afternoon, Kingston and Everett have to play the semi-final to decide who's going to play us in the championship tomorrow. "So, are you gonna tell me what happened at the pub the other night or not?" I question as I sit across the table from Nolan at breakfast.
"Yeah, I was kind of hoping we'd forego that discussion all together." Nolan munches on his Frosted Flakes.
"Last I checked you had a girlfriend." I push a little harder.
"Yeah, you really need to check in more than once a month." Nolan laughs sardonically. "I was involved in break up during the Guelph series about a month back, it was rocky, it was unpleasant and I don't want to talk about it. I've dealt with it."
"She was having re-adjustment problems, huh?" I question.
"I'm gonna be living in Philadelphia next year, regardless if I play in the NHL or in the minors. I've been dating her for almost three years; I finally work up the nerve to ask her to come with me to Philly next year and she goes into a diatribe about "it's not in her plans" and "maybe in a few years". So, I told her that she knew a year ago when I got drafted that this was my last year of Junior and that we'd have to make a decision, she couldn't have told me over the course of this last year that she wasn't in it long term? This inevitably led to a fight." Nolan shrugs.
"Of course." The two of us share a laugh.
"So, I no longer have a girlfriend, which is why I kissed the cute little fiddler on Thursday night." Nolan finishes his explanation and his breakfast.
"Well done." I smirk as I sip from my coffee cup. "I'm worried about facing the same thing next year."
"Yeah, but that's because you're an idiot." Nolan jokes. "You've spent the last eighteen months away from that woman; add on to that all the time you spent with the National Team Development Program when you were fifteen and sixteen. The two of you still stick to each other. I'm convinced that if one of you lived on the moon, you'd still find a way to be whatever the hell it is you are right now."
"Yeah, I hope so." I nod. "Can you believe that we may play our last games as Kitchener Rangers tomorrow afternoon?"
"End of an era, my friend." Nolan raises his coffee cup to mine and they clink together. "Spencer and Huddy, too. They'll be fine though; they still got Doc, Carey, Mickey, Gags, Chief, Langsy and Josh."
"You looking forward to the AHL Playoffs?" I ask.
"Trying not to look beyond tomorrow's game. That's proving exceedingly difficult." Nolan replies with a grin. "You worried that Grundler's going to be out hunting for your head if it's Everett we play tomorrow."
"No, I know it's coming, I'll take it like a man." I answer.
"Speaking of things we would rather not talk about, isn't it your birthday today?" Nolan hides his sadistic grin behind his coffee cup.
"Yup, eighteen as of four hours ago." I nod.
"This may seem an odd thing to say, but look behind you." Nolan says while trying to maintain some kind of broad smile. I look over my right shoulder to see my family checking in at the front desk in the lobby.
"Jacky!" I shout and my brother turns his head and sees me sitting over here in the dining area having breakfast. Jack runs into the dining room and wraps me in a big hug. "What the hell are you guys doing here?"
"It's our birthday, you're in a championship game tomorrow, where else did you think we'd be?" Jack replies with a characteristic smile.
"Oh great, now I'm going to have to spend the next two days trying to tell the two of you apart." Nolan jokes as he walks over. "Jack." Nolan offers his hand.
"Nolan." Jack shakes it. "All the way over in the car, the guys on sports radio were talking about 'Big Bad Brad' and some hit that you laid on some kid last night. You broke something like three bones and gave the kids a concussion? Mom was completely mortified."
"I didn't mean to hurt the kid; I just caught him awkwardly, something like that happens one time in like a million." I shake my head a bit.
"Yeah, but mom's gonna be lookin' at you funny for the first few hours, deal with it." Jack laughs. "Just try not to do anything else to disrupt the works, okay?" Nolan and I exchange knowing looks. "Oh God, what did you do?" Jack questions. Nolan and I drag Jack over to the elevator and press the button for our floor. "Just tell me how bad it is." Jack says only to be met with silence. We get off the elevator and rush Jack down the aisle to Sasha's room where I knock on the door.
"Love, it's me and Nolan." I say.
"Love?" Jack questions in a whisper. The door opens and Sasha stands there wearing her favourite pair of USMC sweats. "Ah, now it makes sense. But how…?"
"We'll explain in a minute." She rushes us into the room. "What's he doing here?"
"The rest of the clan is downstairs." I flop down in a chair in the corner of the room.
"What's with the family reunion?" Sasha begins to pace the room.
"It's our birthday and you know, and these boys are about to play a pretty big game tomorrow." Jack explains. "And I thought the reason I didn't see you at school this week was because you were sick." Jack turns his face toward Sasha.
"Well, even the best of us are wrong sometimes, Jack." Sasha retorts. "So, how do we go about explaining to your parents why I'm here?" Sasha turns toward me.
"More importantly, how about we hide my brother's boxers so the only thing we have to explain to our parents is why you're here?" Jack jokes and Sasha kicks my boxer shorts under the bed. "How exactly did you get here?"
"Yeah, that's my doing." Nolan pipes up. "Your brother spent the coldest months of the Canadian winter without any company, and I knew about him and Sasha here so I gave her a call and invited her up here to spend some time with him this week. I offered to pay for her travel here and sure enough, she got the week off school or whatever and went on vacation."
"Okay, well that explains how you got here." Jack nods. "Now how are we going to deal with all this? I imagine mom and dad are going to want to celebrate our birthday tonight and I imagine you're going to want to be there." Jack looks at Sasha again. "Now how do we prevent a lot of questions from being asked?"
"We don't." Sasha answers. "We confront it head on. Your parents are nice, understanding people. Your mom loves me."
"There's an understatement." Jack laughs. "Mom thinks you're the only woman in the world good enough for him."
"That's kind of funny." Nolan chimes in. There's silence. "What? It is."
"So, we go downstairs and walk into the jaws of the beast?" I turn to her and she takes my hand.
"After you." She smiles brightly at me and I get up out of the chair and lead the group of people to the door. We step out into the hallway and the door locks behind us.
"Dead man walking!" Jack announces in a loud voice that causes me to roll my eyes. The four of us get in the elevator and I punch the button to take us back down to the lobby. The bitter taste of the adrenaline is coursing through my mouth. I don't mind facing my father. Hell, he'll probably pat me on the back and buy me a bottle of bourbon. No woman has ever been good enough to pass my mother's test. Now, Sasha's babysat for my little brother and sister, known me since I was like three and was probably at the White House more times than the Secretary of State when my dad was the President.
None of that matters in the endgame. Tim has had eight girlfriends while he's been up at Phillips-Exeter; none of them have been good enough for my mom. Jack's had four during high school; my mom has found a way to stare down every one of them. My mom didn't like when I went out with Lucy Davis in middle school, she really didn't like when I dated Audrey Williams in Grade Nine and she didn't talk to me for two weeks after she found out I had sex last winter when I was playing my first season in Kitchener for the Rangers. The elevator hits the lobby floor and I swear I can hear my heart pound loudly against the inside of my chest.
"We were wondering where the three of you had run off to and…" My dad starts saying but then he realizes just who I'm standing next to. "Jack, how did you fit her in your suitcase?"
"Not me, dad." Jack throws his hands in the air and my dad turns his waiting eyes on me.
"I'm afraid that I was the one who arranged this little rendezvous, sir." Nolan steps up. "We were about to play in a big tournament for a nationwide championship, I figured this was the best possible morale boost I could give the team. Who can blame your son, just look at the girl, he's got great taste." Every guy in the immediate vicinity grins and nods and I have to laugh. Sasha blushes furiously and buries her head in my shoulder.
"Alright, well I guess stranger things have happened." My dad laughs and pulls me into a hug. "The radio said you decked some kid during the game yesterday?"
"It was a freak hit." I say. "Happens maybe one in a million. I called Billy at the hospital this morning once he woke up to tell him how sorry I was."
"Happy birthday, kiddo." My dad rubs the top of my head. "Hannah, your mom and I were headed out to some of the local shops around town to pick up a few more presents for you boys. Sasha, why don't you join us?"
"Uh…" Sasha looks at me and I shrug my shoulders trying to conceal my schadenfreude. "Sure, Mr. Ross, I'd be happy to."
"Harry, why don't you come with me and a few of the boys to watch the semi-final game?" I invite my eleven year-old brother along.
"Can I, dad?" Harry looks up at my dad.
"Sure. Just make sure you don't leave your brothers' sight." My dad warns. Just then Josh Stafford and Carey come rushing into the hallway.
"Brad, you gotta come see this! We managed to string Doc up from the ceiling by his ankles." Josh has this broad grin on his face. I clear my throat and angle my head toward my parents. Josh's eyes go wide when he sees my folks. "Your holiness, I mean Your Highness…Mr. Justice, I mean Mr. President." Josh finally gets it.
"Dad, Mom, this is Josh Stafford." I introduce the young goalie to my parents. "Josh, these are my parents."
"And we'd be perfectly okay with you referring to us as Mr. and Mrs. Ross." My mom shakes Josh's hand.
"What's up, Prez!" Carey greets my father.
"Hey, Carey." My dad waves at Carey. "I guess I'm gonna be the pack mule for the girls when they shop."
"Ah yes, but this too will pass, dad." I point out as they head for the door and their day of shopping. Sasha looks back over her shoulder at me with those big brown eyes and blows me a quick kiss. It's payback for not insisting she stay with me. She knows that the guys are paying attention and they'll rip me to know end about it. The group gets in the car and heads off.
"Dude, did she just…" Jack starts but I cut him off.
"Jack, when I hit Billy Gillis yesterday I broke his collarbone, separated his shoulder, cracked two ribs and gave him a concussion. I want you to think very hard before you finish that sentence." I don't even have to look back over my shoulder at him to emphasize my point.
"I'll be good." Jack affirms and I laugh a little to myself. "But I do have questions."
"Good luck, I've spent the last week trying to get him to answer questions about that." Nolan jokes a bit. "The guys all share their exploits in the dressing room, he won't say a peep."
"Come on, Braddy boy; indulge us in a little vicarious living." Jack elbows me in the shoulder. "It's not like we haven't had a thought about her that way."
"Jack, you really think that's something you want to admit to me?" I peak an eyebrow at my brother.
"Come on, Brad. She's my babysitter and even I've had a look at some of her goodies." Harry interjects. Now, I love my little brother – I suppose technically Harry would be my youngest brother since I'm technically the oldest – but what he just said made me laugh.
"Oh you did, huh?" I manage to get out in between laughs.
"You'd have to be dead not to." Harry replies completely off the cuff.
"Amen, brother." Jack adds on.
"Et tu, Brute?" I turn to Nolan.
"She's your girl, man. I try to keep those thoughts out of my head." Nolan answers honestly. "But she doesn't make it easy."
"Amen, brother." Jack adds again.
"Stop saying that." I turn to Jack who's laughing to himself. "Are you guys through ripping me on this yet?" I ask as we head out the hotel doors on to the sidewalk.
"Not even close." Nolan shakes his head and pats me on the back.
"Just before we go any farther, I have one question. Is the underlying point of all these jokes going to be that Sasha's hot?" I look to Nolan and Jack.
"No." Jack shakes his head. "See, if she was just hot, we'd all keep our opinions to ourselves. Right?" He looks to Nolan and Harry for approval, Harry nods his head enthusiastically. "It's that she's so hot. Seriously, the definition of an embarrassment of riches. God giving with both hands. Think about it, brains, sense of humour, general kindness…"
"Her body." Harry adds.
"Amen, brother." Jack concludes with a laugh.
"Seriously, stop saying that." This time even I'm laughing. "Guys, come on that's my girl, you really can't be saying that stuff."
"Oh, lighten up." Nolan shakes his head. "Besides, I'm your best friend and they're your brothers, if we can't rip on you, who can?"
"A…" Jack starts but I cut him off.
"I swear to God, Jack, if you say 'Amen, brother', I will pull your lower lip up over the top of your head." I smile at my brother who stops talking instantly. "I will indulge one question and one question only. So, you three had better make sure it's good." I keep walking while the three of them gather behind me to discuss what they want to ask. I can hear Nolan striking down ideas that he finds too obscene or uncouth. He's a great guy, but I would always bet dollars to donuts that his intellectual curiosity on some matters would get the better of his conservative nature.
"We have a question!" Jack announces.
"Over my strong objections." Nolan adds.
"Alright." I turn around, cross my arms in front of my chest and tap my foot. "Do your worst."
"Is she a moaner or a screamer?" Jack asks.
"Jack, our eleven year-old brother is standing right there." I point to Harry.
"He came up with the question." Jack insists. I'm sure the shock on my face is evident. "He's almost twelve dude, not six. You should hear some of the stuff this kid hears at school; it would curl your toes. So, which is she?"
"Yes." I answer simply.
"Yes, what?" Jack replies.
"Hey, I just said I'd answer the question, I didn't say you'd like the answer." I reply smartly as I hand out the tickets to the game to the other three guys and we head into the arena. I chortle as we move through the crowds at the rink to the rail that delineates the standing room only section. Jack, Nolan and I lean over the rail, perched on our elbows. The lights go down as Kingston and Everett skate out on to the ice. Kingston's dressed in their home black jerseys and Everett is dressed in their away white jerseys.
"Everett could barely beat them with Gillis in the line up, Kingston's gonna kill them without Gillis." I tell Nolan.
"I'm surprised Teemu Nommainenen hasn't really shown up for Everett in this series, he's got what, like a goal and an assist in three games?" Nolan asks me. "For a guy who's supposed to be competing with you and Trevor Wood in the top three in June, he's not exactly showing his mettle."
"We're talking about a guy who finished the Western Hockey League season with 43 goals and 61 assists. It's just not regular that he would pick this time in the season to have a slump." I ponder.
"You ever get to pick when you have a slump?" Nolan turns toward me.
"Good point." I nod. The crowd stands through the national anthems for Canada and the United States before the two teams gather at centre ice for the opening face-off. It's Nommainenen for Everett against Stewart for Kingston. Stewart wins the draw and the game is off to a hard start. Both teams are playing defensive hockey to start. None of them wants to make a mistake the other side can capitalize on since they're both so close to the championship game they can taste it. The goaltender tested most in the first ten minutes is Everett's Mitchell Blake but he seems equal to the task. I look across the ice and I can see the Everett coach having a very rough conversation with Nommainenen. He obviously expected as much out of the young Finn as the rest of the hockey world did.
The next time Nommainenen goes over the boards, he seems like a man on a mission. He's flying around the ice demonstrating the speed that every scouting report has said makes him a lethal offensive weapon. The first time the puck lands on his stick, Nommainenen is off to the races, up the left-hand side of the rink. He cuts on the net and you can just feel the goal coming. It's like the gale force winds from a hurricane. He lifts the puck over the shoulder of the Kingston goaltender and skates calmly around behind the net with just his stick raised in the air to celebrate.
"That's going to open the game up." Nolan comments.
"If I was Kingston, I'd just come out and play the speed game, force Everett to skate with you." I mutter.
"What did you think I was talking about?" Nolan raises an eyebrow. Through the rest of the first period, Everett scores two more goals, Nommainenen assists on both of them. Kingston replies with one goal by Stewart and one goal by Winter. Everett goes into the first intermission leading 3-2.
"Jack, I wanna go get a hot dog." Harry tugs on Jack's sleeve. Jack groans.
"I'll take him, Jack." Nolan volunteers. "Come on, bud." Nolan and Harry head off toward the concession. The two of them vanish from sight and I hear Jack clear his throat.
"So, you and Sasha, huh?" He questions, not looking at me but choosing rather to stare out over the ice.
"Yeah." I nod and I'm sure I blush a little.
"Just how crazy about her are you?" Jack asks, still not looking at me.
"Oh, I'm pretty sure it's nearing the irrational." I chuckle a little. "It's odd, because I think it brings out the sentimentalist in me."
"How so?" Jack asks, suddenly intrigued.
"I start coming up with stupid similes." I answer. "I'll find myself comparing her skin to electric silk or reflecting on all those idiot songwriters who compared lips to honey. I also develop the urge to just touch her at the oddest times."
"Yeah, you're in love." Jack nods. "Hey, did I tell you my good news?"
"Nope." I shake my head.
"Got an offer from Boston College for a full ride on a football scholarship." Jack says and I look over at him.
"You've wanted to play football for Annapolis as long as I can remember, why would you want to move to the Atlantic Coast Conference and play for the Eagles now?" I question.
"Hey man, better chance to move on to the Pros playing for Boston College." Jack quips.
"Yeah, but you were the one who always wanted to be the Marine." I counter.
"Nothing saying I still can't if football doesn't pan out, just have to do it through OCS is all." Jack answers.
"Well at least somebody will be in Boston to check up on Sasha next year." I think aloud. "I'm just worried she'll be bored or homesick…"
"Or find out that she prefers some Harvard brain trust to you?" Jack chances and I shake my head. "Come on, Brad, it's me you're talking to. The most open secret in the whole damn family is how you tend to be a little insecure about your intelligence. You can't honestly think she'd go around with some other guy just because she hadn't seen you in a while."
I shrug my shoulders. "You said yourself, she's really hot and if that weren't enough, she's really smart. Guys are gonna hit on her."
"You're on TV pretty much everyday in Gatorade and Nike ads, you're a top NHL Prospect and you don't think she might be worried about the girls that are going to make passes at you next year?" Jack replies with a bit of edge in his voice. He doesn't want me going on any pity trips.
"Yeah, I guess you're right." I nod as Nolan and Harry come walking back over. We stand up along the rail for the remaining two periods of the game. It becomes a real shooting match as the final score is Everett 8 – Kingston 6. We head back to the hotel and we run into Josh, Doc, Carey and Spencer on the sidewalk outside of the arena. "So, it's Everett again tomorrow?"
"Second time in three days." Carey groans. "Those guys will have played four days in a row though, so we might have a bit of an advantage."
"Well, either that or they're just getting warmed up." Josh comments. "Eight goals ain't nothing."
"Ain't a lot of defence either, Josh." Doc weighs in. "If Spencer and Nolan just make sure me, Cap and Carey get the puck, we'll take care of the other end of the ice for ya." Doc gives the young goaltender a pat on the back and the whole group of us walk back to the hotel. Tomorrow is it for the 2019-2020 Kitchener Rangers, 68 regular season games, 20 playoff games and three Memorial Cup games have all meant nothing because without a win after 60 minutes of play tomorrow, only the twenty-three guys on this team will remember this experience with any fondness.
When we get back to the hotel Jack, Nolan and Harry all rush in ahead of me while Doc, Carey, Josh and Spencer force me to stand outside. After a few seconds, Nolan jumps back out the front doors of the hotel and everyone rushes me inside. We turn around the corner from the lobby to the bar and we're met with a crowd. "Surprise!!" I have to laugh, this was well thought out. The entire team, including the coaching and training staff is at the party, along with my entire immediate family excepting only my brother Tim and cousin Helene who are writing their exams at school right now. "Brad, we decided that we were going to pull out every cheesy stop since you only turn eighteen once." Nolan gives me a pat on the back.
"So, we figured we'd start with the cake." My dad steps in and shows me and Jack the way to the cake. It's huge sheet cake with Happy Birthday Brad, Jack and Tim written in icing. It's got the Kitchener Rangers' crest, the "BC" of Boston College and the blue 'Y' of Yale on it. Jack and I blow out the candles much to the applause of the rest of the room.
"And the boys and I figured, we'd get this cake just for you, Cap." Spencer and Nolan guide me over to the large blue, white and red paper mache cake on the other side of the room. I know where this is going but I play along anyway. The guys on the team start singing Happy Birthday as I examine the large fake cake. They finish the song and Sasha pops out of the top of the cake wearing the white Kitchener jersey I gave her earlier in the week. I reach up around her waist and lift her free of the fake cake. She leans up and kisses me on the cheek.
"You're my present?" I whisper in her ear.
"I figured I'd save your present until you got back home in two weeks and you had the time to really enjoy it." She whispers back and winks at me.
"Now, for the big finale." My dad and Jack stand on either side of me. "Jack got his present and Tim will get his when he gets home from school in a few weeks. But we figured that now was the time for you to get yours." My family and my buddies surround me and we walk back out through the lobby, out the front doors of the hotel back on to the sidewalk. We walk around the corner of the hotel and into the parking lot. Dad tells me to cover my eyes for the last few steps. We move along the sidewalk until eventually Jack brings me to a halt. I'm turned sharply to my right and told to uncover my eyes. I look down and I see a restored Harley Davidson motorcycle sitting there with a red bow on it. "Happy Eighteenth, son."
"Thanks, Dad, Mom." I look at my parents with what has to be the biggest, goofiest smile on my face. I give both my parents big hugs before walking over and taking a seat on the bike.
"This is my present." Jack tosses me a helmet. "You got the license for that thing right?"
"And that was my doing." Nolan steps in.
"That's right, you were the one who challenged me to get the motorcycle license back in April." I chuckle. "You were planning again."
"I'm a hell of a guy." Nolan smiles. "You gonna take that beast for a ride?"
"Yeah." I smile again and dad tosses me the keys. I pop on the helmet, fire up the bike and take off around the block. It's a great feeling to have the wind whistle through your hair with control over this machine. I pull back into the parking lot and pull the helmet off. "That may be the best feeling ever!" I exclaim as I tuck the helmet under my arm. Sasha clears her throat to respond to my comment. "Oh, well except for…" I realize my parents are standing right there. "Not that I…what I meant to say was…"
"Just get inside so we can get back to the party." Jack cuts me off and I follow everyone back into the hotel. We carry on with the birthday party right through dinner. The coach keeps very tight reins on everyone on the team. The few guys who are of age, aren't allowed to drink and the whole team is ordered upstairs to their rooms at 10:15 PM exactly. I run into my mother waiting for the elevator at about 10:18. The elevator doors open and the two of us step on.
"Bradley, I know we haven't spoken a lot since we arrived this morning but I just wanted to say one thing." My mom blurts out.
"What's on your mind, mom?" I ask and turn to face her.
"Bradley, you've got a young woman here this weekend who absolutely adores you and from what I gather you feel quite strongly about her as well. Do not hurt her, Bradley or mistreat her. First, because your father and I didn't raise you like that and second, because she's an extraordinary young woman. A woman like that doesn't come along but once in the course of your life." The elevator dings at my floor.
"Thanks, mom." I nod and get off the elevator.
We're sitting in the dressing room before the championship game. I've got all my equipment on but my helmet and gloves. I'm staring down at my blue Rangers jersey that I've got in my hands. This may be the last time I ever pull this jersey over my head. I've spent a season and a half in Kitchener and it's been the best hockey experience of my life. I've got friends here that I'll have for a lifetime. I trace the red letter 'C' that sits above the left shoulder on the jersey. After having a good playoff run last year, the boys stuck me with the nickname "Captain America". They figured that it fit. I wasn't so sure. I guess it's one of those self-fulfilling things. You're only sure you've earned something once you feel comfortable with it. I won't feel comfortable with it unless we beat Everett today. I pull the jersey over my head.
"You alright, Cap?" Nolan pats me on the back.
"Y'ever throw up before a big game?" I ask Nolan.
"Yeah, before game 7 of the OHL Final versus Niagara last year." Nolan nods. "Felt better."
"Yeah, I got that feeling right now." I stare down at the floor. "Every other hockey playing kid where we're from dreams of growing up and winning the Frozen Four in the NCAA. We grew up and we're playing for the Memorial Cup, you think there's something wrong with us?"
"Nothing a victory today won't cure." Nolan answers with a grin. We put our helmets on while leaving the chin-strap dangling loose. We slide our gloves on, grab our sticks and wait at the door of the dressing room. I step back for a second to talk with Raff out trainer.
"Hey, Raff." I say. "Bring Nolan's white jersey to the bench for after the game okay?" Raff nods at me and I smile. I rejoin Nolan at the front of the line. The buzzer sounds out over the rink and we walk down the hallway toward the gate. The house-lights are off and the rink is dark as we stride on to the ice. They start a small laser light show over centre ice as the two teams skate around waiting for them to bring out the performer to sing the national anthems. They announce the performer and the two teams line up on their blue-lines and face the flags at the west end of the rink to listen to the national anthems. They sing O Canada first and I take deep breaths trying to calm the pounding of my heart. When they finish O Canada, there's a few seconds of pause before the performer launches into The Star Spangled Banner.
Nolan and I are standing side by side on the blue-line all through the American national anthem. We're jazzed up and ready to play this game. We're lightly tapping each other on the gloves all through The Star Spangled Banner as we stare up at Old Glory. The performer hits that last glorious note of the national anthem, Nolan and I pull our helmets back on our heads do a quick skate down to our own goal to tap Josh on the pads before skating back toward centre ice to line up for the opening face-off.
Doc strides into the face-off circle. He hovers his stick over the dot and waits for the puck to slap down on the ice. The ref hurls the puck straight down into the face-off dot and the two centres scramble for it. Doc wins the face-off and the puck comes back to Nolan at defence. Nolan picks up a head of steam, crosses the centre line and fires a hard shot down deep into the Everett zone. Everett Captain Marcus Grundler goes back around behind the Everett net to retrieve the puck but Doc and Carey are hard on his tail. Grundler makes an outlet pass up to Nommainenen. The Finnish firefly speeds up the boards on the left hand side but Nolan comes over to cut him off. Nolan guides Nommainenen into the boards and takes the puck from him. Nolan slides a pass over to Doc who's heading down the middle of the ice at full speed. Doc feeds me the puck along the right hand side. Right now, only Marcus Grundler is standing between me and the net. "Bring it on, Marcus." I taunt the Everett Captain as I try to make an effort to push for the front of the net and Grundler's doing his level best to keep his body between me and his goaltender. We're about ten feet from the net when I get tired of trying to push my way in against his chest. I pivot out of the clash on my right leg and execute a quick spin-o-rama. I fire a pass across in front of the net to Doc who's parked right in front of the net. Doc gets his stick on it just in time to deflect it between the legs of the Everett goaltender. 1-0 Kitchener.
I jaw a bit at Grundler as we stand in front of the Everett net before skating over to congratulate Doc. As my line skates back toward our bench, we have to pass the Everett bench so we taunt them a little bit as we skate by. Doc punches me in the shoulder for feeding him the pass and I pat him on the helmet for scoring the goal. We stand on the bench and watch our second line head out for the next face-off. That was a comparatively long shift for us; we were out there for a whole fifty-seven seconds.
The Everett coach has kept Nommainenen on the ice along with Grundler. Obviously, he's not going to let his star players off easy. On the next draw, Nommainenen beats Huddy and bats the puck over to one of his wingers. Everett takes off on a full pressure attack. Their three forwards cross into our zone and their two defenseman follow up by staking out positions on the blue-line. An Everett winger fires a shot on goal that Josh kicks out easily with one of his pads. The puck comes out to Nommainenen who drops a pass back to Grundler at the point. The Everett Captain launches a cruise missile of a shot on goal that Josh nabs with his glove and freezes the play. The ref blows the play dead and both teams change lines before another face-off. Our line of young guys takes on Everett's. Everett wins the face-off again and the puck slides back to the point. The Everett defenseman fires a shot on goal that Josh kicks aside again. The rebound comes out to an Everett player who takes a shot that hits Josh in the chest. Josh falls on the puck but two Everett players in front of the net taking to trying to dig the puck out from under him. An Everett stick comes down across Josh's back, causing him to flinch, the puck his drawn out by an Everett player and fired into the back of the net. It's a 1-1 game.
Our bench is in an uproar. The ref should have blown his whistle, Josh clearly had the puck covered. There's a scrum in front of our net and the refs separate the players from the two teams and send them back to their respective benches. Doc and I look at each other and nod. Nolan doesn't need in on the conversation, he knows what we're planning and what his role is in it. Doc tells Carey who nods the whole time it's being explained to him. Coach sends our line over the boards to take the face-off at centre ice. Doc steps into the face-off circle against Nommainenen. Doc wins the face-off and sends the puck over to Carey. Carey faces a little checking pressure from an Everett winger so he sends a pass back to Kyle McWilliam. Kyle moves the puck up to me on the wing. I've got Doc and Carey with me as we all burst over the Everett blue-line and in on the Everett goal. I fake a pass to Doc who's heading straight for the front of the net and drop a pass for Nolan. Nolan tees up a slap-shot and rifles one off. He aimed for the upper part of the Everett goalie, he's not even trying to score, just to ring the bell. He whacks the Everett goaltender right in the mask with a slap-shot that was easily over 100 mph. Doc, Carey and I all close in on the net at top speed, presumably to look for a rebound but in reality it's because we know that when we come to a stop, we'll kick up a cloud of snow so big we'll bury the Everett goalie. A little payback for that whack on Josh at the other end.
When we snow the Everett goalie, it causes an anticipated fracas. There's a lot of pushing and shoving around the Everett goal. But it goes to another level when the Everett tough guy, a kid named Cody Thorn, sticks a glove in Carey's face and pushes him to the ice. I launch myself at Everett Captain Marcus Grundler, put both my gloves in the middle of his chest and push him into the boards. "You wanna go, Marcus?" I question and with an evil smirk on his face the Everett Captain nods at me. We move out of the crowd and away from the referees.
We toss our gloves and sticks down first. After they go, our helmets get peeled off and tossed to the ice. Then, because Grundler and I are both seeing blood we go the extra step of reaching under our jerseys and removing our elbow pads so we can swing away more freely. I mockingly wave him in and he launches at me. Now he's a little taller than me but it's a pretty even weight match up, so it shouldn't be too hard on me. Grundler gets the first punch in and clips me right above my left eye. Then we just start swinging away. I land three or four good blows under his right eye. Remember fighting in hockey is basically boxing on skates, so you spend half your time trying not to fall on your butt. About thirty seconds into the fight, we're tired as hell and we're just swinging away, not caring if we actually hit anything. After about ten more seconds, we're both panting for air. I've only got one trick left. I work my right arm free of his grasp, wind up and catch him with one solid uppercut right on his chin that knocks him off balance and sends him crashing to the ice.
The linesmen jump in and separate us. They escort us over to the penalty boxes. The crowd is on their feet cheering and members from both teams are tapping their sticks on the ice in recognition. I've got a small cut above my left eye that's bleeding down the side of my face, but nothing too severe. Grundler's gonna have one hell of a black-eye in a few hours and last uppercut seems to have cut his lip or his tongue because he's spitting blood in the penalty box. Nolan brings my equipment over and hands it to me in the penalty box. "That a boy, Cap." He cheers with a smile as he hands me my helmet.
The rest of the first period is played out with the same intensity that drove the first few minutes. The score remains 1-1 as both teams head to the dressing rooms for the first intermission. The sweat is just pouring off of us. Every player on both teams wants this game so badly we can taste it. I muss the hell out of my hair sitting at my stall in the dressing room. Coach taps me and Nolan on the shoulder and pulls us aside. "Do either of you two know what the Fourth Gear is?" The coach asks.
"Yeah, it's the top gear on a standard transmission." Nolan answers.
"That's the analogy." Coach nods. "Every hockey player has the first three gears, but only a few have the fourth gear. Or maybe it's that only a few can actually shift into it. This team needs you two to hit that fourth gear now. Let's be realistic. The other guys in this room know that this may be the last time they lace up the skates with you guys. They all want to make it one to remember but they need you guys to take the game on your backs. They need you guys to give the first show of your NHL selves for the next two periods."
"Got it, Coach." Nolan and I nod at the coach. The Coach smiles at us and points us back toward our stalls. "I will bet you two hundred dollars that you can't put up three goals before the game's over." Nolan taunts me.
"Sounds like a bet to me." I shake his hand "We gotta win this game."
"Don't I know it." Nolan grins and the two of us pull our helmets back on and line up with the team to head back out for the second period. We skate out on to a clean sheet of ice before the start of the second period. Huddy's line is going to start the second period matched up against Nommainenen's line. The puck slaps against the cold ice and we're back off to the races. The first minute of play takes place largely in the neutral zone with an offside bringing the first stoppage of play. Coach pats my line on the back and sends us over the boards.
We line up for the face-off, which Doc wins and he slides that puck back to Nolan. Nolan loops around behind Kyle McWilliam and hits me with a pass on the right wing. I just miss a check when I receive the pass and I look up to see myself confronted by three white Everett jerseys between me and the goal. I've got to think of a way to keep the puck long enough to get a scoring chance out of it. The first Everett player tries to stand me up at the blue-line, I slide the puck between this legs and duck around him. Now, I've only got the two Everett defensemen between me and the goal. I execute a toe-drag followed by a quick change of speed to jet around the first one. I know I can try a dangle here, a dangle is when you let your stick lead like you're going to go one way or else shoot. The intent is to get the defenseman to bite and the Everett defenseman bites like a champion Sea Bass. The second part of the dangle is pulling the puck over to the complete other side and evading the defender. This part works as well and I'm in free and clear on the goalie. I lead backhand on the Everett goalie before moving hard to my forehand and sliding the puck in between his skate and the post. 2-1 Kitchener.
The red-light behind the goal comes on and my line-mates rush over to congratulate me. Nolan taps me on the head. "That's one." I declare.
"Still two more to go, Cap." He replies with a fond smile as we head back to the bench. We step through the open door on to the bench and our back-up goaltender, Ritchie Moran, gives me a pat on the back as I walk by. Everett spends the time in between our shifts trying to fight back against the pressure we're putting on. This translates into a lot of pucks being thrown at Josh Stafford by the time there's eight minutes left in the period, Josh has stopped thirty-two of the thirty-three shots fired at him. My line gets sent over the boards for a power-play after an Everett forward is called for a goaltender interference penalty.
Huddy lines up for the face-off with Doc and Carey on his wings and me and Nolan at the point. Huddy wins the face-off and scoops the puck back to Nolan at the point. Nolan positions himself at the blue-line before bumping a pass down to Doc off the half-boards. Doc slides a pass across behind the net to Carey. Carey fakes a move out to the front of the net before sending the puck back to Doc. I come in off the point toward the top of the circle and Doc hits me with a hard pass. I immediately fire off a slap-shot toward the top left corner of the net. It flies passed the Everett goaltender which triggers the red goal-light behind the net. 3-1 Kitchener.
We head back to the bench and the coach sends our young guys over the boards. I hope this is the fourth gear that the Coach was talking about. Now we're playing a kind of clamp-down defence to prevent Everett from mounting any scoring pressure. By the end of the second period, the score is still 3-1 Kitchener. I don't think I've ever smiled so widely while playing hockey. The second intermission passes mercifully quickly and we're back out on the ice.
This time my line gets to start the period; a period that might be my last as a Kitchener Ranger. Doc steps into the face-off circle but is thrown out by the ref for not squaring up straight to the draw. Doc steps out of the face-off circle and moves over to my wing. I stride in to take the draw for him. I hunch over the face-off circle and take a low grip on my stick. The puck drops to the ice, I lean forward and brush the ice with my stick, forcing the puck back between my legs. Kyle takes the puck out of the open ice and slides a pass over to Nolan. Playing a simple dump-and-chase game, Nolan merely crosses the centre ice line and pounds the puck into the Everett zone. Carey goes in after it and gets crossed up with an Everett defenseman in the corner. Carey fights the puck loose and slides it back up the boards to Nolan.
Nolan burns a shot on goal. This one hits the Everett goaltender on the chest pad and lands on my stick in front of the net. I fire the rebound into the net. That's number three. The red-light behind the goal flashes. 4-1 Kitchener. My line-mates mob me in front of the Everett net. "That's three." I tell Nolan.
"I'll pay you when we get back to the hotel." He shouts a reply. We all head back to the bench with big smiles on our faces. That goal was the one that broke the camel's back. Everett never seems to be able to come back with the same kind of fight. A few moments later, Spencer Kraft rings the bell to make it 5-1 Kitchener and a few minutes after that, McKee lights the lamp to make it 6-1 Kitchener. Coach keeps my line off the ice so we don't run up the score and look like we're rubbing it in. After Grundler rubs out McKee along the boards, Coach sends my line over the boards again. We're just supposed to keep the puck out of our own net but after being told to bump my game into the fourth gear, I find it hard to shift down. Nolan strips an Everett forward of the puck in our defensive zone and flips the puck up to me between the two Everett defensemen. I muster up all the strength I've got left in my quadriceps for one final rush. I've got two Everett defensemen trying to close in behind me but they can't catch me in full flight. I've got my eyes locked on those of the Everett goaltender. I move the puck from my backhand to my forehand, back to my backhand; I'm trying to make a decision. I'm getting in close now, I've got to make a decision. I play up a shot to the blocker side that the Everett goalie falls for then I pull the puck back, flip over to my backhand and tuck a shot up under the crossbar. 7-1 Kitchener.
The last minute and a half of the game is played in a very toned down way and when the buzzer goes, we all leap over the boards and mob Josh down in our own zone. None of us can believe we won. Helmets, gloves, sticks are strewn everywhere as we dog-pile on to our young goaltender. After a few seconds of patting each other on the back, we straighten up and head to centre ice to meet our vanquished foes. I lead the Rangers into the traditional team handshake that ends the tournament. The first Everett player I encounter is Marcus Grundler. Grundler chuckles when he sees me. "You're a hell of a talent, kid." Grundler tells me.
"You too, Marcus." I reply.
"See you in the NHL." He answers back and continues down the line to shake the hand of everyone else on my team, as I do with his team. After the handshake, each of the two teams line up on their respective blue-lines. We're standing here awaiting the presentation of the tournament awards when the Commissioner of the Ontario Hockey League steps out on to the red carpet that has been unfurled at centre ice.
"First off, I want to congratulate the Kitchener Rangers players, coaching staff and training staff on their incredible run through this tournament." The Commissioner starts and the arena erupts in a standing ovation. "My congratulations are extended also to the Everett Silvertips who put up one heck of a fight." There's another round of applause. "But now it's time to hand out the hardware." A table with trophies is rolled out on to the carpet.
"Look at all that brass." Nolan jokes and I laugh.
"First, the George Parsons Trophy, awarded to the most sportsmanlike player in the tournament is awarded this year to the Kitchener Rangers number seventeen, Nick Bay." Doc skates up to the Commish and stands for a photo op before accepting his trophy. "The Ed Chynoweth Trophy is awarded to the tournament's leading scorer every year, and this year it is my pleasure to award it to the Kitchener Rangers number seventy-nine, Bradley Ross." I skate up to the Commish and shake hands with him before posing for a photo op and accepting my trophy. "There are two trophies left to present, but these presentations can be made simultaneously. The Hap Emms Trophy is awarded every year to the tournament's best goaltender and the Stafford Smythe Trophy is awarded every year to the player judged most valuable to him team during the tournament. This year, after posting a .994 Save Percentage and 0.25 Goals Against Average, we could think of no more deserving recipient than Kitchener Rangers number thirty-seven, Josh Stafford."
I lead the boys in applause as Josh skates up to the commissioner to receive his two awards. I tell Nolan that Raff has a present for him over at the bench. Nolan eyes me suspiciously before skating over and having Raff hand him the white Kitchener Rangers jersey with a 'C' stitched in the upper left corner. "This was a joint effort, partner." I tell him as he skates back over.
"Damn right." He nods and smiles at me.
"Now, would the Captain…" The commissioner is tapped on the shoulder and he looks over again to see that there are two members of the Kitchener Rangers wearing a 'C' on their jersey. "Excuse me, Captains of the Kitchener Rangers please come and receive the Memorial Cup." Nolan and I skate over to the carpet. Each of us takes one of the handles of the great goblet and hoists it into the air with a great cheer of "YEAH!!" We skate back over to our team-mates and the PA system in the arena goes silent for a second before the faint strains of a piano can be heard. We all know what this is, so we line up along the blue-line again and throw our arms over the shoulders of the guys next to us as the song begins to play.
I've paid my dues
Time after time
I've done my sentence
But committed no crime
And bad mistakes
I've made a few
I've had my share of sand kicked in my face
But I've come through
Now all the boys prepare to join in the chorus with huge smiles on their faces.
We are the Champions, my friend
And we'll keep on fighting till the end
We are the Champions
We are the Champions
No time for losers
Cause we are the Champions of the World!
I find myself staring down the row of my team-mates thinking that this is the best group of twenty-three bastards that I've ever had the pleasure of lacing up skates with. You can look down the row and see Spencer and Huddy trying to fight back tears, they know they'll never wear Kitchener blue again. Me and Nolan have never looked more celebratory. Doc and Carey look like they just discovered gold.
I've taken my bows
And my curtain calls
You've brought me fame and fortune
And everything that goes with it
I thank you all
But it's been no bed of rose
No pleasure cruise
I consider it a challenge before the whole human race
And I'd never lose!
We are the Champions, my friend
And we'll keep on fighting till the end
We are the Champions
We are the Champions
No time for losers
Cause we are the Champions of the World!!
The celebration of our victory lasts well through the night and we all wake up comparatively late the next morning. My family all has to get home so that Jack, Harry and Hannah don't miss any more school and they nicely promised to give Sasha a lift back home. So, I'm standing in the lobby of the hotel saying my goodbyes. I hug Hannah and Harry first. Then I get wrapped in a big bear hug by Jack who pats me on the back and musses my hair. I kiss my mom on the cheek when I hug her and my dad shakes my hand very authoritatively before pulling me into a hug.
The family leaves so I can say my goodbyes to Sasha. "So, when are you gonna be home?" She asks.
"Well, I head back to Kitchener for nine days to write exams, finish my courses and graduate. Then it's out to Anaheim for five days to get run through the gamut at the draft combine. Then it's out to Montreal to appear on Coach's Corner for Hockey Night in Canada during game two of the Stanley Cup Finals. They're featuring the Top Prospects that night. After that, I'll fly back into Kitchener. Pick up what little of my stuff is still with my billets, say a tearful goodbye to them and then hop on my new bike and hightail it for home. Probably three weeks." I finish up my explanation.
"Will you make it for graduation?" She asks.
"I'll try my damnedest." I answer with a smile.
"Good." She nods reassuringly. "Now, you listen to me. I've made my decision, I'm madly in love with you, you goof. I don't know how or when it happened and I don't care but I'm sure that I've never wanted anything more in my life than I want to be with you." I reach forward and pull her into a deep, passionate kiss that muffles her speech.
"You talk too much." I whisper when we part and she slaps me across the chest.
"Three weeks, huh?" She asks.
"Three weeks." I nod affirmatively.
"Three weeks too long." She hits me with that gorgeous smile of hers. "See you then…Cap." She replies with that evil little twinkle in her eyes. That little nickname usage of hers thrills me right down my spine. She piles into the car with my family and they're off the to the airport.
I walk over to the team bus and see the guys loading things up. "Hey, Cap!" Carey cheers. "See you at the combine in a few days, huh?"
"You know it." I smile. Doc and Carey are both draft eligible this year too. "At least I'll have a few guys to eat with at the cafeteria." I give both of them pats on the back as they load on to the bus. Then comes Spencer. "Off to Hartford?" I ask
"Yeah." He replies. "Gotta another set of playoffs to win." He grins. "See you in the show, Cap?"
"Better believe it." I shake Spencer's hand and he climbs on the bus. Next it's Huddy. "What about you, off to Chicago for the AHL Playoffs?"
"I hope so." The smiling Czech grins at me. "I hope our paths will meet again."
"Me too, you old straight-shooter." Huddy gives me a hug and climbs on to the bus. Last up is Josh Stafford. "They still making you load the bus, rookie?"
"Still a rookie." Josh replies with a smile. "See you at school tomorrow?"
"Yeah." I nod. "But in case I don't, Josh this is your team next year. You've got a hell of a lot of talent kid, there's a reason you're adding two new trophies to your collection. Make sure you lead the boys back to the Promised Land next year, okay?"
"You bet, Cap." Josh lurches forward and gives me a hug before climbing on the bus.
"Always sad when a season ends." Nolan walks up behind me dressed in a leather jacket and holding a bike helmet under his arm.
"If you think you're riding in the bitch seat on my bike, you got another thing coming." I tell him with a chuckle.
"Don't have to." Nolan tells me. "When I was ordering motorcycles earlier in the year, I made sure to order from a Kingston dealer because I had faith that we'd get here." Nolan and I walk across the parking lot to where his new bike is sitting next to mine. "At least now I got some company on the highway."
"I'll be damned." I smile. The two of us saddle up for the ride home. "I was hoping I wouldn't have to wear a helmet for a while after yesterday." I tell him and he laughs.
"One more time, Cap." He tells me as we fire up our bikes and head out on to the road. We take one last look back at Kingston and head for the highway.