The Last Rodeo

I'd like to take a moment to talk about my last career hockey road trip (Beer League Tourneys excluded here).

Friday morning, the lads embarked on a trip to Niagara University. Apparently, however, the hockey gods started thanksgiving break a little bit early. In what some all W&J's worst performance of the decade, we were shit on by Niagara, final score of 5-1. Let's just say that Niagara's players were more wobbly than a 3-legged dog. They made IUP look like the Detroit Red Wings. Anyway, all we could really do after the game was laugh at ourselves and try to hide our feelings of embarrassment.

The highlight of the night was when Mr. Duggan's parents dropped off milk and cookies for us in the locker room. Add oatmeal cookies with craisins and white chocolate morsels to my list of favorite foods please.

Back in the hotel, it was already late so we couldn't do much. I crashed in the room with my regular roadie roommates, Gezz and Chim. I lost rock-paper-scissors again, and had to share a bed with Chim. Oh well, nice senior bonding for our last rodeo. I thought it was about time to hit the hay when I was surprised by two of my teammates enjoying their first career rippers. What a sight. Quote of the night: "I keep getting hit with waves of heat and then non heat". Shot the shit with the guys for a couple more hours before calling it a night.

The next day, we were on a mission. We wanted to destroy the Niagara clowns, due in part to some brutal Hockey 101 chirpage. Well we did exactly that, with our roster of 11 (they had more healthy scratches then we had players). We scored a touchdown and Tang kicked the extra point. He looked like Nigel Gruff out there, kicking PAT's while rippin heaters. The score could have been a lot worse had we not held back late in the game.

Niagara's clown coach made his best Herb Brooks imitation by keeping his players on the ice for a bag skate after the game. Needless to say team enforcer Joe Michelucci (my blog's first and only follower) was ready, camera-in-hand. Youtube video to follow. Hockey 101 thread to follow. Overall the funniest/stupidest thing I have ever seen is to watch a bunch of purple-clad clowns bend their ankles up and down the ice for 10 minutes after a thorough ass pounding from a team with 1/3 the roster size. Awesome.

More tomorrow. Coming soon: Mio's top 10. A new addition to the blog. All I have to say is beware, Gongshow.

Dealing with the Jitters

Nothing like the feeling of waking up the morning of a game. You go through the entire day in somewhat of a fog, with the game looming in the back of your mind no matter what you do. It's really hard to concentrate on anything else other than the thought of the first sound of rubber slapping against frozen water at 9:00 that evening. All day long, you are jittery, nervous, excited, preoccupied, etc.

Here's what I do to try to deal with those jitters. I'm sure I'm not alone on some of these things.

8:02am - First alarm goes off

8:47am - Finally decide to get out of bed after 10 snooze hits

8:49am - Shower, but don't shave. I never shave on game days

9:01am - Mess around on the internet for a bit, watch some hockey highlights from the night before

9:17am - Grab a quick breakfast, usually eggs and toast, bacon if i'm lucky, OJ and water

9:30am - Go to classes (depending on the day)

12:00pm - Classes end

12:31pm - Lunch. Usually a LOT of carbs and protein, and a TON of water

1:00pm - lay down in bed, watch Yes Dear or The King of Queens, eventually fall asleep for a nap

3:02pm - First alarm goes off

3:32pm - Finally get out of bed after 7 snooze hits

3:33pm - Mess around on the internet again, usually watch some hockey clips or read hockey articles. For me, these days are all about hockey

3:49pm - Do something physical like walk, run, or hit the bike for a few minutes

4:13pm - Look up the opponent on the internet. Player stats, game results, etc.

4:24pm - Quick rinse in the shower

5:00pm - Dinner with the teammates. I generally will eat 2 pieces of pizza, 2 hard boiled eggs, a banana, and a bagel with peanut butter, with a ton of water. I always grab at least 2 more bananas to go, for before and during the game

5:43pm - Relax on my bed while listening to pre-game tunes

6:15pm - Shower. I find that showering helps to relax me on game days. Which is why I do it 3 times before I leave and once more at the rink 30 minutes before warmups.

6:28pm - Get my suit on. Look good, feel good, play good. Also pack what I need for the game

6:43pm - Start walking to my car. I like to be at the rink at least 2 hours before the game to prepare myself.

I have found that this is generally the best way for me to keep myself relaxed on the day of the game. Nevermind the fact that I visualize about 5o different scenarios on the ice in my mind over and over and try to prepare to how I will respond. I try to keep this routine the same almost every game. Those that know me know I am superstitious to a fault.

More tomorrow. Time to rest. Game tomorrow night (Will follow the protocol above).

I Went to a Fight the Other Night, And a Hockey Game Broke Out

Here are some famous hockey quotes that epitomize the game quite nicely. No rankings. Just random.

"I went to a fight the other night, and a hockey game broke out."

-Rodney Dangerfield

"All hockey players are bilingual. They know English and Profanity."

-Gordie Howe

"Ice hockey is a form of disorderly conduct in which the score is kept."

-Doug Larson

"Hockey players wear numbers because you can't always identify the body with dental records."

-Anonymous

"I'm not dumb enough to be a goalie."

-Brett Hull

"That's so when I forget how to spell my name, I can still find my fucking clothes."

-Stu Grimson, on why he keeps a color photo of himself above his locker

"Yeah, I'm cocky and I'm arrogant. But that doesn't mean I'm not a nice person."

-Jeremy Roenick

Lingo

One more post before bed.

I realize any of you non-hockey players out there probably scratch your head at half the stuff I say. Well, I'm not going to explain a lot of the terms I use. I'm writing this blog like a hockey player, and I'm going to talk like one. If you think about it, you can probably figure most of it out anyway. Feel free to ask questions. You may or may not be answered.

Sorry for yelling.

Upcoming post next week some time will include teammate surveys. That'll be a fun one.

Home Away From Home

Finally more on the locker room. Sorry for the delay, i have been absolutely swamped. This is the Pens locker room on a road trip.

The locker room. It's a place to laugh. It's a place to joke. It's a place to get pumped. It's a place to get clean. It's a place for cliches. It really is a "multi-purpose facility".

The amount of time a hockey player spends in the locker room of the home barn throughout the season is definitely significant. The guys start filing in about an hour before practice and two or more hours before games. Sometimes, we even stay and hang out an hour after practice ends.

What exactly goes on in there on practice days? Well, "what happens in the locker room stays in the locker room". So obviously I can't go into specifics. But a general idea: We show up and talk it up about last weekend's banger over at Murph's place and who did what crazy shit. Next? Everyone gets a few chirps in on each other for laughs. We will put some tunes on, and some guys will throw in a ripper. The conversation continues while we start putting on our gear. Usually its pretty relaxed on practice days. Then coach will say a few words, and we'll get ready to hit the ice. Afterwards, some bonding time after a nice workout on the ice. Conversations about what flick to watch that night or where to meet for a couple sodas. Tunes are still playing in the background, usually some mellow stuff. Post-practice rippers. Then we hit the showers. The only place where 20 naked dudes can be in a 4x4 area and not be gay. (this only applies to hockey players). After getting fresh, we usually hit up sheetz for a Renegade or a Schmuffin, then on to do whatever.

For most of us, the best time of the day are those 2 or 3 hours we spent at the rink with our teammates. It's an escape from all the shit life pours on you during the day. There's nothing like sittin in the room after a tough practice with your 20 best friends, throwing in a ripper, listening to some tunes, bullshitting about everything.

More later. It's late.

"Hockey Player"

I thought about it long and hard, and I decided to start this blog off by sharing some web definitions of the term "hockey player". Obviously, I did what any normal person would do and searched for it on urbandictionary.com... Here is what I found:

Hockey Player (haw-kee pla-r):

1. An individual who can beat you on the scoreboard and in the parking lot after the game

Yes, hockey players are known as being tough. Allow me to be a bit conceited!

2. Typically Canadian. Main goal in life is to not only score many points in a game, but to also score with as many chicks as possible

No doubt this is true. College hockey players are a little less barbaric though! (not really).

3. Usually what every young Canadian aspires to be. Probably the toughest and most physical athletes around. They take every hit like a man, get their asses back up and continue the shift (or demolish that MF’er). Hours of sweat, skating, practice, bonecrushing hits, broken teeth, blood, ice, sticks, pucks, punches and goals – they love every damn second of it. The bruises and scars are the physical badges of what hockey is all about. Dedicated to not only the physical prowess of the game, but also the skillful presence and crafty strategies of the sport. Character is what they live by. Probably the most masculine yet humble of athletes and have the hottest bodies ever. Scores both on and off the ice.

I like this definition. It shows that there is a lot more to us than being scum bags. Character is the operative word here.

4. Obviously the hottest type of athlete.

Thanks!

5. Hottest kind of person out there. Hands down. Hockey players have sick flow and pay the price for a good performance.

Thanks again! And we do have sick flow. (I’ll explain it later).

6. Real men. Everyone else likes to play with balls.

No argument here.

7. A person with very poor skating skills who decides to try to whack a puck into a net on the ice while acting like a big shot. This person doesn't appreciate the fine art of figure skating, yet they spend any time off the ice at the arena looking at the butts of figure skaters.

I guess half of this is true…

8. Extreme coke user. Snorts it all day long.

I’m speechless. I have to meet the person who decided to add this one. I thought about leaving it out but it's just so ridiculous I had to include it!


Well there is a nice laundry list of definitions provided by randoms on Urban Dictionary. Basically the term "hockey player" has a lot of different meanings tied to it. People look at us as scum bags, tough guys, the sexiest athletes, the best teammates, etc. Some of it's true, some of it isn't, but here is my take:

Hockey players are extremely mentally and physically tough athletes. We sacrifice a lot for our sport. Back in high school days, we'd miss out on football games and homecoming dances for trips to Ontario, Colorado Springs, Western Michigan, Upstate New York, etc. And in college we miss out on wild Friday night parties for 10:00pm puck drops 5 hours away. We miss out on rest, studying, and spending time with girlfriends and families. But we wouldn't have it any other way. The brotherhood that exists in the hockey locker room is hands down one of the best things anyone can experience. The character of a hockey player is unparalleled. We put our teammates before ourselves and do whatever it takes to win. And you better believe that we will always be the ones to close the bars and the last ones awake on college party nights. Sure, we may be cocky and barbaric. But beneath the surface you'll find a very sensitive guy that puts others first and does (contrary to popular belief) have some intellect!

More later tonight on the locker room.

Welcome

Hey all, welcome to my blog.

My goal for this blog is to give readers a little insight into the world of a college hockey player. I will be writing about the experiences of my last year of competitive hockey (not including the time when I become a Beer League Hero). I am excited to provide some insight on what it is to be a hockey player, including the daily life both on and off the ice, what goes through my head, and most importantly, the goings on of the locker room.

I am new to the blogging world. This is my first ever blog post. Feel free to email or leave any comments with advice on how to improve my first blog! Please pass this blog on to your friends, teammates, and family. I will do my best to keep you all entertained. I will try to update at least a couple of times a week.

Cheers,

Mike