The Tampa Terror

Part 1: Cole

I chew absentmindedly on the end of my new ballpoint pen as I think of some more sentences to write down in my journal. I am using the gift that I received from my brother Brock to chronicle the events of this eventful 2021 NHL season.

It is June 28, 2021, and I, Cole Caufield, am participating in my first Stanley Cup Final game tonight! So naturally, I am overjoyed and thrilled. Fun fact: I'm only twenty years old! Not many people my age get this kind of opportunity, so I consider myself lucky. Even if we lose, I will still be grateful for being part of a championship series.

I love being a member of the Habs! This team is such a welcoming group of people. I never feel excluded! When I first arrived in Montréal, Nick Suzuki immediately offered to be my roommate and help me move things into my first house. Nick is now my best friend! Sometimes the Canadiens team acts as a second family to me.

I never expected to make the Finals this year, to be completely truthful. The Canadiens were the worst team in the temporary Canadian division to make the playoffs. In our first series against the Toronto Maple Leafs, we were a heavy underdog. However, we came back from a 3-1 series deficit and won. Then, we swept the Winnipeg Jets in the second round and skillfully defeated the Vegas Golden Knights in the third round. So, we're finally here in the Finals, the most critical series of them all, and I am so ready to take on Tampa Bay!

Well, it would probably be best if I stopped writing now. I must prepare myself for the first game of the series, which is in just a few hours. Talk to you soon!

Signed, Cole Caufield.

"Cole!" My friend Nick Suzuki flops down into the seat directly next to me before I can even shut my notebook. We're at a popular bar in downtown Tampa, celebrating the Canadiens' first appearance in the Stanley Cup Finals in almost thirty years. Joining us are the other members of our team.

"Hey, Nick!" I greet my friend enthusiastically, patting his back in a welcoming gesture. "What's going on? Are you excited for the game later tonight?"

"It's one of the most thrilling moments of my life," he flips through the menu absentmindedly, focused not on ordering food but on our conversation. "Winning the Stanley Cup was my childhood dream!"

"Well, we have to win four games in this series before you get to do that," I remind him. "Hopefully, the first of those four wins will be in just a matter of hours!"

"It will be," interrupts our team's aging captain, Shea Weber. Shea is a dedicated leader who will do anything to see his players be motivated and ready to succeed.

"Shea is right," veteran goaltender Carey Price chimes in. "I don't think I have ever been involved with such a dedicated group of men in my entire career. I can imagine us all lifting the trophy, which was hard for me to imagine in previous years."

"Cheers to that!" Artturi Lehkonen shouts, then adds some colorful language. The rest of the team roars their approval of the statement and raises their beer glasses. Jesperi Kotkaniemi, who is not allowed to consume alcohol in the United States due to his age, raises his glass of soda. I am also drinking soda because I am also not of legal age, and I raise my glass too. After that, the whole team drinks at the same time. I intend to carry this sense of friendship and connection with me during the game as a source of motivation. When I think about these remarkable people who I call my coworkers, I feel like I can do anything in the world.

I shiver suddenly but am not concerned. It was just my excitement getting the best of me, I think. Nothing to get overly worried about. But just a moment later, as my teammates and I exit the bar together, something blows by me so fiercely that my perfectly straight hair becomes messy.

I glance up at the ceiling, and I can see an angry middle-aged man staring back at me while floating near a chandelier. He pulls a knife out of a sheath attached to his pants and smirks, running the blade across his throat. Then, he takes the knife and cuts the cord holding the chandelier in place with one swift motion.

The shimmering light fixture comes crashing down to the floor. I jump to the side just in time as the chandelier shatters into thousands of sharp pieces next to me. Several restaurant employees come dashing over, and I stand up rapidly.

"I didn't do anything!" I testify. "It just fell and almost crushed me!"

I won't immediately inform them of the person I saw floating next to the chandelier and cutting it down. After all, if I chose to do that, they would all think that I was hallucinating and going insane. My teammates, of course, don't have to know about the strange floating man either, except for maybe Shea.

"We'll still check the security footage, but we do not believe that you would do such a thing," says a person who appears to be the manager. "You don't appear intoxicated."

"I saw it fall without his assistance," a waitress vouches for me.

"Yes, and just look at him!" My colleague, Paul Byron, insists. "He's too young and adorable! Seriously, though, this incident was not Cole's fault."

"We will quickly work to repair this," the manager announces. "Sir, I am so incredibly sorry that this happened. I'm thankful that you are uninjured."

I blush at his statement because I am unaccustomed to being called sir at my age. "Thank you and good night. I had an enjoyable time eating and drinking here."

The manager waves, and my teammates and I return the gesture as we exit the lobby. Other patrons have gathered around the mess of shattered glass, in awe that such a large and gorgeous chandelier has fallen to the floor and broken. They whisper to each other as the restaurant staff works furiously to clean everything up.

"Shea," I nervously shake the arm of my captain like a small, scared child asking for assistance from a parent. "Shea, before the chandelier fell, I saw a ghost or something. He looked mean, and he made a threatening gesture at me before cutting the chandelier down. I know I sound crazy, but...."

Shea looks at me understandingly as my voice trails off. "Cole, this sounds serious. I've never really believed in ghosts, but if things like this keep happening, I will do everything to help you."

"Thank you!" I laugh gratefully. With the help of Shea and the rest of my teammates, I know that this Stanley Cup Finals will pass by without any serious problems.