Checkmate

Violet

"Seriously Violet, you can't bench me." Kyle Adler screams at me from across the desk.

"I can and I will.  You were a minus five in the last game and don't even get me started on the two games before.  We have to do what is best to for the team and that means you being a healthy scratch for tomorrow's game."

"Why are you telling me this and not the real coach?" He snaps back.

"The perks of being the assistant coach I guess." I answer and sit back in my chair.

"How many games am I out for?" He asks running his hand over his face.

"Depends on the progress you make with me and the extra sessions Barry wants me to do with you."

He scoffs a little and looks me up and down.  I am used to this reaction though.  So many of the guys on the team don't believe a woman can get them back to where they need to be.  After all the National Hockey League is a man's world and I am just a poor helpless female trying to navigate it.

It has been like this ever since I took over one of the assistant coaching position for the Toronto Maple Leafs three years ago. It doesn't matter that I played at the highest level of women's' hockey for four years before I hurt myself and that after that I was damn good at helping my coaches put together a winning team.

No, all these men see is a woman who probably in their minds knows nothing about how to coach this sport.  Little do they know though, more than half the drills they run at practice are made up by me.

"So here is the plan I have made up for our sessions." I say and hand over a piece of paper.

"You want to start this today?  I just spent two hours on the ice with the whole team."

"Just the off ice stuff today.  We will be reviewing some video of your last couple of games.  I have made some notes and I think they will be very helpful."

"Well I guess if I want to get back on the ice I have not choice right?  Can I at least get some food and possibly a shower?" He asks.

"Sure, lets meet back up in an hour in the video room.  It will give me a chance to let Connor know I won't need a ride back home with him."

"I just saw him down in the hallway in one of the boardrooms."  Kyle says.

"Great I'll see you in an hour and Kyle I'll get you back to being great again.  Whatever this little slump is you'll get out of it fast."  I say giving him a smile.

I walk out of my office and down the hallway towards the boardroom.  As I walk down I start to go over all the notes in my head about Kyle's play.  I am not sure why he went into this slump.  I know how to fix the physical things about his game.  The timing of his shots are off and same goes for the timing on his passes, but there is something else going on I know it.

That fire in his eyes when the season first started is gone.  I try to rack my brain as to when I noticed it wasn't there anymore.

I am pulled out of my thoughts when I hear a woman's voice coming from behind the boardroom door.

"Have you told her yet?" I hear the woman ask.

"Not yet, when have I had the chance?  I just got back from a three day road trip and in the middle of that trip is not the time to drop something like this on her," I then hear Connor answer.

"I miss you and Wyatt misses you as well.  He wants to know when we are going to be a family?"

"Family? When is who going to be a family?" I think to myself.