Chapter 31

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Rule Number 4: HOLD THE LEAD!!!!!

See that rule up there? That's exactly what we DIDN'T do.

We didn't score more goals. We couldn't. It's almost as if by getting a break during intermission that completely fired the team back up.

Or that someone jinxed it. 

Because as soon as we got onto the ice, the play didn't leave our end of the ice. At all. Once they'd scored and face-off was back at centre ice, the puck would just not leave our zone.

Of course, we got nervous and with the Whales being their usual bitchy selves, they hammered us until we were absolutely exhausted.

Then they started killing us. By scoring. 

"UNBELIEVABLE!" the announcer hollered. "AVERY LEXINGTON PASSES TO EMILY WILLIAMS, WHO SCORES! THE WHALES HAVE CAUGHT UP! THEY'RE WITHIN ONE GOAL OF THE ADMIRALS! WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN TONIGHT, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, I ASK YOU? THE SCORE IS NOW 10-9 IN FAVOUR OF THE ADMIRALS!"

"And with less than a minute left," I grumbled to my teammates as we left the bench.

"There's still a minute," Kylie reminded me. "Don't forget, we have the upper hand."

"I guess," I said, skating to take the face-off against Avery.

"What did I tell you?" Avery smirked, then, as the puck was dropped, stole it from me and passed to Betty, who fired another shot.

Stephanie almost missed it; the puck went off her skate blade.

"That was close," Alyssa murmured as she caught the pass and we took off for the other end of the ice.

She passed to me, except the pass was intercepted by Williams and the Whales had the upperhand.

I didn't even need to hear the buzzer to know they had scored; the crowd's cheer said it all.

"WHAT A COMEBACK! THE COPPERDALE WHALES HAVE JUST MADE HISTORY WITH THE LARGEST COMEBACK IN THE HISTORY OF THE CHAMPIONSHIP FINALS! AND WITH THAT, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, THE CANADIAN GIRLS ICE HOCKEY CHAMPIONSHIPS FINAL IS GOING TO OVERTIME!"

That was heartbreaking; we'd had a 10-goal lead heading into the third period, and we'd completely fallen to pieces.

No one had anything to say as we walked into the locker room to prepare ourselves for a vicious fight to the finish.

"What's the point?" Kylie asked brokenly. "We can't win this."

"Yes we can," Coach Hiller said. "We've just got to BELIEVE we can."

I snorted. "The only way we're gonna win is if we have a miracle."

Everyone nodded.

"Girls," Coach snapped. "We didn't come this far just to lose to those dirty cheaters," she said angrily. "And if we lose, I'm disbanding the team from here on out."

Everyone looked shocked.

"Then let's do this thing," Ruby said half-heartedly.

"Yeah, go Admirals," Annabeth said lamely.

No one looked like they had anything left in them; they all looked defeated and tired.

I was pretty sure I looked the same way.

But as the captain, it's my job to lead my team to victory. I mean, look at what Toews did three years ago when he led the 'Hawks to their first title in almost 50 years.

"Guys, listen," I said, my voice cracking. "I know the situation seems pretty hopeless--"

"IT IS HOPELESS," Kelsey complained.

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