On Thin Ice

08

I would never forget the first real hockey game I ever played. Not the one when I was a toddler and we all barely even knew how to skate and spent most of our time sliding on our knees, but when I was a little older, about ten, I played in my first competitive hockey game. The thrill of it was exhilarating and I remembered feeling nervous only briefly. It was the time I truly fell in love with the game.

The first game I had ever played was ingrained in my mind and it would never go away. I remembered that on my first shift, one of the boys on the other team tripped me and sent me flying down onto the ice. I remembered letting a breakaway happen which resulted in a goal for the other team and how angry my teammate and ex best friend, Micah, was at me. But I also scored the game winning goal which caused my whole team to rally around me, giving me hugs and bumping my shoulder lightly with their fists. I would never forget the look of pride and approval on my mother's face.

It was the first time I truly felt like I belonged somewhere. It was at that moment I knew I was meant to play hockey and I truly felt as one with my team.

On Friday night, I had never felt more nervous to play a hockey game. It was highly unlike me to feel this way, but since I wasn't necessarily feeling as though I was part of the team, the nerves kicked in and my stomach was in knots. As I sat on the bench, fully dressed in my uniform, my leg bounced up and down uncontrollably and there was nothing I could do to stop it. I played with the straps on my helmet in my hands, careful to keep my eyes directed down at my lap while some of the other guys were still changing.

"Listen up boys," Coach Silva gathered our attention, clapping his hands together. "We're going to go out there and play our hardest tonight. You guys have shown me this week in practice that you are ready for this. So let's go out there, and not make any stupid mistakes, and play how you've been playing all week long."

A few of the guys started an excited chant to get everyone hyped, but I couldn't find it in me to join. I would have with my old team. There, I might have even been the one starting the chant. But here, I didn't belong and I wasn't going to draw any unnecessary attention to myself.

We made our way out of the locker room and out onto the ice to skate around for warmups. The team we were playing came out shortly after us, being sure to stay on their side of the ice.

"Elijah," Coach Merton grabbed my attention as I skated by the bench.

"Hm?" I stopped in front of him.

"You and Ian are paired tonight. You're starting," he informed me to which I nodded and skated away.

I figured I would be paired with Ian. Coach Merton had been trying different defensive pairings all week so I had a chance to play with all of them, but there was no doubt that Ian and I were at our best when the two of us were paired.

For some strange reason, Ian and I clicked on the ice. We could read each other better than any other pairing on our team. It was a similar connection I had to my defensive partner on my old team, only this one was possibly even stronger.

When it was time for the game to start, Fox got ready to take the face off at the center dot, with Josh and Alex on the wings. The three of them were a great first line that had amazing offensive strength as well as defensive. Ryan, Jude, and Liam made up the second line of the team.

Fox won the face off cleanly over to Josh who immediately took off toward the goal. I followed and set myself up on the point across from Ian. The puck was batted back to me and I was quick to keep it from leaving the zone. I held onto it for a few seconds before passing it over to Ian, who looked like he would have a better shot than me. Ian sent the puck low through the zone, but wasn't able to get the goal.