Login

*bobdigi9* · 01-30-2024, 08:22 AM

If you've seen one draft, you've seen them all. Announce player, player comes up, photo op, repeat. And yet, it's always such a spectacle. Kudos to the different venues every year that put their own little spin on things to keep it interesting and the fans of the local team that come out to give the crowd some oomph (especially when they boo their rivals pick. classic). This was especially the case at this year's SMJHL Entry Draft as it was held in none other than Sin City, at the (mostly) brand new, state-of-the-art Sphere.

Of course, there is another reason that we find ourselves tuning in to watch these drafts. It doesn't matter which sport it is. You're a part of history. Your favourite team, about to make a franchise altering decision that will shape the course of your team's success for years to come. Hopefully for the better. The moment for a select group of young men and women (and robots?) to take a huge step in what will hopefully be long and prosperous hockey a careers. A moment they've worked hard for. Dreamed about.

We saw all of this on full display at the Sphere. We saw consensus #1 pick Anna Skovgaard get selected by the Quebec City Citadelles. A blockbuster trade that had the Scarecrows, who worked their way from only having a 4th round pick all the way up the #2 spot, fulfilling Alexa Johansen's dream of getting picked higher than Naomi going second overall. Mock drafts got blown up and dead presidents got picked. Players walked to the stage in their impeccable threads, parents beamed with pride and there were tears, but only those of the joyous kind. We saw it all. It is Vegas, after all. What would you expect.

However, there was one thing we didn't see at the draft. When the the Anchorage Armada made their 3rd choice of the draft (after Deth Klaw and Chuck Chunky) they selected Matviy Cajabi. The camera cut to.....nothing. Well, not nothing, but Cajabi was nowhere to be seen. There was a man, who looked like it could have been his older brother but was later determined to be his English translator. But no Cajabi. You could hear the murmurs through the crowd. His name was called again, but still there was no sign of him.
Before the draft began, there were some unsubstantiated rumours that were circulating about the shenanigans of some of the prospects just hours before the draft. Teenagers....in Vegas....this doesn't seem completely out of the ordinary. This, however, was their big day so one would think they would all be on their best behaviour. Now, there won't be any speculation on what transpired or who else was involved other than Cajabi. There may or may not be some footage that is quickly spreading around social media of at least two notable draft prospects at the MGM Grand. We won't link you here, but should you want to see for yourself it shouldn't be hard to find.

It had been about two minutes at this point. The tv commentators must have caught wind about the details, because they quickly began speculating about what could have happened to him. Had he shown up to the draft at all? Was he in jail? Worse. The member of the Armada who had gone to the stage to announce the pick looked visibly nervous. And then, the camera caught him, running to the stage. Whether due to embarrassment or his sprint to the stage, he was clearly red-faced. He took the steps to the stage three at a time and nearly took out the men who were there to shake his hand and hand him his jersey. The crowd erupted in a mixture of cheers and laughter. You might not have known the name Matiy Cajabi before that moment, but there's every reason to believe that moment will be remembered for years to come.

Naturally, at his media interview afterwards, the tv analysts couldn't help but ask him where he had been and what took him so long to get to the stage. His translator spoke to him in Ukrainian. His face flushed again. "Nervous," he said through a shaky laugh. "Was doing a whiz." One of the analysts attempted to make a joke about Cajabi's ability to whiz around the ice too, which no one found funny other than the analyst himself. Thankfully, no one asked him about who he was with or what may (or may not) have happened earlier that day. Just another layer of mystery to the young Ukrainian phenom who is already shrouded in it.

One thing about him is certain though. He's now in the pisstory books.

Code:
Word count: 814

ibuprofenaddict · 01-30-2024, 12:56 PM

Lesson learned! I'm sure he'll be prepared for the SHL draft next season - good luck to him

Navigation

Extra Menu

About us