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DaftRaincloud · 06-03-2019, 07:59 PM

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Jonas sat solemnly in front of his locker. Others had long since shuffled out, but not him. He looked at the floor and relived the scenes in his head. The Anchorage Armada had been swept out of the playoffs in the first round by Vancouver, and Jonas capped off what he would admit was a disappointing rookie campaign with a 0 point playoff performance. He would consider this the "worst case scenario." Unfortunately it had quickly become his reality.

Within the next few hours he would be departing from Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport and heading home to Norway to see his childhood friends and extended family. He was a local hero back home of course, but he admittedly was a little cautious about how he would be received after the recent events. Would he be derided for his lack of consistency or given words of encouragement to keep with him moving forward? He had never been so hesitant to be back in Skien.

The SHL draft was set to be held in the next few days and Jonas was an unknown quantity for the most part. Nobody knew for sure where he would be drafted so Jonas hadn't been able to mentally prepare himself for any destination.
"Is there anywhere you don't want to go?" I asked him over the phone.
"I'm just happy to be drafted," Jonas said. "I don't think there's a bad city out there, to be honest. There's two teams in California - great weather out there. If I go to a Canadian team I'll already be used to that weather."
"What do you see your role as going forward?"
"Well I obviously have a lot of work to do. I'd like a few more seasons in Anchorage. I have unfinished business there and I owe it to my team and my city to help bring a cup there. I think they all deserve it."

"And how about in the future - lets say five years from now. What are you doing in five years?"
"I'd love to be a top six forward in the league. At least top nine. I think my game is suited to that even though it didn't show this year. I'd like to be a top ten goal scorer in the league."

Jonas had recently been selected for Team World in the WJC. Norway didn't have enough eligible players to put a team of their own on the ice so Jonas joined players from other countries in a similar situation such as Japan to form a team. The group selection had recently been done and World ended up in group B along with powerhouse teams Canada and the United States.
"How do you feel about the WJC?"
"It's going to be a lot of fun, you know? I'll get to be on the ice with guys I've never had the opportunity to play with before. I truly believe that there is something to learn from everyone and with these guys I've opened myself to new knowledge."
"As I'm sure you're aware Team World got placed into a group with Canada and the US. How do you feel about that?"
"I like it, man. The only way to get better is to go up against the best. You could stand around and beat up on lesser opponents - not saying that other teams are lesser, but I'm creating an analogy here, and you won't get any better. Without that adversity you can't grow."
"Do you think Team World can win?"
"I think it's certainly possible, yes. I definitely believe that we are capable of it. I would like that very much."