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KenitohMenara · 03-21-2020, 02:55 PM

**1315 words - 50/50 split @KenitohMenara and @mdubz **

“Hockey is in my blood. It has always been. My dad played in the SHL, so of course my older brother and I had to follow in his footsteps. Although my older brother chose to play forward, I picked defense like my dad.”

For a decade, Mikhail Petrikov was a star in both the SMJHL and SHL. Playing for 4 seperate teams but always keeping a high level of play, he won three four star cups, two gold medals, was named to the SHL all rookie all star team and won the Qula Agante trophy twice. Despite all his success and all his talent, Mikhail could never win the final trophy missing from his collection. The Challenge Cup. Winning this cup proves without a shadow of a doubt you are the best in the profession yet despite all his hard work, neither Mikhail or his eldest son Andrei Petrikov, could ever win that trophy. It has become a hole in the heart of this great hockey family. Now though, a new player has thrown himself into this contest, trying to find the glory that was robbed from his family. Mikhail’s youngest son, Alexei.

Born in Volgograd, Alexei was around hockey from before he could walk. His father would take him around locker rooms in the KHL. Alexei was introduced to some of the greatest Russian players alive and as soon as he could walk, he had a pair of skates on and was learning the basics. Normally, getting into rookie camps in Russia is a hard and arduous process of actually proving yourself talented enough to play but through Mikhail’s connections, Alexei always had camps to play at and teams to try out for. But for all of these opportunities, all of this potential tryouts and all the praise hemped upon by coaches, managers and his family, this started to make Alexei think… and think hard.

When these coaches and GM’s and other players saw him playing on the ice, did they see him… or just his father’s legacy? Were they actually trying to help him or were they just afraid of saying something bad about Mikhail? No matter how much he tried, he couldn’t shake these questions away. They dug deeper until he decided that enough was enough. He wanted them to see Alexei Petrikov! His own skater, his own defender and his own man. He started working himself harder and harder to prove that he was not just a younger version of his father.

“Alexei was always the kid who stayed behind after practice and camp to train more.” said Somov Zigfrids Pavlovich, one of Alexei’s first coaches. “I would catch him still being on the ice an hour after all the kids left. I wanted to stop him but when I looked into his eyes I could just tell that he would come off when he was ready to come off.”

A perfectionist by nature, Alexei’s training started to turn into serious results, ending any doubts about who he was as a player. So much so that MHK Spartak kept close tabs on the young defender until he was finally old enough to join their league and immediately added him to the roster. They hoped that Alexei would turn into a number one defenceman in russian juniors and he did not disappoint. Taking home rookie of the year in his first year, he would move on to leader Spartak to a junior title. Alexei often accredits his time with MHK Spartak for turning him into the player he is today but anybody who watched his highlight tapes knows full well that no matter where he went in Russia, or indeed any other junior league, he would have been successful.

A naturally intelligent player who can read plays with ease and can start counter attacks with pace because of his checking skills, Alexei is a dangerous defenceman. Any person trying to make it across the blue line goes through him and oftentimes, if he has the read on you, there is no chance you beat him. A deceptively brave defender who has no problems fighting along the boards for plays but one who doesn’t allow the emotions of the moment get the better of him, the youngest Petrikov can absolutely take over games when he is needed.

“It was a wonderful experience getting to play with MHK Spartak.” said Alexei when he sat down with the Armada Charter. “That was when I really started to refine my skills as a player and become more of the player that I am now. They had a great coaching staff there and I really learned a lot.”

Alexei could have stayed home in Russia and played for teams in the KHL, in fact some rumours speculate that KHL teams were already trying to sign him before his final season ended. Instead of entertaining those offers, Alexei turned his eyes westward, towards the SMJHL. Both his older brother Andrei and his father Mikhail joined him in the hall that night as they waited for Alexei’s big moment.

“It was definitely nerve wracking at first, I wasn't really expecting to go first round, considering I had just declared for the draft the night before.” said Alexei, acknowledging how the russian junior season left him practically no time to declare for the junior draft. “Once the second round started to pass the butterflies started, since I wasn't 100% sure where I was going to end up, or how far I might fall.”

Then, Alexei’s prayers were answered by an old family friend. While not the GM at the time of Mikhail Petrikov, GM of the Anchorage Armada Max Brannagan had plenty of experience with Andrei Petrikov. When he saw the young russian sitting right there in the third round, he just couldn’t resist.

“With the 22nd pick in the draft, the Anchorage Armada are pleased to select Alexei Petrikov. Left Defender, Russia.”

The older Petrikov men couldn’t help but laugh. Their youngest was going to the same franchise as they had played in years before. Mikhail had been drafted by the Armada when they were the Prince George Firebirds and Andrei had played for the Armada before. Alexei didn’t resent being draft by what was effectively the family team, in fact he was excited:

“I was happy that I got picked by them. Since both my dad and brother had played for the armada, I had made it pretty clear that I was hoping to be drafted there.”

To be a successor to a hockey legacy is never easy. It requires you to be better than your forebears which for some is impossible. For Alexei however, he has his sights on the one goal neither his father or his brother could accomplish. He wants to win the Challenge cup and to do it his way. First though, he has his mind on the Armada:

“I want to help contribute to the team as much as possible. I want to be someone who ends up being able to help direct plays on the ice, especially on the power play. Being able to ensure that people are in the proper place to get things going, especially on the power play, seems like a good place to be. Working together to make sure we're doing the best we can is something I want to try to do.”

It will take a lot of hard work and dedication but if he continues what he did in Russia with the Armada, the youngest Petrikov might just be the best one.

“I want to do better than my dad and brother did in the SHL. They both made it, but never really contributed on the big stage. They both won 4 star cups, but neither of them wound up with a Challenge Cup. I want to be the first in the family to win that.”

mdubz · 03-21-2020, 03:09 PM

Great job as always Kenitoh

***honkerrs*** · 03-22-2020, 02:47 AM

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