Login

mee · 10-16-2020, 03:25 PM

[Image: 3356.vresize.350.350.medium.64.png]

"The Struggle"
By Johnny Shuffleboard

BRRRRRRRRRRRRRINGGGGGGGGGGG goes the alarm. "Shut up." And with a SMASH of the snooze button the alarm apologizes. But just five minutes later it starts again. BRRRRRRRRRRRRRINGGGGGGGGGGG. I may be tired but it is time to get out of bed. I drag myself to the bathroom and get dressed half asleep. After last season I never thought I would let this happen again. I had finally turned it around. But I was right back where I started. I remember my first days in the SMJHL. Waking up every morning ready to throw up, from whatever I had done the day before, practice or a game. I remember how fast the games were. I remember taking a ton of penalties. And I remember feeling just like this. Having little to no desire to get out of bed and drag myself to the rink. I forced myself through that 13 game showcase I had with the Whalers. I took so many penalties I thought I wasn't going to be drafted. I was out at the WJC playing for Team World, because USA didn't want me. I thought my hockey career was over before this new chapter, that of the SHL and the SMJHL, could even start. Then the Whalers called. Boom and Mills welcoming me back to the team. The team that I was an imposter on as they crashed out of the playoff race. The team that saw me take a million penalties. The team that knew that I couldn't keep my stick away from opposing player's skates. Keep my elbow from opposing players faces. Keep my body from being led to the penalty box on a regular basis. I was drafted 3rd. I thought they meant the 3rd round. I was watching the draft live, but no picks had been made. I told Sato who just smiled, he already knew, he was in the war room via Zoom, and was bouncing back between our draft party and his Team World GM suite where his Zoom was set up. I told Redacted, who gave me a big hug, and said can't be 3rd round, you are better than that. It was Sato who told me it was 3rd overall. But I didn't believe him. I heard my name called on the TV, and the shot pan to our draft party in Finland at the WJC. And just like that the fire that I had lost was back. And I remember Sato telling me, you have to make sure you get enough sleep to compete at the SMJHL level.

I was told S54 was gonna be tough. I was handed a spot on the PP. We were open that we weren't going to be a top team, but we were hoping to sneak into the playoffs. After about 5 games we knew that wasn't happening. We traded away our captain. No more Ken. No more Yxskaft. Gone. Bye. And we suck. I put up 21 points. Not too shabby for a rookie. Shame the team only put up 24 (11 wins 3 OTL). I went to the WJC, scored a big insurance goal and can home with the gold, for my real team, USA. Times where looking up.
[Image: cut.jpg]

[Image: 36d76d01f41a4f3dd06ce3369e6943e1.jpg]

[Image: 96148563_original.jpg?1292847581]

But I fell in the draft. Big time. I knew why. News of that vacation. Can't blame any teams, it was a red flag. But I needed it. It shouldn't happen again. But to land with Buffalo, a team back near home on the east coast is good. I miss the east coast. Can't say it would be the same as landing in Manhattan would've been, but NY is my home, even if I may have to move upstate. Hopefully I'm not just one of WannaBeFinn's pieces of trade bait and I'll actually get to play there. Time will tell.

We drafted reinforcements for S55. We didn't suck. Luffy Richard was a bit of a late bloomer, he came on a bit, despite being a year older than me. Personally I struggled. Only scored 15 points all season. We won a playoff round. Then we went home. Not a bad run. I went to the WJC, and USA sucked. I had no idea what had changed. We couldn't score, we couldn't defend, we couldn't get leads and we couldn't hold leads. I would love so much to do that again. I only have two or three more WJCs max.

S56. What a time. We drafted a total of one player. Mind you, Jon St. Ark has a shot at ROTY, but only one player. But we were stacked. We got a top flight winger in Rotti Scott to help. A few days ago we got Simon Takshak. This team was and is stacked. We were coming in as favorites to win it all. And that was a bit of a load. I was promoted to the top line. And I was playing with Snail. I haven't played with Slimey since S54 prior to the Ken trade. In S54 where we may have been the worst line in the league. That wasn't going to happen again. And I came out red hot. 8 points in my first four games. I was watching my name hang out on the first page of the leading scorers. Watching myself be in striking range of first. I was starting to run away with the whale haul, run by our captain Ryosuke Sato. It was going great. I had 16 points just one point behind Daniil Nikiforov for the team lead. And then something happened. That fire disappeared. I now have just 19 points while Daniil has 40. And I hear that alarm go off and I don't jump out of bed and speed my way to the rink. I'm no longer putting in those extra reps after practice ends. I'm not at the rink postgame working through the film. I watch what I'm told to but that's it. I struggle to get myself to bed on time, and I struggle to get out of bed. That alarm goes off and I hit snooze. Maybe only once like this morning, maybe twice or more. I get to arena on time of the morning skate but barely. My days of being the first player there are gone. Nobody used to beat me to the rink. I'm not sure if this cold streak causes me to come late and take it easy or if my laziness preempted this.

But I am writing this as a reminder to myself. Because my fire has finally come back. And this is to stop me from stooping so low ever again. Why has it come back now you ask? Well today it finally happened. Sato put up two points against Carolina, I put up none. Sato got his 19th and 20th point of the season. I was still at 19. Sato now had more points than me. Sato. His whole career he has been a single digit point producer. He plays about a minute per game on the powerplay. I play nearly three minutes, literally three times as much. Now Sato is having a career year, but there is no excuses left. Why is he passing me in production? It's time. The fire is back. GO WHALE.

I would like to take this final paragraph to thank the people of Vancouver. It's been a rough stretch for the Whalers but you guys stayed with us. The fruits of that rebuild is this year, next and the season after. A three year window. This is your best chance to see a four-star cup. You sacrificed the past few seasons, now it's your time to shine.

Thank you for reading. Thank you for your support. We love you. GO WHALE
Johnny Shuffleboard

----------
1,298 words. High quality content bonus requested Wink