Game Day: Then and Now
As I sit here this afternoon, rolling through some water, snacking on some reduced fat Cheez-Its, it’s hard not to think back at how my gameday prep has changed.
Tonight I will step on the ice for the semi-finals of our summer hockey league, the Fattey Hockey League; a high quality league made up of past and current pro and college hockey players.
Thanks to Kenny Agostino, a friend of the Morning Skate, I will have a new weapon in my hands tonight. I can only hope some of the William Nylander magic can make its way through his stick and onto the ice tonight.
For those wondering, he uses a pretty big curve, with most of the hook being at the toe. Lets see if I can adapt.
My last semi-final appearance was just little bit different.
It was a beautiful Thursday in Pittsburgh, PA. The year was 2013. My fellow Yale Bulldogs and I were getting ready to play UMass-Lowell in the Frozen Four.
Lowell was the #2 overall seed and the Hockey East Regular Season and Tournament Champions. Between the pipes was one of the best goalies in the country and current Winnipeg Jets starting goalie, Connor Hellebuyck.
The day started out just like any other game day. A breakfast in the hotel followed by a morning skate at Consol Energy Center.
After a smooth 30 minute skate, we head back to the hotel where we would stare at the clock. It’s tough to explain the feelings I felt during those down hours in the hotel room. If this was any other game, a pre-game nap would be easy. But this wasn’t just another game. We were just two wins from a National Championship.
How’d the game go?
In my four years at Yale, our semi-final performance could have been one of the best games we played. We rolled our four lines and played at a speed that made our opponent uncomfortable.
Just an unreal call here by the referee…
Thankfully for us, we had Andrew Miller and UMass Lowell didn’t. Watch as our Captain takes the defenseman wide with speed, slips it through Hellebuyck’s legs and punches our ticket to the National Championship game.
Today’s Focus
It will be a must that I hit the foam roller, make sure the hips are loose, these young guys can really push the pace. Let’s hope our veteran savvy can be the difference maker tonight.
Just like in 2013, the name of the game: Survive and Advance
Update coming in Wednesday’s edition of the Morning Skate.
- Dayzer