Total pages in book: 124
Estimated words: 115838 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 579(@200wpm)___ 463(@250wpm)___ 386(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 115838 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 579(@200wpm)___ 463(@250wpm)___ 386(@300wpm)
Jaxon and Kirby are quiet as they look around and take in everything. Knox just scowls at everyone, and I can’t help but chuckle. “Gentlemen,” I say before we take the ice, “not only are we playing the reigning Stanley Cup champions”—I look at the room—“we need these two points more than you know. Let’s go out there and fuck things up,” I say, clapping my hands and heading out.
The crowd boos us as soon as the players skate on the ice, and I look up at the board with a deep sigh. Eric and I decided we are going to play the lines like normal and slowly take time away.
Every fucking minute I feel like I’m holding my breath and when we finally score first, I can’t explain how exciting that feels. This team is the best of the best. They didn’t change anyone from last season. It doesn’t take them long to respond, and we end the first period tied.
When we start the second period, I look over to see Cam huddling with the five players, but who really knows what he’s saying. Things between us have still been tense and I’m not so sure he’s being helpful. The first shift they get on, they fuck up the play and lose the puck, lucky for us, Jaxon blocks the shot.
When he comes back to the bench, he leans over Kirby. “You guys think you cannot fuck up like that again?” he asks them, and they just look over at him, giving him the stink eye. The second period has a lucky shot that bounces and there is nothing our goalie can do to stop it.
We start the third period trailing by one. “We can still tie this game,” I state to the bench as Cam stands there with his hands behind him, rocking on his feet. Eric is giving the five players less and less ice time, and they are glancing at each other, sharing a look, and then looking at Cam, who continues to side-eye me, the tension growing between us.
“Three minutes to go, we pull Sammy,” I instruct Cam, who shakes his head. “I’m not asking you; I’m telling you, at three minutes to go, we pull him out of the goal.”
“Big mistake,” he replies and then smirks, “but you’re the boss.”
I look over at Eric, who just shakes his head when Sammy comes to the bench, giving us an extra attacker on the ice. We have no choice but to put in Owen, who skates into the zone and then does the stupidest play known to mankind when he ices the fucking puck.
I shake my head, looking down, seeing we have twenty-nine seconds to go. “Another loss.” Cam shakes his head. “Ridiculous.”
Knox, Aaron, and Lane are on the ice with Kirby and Jaxon playing defense. The puck drops and the goalie comes over skating, giving us a chance to get an extra attacker on there. Josh jumps over the bench as Jaxon brings the puck into the zone and almost loses it when they poke check it away from him, and he saves it from going over the blue line.
“Shoot the fucking puck!” I yell and he shoots it at the opposing team’s goalie, but it looks like it’s going off to the side when Knox comes to stop it, and it flies into the back of the net with eight seconds to go. I swear you would think we won the Stanley Cup the way we all get up and celebrate. I shake my head and look over to see Knox coming to the bench to get high-fives. Eric comes over to me and shoves my shoulder as I look up and see the replay. The period ends, sending us to overtime.
I put Knox, Kirby, and Jaxon on and look down at Cam, who wanted to put Owen in there. I immediately took that away from him. There’s something going on with him and Owen. I just can’t prove it. The puck drops and Jaxon wins it, slapping it back to Kirby, who skates the puck into the zone. Cutting down the middle and then turning to come back to the blue line, he skates to the other side. Then Knox skates to him, taking the pass from him. He moves to the right, going all the way across. The goalie goes to the right, sliding to protect the corner from his shot, and Knox just speeds up, wrapping it around the net and putting it in.
The red light goes on behind the net, the referee points to the net, telling us it’s in and the bench erupts. They are flying off the bench as they go to celebrate with Knox. I walk down to the entrance of the tunnel, looking at the guys celebrate, and I chuckle, shaking my head.