Page 12 of Top Shelf

I mean it. Levi has been trying to get this youth hockey league off the ground for a year now. He’s hit some roadblocks, but he and my sister dug their heels in and talked to all the right people.

“There’s the old rink in Courtsville,” he goes on. “Renovations start in a few months, and it should be ready to go by the spring. We’ll do lessons and all that, and then practices will also be held there too.”

I nod.

“Damn,” I say. “That’ll be so much better for these kids. Remember when we were young, our parents driving us all over the damn place? It’s gonna be so nice for them to have it right in their backyards.”

“Yeah, that’s the hope,” he says. “But…”

Here it is.

“We really need a person in place to be the lead of all the operations. Someone who knows the game…good with people…good with kids…” he says, raising his eyebrows in my direction as a smile appears on his face. “Someone I trust. A commissioner, of sorts.”

I smile and shake my head, looking down at my beer bottle.

“There it is,” I say with a chuckle. He claps my back again.

“Think about it, man. I mean, it’s like it was made for you.”

I mean…he is right. Hockey, check. Kids, check. Impeccable people skills, check.

“What will you be doing?” I ask him.

“Well, I’ll sorta be, like, the face of the operation, I guess?” he says, pretending to cringe. “There’s a board. They’ll help with all the major decisions. And if you accept, they will have to ‘approve’ you,” he says with air quotes. “And they’re sort of counting on my, uh…”

“Dashing good looks?” I finish for him, making him shake his head with embarrassment.

“I guess something like that,” he says. “They want me to be the face of it, but I’d really love it if you’d do it with me. I’ll still be working the show, but I’ll be at everything I possibly can.”

I nod.

Since he retired from the NHL, wooed my sister, and moved back to Crooked Creek, he took a job in D.C. on a morning sports show as an analyst. I have to admit, it’s pretty damn cool watching him. I look at him and smile. My longest, truest friend.

“I’d be honored, Levi,” I say.

He smiles and hugs me, clapping my back with a smile.

“Fuck, yeah,” he says. “That’s great news, dude. I’m so excited now.”

I laugh.

“Me too.”

“Alright, so first things first, I’ll get you set up with the board. We’ll get a meeting scheduled so they can ‘vote,’ and then once everything is official, we will get everything set to go. Then we can start setting up the schedule and work on recruiting coaches and players. If everything goes right, we could be up and running in the next six months.”

I smile.

“That sounds great,” I tell him. “I can’t wait.” And it’s true. The more we talk about it, the more excited I actually am. I feel this spark inside of me igniting. And I haven’t felt that spark in…a long time.

It’s been eight years,I remind myself.Time to find a new spark.

“The board is great. We have a few local parents, a couple of retired coaches, and Roy says that he is also going to make some guest appearances for us. Coach Dumond of the D.C. Drifters is also going to be an honorary member, so that’s cool.”

“Oh, wow,” I say, my eyebrows raised. “Having a couple of NHL names tied to it should help with the numbers,” I chuckle. He nods.

“And then the president is this dude Hayden Cowl. He seems pretty cool too. He’s some doctor out on the West Coast. He’s a big Storm fan. He’s also got loads of money, so that’s been helpful with the initial capital it takes for something like this.”

I nod.

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