Page 79 of Puck You Very Much
Now Jax pursed his lips into a tight line and his eyes lit up. You should know that Jax Echlin was the kind of guy who coulddish out jokes, but God forbid you ever nail him with a good one. I decided to chill out there because I didn’t need my teammate exploding on me.
“You’ve got something going on one way or another,” he said, “but you can’t go losing your head. You need to focus, bro. I know we’ve had a shit season, but we’ve still got a shot at making the playoffs.”
I hated using or even thinking of the wordplayoffsduring the season. Forget that it called to mind Jim Mora Sr.’s rant about playoffs that every sports network on earth has run for decades. Focus mattered to me no matter what that dumbass said. Problem was, the dude was determined to nag the hell out of me, and I couldn’t get rid of him.
“You know as well as I do that as long as we’re not mathematically eliminated from contention, then we’re still alive,” he said. “And if we’re still alive, then we’ve got a chance. All we have to do is make it into the post-season and we can make it right to the finish line. You’ve just got to get hot at exactly the right time.”
“You’re starting to sound like Coach Mack.”
“It’s the truth though, isn’t it?”
I didn’t shrug because driving Jax to complete insanity wasn’t in my best interest at that moment.
“Think about it, Zane,” he said. “If we get our shit together, we can make a serious run and win it all. It doesn’t matter one shit how shaky most of our season has been.”
“I know that.”
“Then whaddaya say? You going to be all-in?”
“Of course I am.”
“I don’t believe it, Zane.”
“And why’s that?”
“Something in your voice tells me that some of your attention is somewhere else. Shit, your attention? More like your passion and drive.”
That made me want to slug Jax so badly I swore I cocked a fist. When I paused and drew a deep breath, I found that my arm had only moved a little, and I wasn’t in danger of flattening the team captain. Thank God.
“My passion and drive are just fine, thanks,” I said.
“Not from what I’ve seen.”
“And who the fuck are you? God’s gift to hockey?”
“I don’t think I’m God’s gift to anything, but I am the captain of this hockey team, and it’s my job to make sure every player is on the same page.You’renot on the same page with the rest of us, and it can cause us shit down the road. I’m just trying to correct the problem before it gets any worse.”
I gritted my teeth and found myself staring down my own team captain. That wasn’t unusual. Tempers flare up. Guys get frustrated. But I knew that this was different from any of that. Worse, Jax’s lack of intensity told me he was too dense to realize he could get a knuckle sandwich any moment now.
“There’s one team that we’ve got to keep up with if we’re going to make it to the post-season,” he said, “and that team’s the Larkin Lions.”
Of course it was. The universe worked that way. You know, it made sure you had to deal with the worst possible scenario.
“Seems appropriate, doesn’t it?” he asked. “They’re always a thorn in our side.”
“If you say so.”
Jax’s eyes burned, and I swore he wanted to shove me. You know, to wake me up? Good thing he didn’t because I would’ve cheerfully knocked him flat on his ass.
“Look, dude, we can’t play around here. You can’t fool me either. I know you’ve lost your focus, your eye of the tiger, but worse, it’s like you’ve developed a soft spot for the Larkin Lions.”
“I dunno, Jax, maybe I’m just not a petty asshole.”
“Say whatever you want, bro, but if we don’t make the playoffs, it’s gonna be on your head.”
And then he skated away before I could tell him he was a complete idiot. Instead, I raised my middle finger before realizing I was still wearing my hockey gloves. That made me feel far more ridiculous than badass. I realized my heartrate had quickened and it had nothing to do with hockey. I honestly wondered how I would co-exist on the same team as someone with such a punchable face and attitude to match.
Not all problems happen during games, and I realized that I was becoming alien to my own team. This couldn’t last forever, I understood. I was beginning to feel like the odd man out on my own team.
