Page 23 of Over the Line

“Center, defenseman, right wing,” he barked.

“Sorry, Coach,” I called out, and we set up again. Whoops.

Second time, I got it right, and after that, my line was fine. Third and fourth, also fine.

Coach Miller was satisfied with all the various groups who’d run through, but Coach Dahl stepped up.

“Kanes, switch out with Craws.” He gestured at Chris and my left winger. As the wingers swapped places, the coaches exchanged nods. Then Coach Miller blew his whistle, and we were off again.

I could immediately see why Coach Dahl had made the switch. Chris had played on my line off and on during training camp and the preseason, but Coach hadn’t been quite ready to move him up to stay. He and I had been discussing it for the last several days, though, and he’d apparently decided now was the right time to drop the hammer. Today, Chris was much stronger and more confident than he’d been those few weeks ago. He’d been steadily moving up in the lines as he’d gained confidence, and he was on a seven-game point streak. Only made sense to start considering him for the top line.

As for Craws, he was hardly in need of a demotion, and I could see some disappointment coming off him as he was slotted next to Andersson and Haavisto. But I knew Coach would pull him aside after practice and tell him what we’d discussed last night—that Craws, Andersson, and Haavisto would make for an intensely physical line that could body people around during offensive plays.

My line—Temo, Chris, and myself—were all smaller. At exactly six foot, Chris had three inches on me and four on Temo, but he played more like we did—relying on speed and agility over brute force. All three of us were perfectly capable of throwing people around and slamming them into the glass, but that wasn’t our strongest strategy as a line.

Coach and I had talked about it at length, and we’d concluded that having two top lines—one that was all about speed and maneuvering while the other was a juggernaut of sorts—would be a solid offensive strategy. While Craws absolutely deserved first line minutes, his talents would work better in line with Andersson and Haavisto.

Just to be sure he understood that, I didn’t wait for Coach to pull him aside. Instead, I skated up next to him as we were all cooling down after practice had ended.

“Hey, man.” I put a hand on his back. “Just so we’re on the same page—you’re not getting demoted. Got it?”

He pursed his lips, gazing down at the ice, but he nodded. “Yeah. I got it.” He clearly wasn’t thrilled about it, though.

“Look, Coach told me he doesn’t want a first and second offensive line. He wants 1A and 1B lines.”

That got his attention. “He does?”

I nodded. “Listen.” I halted, and he did too. We faced each other as our teammates skated lazily around us. “You’re a spectacular forward. You’re on pace for a career high season, you know?”

Chewing his lip, he nodded.

“Right, so no one’s looking to demote you. But can you imagine the damage you’ll be able to do alongside Andersson and Haavisto?”

His forehead creased. “What do you mean?”

I chuckled. “Dude, look at the way you three play. You’re all fast, but you’re also massive—you can bowl right over just about anyone. So putting all three of our most enormous forwards on the same line? Man, they’re going to need a Zamboni to stop you.”

That got a laugh out of him, and some tension unwound in his neck and shoulders. “Okay, I guess I can see that.”

“You’ll still be getting close to first line minutes. Don’t worry.”

He relaxed a bit more and nodded slowly. “Okay. I mean I didn’t think he was punishing me or anything. It just…”

“It always feels like it when you get bumped down a line. But Coach might even have your line start some nights.”

“Seriously?”

I shrugged, ignoring the twinge in my still-bitchy shoulder. “Depending on who we’re up against. We play Dallas soon, and their top line can’t play defensively to save their lives. Put them against the three of you and our top D-pair?” I whistled. “They’re kinda fucked.”

At that, his uneasy expression shifted to a wicked grin. “Ooh, we’ll mow right over them.”

“Exactly.” I clapped his shoulder. “Trust me—this will be a good arrangement.”

He nodded. “Yeah, I think you’re right. Thanks, man.”

“Don’t mention it.”

With that, I left him to finish his cooldown routine, and I headed back to the locker room for a shower. Once I was alone, I released a long breath. The captaincy was always a heavy responsibility, but some days I definitely felt the pressure more than others. Keeping feathers unruffled wasn’t my favorite part of it, that was for sure, but I thought I was pretty good at it.