Chapter Thirty
MAVERICK
Ipromised the team a rebound win.
And that’s just what happened.
It was a close game with only five minutes left to go.
Tied two apiece.
That’s when Remi had the biggest hit of the game.
That not only got every fan in the arena on their feet, it opened the ice a little bit for Riff and Abel to go on a two-on-one breakaway.
Their passing was smart and clean.
Of course Abel took the shot to get the lead.
A slap shot so hard, fifteen goalies could have been in net and it still would have gone through.
Then came the last ninety seconds of the game.
The other team pulled their goalie, allowing an extra player on the ice to attack.
That made it six-on-five.
The traffic in front of the net became intense.
With ten seconds left and one more good play in their arsenal, I saw the shot coming. The last thing I wanted was a big rebound. And I didn’t want to send the puck behind the net either.
I needed to catch the puck and find a way to send it down the ice to end the game.
If I held the puck, they’d get another face-off on this end of the ice.
The shot moved really fast.
I almost felt a collective gasp and worry from my entire team.
I flashed my right glove and the puck smacked it.
Then I screamed Matias’s name.
I dropped the puck and gave it a quick smack.
It was a very risky move to take because of how many people were near me.
The puck hit the boards and Matias was right there to get it.
He had an open net shot, but just skated with the puck to kill off the last four seconds of the game.
When the game winning horn exploded above my head, the fans cheered and we all met at center ice for a quick hug.
That was a damn good game to win.
A much-needed win.
It meant we could put that disastrous road trip behind us and move forward.