HOCKEY CANADA
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DAY 3 – TUESDAY, OCTOBER 5 |
Today was the final day of camp and I woke up hoping the pain was gone in my foot. I tried to ignore it and
limped downstairs for breakfast. A lot of the guys were great, helping me get around and always asking how I
was feeling. After breakfast we headed to the rink for practice. Once I got there our trainer Danielle
told me I wouldn’t be practicing but I convinced her to let me try it out. I could barely put my foot in my
skate, and when I got on the ice I couldn’t push off my bad foot – my practice was done. It was pretty
depressing. The team ended up having a really good hard-paced practice.
After lunch I ended up going to get x-rays on my foot. The trainer from the local team, the Whitby Fury, took me, and I want to thank her for taking the time out of her day to run me around. Turns out I have a deep contusion in the bone on the inside of my foot. I was told I wouldn’t be ready to go for two weeks, so tonight’s game was not an option. It was pretty hard watching the game from the stands but I was cheering my Red on. It was a lot more defensive-oriented game than the night before, and we ended up winning in overtime. It wasn’t an ideal way to wrap up the camp but there wasn’t much I could do about it. So now I just have to continue playing hard with my team, the Metro Marauders, and hope I made a good impression. Making Canada East would be like a dream come true, getting to proudly wear the Canadian jersey. I’d like to wish all of the players who attended camp the best of luck; they were all great guys and very skilled players. Also I would like to thank the Canada East staff for giving me the opportunity to come try out. Regardless of my injury I had a great time and an experience I will never forget. |
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DAY 2 – MONDAY, OCTOBER 4 |
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Today is the first day of camp so I need to make a good first impression. I woke up feeling ready to go and put my tiredness behind me. I had a 7 a.m. wake-up call, got some breakfast, had a meeting with the coaching staff then headed to the rink for the first practice. I got excited just putting the Team Canada practice jersey on! I worked hard at practice, and I feel like it went well for me. The coaches put us through a good work out. All the players on Team Red seem like good guys and I like the atmosphere so far. After eating and resting up at the hotel, it was back to the rink for the first Red-White game. I thought I had a pretty good first game. I kept things simple, stuck to my game and ended up scoring the first goal. Unfortunately, we ended up losing the game 6-5. In the third period our defensemen took a slap shot from the point and stung me in the side of the foot. I played my last shift but it was really hurting. After the game the trainer looked at my foot and I iced it but I am having a real tough time walking on it. Hopefully I am ready to go for tomorrow – another big day! |
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DAY 1 – SUNDAY, OCTOBER 3 |
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I am pretty proud to be given the opportunity to travel to Ontario to try out for Canada East. It has been a busy weekend, having to play three games in three days with my own team, although I didn’t even get to finish the last one; our game was a 1 p.m. AT start today and I left halfway through to make sure I got to the airport on time. I have never been to Ontario before and I love to travel, so I am pretty excited. I met my teammate Brad MacDonald at the airport along with Charles Grant, who we played against earlier today. We were on a flight from Halifax to Hamilton. Once we landed one of the staff members picked us up and we headed to Whitby for a team supper at Boston Pizza. From what I have seen so far I really like the city, it seems like a great place to live. There are no professional sports teams in Halifax so I think it would be pretty cool to live here and be able to attend all the different games. I just got to the hotel and I am pretty tired, so I need to rest up for the two big days ahead of me. |
