Behind the Ice Wall
Not all at once, but gradually, shot by shot, save by save, my body remembering exactly how to do this even while my mind kept trying to remind me how much was riding on it, how many people had helped get me to this exact moment.
The opposing team’s captain skated close to my crease after a stopped play, muttering something about how it must be exhausting carrying so much baggage into a championship series. I didn’t respond. Didn’t need to. Whatever he was trying to accomplish with that kind of comment, I’d already spent months building immunity to worse than anything he could say to rattle me now.
“Ignore him,” Petrov said, skating past on his way back to position. “Guys like that only try