Henley had me so pumped and ready to perform that I was drooling at the prospect of a spectacular body check for the television cameras. It was halfway through my second shift on the ice. Their defenseman had taken the puck behind the Russian net. I was forechecking hard. So was Miles, my center. Miles raced down the right side of the ice, turning hard to spook the Russian defenseman out from behind the net. The Russian hesitated and looked for a safe outlet to dump the puck. He didn’t find one. With Miles charging in, the Russian started skating to the left side of the ice. It took him away from the safety of the net and squarely into my sights. He put the puck in his skates and tried covering up, pressing himself against the boards and waiting for the impact as I slammed him. Dead meat, I said to myself. Dad’s going to love seeing me crush this guy on television. The Russian knew I was coming at him, of course. Wouldn’t you hear a locomotive steaming in at full speed? Unfortunately, he made a move I’d never seen before.
