Victory!

“Victory” – Johnny Drama (Entourage); http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GIeWjLC_SB0

The words “bring out the golf clubs” are usually only echoing around the rink after a team has just finished off their opponent in playoff competition. But no, currently, this is not the sign that the hockey season is over. C’mon! We still have 50+ (at least) games left! It’s just the sign that the boys have been hitting the Scottish links to relax a little bit. This has been a past-time as long as hockey off-season activities has been documented (see: Grant Fuhr in “Boys on the Bus” – absolute gem of a hockey movie on the Edmonton Oilers when all the greats were there in the midst of their Stanley Cup perennial ownership. Unbelievable trailer here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6PRBr43emtw&feature=results_video&playnext=1&list=PLC12FCD5C0A8A2149).

Nonetheless, as mentioned previously, my golf clubs are here, shined up, & ready to strike the white Pro V1s. It would be idiotic not to take advantage of the many golf courses in the area on days off so a couple of the boys (D-men Alan Mazur and Dan McGoff and forwards Jarrett Konkle & Brent Huughes), a few of the front office men, & myself have set out to do so. So far, I’ve been the low guy on all but 1 occasion (Hughesy must not have counted a lost ball or two) but we’ve all had a great time nonetheless. In addition to Downfield, we’ve played Ballumbie Castle & Alyth golf clubs, the latter of which originated in 1894 and was quite challenging with the 50+ km/h winds that we played in (Here I beat Hughesy – I shot an 87.  Not great but all the same respectable under the conditions).  We hope to swing the wrenches at a few more places before the winter weather takes grip on these eastern Scottish shores. These include Drumoig, Ladybank, and of course one of the St. Andrews courses. Most recently, we were treated to “Scottish golf” in the cold, deafening wind &hard rain. Thankfully this only lasted one hole but I still had to grab my toque, rain jacket, and umbrella. All in all, playing in Dundee, Scotland, the golf is just one of the benefits, despite the laundry that must be done after the rain comes. There are countless areas to check out & enjoy on the days off (even on work days if time permits).

Thankfully, we didn't hit any houses.

Konkle playing my caddie. He did a good job...not good enough for a tip afterwards though.

Konks teeing off at Alyth Golf Club - one of the oldest in Scotland.

Seeing some sights is all part of the experience that is playing overseas. A few fans and some team associates have graciously suggested a few places for us to visit. Hopefully there is ample time for us to drive or train to a few of these places and enjoy them all the same. Of course, I’m saying this as some family members cross the Atlantic to join me for a few days in this experience. My older sister, the globesetter of the family, I’m sure has about 300 places picked out to see within 10 days. I told her I only want to see the ones where we can grab a pint after every mile or so of walking. I’m sure my father would agree. My mother would not. (Picture of what I hope I will not look like after walking).

Back to many of the benefits here in Dundee though: there are various ways to fill the free time. Usually my roommate & I, Konkle, hit the gym in the morning before head off to the rink for practice. Grabbing a quick lift/cardio workout is a solid start to the day – there are some on our team however who work or attend college full-time & don’t have this luxury before practice. This being said, we (mostly I) antagonize said individuals by sporting the “gun show” in the dressing room to some favourite jams like “Moves Like Jagger” and pretty much any rock song. This may be the reason that some of the boys think that my nickname should be Disco (add it to the list). One individual that may have bigger muscles in the legs department is Lee Mitchell aka the Hulk (in terms of size & strength, not becoming enraged). Apart from the betterment of the body, akin to Sir Isaac Newton, each action has a reaction, so we often head to the movies for some Ben & Jerry’s or popcorn (albeit small quantities). And for the evening, if the situation presents itself, the gents are able to hit a pub or two where the old hockey pastime of story-telling reigns supreme. Stories shared include those of old teammates, worst/best fights, games won/lost, goals scored, and some other stories that are not necessarily PG 13. I’d like to say some of my stories are the best but others would say they run to long and the interrupt me by asking if I found $50 afterwards (aka your story sucked and the only way to make it funny or good is to say you found $50 at the end of it. Disclaimer #2: No guarantee this makes your story good). 

Our gym.

Not too many people have got moves like Mick. Or could fit into those pants for that matter.

Also, at these team outings, food is often a part of it. As we are “finely tuned athletic machines” (see the Adam Sandler classic “The Waterboy” for further clarification), nutrition is essential! Often is the case, someone will receive the classy ritual of being “shoe-checked.” This is where an individual will sneak under the table and put ketchup or salad dressing on another teammate’s shoe. Once the prank is executed and the sneaky devil who was under the table is back at his seat, everyone clinks their silverware on their glasses, which is a sign to check your shoes. If you’ve been successfully targeted and you find your shoes dirtied, you have to get up and tell a joke or sing a song – basically humiliate yourself in front of the restaurant, bar, or whatever establishment you’re in. If you’ve been around the game enough, you’ve definitely been shoe-checked or have shoe-checked someone else. Why am I telling you this? I got shoe-checked the other night. Always have to be on the lookout but all in good fun. 

Here, my shoe is "checked".

An excellent local establishment.

Dinner with the boys. Some random dude got at the very front & ruined the picture.

To the hockey aspect of this blog – victory! The boys finally won our first game in convincing fashion. Everyone’s been playing hard and focused on the task at hand so that is very encouraging. What’s not encouraging is Mazur’s attempt at a goatee & fellow D-man Chris Zarb’s beard (which apparently is a science experiment on timing facial hair growth). Back to the point: we thought we had our first “W” the weekend previous but had some penalty trouble (some is a bit of an understatement when 6 penalties in a row against us were called). In sum, we got in the win column and could easily be back to .500 before the coming weekend is over, which would be solid since we have 6 games in 10 days after said weekend (I thought I left North American minor hockey schedules in North America…). Also, one quick note: there must’ve been a girl with good taste in charge of selecting “Man of the Match” in our most previous game who was intermittently impressed with my swarthy Saskatchewan good looks. After reading this last sentence, you’re either A) laughing or B) throwing up. If neither is happening and you are confused, I was selected as Man of the Match. Truth be told, any one of the boys could’ve been picked as everyone played very well. It was by far our best game of the year and hopefully we can continue to build on it. Don’t ruin it for me though – I still like to think I got picked for not just my play on the ice!

A propos, before I leave you, I should absolutely make note of Thanksgiving back in Canada this past weekend.  Contrary to many of my American friends (namely those in my Yale Hockey Class of 2009 who would berate me with anti-Canadian jargon…), according to the all-telling, forever-reliable world of Wikipedia, Abraham Lincoln decreed a day of “thanksgiving” in 1863. Interestingly enough, history would suggest that the celebration of Thanksgiving in Canada is not just a copycat of American Thanksgiving but that the former did in fact precede the latter by about 285 years (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thanksgiving_(Canada) ). 

This all being said, I’m thankful that all of us (both Canadian & American amigos) can be thankful for all that we have: freedom, family, roofs over our heads, clothes on our backs, and food on our plates, among other things). There are millions out there in this world who do not have these fortunes and it is in fact too often that we take it all for granted. To celebrate a little Canadian Thanksgiving, roommate Jarrett Konkle & I searched high & low for a turkey & stuffing/dressing. Truth be told, Konks (by himelf) searched high and low (slash the middle shelf of an Asda grocery store) and found a chicken with stuffing in it, all the while I viewed the solid film “Tinker Tailor Solider Spy.” What a great roommate. The glory should not all be his however – I made garlic bread and tortellini. No turkey, cranberry sauce, and/or mashed potatoes, but enough to be thankful for nonetheless. In addition to these, I’m thankful for this opportunity to continue playing hockey. Lord knows there are other things I could be doing. But not now…not just yet.

Brennan “Disco” Turner