Page 12 of Rookie Attraction

The next hour of practice is gruelling, at times frustrating, and surprisingly, eye opening. There’s d-man to d-man passing, the hinge drill, and finally, the crossover, where Finn makes a quick move to change direction before passing to me, dynamic breakout. Then we reverse our roles with me passing to Finn, and holy shit, Finn’s a different player since the summer, a total spitfire on the ice. I’m nearly distracted by how good he’s playing.

But it’s not all perfect. Our communication is great to start off, but our rhythm is inconsistent. I’m rotating over a beat too late when Finn steps up, and he’s not patient enough when he needs to be. Both of us are caught up in first day nerves and it shows.

When Coach’s whistle rings out, I’m thankful practice is almost over. We finish up and skate over to the bench to hydrate.

“Kirkland, Baran, not bad for the first day,” Range comments and nods at his assistant.

“Tell us what you think,” Laflore asks. “Baran, you go first.”

Finn removes his glove and reaches for a towel to wipe his face. I can hardly see his freckles now that his skin is flushed with exertion.

Never mind that, focus.

“I’m too fast and Sel’s too slow.”

Finn’s blunt statement makes me laugh out loud, and my teammates do the same. Even Range and Laflore are grinning.

“Succinctly put, Baran,” Laflore replies with a smirk. “Can you be more specific?”

Finn cocks his head.

“I’m jumping into plays before Sel’s in position to cover.”

“Exactly,” Laflore replies and looks at Range and Lee, who both nod in agreement. “You’re leaving your teammate, and yourself, vulnerable. Don’t be outmaneuvered. Anything else?”

“Sel needs to be faster, closing gaps when he skates backward.”

He noticed that?

“Absolutely,” Range interjects. “Kirkland, you need to loosen up your frame and put more drive into it. You gotta be agile enough to track back, defend against rushes, and transition quickly. I want to see you pick up the pace next time.”

I’m not playing up to par and it shows.

“Kirkland?” he repeats.

I finally nod.

“Yes, Coach.”

“We’re done with ice time!” Range shouts to the team. “Clean up and meet in the lounge in an an hour for the promo shots.”

“Even me?” Finn asks.

“Yes. It’s only day one for you, Baran, but I’m already impressed, and I have a feeling you’re here to stay,” Range offers. “But don’t let it go to your head.”

Everyone chuckles as we clear off the ice. Finn skates up to me with a shy grin.

“Hey, I hope I wasn’t too blunt about my opinions.”

“Not at all.” I glance at him. “Even experienced pros need feedback. And it’s good to see you talking. It’s a lot better than how you were in the summer.”

Shit. I shouldn’t have said that. Putting my foot in my mouth lately is getting to be a regular thing.

Finn shrugs and his smile gets wider. “Besides the family stuff, I was a little starstruck around you. But don’t worry, I’m over it.”

“Good. I’m just a player, same as you. And Range is right, you did a great job today.”

Finn waves me off.