Wednesday, December 6, 2006

A Suns rookie?s road trip diary

A Suns rookie?s road trip diary


(Editor's note: First-year Sun Valley Suns rookie skater Jon Duval wrote this account of his first-ever Suns road trip, which happened last weekend at McCall. He got a little cold and wet, for a good cause:)

By JON DUVAL

For the Express

Friday, Dec. 1

11:53 a.m.—We are on the road and what better way to start the season?

Crammed into a car with four of my new teammates and the pleasant aroma of our hockey equipment, we begin our trek north to McCall for the first two games of the winter.

Eric "D-Day" Demment has already commandeered the radio, so it appears that Jewel, Van Morrison and Ben Harper will be providing our in-flight entertainment. Wow, am I getting pumped.

2:22 p.m.—We've gone over Galena, through Stanley and are winding along the Payette.

Once again I'm amazed at my previous ignorance to Idaho's natural beauty.

All this fuss about whether children are being taught creationism or natural evolution in school, yet no one cares that kids on the East Coast remain grossly uneducated about the breathtaking splendor of this state. Where's the outrage?

2:36 p.m.--Not even halfway into the trip and I've already garnered a new nickname.

My traveling companions' collective and frighteningly extensive knowledge of every Seinfeld episode has resulted in my being named after a secondary character:

Jimmy.

On the positive side, as you true fans recall, I get to refer to myself in the third person. Jimmy has to stop the car now before he wets his pants.

3:03 p.m.—Ivars 'Muzzy' Muzis, who is originally from Latvia or Cleveland (we're still not certain), tells one of the greatest hockey stories I've ever heard:

While playing a minor pro hockey game, he came off the ice after warm-ups to discover that he had been traded to the opposing team. He quickly took off his jersey, gathered up his clothes and walked over to his new team, located in the visitor's locker room.

Best of all, he went out and scored a goal against his former teammates.

4:00 p.m.—There's comedy, high comedy and then there's five adult hockey players cruising through Cascade, Idaho, with the windows down, dancing and singing along to Michael Jackson's Dirty Diana.

5:25 p.m.—Apparently heading into McCall at rush hour is somewhere you don't want to be—20 miles in just under an hour. Luckily we weren't one of the many cars that slid off the road. So we finally made it to the hotel.

Thinking about taking a power nap, but wait a minute, are those butterflies in Jimmy's stomach?

7:30 p.m.---After a Super Bowl-esque rendition of the National Anthem the puck is drops and we are under way!

The 2006 Suns, rolling with so many players there aren't enough seats on the bench, look ready to play.

As for me, I haven't played a real game in over a year and that was in New Zealand where if you don't preface "hockey" with "ice," the entire population will assume you are running around in a skirt trying to hit a ball with a three-foot long stick.

My ambition for tonight's game is simply not to injure myself.

8:06 p.m.--Paul 'Barnzy' Baranzelli snipes the first Suns goal of the season with a rocket from the point. Having played hockey my entire life, I've seen my fare share of truly talented natural athletes, but Barnzy is unbelievable. Apparently neither the length of the road trip nor the number of hours of sleep attained previous night affects him in any way as he is out there skating faster than anyone else on the ice. And he plans to go skiing tomorrow morning before our game.

8:15 p.m.---Back in the locker room after the first period and I notice for the first time that Blake Jenson has a gigantic pumpkin sitting next to him. I'm too perplexed to even ask.

8:45 p.m.---Jimmy gets an assist!

A long pass to D-Day on the point who drills a slap shot past their goalie. Don't tell anyone, but this is a sentimental moment for us, as we played college hockey together and view this game as a reunion of sorts. Big hugs and smiles all around.

9:30 p.m.—Ryan 'Rico' Enrico gets the insurance goal, a seeming replay of one I saw on Sportscenter two nights ago.

Standing in front of the net, Rico bats a flipped puck out of mid-air into the top corner of the net. And people try to say that our self-proclaimed WBHL (Western Beer Hockey League) isn't on par with the NHL.

10:45 p.m.--We have emerged from the rink victorious and famished. D-day somehow convinces the proprietor of a restaurant to reopen the kitchen for us. Must have been his charm. Or his beard.

Saturday, Dec. 2

12:30 p.m.---Reason #4,392 why I'm not long for this earth:

While walking around McCall, I promise Paul Cox I will jump into the lake tonight if we complete the sweep.

I say that once you've gone in, you will never feel so alive. Judging by the amount of snow on the banks, this could prove a horrid miscalculation.

6:00 p.m.---Today has passed slowly, as Saturdays before a game tend to do.

That's one of the great benefits of the road trip: lots of leisure time in which all your real-world worries fade away as you have nothing to do but clown around with friends and prepare for the game, which usually includes lots of napping and idle TV watching. And, no, there's nothing wrong with two guys watching Pride & Prejudice together.

7:35 p.m.---Twenty seconds into my first shift I get whistled for a slashing penalty. The new rules they implemented this year might make the NHL more fan-friendly, but right about now I'm yearning for the days when goalies didn't wear masks, sticks were still made of wood and the only real rule was that you weren't allowed to stab someone with your skate.

7:40 p.m.---Jamie Ellison gets us on the scoreboard early with a nice yet bizarre goal in which he scores after having one of his gloves knocked off. Although their height does not immediately strike fear into the hearts of many Suns' opponents, the speed and talent of Vilnis Nikolaisons, Rico, and Jamie is overwhelming the Mountaineers.

8:17 p.m.---Our line gets its first goal! I feel guilty, however, having been awarded an assist because the ref missed Paul Cox's heroic dive to get John 'Chugga' Stevens the puck in front of the net.

Fortunately, Paul has an innate understanding that I will need all the help I can get in the points department and doesn't complain. That's an exemplary linemate.

10:15 p.m.--The final horn sounds and that's a sweep for the Suns! Rico's second goal of the series gives us our second 3-1 victory in as many nights and now it's swimming time.

Luckily, Blake, having been in the Polar Bear Club in high school, enjoys this kind of masochism and has agreed to join me, although the rest of the team believes us to be idiots.

10:20 p.m.---And idiots we are. I can no longer feel my feet.

11:00 p.m.---There are few things in the world as good as a post-game meal after a win.

I'm pretty sure this tradition dates back to when the ancient Greeks celebrated their rousing victory over the Trojans with greasy pizza and light beer. The Suns' tradition of the George Jacket isn't quite as old or renowned, yet this in no way diminishes its importance among our team.

In a truly genuine moment, the George Jacket honor is bestowed upon Billy 'The Kid' Tryder who has made an inspirational comeback to the Suns squad. As Billy puts it on for the first time in a number of years, his ear-to-ear grin is a perfect representation of the team's sentiments at the close of our opening




 Local Weather 
Search archives:


Copyright © 2024 Express Publishing Inc.   Terms of Use   Privacy Policy
All Rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission of Express Publishing Inc. is prohibited. 

The Idaho Mountain Express is distributed free to residents and guests throughout the Sun Valley, Idaho resort area community. Subscribers to the Idaho Mountain Express will read these stories and others in this week's issue.