This is the path less taken, for it is the most arduous. The rocky, slippery, steep path and there is no turning back. You have but one of three out comes. 1. You quit. 2. The game is taken away from you. 3. You succeed.
The road to NCAA hockey is just that simple. You leave your family, your life long friends and maybe your lover. 'Normal" life is on hold. Your buddies will be at college parties, telling tales of chasing skirts, the poker game and job prospects. You will be working out, putting in extra reps, trying to not grip your stick to tightly seeking that elusive point, or save, that catches the eye of the watchers. All the while knowing that today, this game, this shift is one of the last. Your time is limited in this world. YOU have an expiration date, and day of reckoning ahead. That dreaded day your phone has not rung and or you turn 21 and the game passes you by.
Your goal? Having your phone ring and learning that you, have just been offered a place among one of 132 D1 & D3 NCAA teams. One player of 3300. A last man standing of sorts. The last of the 1%ers. You live by one rule. You must to survive. You must live in the moment. Turn a deaf ear to the people who wonder and ask why, as it is to hard to repeatedly explain your dream, your ambition. Moment to moment, no stopping, no time to look back, and no second chances. The game of men is upon you. Each striving for the same prize, and only a handful each season are asked to come play NCAA hockey.
more to come.......
