Page 11 of You Had Me at Hockey

I blink. “Really.”

For a split second I can tell we’re both thinking the same thing. The air around us crackles.

“And no one can touch my stick after I tape it.”

“So here’s a question…whydo you tape your stick?”

“Tape on the blade helps you feel the puck better, gives you more puck control. And on the shaft, it gives a better grip.”

It’s not often I am rendered speechless, but that moment has arrived.

Is he doing this on purpose?

“And then you tape the butt.”

I choke. “Oh my God.”

“You create a knob on the end, to keep your hands from slipping off.”

I’m dying. “Soooo…a sticky shaft is a good thing?”

His face is serious, but his eyes twinkle and I know he knows what he’s saying. “But not too sticky. I have to be able to slide my hands down the shaft when I need to.”

I can’t stop the laughter that spills out of me, falling back into my chair.

“And I just need a small bump on the butt, but goalies have to have a big knob.”

“Oh my God,” I gasp. “This is the best interview ever.”

Josh is laughing too now, and for some reason I have the feeling he hasn’t done that for a while. I had to fight for the barest hint of a smile when he came into the waiting room earlier.

I glance over at Oliver, who’s also cracking up.

“I’m crying,” I say into the microphone while I wipe my eyes. “Literal tears. I need to get a grip.” I compose myself. “Okay, Josh, tell us where you were born.”

“Winnipeg, Canada.”

“And apparently you come from a big family of hockey players.”

“Yeah. My dad and my three uncles all played in the NHL.”

“Is that a lot of pressure to live up to?”

His mouth tightens and his eyes flicker. I’m so curious about what he’s thinking. It doesn’t seem like a tough question. “It could be,” he says easily, belying his facial expression. “But I don’t let it get to me.”

“Do you have any cousins who are hockey players?”

“Actually, my sister Amy plays hockey. She’s really good. My cousin Brody plays for the Canadiens’ farm team, and my cousins Erik and Cam are both playing hockey at Boston College, and doing great.”

“That’s really cool. Did you always know you wanted to play hockey?”

“Oh yeah, for sure.”

I venture into a little deeper territory. “So coming from a hockey family is one kind of pressure, but what about just in general being a professional athlete? You have so many people counting on you to perform. What’s that like?”

He lowers his eyes to his hands resting on the table and takes a few seconds. “Well, here’s how I see it,” he finally says. “I actually like it. I think you can’t perform your best withoutsomepressure.”

“Really. Go on.”

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