It was relieving to be in a moving vehicle near the surrounding St. Paul area and actually having a clue where I was going this past Sunday morning. The previous evening was a little different as during a drive back from Edmonton with a friend we managed to take a wrong turn and get lost, in the middle of a snowstorm no less.
Although it was fun to see the world's largest duck and sausage in Andrew and Mundare respectably, as well as the largest mushroom in Vilna earlier in the day, which I thought a tad disappointing, I felt comfy letting the bus driver do all the work. I was traveling with the St. Paul Junior B Canadiens Hockey team to Wainwright to cover the team's away game. It was something I had no reservations about doing.
Simply stepping on the bus and heading to another town for a sports game brought me back to my college days playing varsity soccer. We never won many games, not unlike the Habs this season unfortunately, but it was always a treat to spend a few hours on a coach bus with your teammates sharing laughs and then playing a sport you all mutually enjoy.
"You arrived too late," St. Paul coach Tony Meger said to me on our way there. It seemed as if the noise level was a little quiet for a road trip with a group of late teens who love to play some puck. The team has lost a few of its players yet the core group of guys who've been there from the start of the season were all present and act like a band of brothers. From complimenting the best dressed to slagging the last guy to arrive and making the bus late, the Canadiens are everything a junior hockey team should be, even if they don't get so rowdy on the bus rides anymore.
They're all here because they want to be and will be tomorrow and the next day whether the team wins or loses.
The ride both to and from the game almost felt like a moment for reflection. The journey gives time for each player to think about how they played, the chances they had to score or make a save and even what they want to do next time. However, the biggest thing these bus rides do is let them take a step outside their normal lives. That's what makes the trips to away games so memorable. There's an added sense of professionalism that only these members of the team get to experience and may never experience again. It's an enlivening feeling traveling to an opposing team’s arena, walking off the bus and into the building to do battle. You're there for a purpose and that purpose is to win. Each player may have their own idea of what it feels like to be recognized as the away team and what sort of look they choose to give the home team's fans and the looks they get in return. I used to like employing the dark and ominous captain, just for kicks.
The Habs lost they game by a scoreline which looked much worse on paper. However, if you asked any player on the bus would they go and do it again they’d probably all say yes. There’s a terrific sense of pride among the players on this team and I think it only solidifies itself by traveling to these away games, putting on the red, blue and white sweaters, and doing everything they possibly can to be a nuisance to the other team. It’s what drives them and drives me as well.
