5AM Thursday Nov 19th Spokane to Edmonton
I wake to snow flurries at my house, and pack up the last of the batteries left on the charger overnight. I drive to the Spokane Arena in the dark, and park next to at least 8 semi trucks holding Disney's Lion King production. As I make my way to the locker room I am greeted by cheery Lion King cast members, getting ready for a morning promo shoot with one of the local tv stations.
The team is startting to gather in the locker room, and there is a feeling of excitement in the air. Road bags were delivered by the Booster Club, and the boys are rifling through them like kids at Christmas. Lots of goodies...but I am not sure if they will make it out of the arena, never mind all the way to Edmonton.
We load the bus, the rookies doing most of the work, while the veterans claim their places on the coach. For some of the guys, this is there first big road trip in the WHL, and you can sense the excitement. For others, even at a young age, they are veterans to the trips, and they prod the guys along.
We get everyone on board, and take off. The first of what turns out to be 6 movies is put into the dvd player, and we all settle in. Asst. Coach Klemm starts his game reviews of the teams the boys will be playing, anaylizing game footage, making notes, every now and them pointing out something to Coach Sauter. Mike Boyle,gets a head start on his radio shows, Outside of CDA, the bus starts to sputter o an uphill leg, then dies a bit past Silverwood. The driver Ray announces another bus is on order, it will be an hour or so. we wait it out watching the flick, and munching.
The new bus arrives, and we transfer everything over again. we head out, and make it to Bonners Ferry where we pick up the boys regular driver, KJ. He is wound up, and greets all the boys with more enthusaism than most twenty year fans.
Off we go, through customs, and onto Fernie. We stop at Subway, and it is a bit of a spectacle as two ladies whip out 30 foot long grinders in a record time. Rookie Brady Brassart shows some good thinking whipping out a few subway punch cards, and having all thirty credited to him...
Back on the road, more movies, we pull into Red Deer for dinner at Tony Romas for a meal that can only be described as a meat eating frenzy.
Back on the bus for another hour or so, and we pull into Edmonton. Gorgeous hotel, great rooms The team is put to bed by Hardy, with a warning about the early wake-up and breakfast on Friday.
5AM Friday Nov 20th Edmonton
I am up early on the prowl for a good machiatto. Not found, but still nice to be up and meet the boys for breakfast. Mountains of pancakes and OJ are consumed in record time, and everyone is on the bus, heading over to the Rexal Center, Home of the Edmonton Oilkings and the Edmonton Oilers.
The rafters are filled with history. Memorial Cup Banners, Stanley Cup Banners,remind all of them of all the greats that have played there. Brendan Kichton is surprised at the door by members of his family that have shown up to say hello.
The boys take to the ice and get the road legs squared away. Everyone is looking good, and in high spirits with anticipation of tonights game. We also pick up Mitch Holmberg at the door, who is re-joining the team after dealing with a personal matter earlier in the week.
Reporters are quick to find the 4 boys from Edmonton for interviews, and we are back on the bus. Most of the boys are going back to bed,with their next team commitment a team pre-game meal at 2:30.
I take a moment to leave the cameras in the room, and notice that MB is still sleeping. I figure I will be a nice guy and edit somewhere else and let him sleep in. I head down to the lobby to edit, and upload images.
MB is up and about when I get back to the room...he is blogging for the Chiefs and KREM.
We work a bit, then head down to see the boys devour a major amount of pasta at the Pre-Game meal. They were looking good in bussiness casual..hard to believe there ages, they acted like they were young executives...if you did not listen to the topics of conversation very hard.
I decided I need to get in a few bites over at Tim Hortons, what trip north is complete without some Timmy Bits...lo and behold, I run into a couple of the guys with the same urge...one of them, an Edmonton local is being stopped by people he knows and welcomed back to town.
Put a call into the Oil Kings to let them know I was going to be shooting there this evening, and arranged a meeting with their photographer, who hopefully will show me around a bit at tonights game. I want to be able to shoot a variety of images tonight, one of them being all of the boys fans and families that are coming to the game.
4:30PM
The team boards the bus for the short trip to the rink. The boys are already stoked, but then KJ geets them fired up by leading them through a cheer session...
We get to the center and hook up with Kacee the Equipment Manager who has been there since 8AM, getting the locker room together, taping sticks, sharpening and repairing skates, and getting everything else together for the boys.
A few visitors come by to see the guys. Kopes grandad comes by, and news travels fast that he has bought up a section to put family and friends in for the game. Levko's cousin Josh is on the Oil Kings, and Levko's grandad tells Levko to take it easy on him!
The boys warm up as ususal, tunes blasting from the boom box, soccer ball in the air..laughing, and hooting at passers by. A few minutes before warm ups start, they make their way into the locker room to suit up.
Warm ups over, the boys come back into the locker room for final adjustments, and planning. KB is the first to the Zambonie gate, and we share a few words, he is aware that his future team's management is in the house, and he wants to play well. I wish him well, and tell him to do what he does best. They take the ice with confidence and head to the bench.
I head up to the catwalks, as I wanted to get a shot of the opening face off from up high, and catch a few shots of the ceremonial puck drop that was a Koper family affair. Both Koper cousins squared off with other family members in attendance. I noticed that Kope's grandad was in the choir singing anthems...he had to be one proud papa tonight!
My plan was to head down and shoot after opening face off, but stuck around just long enough to see Blake Gal send one home short handed...man what a great way to start the game...
I spent the rest of the game checking out various shooting locations, talking to the amazing families, and thinking of sneaking out to find a 24 hour Tim Horton's.
With the score 3-0, I decided to head back to the Zamboni gate tocatch a last few of Reid, as it appeared he had another shutout in the bag, when a piece of scrap goal went in. He had to have stopped close to 40 shots by my count, and had had a grat game, and I was sad that he dd not get it. The win was sweet though, and took the sting away.
As we waited for JR's and BG's star announcement, BG told me that it was our trip to Tim Horton's that made the difference.
As the boys exited the locker room, they were greeted by hundreds of people. They had an amazing time with them, and coaches waited patiently for them all to get in a good visit.
The team said goodbyes, and we loaded up the bus for a super quick ride to a steak shop for the post game meal....an amazing dinner with the best ice tea I have ever had.
The team leaves Edmonton tommorow morning after breakfast enroute to Red Deer.
9AM Saturday Nov 21st
The team meets for breakfast, then we load up the bus and roll over to the Rexall Center to pack up the equipment. It takes a bit longer than normal to load up and get out he door because the Chicago Blackhawks have ice time before their game this evening. Kyle Beach is warmly greeted by his future team mates, and Corbin Baldin catches up with some old friends.
We leave Edmonton and its freshly fallen snow, and make our way down towards Red Deer. We stop to pick up some supplies, and the team plays a fascinating game of make the team laugh or get hit by Letts...quickly turns into solo karoake by the rookies...Dom wins it hands down with a thickly accented rendition of a popular tune.
Pulling into Red Deer, sunny and cold, ice on the ponds, Christmas decorations up everywhere. Pulling into the arena, we drop off gear and Kaycee, and head over to the hotel. Great pre-game buffet set up....and I have to say, one player, who will remain nameless, puts enough pasta on one plate that I am not sure how he made it back to his table.
Fans, family and friends are beginning to arrive and check in at the hotel, the boys are stoked that so many of them are with them on the swing.
We have two hours before we head to the arena, most of the guys are napping.
We pull into the Criterium and unload, the boys have a great high spirited warm up. The game is a bit of a disapointment, with Red Deer pulling off an early goal, and turning momentum to them. Tyler Johnson has an exciting, high energy game, and scores the only two goals the Chiefs get.
Game impressions were not many, but was drawn to the play of both Uher and Bardaro.
The ride back to the hotel was subdued. The boys knew it was not their best effort, and every four or so seats, groups of them recapped the game amongst themselves, strategizing on ways to correct issues. Post game meal was quite, and many of the guys finished quickly so they could catch a few moments with their families and fiends.
I stayed up till 2PM with Mike Boyle, Mike working on his blog for Krem, and I tried to get the slow hotel internet to upload images to the people and sites I submit to. went to sleep listening to Mike go ballistic as his computer crashed with 45 minutes of work on it.
9AM Sunday November 22nd
Breakfast with the boys at the hotel, and it was a good one...I love pancakes, but two days in a row is enough for me, andI was happy to see a bit of protein on the bufffet. The boys sure enjoyed it as well. The boys are off to the rink to pack up their gear, and have a post game meeting with Coach. We are scheduled to leave Red Deer at 2PM for our drive into Calgary.
2PM Sunday November 22nd
We take a leisurely ride south from Red Deer to Calgary. The bus is buzzing, the guys are stoked to be playing Calgary in The Saddledome.A movie is playing that Hardy wanted the guys to watch.
Hardy and Klemm spent the majority of the ride going over game notes and scouting reports on Calgary.
Pulling into the Saddledome was a great experience. First of all, it is a very unique facility, secondly, it has a fantastic history associated with hit, and finally, this was going to be a homecoming for our net minders.
Gear gets off loaded and brought into the lockers rooms. The agents, managers, scouts and press are out in force today. lots of quick meetings going on. Local tv grabs up Kyle Beach for an interview, and they ask him about his relationship with his younger brother, Cody, who plays for Calgary Hitmen. Cody comes out, and there is lots of playful banter between the two of them, with the end rsult of kyle giving Cody a love smack on the way back to the dressing room.
I tour the facility to check out shooting locations, and am blown away at the size of the place. I head up high to check out the rafters, stop by to snap a couple of Mike Boyle, then get situated for the 1st period.
I am rewarded with a cool shot of James Reid with a large Canadian flag being projected onto the ice in front of him. I shoot a bit more, and am again rewarded with getting a brilliant shots of Kyle Beach scoring.
The sequence is sick, the best being the end shot that shows Kyle in the goal, on top of the goalie, with a huge smile on his face. I realize then that he is all about winning, regardless of the battle, little or small.
Later in the period, I am again awarded with a super unique shot. Both of the Beach brothers, Kyle and josh, end up in the penalty box together. I am right above them, and get a couple shots off looking right down at them. I figure if nothing else, their mum will love this over the fireplace..I mean how many mums get to say their boys got an official WHL time out together....
The boys played with an intensity I have not see all season, like it was a game that they had to win regardless of consequences. Huge hits, fierce skating, passes, wild abandon, all over the ice. As I made my way around the venue shooting from different vantage points, it was apparent that they really wanted to win.
I settled in behind the glass behind Reid for the 2nd period, his parents and sister a few seats above an behind me..I could hear them talking above the crowd, holding there breath with every save James made.
I stayed there for the third, KJ, the Chiefs driver beside me. The Hitmen pulled there goalie near the end, and James was on the other end of the ice, holding on for dear life, with our defense and offense rising to the occassion. The final horn sounded, and the boys made there way out onto the ice to congratulate Reid.
They make there way back to the locker room with hooping and hollering like they won the Stanley Cup. They knew they had proved something, not to the fans, the crowds, or the Hitmen, but to themselves.
Everyone is quick to shower, and get changed. Pizzas are being delivered to the locker room, and there are hundreds of people outside waiting for them. TV, Radio, Scouts, Coaches, all want a quick word before the boys are able to rush out and get in a few moments with there families and friends.
The boys visit, pick up supplies to take back to Spokane, re-fuel empty wallets, get presents to give to their billet families, and are sent back to the locker room for a post game meal.
The guys help bring in what looked like a pallet full of pizzas, and they claim their favorites from the pile. Funny to watch them sitting in locker cubicles eating in their suits... they wash it down with leftover Gatorade, and are qick to load up the bus for the journey home.
As we are leaving Calgary, Hardy spots a car broken down on the side of the road, and turns to me..I say what he is thinking.."Those are players"..
He has KJ backup the bus, and goes out to check to see if they need a hand. He comes back to the bus and reports that it was some rookie Hitmen, they needed to change a tire, but they had it under control. Goes to show you that this guy is a true coach and cares about players, whoever they play for.
We make one last quick stop at a gast station, and Hardy invokes the "Two Item" rule. The boys are excited, it seems as if they are allowed to pick out any two items for their snacks from the store...they head in, and make quick work of their selections.
Back on the bus, and we head south towards the border with another movie.
We stop again at the border, and after passing through make a stop at the washrooms...which came none too soon, as I had a large coffee at the lasst stop..
Lots of elk on the road, a little snow and ice, and winding roads always makes for an interesting road trip, especially in the middle of the night, but everyone racked out, comfortable and confdent in KJ's driving skills.
We pull into the back lot of the Spokane Arena in the wee hours of Monday morning, weary and a bit out of sorts. A few of the guys were in a rush to get home so they could get to school on time. I am not sure how they did it, as I was still tired, really tired.
All in all, this was an amazing look at what the boys do on a roadtrip in the WHL.
Post Note...
All images from the trip have been uploaded onto my photo host site;
www.actionsportsimages.smugmug.com
Take a peek find or or two and buy a print or two!
I have also finished the mini-magazine, and will have a mock up of it to view Saturday night at the game, in the Spokane Arena. Look for my booth on the Concourse.
