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schneefinkHockey practice yesterday: we won 9-4! :D Our coach started to help out the other team at 6-2, didn't help them either. That was such a fun game. I played defense on the right again, same D-corps as last time and it worked well.
Before during warm-ups I practiced tight turns, they're hard. One of the girls gave me the idea that maybe it's because of habits I got from skiing, where you use your upper body and hips in a different way. I'm making some progress though! I'll be better at the end of the season. This week I finally want to buy my own stick, the old one I borrowed is starting to splinter and fall apart.
In the last five minutes of the game one of the players fell down and hurt her knee badly :( Sucks.
All I got from falling down a few times are bruised hips, I was lucky. Nowadays when I watch NHL games I can't help but think that they must be hurting all the damn time. When he retired Duper said you can't play if you listen to your body during the game; at first I thought that was bullshit, but I think I get it. But between the games, bruises upon bruises, ouch.
Another thing about watching NHL hockey: it's a lot more fun when my team is winning, and when the fanbase is feeling optimistic. Neither of those is currently going well for the Penguins. Scuds got traded, people were happy about that, but Beau and Flower are injured :(((
Silver lining: Sheary and Murray were called up, I hope they play well. Although when it comes to Murray, not too well… now I feel bad for thinking that, but.
So far, in my almost three years of being a hockey fan, no favorites of mine were traded or left the team! I'm very lucky. Only eight players from the roster a year and a half ago are still with the team (pic.) Some of it is also strategy: I try not to get overly attached to players that I strongly suspect won't be with the team for very long, sorry Zatkoff.
(Sidenote, I find it funny that I wrote two fics about players that emphasized that they didn't want to be traded, about Sutter (Comfortable in This Place) and, to a lesser degree, Despres (Losing Down, which also mentions Harrington really wanting to stay), and they are all gone by now.)
There are three players that I really really want to be Penguins for life: Sid, Geno, and Flower. Chances are very good for Sid and Geno! I'm very happy about that.
I am, however, unreasonably worried about Flower's future. He just got a 4 year contract extension! He's been playing very well the past two years, and for that the value is definitely reasonable. Everyone loves him, and I can't see him getting traded. In four years anything can happen and it's stupid to worry about this now. Still…
After his current contract is done he'll be 34. He's been very healthy his whole career, and I'd be surprised if he retired then. If he continues playing like he does now until his late 30s he has a good chance of ending up #3 (or even #2!) in wins all-time (numbers.)
In the meantime, Tristan Jarry and especially Matt Murray have been playing extremely well for the Baby Pens. Sure, they have to prove they can keep it up for longer than one season and then that they can do the same at the NHL level, but after that? If Murray stays that good the Pens would be stupid to trade him, except maybe for a huge return. When Fleury's current contract ends he'll most likely be ready to become a starter, if not earlier, and if they traded Murray there's still Jarry. Carrying two excellent goalies sounds like a luxury that's hard to afford, especially since Murray surely wants to become an NHL starting goalie soon if possible.
(Now Jarry is hurt too, fuck.)
I don't want to see Flower play for a different team :( I want him to be a Penguin for life.
It's stupid to worry about this now, but every once in a while I can't help thinking of it.
It's especially stupid to worry about this now because I don't even know if I'll still be interested in the Penguins in four years. A lot can happen during that time. The two things that currently occasionally make it hard to enjoy the fandom are a) everything about how the league and the fans handle gender issues and domestic violence, and b) injuries, man are they hard to watch and how it happens over and over and it's part of this stupid macho toughness culture, ugh.
Fortunately we have the NWHL now! I caught the end of the latest Riveters-Whale game, very exciting. So close! The Whale has to lose eventually, right?!
I'm not as invested in the Riveters yet as I am in the Pens (makes sense, I started liking the Pens years ago), but I could be, and it's nice to know I have an alternative for when I'm finally fed up with the NHL for good. (The CWHL didn't count, too inaccessible.)
Non-hockey things, I'm at the point where I think my Yuletide story sucks and is full of holes and why am I writing this anyway nobody is going to like it, I hate this stage. (Edit after a break and some chocolate: it's not actually terrible.) (Edit two after more chocolate and a very rough completed first draft: there might actually be the bones of a good story somewhere in there, maybe. (I'll probably hate it again tomorrow.)) Also I'm never going to get anything done and what am I even doing. I cooked the last few days, at least that is becoming easier.
Not spoiled for Star Wars yet! I really hope it stays that way until I go see it on Monday, that would be nice.
Before during warm-ups I practiced tight turns, they're hard. One of the girls gave me the idea that maybe it's because of habits I got from skiing, where you use your upper body and hips in a different way. I'm making some progress though! I'll be better at the end of the season. This week I finally want to buy my own stick, the old one I borrowed is starting to splinter and fall apart.
In the last five minutes of the game one of the players fell down and hurt her knee badly :( Sucks.
All I got from falling down a few times are bruised hips, I was lucky. Nowadays when I watch NHL games I can't help but think that they must be hurting all the damn time. When he retired Duper said you can't play if you listen to your body during the game; at first I thought that was bullshit, but I think I get it. But between the games, bruises upon bruises, ouch.
Another thing about watching NHL hockey: it's a lot more fun when my team is winning, and when the fanbase is feeling optimistic. Neither of those is currently going well for the Penguins. Scuds got traded, people were happy about that, but Beau and Flower are injured :(((
Silver lining: Sheary and Murray were called up, I hope they play well. Although when it comes to Murray, not too well… now I feel bad for thinking that, but.
So far, in my almost three years of being a hockey fan, no favorites of mine were traded or left the team! I'm very lucky. Only eight players from the roster a year and a half ago are still with the team (pic.) Some of it is also strategy: I try not to get overly attached to players that I strongly suspect won't be with the team for very long, sorry Zatkoff.
(Sidenote, I find it funny that I wrote two fics about players that emphasized that they didn't want to be traded, about Sutter (Comfortable in This Place) and, to a lesser degree, Despres (Losing Down, which also mentions Harrington really wanting to stay), and they are all gone by now.)
There are three players that I really really want to be Penguins for life: Sid, Geno, and Flower. Chances are very good for Sid and Geno! I'm very happy about that.
I am, however, unreasonably worried about Flower's future. He just got a 4 year contract extension! He's been playing very well the past two years, and for that the value is definitely reasonable. Everyone loves him, and I can't see him getting traded. In four years anything can happen and it's stupid to worry about this now. Still…
After his current contract is done he'll be 34. He's been very healthy his whole career, and I'd be surprised if he retired then. If he continues playing like he does now until his late 30s he has a good chance of ending up #3 (or even #2!) in wins all-time (numbers.)
In the meantime, Tristan Jarry and especially Matt Murray have been playing extremely well for the Baby Pens. Sure, they have to prove they can keep it up for longer than one season and then that they can do the same at the NHL level, but after that? If Murray stays that good the Pens would be stupid to trade him, except maybe for a huge return. When Fleury's current contract ends he'll most likely be ready to become a starter, if not earlier, and if they traded Murray there's still Jarry. Carrying two excellent goalies sounds like a luxury that's hard to afford, especially since Murray surely wants to become an NHL starting goalie soon if possible.
(Now Jarry is hurt too, fuck.)
I don't want to see Flower play for a different team :( I want him to be a Penguin for life.
It's stupid to worry about this now, but every once in a while I can't help thinking of it.
It's especially stupid to worry about this now because I don't even know if I'll still be interested in the Penguins in four years. A lot can happen during that time. The two things that currently occasionally make it hard to enjoy the fandom are a) everything about how the league and the fans handle gender issues and domestic violence, and b) injuries, man are they hard to watch and how it happens over and over and it's part of this stupid macho toughness culture, ugh.
Fortunately we have the NWHL now! I caught the end of the latest Riveters-Whale game, very exciting. So close! The Whale has to lose eventually, right?!
I'm not as invested in the Riveters yet as I am in the Pens (makes sense, I started liking the Pens years ago), but I could be, and it's nice to know I have an alternative for when I'm finally fed up with the NHL for good. (The CWHL didn't count, too inaccessible.)
Non-hockey things, I'm at the point where I think my Yuletide story sucks and is full of holes and why am I writing this anyway nobody is going to like it, I hate this stage. (Edit after a break and some chocolate: it's not actually terrible.) (Edit two after more chocolate and a very rough completed first draft: there might actually be the bones of a good story somewhere in there, maybe. (I'll probably hate it again tomorrow.)) Also I'm never going to get anything done and what am I even doing. I cooked the last few days, at least that is becoming easier.
Not spoiled for Star Wars yet! I really hope it stays that way until I go see it on Monday, that would be nice.
no subject
Date: 2015-12-17 08:09 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2015-12-17 10:14 pm (UTC)I didn't have many opportunities to ski the past two years or so, so I'm not completely sure about direct comparisons. I think knowing how to ski did help me in learning how to stop on skates, so there's that.
no subject
Date: 2015-12-17 11:30 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2015-12-18 12:11 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2015-12-18 12:23 am (UTC)Though, I was so excited about showing off that once during a ski lesson I skied half way down the trail showing off my hockey stop. And the instructor yelled at me for that. I gave no fucks as a small child.
no subject
Date: 2015-12-17 11:23 pm (UTC)I picked the Whale to root for based on - whales. I live in California, so it isn't like I can pick a local-to-me team. So I am excited they keep winning! GO WHALE! My dream is that someday the NWHL will have 24 teams and eight of them will be West Coast. By then I will be an entrenched Whale fan and my new local team will have to cope. ;-)
no subject
Date: 2015-12-17 11:36 pm (UTC)Advantage of cheering for the Whale: the puns. Also the winning, but that will change eventually! :P
I picked the Riveters because Janine Weber is playing for them and I'm very excited that there's an Austrian in the league. Currently I'm still getting to know the Rivs, but I'm looking forward to when I have brain space to learn more about the other teams :) (The ASG is going to be great.)
Yesss NWHL expansion! Please. I read an article about "practice players" in the league today, I didn't even know there was such a thing. All kinds of differences from the men's league because the existing infrastructure is so different.
no subject
Date: 2015-12-17 11:49 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2015-12-18 12:10 am (UTC)