Alexei Kovalenko 12:38 PM
Yes.
You know what I like.
Ethan Tremblay 12:40 PM
Meat lover?
Alexei Kovalenko 12:42 PM
Yes
Is summer
Nutritionist never needs to know
Ethan Tremblay 12:42 PM
Alexei is always at odds with the team dietitian, but when you save goals like he does, people are willing to overlook a lot. I grab the subs from our favorite place near the arena and head to his house, tucked away in a gated community in Tonka Bay. The sprawling lakeside mansion is way too much house for a single man in his thirties, but I can’t complain when he lets me host team parties here. I let myself through the side gate, certain I know where he’ll be on a day as beautiful as this.
Sure enough, I find him swimming laps in his in-ground pool, slicing cleanly through the water. He catches my eye as he flips andbrings his workout to an end moments later. I avert my gaze as he steps out, wet Speedo clinging tightly to his body.
“You know, we only finished the season twelve days ago. You’re still supposed to be in your ‘fattening’ stage of summer.” I throw our food down on the patio table and grab a seat.
“That is what the meat lover is for. Besides, all I do is stand in goal. I do not get so skinny like the rest of you.”
Yes, stand in goal and block 100-mile-per-hour slap shots. No big.
“So what did Greg want? You’re not being traded, right?” Alexei looks worried, and it’s almost a relief that he’d be as upset about me leaving as I would be to go.
“Nah. Jack’s a total asshole, but you know he has that no-move clause locked up tight.”
“Yes, well, I still hate him.”
I laugh because, honestly, my agent is…intense. Every lawyer stereotype rolled into one former hockey player in a five thousand dollar suit. Still, he’s always done right by me.
“So, what did the big man want, then? To discuss breaking all league rules and standards and giving me the A this season?”
We should only be so lucky. On party-hosting alone, Alexei would earn an assistant captaincy.
“He…uh…”
Suddenly, I find myself hesitant to confess the truth.
“Yes?”
“He wanted to discuss draft picks for this year. They head to Vegas soon.”
“Please, dear God, and Mary and Jesus and all the saints…tell me we are getting some offensive production so you and I don’t have to work our asses off for shutout after shutout.”
He’s only half joking. Between my defensive stats and his saves, we basically dragged the offense through the season. We’d managed to get a wild card spot, but that only led to a quick exit in the first round.
“He was thinking of a couple options in that direction.”
“I would give my right nut to have Jamie Carter, but I bet he goes top two.”
He should. In the gym, I found myself watching his highlight reel during my cooldown on the bike, and I can admit it to myself: the kid's got the goods.
