A Golfer's Dream - Book Two Chilly Winter Hot Summer         Written by TheCaddy

Disclaimer: This story is entirely fiction. It does not relate to any real 
person, living or dead. Any similarity to a real person, whether living or dead,
is purely coincidental and completely unintended. While actual places are
occasionally mentioned in this story, such mention is not to be a basis for
conclusion that any part of this story is real, or ever happened.
The following story is a work of fiction containing graphic descriptions of
sexual acts between adults and minors. All of the sex depicted is consensual;
the author does not intend to promote incest or sexual relations with underage
children. The age of consent in Canada is currently fourteen. The story is
written purely for entertainment purposes only. Those who are offended by such
material are strongly encouraged not to read this. Those who are searching for
material which they would proscribe for others should search elsewhere. If you
are constrained by law or local authority from reading graphic descriptions of
fictional sexual acts between adults and minors, you are required to not proceed
further.

Pursuant to the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic
Works, this work is copyright with all rights reserved by its author unless
explicitly indicated otherwise.

This story is protected under U.S. and international copyright law and may not
be reprinted, reposted, or otherwise reproduced without express written
permission. This story may be posted to appropriate USENET newsgroups for non-
commercial use only, PurchaseOrderas long as it remains entirely intact and 
unmodified, including all copyright messages and this disclaimer.

Chapter Four - Game Misconduct

Dave felt a little better after his conversation with Katherine in the hall.  He 
guessed it had gone as well as he could have expected and he hoped things would 
quiet down on the wild rumor front.  He went to the cafeteria and sat with John.  
John had a proposal to keep his friend from brooding, "Dave, do you want to go 
to the Eagles' Junior A game tonight?  They're leading their best of seven 
series against Amherst two-nothing; but it has been a rough series and tonight 
should be an exciting game."

Dave remembered his good practice time with the Eagles and, not having any 
alternative plans, he agreed.

John picked Dave up at his house that evening and the two friends went to the 
game.  The Eagles were leading the game four-nothing and were in control of the 
game late in the third period.  The game had been fairly rough but the Eagles 
were more talented and controlled most of the play.  The Eagles had a line 
called the "crash line" - named for their style of hitting everything that 
moved, a practice commonly referred to as crashing the boards.  All three 
forwards on that line were proven fighters as were two of the teams six 
defenseman, Brad Rice and Ben Metzger.

With five minutes left in the game, an Amherst player ran the Eagles' goalie 
hard into the net.  The crash line was on the ice with Rice and Metzger on 
defense.  A line brawl followed the cheap shot.  A line brawl is when all five 
players on the ice for each team fight at the same time.  Some teams are known 
almost as much for the quality of their fighting as their actual hockey play; 
the standard joke is "I went to the fights last night and a hockey game broke 
out!"  Dave and John joined the crowd cheering on the excitement on the ice.  
Metzger squared off with the toughest player for Amherst and the two goons threw 
ferocious punches at each other.  After Metzger landed his first two punches, 
his opponent covered up and dropped to his knees.

It took the referees ten minutes to breakup all the fights and clear the ice.  
Eventually the game finished and the Eagles' fans went home happy their team was 
leading the series three-nothing and very glad that their team sent a message to 
the Amherst team not to rough up their goalie.

John and Dave talked animatedly about the fights.  They went to McDonalds and 
hung out with their friends for an hour before John took Dave home.  John's team 
was playing their last regular season games on Saturday and Sunday, so he needed 
a good night's sleep.  

The next morning Dave was sleeping in when his father called him to answer the 
phone.  Dave picked up the receiver and heard the familiar voice of the coach of 
the Eagles, Mike Stevens.  Mike explained that five of his players had been 
suspended for the game that evening, as a consequence of the line brawl, and 
asked if Dave would play for them since they needed substitutes.  Dave was 
ecstatic and said yes immediately.  Coach Mike was pleased and told Dave to be 
at the Civic Centre at three o'clock to catch the team bus for the trip to 
Amherst.

Dave's father was very happy to hear he would be playing in a higher level game.  
Roger phoned his brother, Alan the policeman, and, after a return call ten 
minutes later, Alan had his evening shift off so he and Roger could drive to 
Amherst for the game.  Amherst is a small town on the Nova Scotia side of the 
border with New Dominion - it is only an hour and half drive from Edwardton.

The time was only ten o'clock in the morning when Dave found out about the 
upcoming game, he found time passed slowly as he anxiously waited for three 
o'clock.  

The drive in the charter bus passed quickly as Dave got familiar with the 
players he had met the previous fall during practice.  Dave had thought Ben 
Metzger looked huge on the ice but now, when he met him in person, he realized 
that he himself was actually two or three inches taller than Metzger.  The 
protective hockey equipment adds a lot of bulk to every player and makes it 
difficult to tell the actual size of the body inside.  

Dave was nervous in the dressing room as he prepared for the warm-up.  With the 
crash line missing, the team dressed Dave and three extra players they already 
had on their team list.  Dave was going to be playing rightwing with one of the 
usual spares playing on the leftwing.  The center was Willie Hubloo, the team 
captain.  Willie was a small five-foot seven-inch player with amazing talent.  
He was an Inuit; one of the many non-Island-born players.  Willie had incredible 
speed and Dave was looking forward to playing with such a talented hockey 
player.

During the warm-up, the Amherst team was yelling at the Eagles - trying to 
intimidate them.  The mood in the dressing room was quieter than Dave had 
expected and he suspected that, because the Eagles were missing their five 
tougher players, the team was feeling the pressure of the intimidation.  After a 
pep talk by the coach, the Eagles left the dressing room.

Dave remembered his uncle Alan saying how Amherst was one of the toughest rinks 
to play in because of the very loud and boisterous fans.  The rink had been 
fairly quiet during the warm-up but it was now full of rowdy fans screaming like 
madmen and Dave quickly understood what Alan meant.

Dave played on the third line because Willie was playing center on two different 
lines and his regular line started the game, so Dave anxiously waited for his 
first shift.  Amherst started the game with a clear strategy of hitting the 
Eagles at every opportunity.  When Dave finally got on the ice, he was surprised 
by the speed of play.  He was used to being the fastest player on his team and 
usually had to wait for his fellow players to catch up to him.  At this much 
higher level of hockey, his first shift was a total learning experience.  The 
speed of play was incredibly fast and opposing players were much stronger than 
Dave was used to.

Dave's first three shifts were unproductive as he struggled to adjust.  After 
the third shift, Mike walked over to him and said, "Dave, I've seen you play 
this year and I know you have good speed.  Use that speed to skate away from 
these players; they're not as fast as you are and Willie will find you, when you 
get open."  Dave nodded understandingly as he tried to catch his breath.  He 
considered himself to be in good shape but, after just three shifts of this 
fast-paced hockey, he was more tired than he normally felt after two periods of 
midget hockey.

The fourth shift went better as Dave muscled into the clear and was streaking 
down the wing when Willie hit him with a perfect pass.  Dave tried to accelerate 
around the defenseman but the more skilled junior player played an angle that 
took Dave behind the net.  As he carried the puck behind the net, Dave saw 
Willie cutting through the slot and he feathered a perfect pass to Willie who 
one-timed the shot.  The puck careened off the crossbar and over the glass out 
of play - no goal.  

Dave's line didn't have any more scoring chances in the first period but Mike 
congratulated him on his stronger play during the first break.  The Eagles were 
losing two-nothing after one period and Amherst seemed to be taking advantage of 
their intimidating style of play.

The second period started much better for Dave as he got his feet moving and 
started hitting more himself.  Willie had another unsuccessful scoring chance 
created off a hit Dave threw on an opposing defenseman which turned the puck 
over in the corner.

On his second shift of the period, Dave received a pass in the high slot from 
Willie and he one-timed a hard wrist-shot to the top corner for the Eagles' 
first goal.  The rest of the team seemed to feed off his goal and the next line 
scored a second goal to tie the game at two.

When Dave got on the ice again, he was lined up for a face-off in the Amherst 
end.  The opposing winger slashed Dave across the back of legs as they waited 
for the puck to be dropped.  Dave heard him say, "You're a fucking pussy for 
wearing a cage.  Keep your head up."  Dave was a little surprised by the comment 
but was half-expecting some type of verbal abuse.  All junior players were 
required to wear plastic half visors on their helmets, which covered to just 
below their noses but, because Dave was a midget, he had to wear a full-face 
screen required for minor hockey.

The referee dropped the puck and Willie won the draw back to his defenseman.  
Dave held his opposing winger from getting to the defenseman, so his defenseman 
could get a clean shot at the net.  The Amherst goalie made the save and one of 
his defenseman cleared the puck out of the zone.  

The puck was pushed into the Eagles zone where an Eagles defenseman passed it 
quickly to Willie.  Willie made a move at his own blue-line then snapped a hard 
pass to Dave who was streaking down the wing.  Dave accelerated around the 
defenseman to the outside and was cutting to the net when he saw his winger 
moving in from the far side.  Dave faked a shot on goal, then slid the puck 
across to his teammate who redirected it into the net.  Dave and his line-mates 
celebrated the go-ahead goal with what looked like ice dancing.

Dave's line continued to play well the rest of the second period and Dave 
continued to take abuse from the same opposing player.  On the last shift of the 
period, Dave took a cheap shot from the same goon - the goon cross-checked him 
across the back of the neck.  He and the goon started yelling at each other.  
The goon yelled, "Take off the cage, you chicken shit."

The linesmen separated them, then Dave went to the bench on a change.  The goon 
didn't even get a penalty for his indiscretion.  Dave didn't get on the ice 
again before the horn sounded to end the period.  Dave and his team went to the 
dressing room leading four-two.  As soon as Dave sat down, Metzger, who was 
dressed in a shirt and tie, sat beside him.  He said, "Dave, you have to stand 
up to that asshole.  You can't let him run you like that or every team in the 
league will run you."

Dave looked at Ben and asked, "What should I do?"

Ben replied, "Next time you're lined up beside him, tell him you want to go.  
Tell him that you want both of you to take off your helmets.  Once he agrees, 
wait for the puck to drop -- then move to center ice.  When the fight starts, 
make sure he doesn't grab the sleeve of your throwing hand.  Square off and 
pound the shit out of him.  But also make sure you fight at the start of your 
shift and not at the end.  Never fight when you're tired, unless there's no 
choice."  

Dave nodded.  Brad Rice, nicknamed Ricey, sat down when he heard Ben finish his 
advice.  Ricey added, "After you kick his ass, skate across the ice moving both 
your hands across your waist as if you're putting on the "Championship Belt".  
The fans will hate it and go nuts."  Dave nodded but felt skeptical about hot-
dogging.

Dave looked over at the coach who seemed to be half-listening to the 
conversation.  Mike winked and nodded at Dave.  Dave suddenly felt incredibly 
nervous.  He had never really intentionally fought while playing hockey and 
wasn't sure how he would do.

The third period started with the Eagles taking the play to Amherst.  Dave 
didn't match up against the goon on his first shift.  Willie scored another goal 
with his normal line and Dave was cheering on the bench with his teammates.  
Dave saw the goon for Amherst come off their bench and, as he skated past, he 
began chirping at Dave.  Mike walked behind Dave and asked, "Do you want to go 
on?"

Dave knew his line wasn't due to go on the ice yet, so it was obvious Mike was 
giving him the option to go fight the goon.  Dave could feel his adrenalin 
pumping as he jumped over the boards.  

Dave lined up next to the goon who immediately started in on Dave.  Dave glared 
at him and said, "Let's go, then.  I'll take my screen off, if you take off your 
helmet, too."

The referee dropped the puck and Dave and the goon immediately threw off their 
gloves.  The other players moved to their benches as the two combatants circled 
center ice and removed their helmets.  Dave held his throwing hand back as he 
circled the goon looking for an opening.  The goon finally lunged at Dave and 
they locked up holding each other's shoulder pads with one hand as they threw 
punches with the other.

Dave threw a hard punch at the goon and, just as he felt it connect with the 
goon's cheek, he felt a fist hit his own face just below his left eye.  Dave 
pulled his fist back again, threw it forward hard, and landed another solid 
punch, this time on the goon's nose.  He again felt a fist hit his cheek.  Dave 
took a little longer throwing the third punch as he put all his energy into his 
fist and he aimed at the goon's nose again.  Dave felt a punch to his face just 
as he landed his hard punch right on his target.  Dave was pulling his fist 
back, getting ready to throw a fourth punch when he saw and felt the goon fall 
straight backwards onto his back.  

Dave was pulled forward by the falling opponent, but quickly let go of the 
goon's shirt then he looked down at him lying on the ice.  He was surprised to 
see a glazed look in his eyes as blood gushed from his nose.  Dave skated away 
and immediately saw Ricey jumping around by the glass near the dressing room.  
Ricey was moving his hands across his waist to tell Dave to mimic him.  Dave 
smiled and started to slide his hands back and forth across his waist.  The 
crowd started to boo him even louder and he left the ice to the raucous 
screaming of the Amherst fans.

Ben and Ricey escorted Dave to the dressing room and both were bouncing as they 
congratulated the young rookie.  Dave's entire body was shaking from the 
adrenaline rushing through his veins.  Ben roared, "You knocked him fucking out.  
Great job, kid.  No one in this league will fuck with you again."

After five minutes of pacing around the dressing room, Dave had finally relaxed 
enough to take off his gear.  He stripped down and got in the shower.  The hot 
water felt refreshing as Dave cleaned up.

Dave had just finished putting on his shirt and tie when he heard the horn go to 
end the game.  He sat and waited for the team to enter the dressing room.  Every 
player walked over to where he sat and patted him on the head as they entered.  
After all the players had congratulated him, Ben sat beside him again and 
explained, "After you thumped that goon, the rest of the team just folded.  They 
hardly threw another check and none of them tried anything with any of our 
players again.  We scored two more insurance goals to win seven-two."

The coach came in shortly after the team and congratulated them for winning the 
series in four straight games.  He didn't say anything about Dave's fight but he 
subtly smiled at Dave and nodded.

Dave walked outside the dressing room while the rest of the team changed and 
showered.  He was surprised to see his father and uncle waiting for him.  He 
walked over to them as his dad said, "Great game, Dave.  You played well."  Dave 
thanked him; then his father added, "I'll see you at home."

Roger walked away but his uncle Alan remained and said, "Helluva game, Dave.  
Your father and I were both jumping with excitement when you kicked the shit out 
of that asshole.  Your father will never say it, but he's really proud of you 
for sticking up for yourself.  It was obvious that guy was running you."  He 
turned and looked at his brother walking down the hall, "I better catch up to 
Roger.  I'll see you later."

The bus ride back to the Island went quickly and Dave was surprised when the 
coach sat beside him.  Mike said, "You played a great game tonight Dave.  You 
adjusted well to the change in speed and style.  I'd love to have you finish the 
year with us but I know the coach of the major midget team wants you to play 
with them, too.  I spoke to him this morning because he had planned to call you 
up today but, after all the suspensions we had the past night, he agreed to let 
us have the first call.  Thanks for playing with us; you were a real asset to 
the team."  He paused, then continued in a more paternal tone, "You do realize 
you will get at least a one game suspension for removing your helmet.  You won't 
be able to even play with the midgets until after we play our first game in the 
next round.  Those are the rules."

Dave happily thanked the coach and said he had expected a suspension.  After 
Mike moved back to the front of the bus, Ben sat beside Dave.  He said, "The 
team is going to the Sportsman's Club for a little party to celebrate the win.  
You should come with us."

Dave chuckled, "I'm only sixteen; I'll never get in the bar.  You know the 
drinking age is nineteen."

Ben laughed, "Don't worry about it; Mike's brother owns the bar.  You'll be 
fine, just stay in the background and let us get your drinks for you, okay?"

After the team arrived in Edwardton, Ben asked Dave if he needed a drive.  Dave 
said he did but asked if Ben would stop at his house to drop off his gear.  Ben 
agreed.

Dave entered the house and his parents were sitting on the couch waiting for 
him.  He explained, "The team is going to a bar to have a little party to 
celebrate the win.  Do you mind if I go?"

Carol started to say something but Roger gently took hold of her arm and said, 
"Just don't drink too much.  If you need a drive, call.  Don't ride with anyone 
who's been drinking."

Dave thanked them and hugged both of them before he left.

Dave's first experience in a bar was a real eye opener.  There were a lot of 
young adults in various states of intoxication.  Ben got Dave a beer and he sat 
down with the team.  Dave noticed there were a lot of very pretty girls hanging 
off the players.  Ricey had been sitting beside him but got up to go talk to a 
striking blonde.  

A beautiful black-haired girl sat down where Ricey had been sitting and 
immediately snuggled into Dave.  She looked at him with arched eyebrows and 
said, "I heard you played a great game tonight, Dave."  She rubbed his left 
cheek, "I see you got a little beauty mark."  Dave could feel a little twinge of 
pain as she touched him; he had totally forgotten about the punches he had 
gotten hit with.  

The girl sat with Dave while he had a couple more beers but he soon had to go to 
the washroom as the alcohol started to take effect.  In the washroom he looked 
into the mirror and saw a red welt below his left eye.  He smiled to himself as 
he thought, "Beauty mark, eh?"

As Dave was leaving the washroom, Ricey walked up to him and warned, "What ever 
you do, don't fuck that girl.  She is beautiful but she has been around a lot 
and the rumor is she is carrying some very nasty diseases."

Dave looked at the half-drunk Newfoundlander and replied, "Thanks for the 
warning."

When he returned to his seat, the pretty girl was still there.  She asked, "I 
have an apartment close to here; do you want to go have some fun?"

Dave looked serious and replied, "You're sweet, but I can't.  I have a steady 
girlfriend."

The girl seemed disappointed and eventually left.  Several of the players sat 
with Dave and teased him about how his dick would be falling off if he ever 
balled that girl.  Dave had a few more beers and was feeling pretty drunk when 
the team started to leave.  He was standing by the pay-phone ready to call his 
parents when the owner of the bar walked up behind him.  Dave was expecting he 
might have been in trouble but Gary, Mike's brother, simply gave Dave a taxi 
chit and said, "Here's a chit for a taxi ride home.  The owner of the team 
discretely gives them to me to make sure his players get home safe.  Mike said 
you played a very strong game for a call-up.  He said you remind him a lot of 
your uncle Alan -- only you're better."

Dave thanked him, took the chit and the compliment, and left.  

Dave arrived home at three in the morning.  He didn't enjoy the spinning bed as 
he tried to get to sleep.  Eventually he dozed off.

Dave slept late on Sunday.  He awoke just before lunch.  Dave's head hurt most 
of the afternoon as he tried to shake off his worst hangover ever.  When he 
looked in the mirror, he saw a horrible sight - his little welt had turned to a 
nasty looking black, purple, and yellow mess.  

John called him later that night.  He had heard about Dave's big game and had to 
drive over to see the infamous black eye.  

That week at school passed quickly and Dave was surprised at how many of the 
students wanted to hear all the details of the game.  His nasty looking eye was 
like a trophy and everyone wanted a close look at it.  The coach of the Major 
midget team invited Dave to practice with them and he was pleased to be on 
John's team again.  

By the middle of the week, even Katherine seemed to get more friendly and, by 
the week's end, they were talking again like friends, good friends but just 
friends.

On Friday, Dave went to the first game of the major midgets playoffs as a 
spectator.  They were playing the other island team in the best of five series 
to determine the provincial representative.  The winner would go to the Atlantic 
tournament which produced a single winner to go the national championships.  
Dave had indeed received a one game suspension so he couldn't play until after 
the Junior Eagles team had played one game.  Luckily the Eagles were also 
playing that night, so he would be eligible to play game two with the midgets, 
the next night.

The major midget Islanders lost four-two to their provincial rivals in game one.  
Dave and John went to McDonalds after the game and Katherine was cuddling close 
to Dave as they talked to friends.  Dave wasn't sure what was going on with her, 
especially when she kissed him goodbye as he and John left early due to their 
team curfew.  Before he left, Katherine pointedly asked Dave if he would have a 
car the next night.  He said he would try and get it.

The game the next night went much better.  Dave and John quickly gelled into 
familiar playmakers and they combined for three goals to lead the team to a six-
three victory.  There was no game the next day which meant no curfew.  Dave met 
John at McDonalds and Katherine soon cuddled to his side, again.  He was glad to 
have her friendly persona back but wasn't sure where it would all end.  He felt 
better knowing she knew everything about Jennifer and decided to see what would 
happen.

After spending an hour at McDonalds, Katherine asked to go for a drive.  They 
drove around town for ten minutes then she asked to go parking at the park.  
They were kissing passionately when Katherine pushed Dave's hands between her 
legs.  Dave was surprised and at first was pleased with the new liberties he was 
being allowed.  Katherine suddenly whispered, "Do you want me to take my panties 
off?"

Dave could feel his dick getting hard but something seemed wrong about all of 
this.  He pulled his hand away from Katherine's crotch.  He put his hands on her 
chin, looked into her eyes, and asked, "Why the sudden change of heart?"

A tear formed in her eye, "I thought that, maybe, if I made love to you, you 
would fall in love with me and forget about Jennifer."

Dave's heart broke again as he realized that Katherine was willing to sacrifice 
her treasured cherry to keep him.  He didn't know what to do but he did know he 
wasn't going to make love to her under these circumstances.  He pulled her into 
his arms and hugged her warmly as he thought about what to say.  Eventually he 
whispered, "We agreed we would make love only when both of us were ready.  We 
both know you're really not ready yet.  Making love to me will not change how I 
feel about Jennifer."

Tears were running down Katherine's face, "What do I have to do to earn your 
love?"

Dave held her close, "Nothing.  You have done everything you need to do -- but 
still my heart belongs to Jennifer.  I think you should try and find someone who 
deserves your love and can reciprocate that love.  I wish that could be me, 
because I see how incredibly special you are; but that's impossible right now."  
Dave kissed her cheek, "We should get out of here."

Katherine slowly moved back to her seat as he started the car.  They drove 
around for a little longer but she soon asked him to take her home.  Dave walked 
her to the door and kissed her tenderly, "Good bye, Katherine."  She said 
goodnight and seemed a bit confused as she entered her house.  Dave's rejection, 
soft and measured -- but still a rejection of her offer -- had been unexpected.  
Her opinion of Dave rose when she thought about his strong character and dropped 
when she thought about him turning down her precious gift.

Dave and John continued to lead the Islanders to wins and the team captured the 
Island major midget title in four games.  The next tournament was the Atlantic 
Championships where the Island team had to play against four teams: New 
Dominion, Newfoundland, Nova Scotia and the host team Pictou County, Nova 
Scotia.

The Atlantic Championships were the last week in March.  The Islanders traveled 
to Pictou County by bus on Tuesday.  The scheduled games were New Dominion on 
Wednesday, Newfoundland and Pictou County on Thursday, and Nova Scotia on 
Friday.  The top four teams made a crossover on Saturday with first place 
playing fourth place and second place playing third place.

Dave and John were playing as if they had played the entire season together.  
They anticipated each other's moves perfectly and the third line-mate could have 
been a four year old and he still would have scored.  Five times in the first 
three games, John and Dave cycled the puck in the corner until one of them found 
enough open ice to take the puck to the net.  Each time the other winger, Rudy, 
was parked at the corner of the net and twice he tapped perfect passes into a 
wide open net as the goalie was caught out of position.  

The Islanders won all three games by two and three goal margins and John's line 
accounted for sixty percent of the team's goals.

In game four the opposing team was Nova Scotia, who were the favorite going into 
the tournament.  The game was a hard-fought battle and Nova Scotia squeaked out 
a four-three victory.  Dave scored twice and John added another goal.

The cross-over was set and the Islanders had to play Newfoundland while first 
place Nova Scotia played New Dominion in the other game.

The Islanders took the play to Newfoundland and jumped to an early four goal 
lead.  Dave and John combined for three of the goals.  

The final score was seven-one as the Islanders coasted to an easy victory.  
After the game, Dave was standing in the hallway talking to his parents who had 
driven over for the weekend games.  A stranger walked up to them and asked, "Are 
you Dave MacDonald?"

Dave looked at him and explained, "Yes Sir, I am.  And these are my parents, 
Carol and Roger MacDonald."

The stranger shook each hand, "My name is Arthur Stetson and I'm a scout for the 
Boston College Hockey program.  I am confident you are aware of our strong 
hockey program.  I am here looking for third-year midget players for our program 
next year.  I normally wouldn't consider a second-year player but I have talked 
to my peers at Boston College and I have been given permission to offer you a 
scholarship at prep school in Boston.  The scholarship would be based on you 
playing the following year with our collegiate team.  You have incredible talent 
and we would like you to consider joining our program."

Dave looked at the gentleman with a surprised look.  He had never imagined he 
would have scouts looking at him.  He and his parents spoke to Arthur for ten 
minutes.  Arthur provided them with some documentation on the school and the 
program and said he would get back to them.

After Arthur left, Dave had a long talk with his parents who told him not to get 
too excited about the offer because there was a lot to think about before any 
decision could be made.  Roger also mentioned that golf would likely have to 
take a backseat to hockey if he chose to seriously pursue his hockey career at 
the collegiate level.

Dave's excitement immediately subsided as he realized golf was his true passion 
and he wasn't ready to make that sacrifice.  Dave returned to the hotel with the 
team for supper.  The team returned to the rink after eating to watch the other 
cross-over game.  Nova Scotia won easily which set up a rematch, this time for 
the championship, the next afternoon.

Dave and John noticed there were a lot of pretty girls hanging around the rink 
during the week.  Both had been approached and likely could have followed up on 
the numerous opportunities to have some fun -- but the winner of the 
championship would go to the nationals in Calgary, Alberta.  They didn't want to 
jeopardize that.

After the second crossover game on Saturday, the team returned to the hotel.  
Dave and John were sharing a room, as usual, and both went to bed early, to get 
a good rest.

The Championship game was another hard-fought battle.  John and Dave played well 
and led the team to an early three-one lead only to see Nova Scotia storm back 
in the third.  Nova Scotia scored with five minutes left in the game to take a 
four-three lead.  In the closing minutes, both teams had good chances to score 
but with only thirty seconds left in the game Nova Scotia was still leading by 
the same one goal lead.

Nova Scotia's goalie deflected Dave's hard wrist shot over the glass with 
twenty-five seconds remaining in the game.  After the whistle, the Islanders 
called a time out and the coach setup a play that had the puck go to Dave on the 
point.  The Islander goalie was taken out of the game for a sixth attacker.

After the thirty second time out, the Islanders lined up at the face-off to the 
Nova Scotia goalie's right.  John was centre with Ken Jackson in the left 
defense position while Dave was on the right defense position.  The plan was to 
have John win the draw back to Ken, who would pass the puck over to Dave on the 
opposite point.  Dave would then take a slap shot on goal.  The right-winger and 
the extra attacker would create traffic in front of the net and hopefully Dave's 
shot would find a hole and either go in directly or create a rebound for a 
forward to knock into the net.

John won the draw cleanly, pulling the puck between his legs back to Ken.  Ken 
smoothly slid the puck over to Dave who controlled the puck and looked for an 
opening.  The left-winger moved to the front of the net adding a third offensive 
player to crowd.  Dave pulled his stick back and high above his head.  As he 
started his downswing he saw John gliding towards the net from the far side.  
Dave slowed his swing down, faking the slap shot as he slid a hard pass over to 
a wide-open John.  John one-timed the pass perfectly behind the goalie who was 
slow reacting to the sudden change in direction.  The puck pierced the mesh as 
the red light went on and the Islanders celebrated the tie score.  

After a long and enthusiastic celebration by the Islanders, the two teams lined 
up at center.  Dave skated over to John and whispered, "There's still eighteen 
seconds left.  They look shocked and disappointed by the goal.  Let's see if we 
can catch them with their pants down.  Push the puck between the opposing 
center's legs.  I'll bust away from my winger and see if I can catch their 
defense flatfooted."

As the referee settled between John and the other center, Dave stood beside his 
opposing winger nonchalantly, as if he was just going to casually play out the 
last few seconds before the overtime.  The referee dropped the puck and Dave 
surprised the winger by bolting past him.  John had pushed the puck perfectly 
through the center's legs.  One of the Nova Scotia defense moved towards the 
puck but Dave beat him to it and quickly accelerated around him and across the 
blue-line.  

The other defenseman was skating hard towards Dave.  Dave knew the rushing 
defenseman was the team captain and was the best defenseman in the whole 
tournament.  Dave pretended to try to continue skating straight in on net but 
just as the captain was about to catch him and angle him to the corner, Dave 
stopped hard and cut back towards the captain who couldn't react to the sudden 
change in direction.  The captain skated right past Dave.  

Dave then quickly accelerated again towards the net.  He was now skating in on 
the goalie all alone.  He pulled the puck back to the side of his body and with 
his shoulders, hands, and stick faked a shot before he cut hard to his right.  
The goalie froze, expecting the shot but then tried to slide to his left as Dave 
cut across in front of him.  Dave saw the goalie slide across and knew his only 
hope was a high backhand shot.  He waited as long as possible, to get in just 
the right position, then he roofed a backhander under the crossbar and into the 
mesh on the top of the net.

The red light went on as Dave threw his hands in the air.  John and the other 
three Island players tackled Dave in the corner as they celebrated the go ahead 
goal with four seconds left on the clock.

The five Islander players eventually made their way to the bench where a second 
shorter celebration ensued.

The referee stood at centre ice, blew his whistle and motioned for the Islanders 
to take their positions.  Dave told John and Rudy to make sure they tied up 
their opposing players after the puck was dropped and not even to worry about 
where the puck went.  The referee dropped the puck and the three Islander 
forwards tied up the opposing forwards.  The puck got kicked to the blue-line 
but didn't even get into the Islander zone before the final horn sounded.

The Islanders' bench cleared as all the Islanders' skaters threw their gloves 
and sticks in the air and raced to tackle Craig, their goalie.  The celebratory 
scrum lasted five minutes before the Islanders eventually moved to center ice to 
shake hands with the very dejected Nova Scotia team.

After shaking hands, the two teams lined up on their respective blue-lines to 
receive their medals.  Nova Scotia was presented with silver medals while the 
Islanders cheered support.  Next, each Island player was called forward and 
received his gold medal.  The next award was the tournament MVP and Dave was 
very pleased to hear his name called.  Dave skated forward and received his 
trophy as the fans screamed their appreciation.  Finally the Islanders' captain, 
Ken Jackson was called forward and he received the Championship trophy which the 
entire Islanders team then carried around the ice as the song "We Are the 
Champions" blasted over the loudspeakers.

Dave and John hugged in celebration as they skated around the ice with their 
team.  The team and coaches lined up for a picture before they took their 
celebration to the dressing room.  In the dressing room all the players and 
coaches congratulated each other individually.  Finally the coach stood up on 
the bench and yelled, "Okay, guys, listen up.  You all played a helluva game.  
Great come-from-behind win.  We have two weeks to get prepared for Calgary.  We 
will be practicing four times a week.  Enjoy tonight -- but be ready for 
practice on Tuesday."

When Dave eventually made his way out of the dressing room after showering and 
changing, he was greeted by an onslaught of reporters and other well-wishers.  
He spoke to four reporters and numerous friends and fans.  His parents 
congratulated him briefly before they were gently pushed out of the way by more 
fans.  Eventually Dave's coach pulled him onto the team bus.  Besides the fans 
and reporters, Dave had talked with four more scouts.  Two were from US colleges 
and two from major Junior A teams.  The major Junior A league was one level 
above the Junior A team Dave had played with previously.  Dave thanked all the 
scouts for their interest and took their business cards.

The bus ride home took four hours which gave Dave time to relax and reflect on 
an incredible week.  Dave was looking forward to going west, again.  This time 
he would be competing on ice instead of grass.