Tyler's Treasure

Happily Ever After (Winning The Stanley Cup)

June 2016

Puck on his stick, Tyler Seguin clenched his teeth, fighting the urge to break down ice and try to score. Up 4-0 at this point in the game, now wasn't the time to attack. It was the time to keep the puck out of the Sharks' zone, not give them a chance to score and let them think they had any opportunity to storm back.

Like they really could come back.

Tyler looked up to the crowd where he spotted Arielle sitting, cheering him on. She blew him a kiss. He turned and looked to the other side of the rink and spotted another player in a white jersey with green trim and a huge "star with a D" in the center. Jamie Benn.

Tyler fired the puck toward the tough winger, making sure to keep it just a few inches out of his reach. Jamie made a half-hearted effort to get it. Tyler smiled as the puck banged off the boards and skidded deep into Sharks' zone.

Just like he'd planned it. With Jamie in the area, the linesmen couldn't call icing. Play would continue, and precious time would continue to wind down.

Tyler angled himself toward the Bruins' bench and stepped through the opening. Five new players poured onto the ice, including one wearing the number 43. Valeri Nichushkin. (The real MVP.) Only fitting he should be on the last shift. The guy had been the Stars' best player throughout the season. But honestly, Arielle Reynolds was his MVP.

"ONE MINUTE," the PA announcer's voice echoed throughout San Jose's Arena. "ONE MINUTE REMAINING IN THE PERIOD."

Tyler gripped the edge of the divider in front of him and bounced on his skateblades. His eyes darted back and forth between the ice and the clock on the scoreboard overhead, mentally urging the seconds to go by faster.

Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God. This is really happening.

Tyler's heart raced. Excitement flared inside him like the brightest supernova. This was really happening! The Stars, the team he'd been traded to three years ago from Boston, the team he now played for, was about to win the Stanley Cup. Sure he'd won the cup once before in 2011 with the Bruins, but now he'd won it again and he was happy to be apart of it. He could put to rest the indignity of blowing a three games to none lead to the Anaheim Ducks in last year's Western Conference semi-finals.

Tyler gazed across the arena again, to the section where his family and many of his closest friends sat and most importantly where Arielle Reynolds sat. His throat tightened as he thought of all the adventures, all the tragedy and angst they had suffered. Had things turned out differently, he might not be in San Jose tonight on the verge of winning a Stanley Cup. And neither would the Stars.

Hell, he might not even be breathing. Just kidding.

He looked up at the clock again. Thirty seconds remaining. To his surprise, he wanted time to slow down all of the sudden, he wanted to savor every single moment.

Thank you, God. Could he ever truly put into words how much he appreciated life? He made a career of playing a sport he'd loved since he was a child. And he'd come so close to pissing it all away.

"We're gonna do it, man!" one of his teammates, Jason Spezza, grabbed him by the shoulders and shook him. "We're gonna do it!"

"Hell yeah, man!" he slapped Spezza on the "starry D" in the center of his jersey.

Then he bounced even more as the clock ticked down to 20 . . . 19 . . . 18. He glanced on either side of him. Several other Stars also bounced in anticipation. Lindy Ruff just stood with his arms folded on his chest, though he swore a small smile creased the head coach's lips.