#hockey tough

[mooseheads]

Nate at the 2013 NHL Draft! Can you believe this was 11 years ago?

[adelphenium]

Hi!!! I just wanted to say how much I love the pawkey series and was wondering if you could draw attack dog (or wolf 🤔) Arber Xhekaj! Sorry, I really can't come up with a canine related pun... word play isn't my strong suit 😅

As always I love love every single one of your drawings and if you don't feel like doing this no stress! 🩷

ooh, how 'bout arfur xhekaj! guard dog who's always ready 2 rumble :)⚡

[quentinfiletmignon]

KAREL VEJMELKA 🇨🇿 • ARIZONA COYOTES

A4 • STABILO POINT 88 LINERS & KOH-I-NOOR TRIOCOLOR PENCILS

[larsnicklas]

ARSHDEEP BAINS ✧ 240220 My dad was here, so that means the world to me. [...] He was a little emotional, had a little bit of water in his eyes. That's every kid's dream, to make their dad proud.

[icedbatik]

[sbbarnes]

Hockey Romances. Why?

So I was taken out of work a couple weeks ago due to ~pregnancy stuff~ (mostly just stress, the baby and I are fine) which has left me with a lot of spare time on my hands. And as one does, I have been filling my time reading lgbtq+ romance novels. Because I can.

In this time, I have fallen headfirst into the hockey romance novel subgenre, and I ask myself, as I have done every time I see these books advertised, why? I am not a sports fan. One time, my husband was watching football (European), and a team in red kits was playing against yellow kits, and I started laughing because "it looks like ketchup is playing against mustard". His expression was great, but he hasn't taken me seriously since.

So why is hockey of all things such a draw for the mlm romance subgenre? Especially given the NHL's apparent fear of rainbow tape? Why do I now know what the word "celly" refers to and what an "enforcer" is? Why why why?

Here are my answers:

Extremely organic way to set up some of the most classic romance tropes. Forced proximity? Being on the same team takes care of that. There was only one bed? Shared hotel rooms during away games. Enemies to lovers? Rival teams.

Lots of potential for drama given that players lead very transient lives in terms of the constant possibility of trades. In mlm love stories, even more so given that the NHL is so blatantly homophobic.

Perfect level of fame. Fame and wealth as a draw for a love interest are kind of staples of the genre, and NHL players are famous, sure, but not all of them, and they aren't as famous as football stars (either kind of football). They are still filthy rich, which makes great wish fulfillment. You can have the sexy penthouse and the anonymity.

I would go on to talk about how different roles on the team lend themselves to different tropes (goalie = tightly controlled dude who needs someone to help him cut loose; enforcer = misunderstood fighter with a heart of gold; coach for all your forbidden love/sleeping with the boss desires) but that would very quickly reveal my utter lack of hockey knowledge, so let's not. Instead, here's a quick reclist.

Rachel Reid's Game Changers series. It's a classic in the genre for a reason and it has everything. Forbidden love? Got that, maybe the definitive example. Redemption arc? Got that. Misunderstood bruiser with a heart of gold? Got that. Age difference? Got that. Also really excellent sex scenes, not gonna lie, and satisfying endings throughout - sometimes a happy end will come a little suddenly for me, but these books really delivered, and the nice thing about how romance series are structured is that you get a little peek at what comes after for the couples in the other books.

2. Him, Us and Epic by Sarina Bowen and Elle Kennedy. This one surprised me, I don't generally go for first person POVs, but I did enjoy this! Coming-of-age story turned coming out story featuring a budding hockey star and his best friend. Lots of fun.

3. Scoring Chances series by Avon Gale. This series is fun in that it doesn't focus on the NHL, it actually focuses on the minor leagues in the southeast of the US, a place almost no one associates with ice hockey. As such, there's a chance to tell different stories about professional athletes who aren't super rich and famous, which I appreciate a lot. TBH the first pairing wasn't entirely my cup of tea, but I'm glad I kept going because I especially enjoyed the later books, which tackle tough topics (including eating disorders, abuse etc., so content warning for that). These are still romance novels though, so rest assured that there's a light at the end of the tunnel. What I especially appreciate is that these books don't have relationship drama, in that the main couples communicate and work together instead of a third act break-up-make-up!

4. Hockey Ever After series by Ashlyn Kane and Morgan James. These are just great. Lots of fun to read, lots of cameos from character in later books, just excellent mood all around. Also features my favorite ever trope (secret relationship, sorry, anyone who knows me knows I am a sucker for it I just can't help myself) heavily, which is a win in my book. I especially enjoyed book two, "Scoring Position". Is that because Nico is German and I loved him? Is that because Ryan is my new blorbo? We may never know.

Happy reading and please give me recommendations for more books like these, I'm lowkey obsessed.

[altschmerzes]

today was probably the first really tough day of my career. criminal law, man. guh.

[giganticism]

Jack, Luke Hughes open up about their relationship, Devils overlap, ‘crazy’ Rangers rivalry | NY Post

[seaquestions]

im sick so im feelin weird and bad and emotional cos i wanna do stuff bcos its my day off but instead im just lying here bcos like. i have a headache. and my whole body is so hot. bweh

[hearts4hughes]

Lukey please wear a guard I don’t want you pulling a jack

REAL REAL REAL REAL

jack still hasn’t put on a mouth guard. EVEN AFTER BREAKING HIS FRONT TOOTH

[dineshartshop]

(via "Newfoundland Growlers Fan " iPhone Case for Sale by DineshArtShop)

[3416]

if the leafs lose in the first round after all this fucking uncle ass "this is what we have to do to protect our stars"... sorry but i'll laugh

[larsnicklas]

RASMUS SANDIN on his mother's battle with cancer last year: I'm a big mama's boy, ever since I was a little kid... I found out my mom had cancer beginning of 2022... As a family too, before everything happens, it's kinda like "Ugh, do I need to talk to them today? I'll call them in an hour..." But now, as soon as you get an opportunity, you really appreciate the time you get with your family, and you really think about how much you appreciate it... After [last year], I'm so close to her... I talk to her every single day.

[karda]

HI KARDA!! i still see u on my blog and stuff so often but i havent chatted to u in a bit so!! hi i hope things have gone well for you recently and ily <3!!

hi hearty!!! sorry this sat in my askbox for a bit >_< i see u on my dash a lot too!!!! im doing ok! i hope ur doing well ❤️❤️ ilyt!!

[anxsity]

i really love ovi bc he could be such a cunt with how Legendary he is and the constant praise and stardom and the arena chanting his name every game, but hes first and foremost one of the boys. yes he will hit and yawp and scream nonsense with the boys in the tunnel. yes he will sing a little song for his teammate that rlly just joined the organization. yes he'll hug and yell and call goal scorers babe. yes he will tell the crowd to throw their hats for his teammates first ever hatty. and he'll especially lay on the floor to get the best pic he can of his teammate. he's built like a brickwall but each brick has a little heart on it.

[linskywords]

Shout out to the anons with the Taylor Swift song recs because now I'm ugly sobbing listening to "Sweet Nothing" and thinking of SidGeno. To be fair we did not start off on a good foot because "The Prophecy" and sub Connor had me staring at the wall questioning everything I knew

Oh man, yes, the song connections have been so solid. I already have a fic title lined up from The Prophecy for the Connor fic and one from I Can Do It With a Broken Heart in case I ever write the companion fic about Sid.