#still one more to go LETS GO OILERS!!!!!!!!!!

[catzgam3rz]

God I’m never going to be normal about this hockey team ever again

[snazum]

im so intoxicated rn more in tags

[tonyspep]

walkin' with his head down, i'm the one he's walking to

A/N: this is for the summer fic exchange!!! it started out as something completely different, but here we are. This is for the amazing @laurenairay I really hope you like it and that your summer is going well. This is my first time writing for Quinn Hughes so here's to trying something different. Quinn is so cute, so I hope I did him justice. This was inspired by “Call It What You Want” by Taylor Swift, which is so hurt/comfort to me. So here we are with Quinn being comforted after the game seven loss to the Oilers this year. thank you to @wyattjohnston for hosting this amazing exchange!!

Walkin' with his head down, i'm the one he's walkin' to

summary: the series didn't end the way you or quinn was hoping, but you weren't going to let him hang his head for too long

rating: t

i'm laughin' with my lover, makin' forts under covers

trust him like a brother, yeah, you know I did one thing right

starry eyes sparkin' up my darkest nights

“call it what you want” - by taylor swift

The final seconds ticked away and it was obvious this game wasn't going to end the way you or Quinn wanted it to. He and the rest of the Canucks gave the series everything they had, but McDavid and Draisaitl and company proved to be too much in the end. You felt Brock's girlfriend Bella wrap her arms around your middle, a soft sob escaping her as she rested her head against your back. It was hard for you not to cry, too. The boys had worked so hard to get to this point, they had fought all the way back to take the series lead, only to falter in the most important game and now the off season would be starting.

“I thought they had it,” Bella murmured and you could only nod. You really believed this year was going to be their year. They won the Pacific Divison. They beat the Preadators 4-2 and had home ice advantage in this series, which you knew would be tough, but still..

A tear couldn't help but trickle down your cheek. They had all the pieces to go far, maybe even all the way, and instead they would be packing up their lockers, doing exit interviews and the summer would be starting earlier than any of you anticipated.

“Me, too, Bells,” You agreed with the blonde who had become your best friend since you started dating Quinn just a little over a year ago. The two of you hugged each other tight, watching as the fans made their way out of the arena. You separated from each other after giving each other a kiss on the cheek and went down the steps to the locker room.

Everything seemed to be happening in slow motion as you waited for Quinn to appear. Out came Elias, skull cap pulled over his buzzed blonde hair, flashing you just a brief smile before his handsome face transformed into more of a grimace. JT was not standing tall, but hunched until he was embraced by his family. Brock gave you the best grin he could muster, nothing like his usual sparkling grin that you had come to know almost as well as Quinn's soft smile.

Then came a familiar head of soft brown hair, longer than it was when you first met Quinn in the hallway of your shared apartment building in downtown Vancouver. His head was down, his shoulders slumped, like they were holding the weight of the world. Your heart couldn't help but break. You knew how hard Quinn had worked to get to this point, how he took on the burden of being Captain and how seriously he took the C on his chest. He didn't want the Cup for himself, he wanted it for Brock, for Elias, JT, Thatcher, for Coach Rick Tocchect. He was so selfless and put the team first above anything and everything else.

All you wanted to do was take his pain away, to put the bashfully sweet smile you knew so well back on his face.

“Hey, you,” Quinn gave a weak laugh and there was a hint of the smile you fell in love with on his lips, making your heart lift slightly. “You can really smile you know,” You tease, reaching for Quinn's hand. “I know this didn't go the way we wanted to, but if you don't smile I'll think you're not happy to see me,” You joke and Quinn does laugh, for real this time. “Y/N,” Quinn's voice is tender as he cups your cheek in his other hand. “I'm always happy to see you. If you weren't here right now, I'd be going home to a dark apartment to just sit on my couch and think about all the things I could have done better. Instead, I'm going home with you, which makes this easier than it would be otherwise.”

You flush from Quinn's words. You want this to be easier for him, to ease some of the weight he carries and you think you know just how to do it.

Quinn can see the wheels turning in your head, see the spark that's suddenly taken over your deep eyes. He arches a brow and you kiss his cheek, teasing, “Just wait. I know just how to make this not seem so bad, but you tell me if it's too much, okay? I just want to be here for you, however you want me to be, Quinny,”

His cheeks turn an adorable shade of pink, showing through the playoff beard he's grown. Your heart skips a beat; even a bit run down after a hard fought series, Quinn is still the cutest boy you've ever known. With his big sad puppy eyes, his soft mop of dark hair that curls over his ears, his pink lips and warmly handsome face.

“Relax,” You say as you unlock your shared apartment's front door. “Just sit on the couch, don't do anything except take off your shoes, take a shower if you want, change into something comfy but leave everything else to me, okay?”

Quinn chuckles to himself and gives a joking salute, “Yes ma'am, but there is one other thing I want to do before you do whatever it is you're going to do.”

You blink curiously as you tilt your head, wondering what this one thing could be and then Quinn is touching your cheek, so gently as he presses his lips against yours. This kiss is the sweetest, softest kiss you've ever experienced. You continue kissing each other softly, neither of you wanting to pull away as your fingers sink into Quinn's wonderfully soft, thick dark hair. He nips on your bottom lip, gently, making you moan his name as his other hand wraps around your waist, anchoring you to strong frame.

You break apart out of necessity and Quinn says, “Now I'll go relax and leave you to your surprise,” and you're so tempted to follow him, heat thrumming through your veins, want clouding your thoughts as your eyes follow Quinn until he disappears down the hall.

Somehow you resist the urge, remembering that this night is about Quinn, that even though the game ended in disappointing fashion, you weren't going to let the night end that way.

Flipping through your contacts, you find the one you were looking for and you can only hope you have all the ingredients for the recipe you're planning. Talking to Ellen Hughes feels so much like talking to your own Mom. Her warmth radiates from the other side of the phone as you facetime and you feel relieved that you do have all the ingredients for her famous Kugle, which is Quinn's favorite food.

You're not the best cook but Kugle is easier than you expected. You laugh with Ellen as she goes over the recipe step by step with you and after the casserole goes into the oven, you see Quinn standing in the doorway of the kitchen, looking adorably cozy in a t-shirt and plaid pajama pants.

“Is that my Mom?” He asks, his voice so childlike his big brown eyes lit up with hopefulness and Ellen answers for you saying, “Hi, Sweetie. Y/N just called me. I'm so sorry...” and you leave the kitchen, letting mother and son have this time together, knowing Quinn needs the comfort of his Mom now more than ever.

“You made Kugle,” Quinn's voice is full of wonder as you reappear in the kitchen after changing into something comfortable yourself. “Is that why you called my Mom? So you would know how to make it? I could have helped,” He huffed a little, a pout forming on his beautiful lips, which made you laugh. “I'm the only one of us that knows how to make it. Mom shared her secrets with me,” He's proud, his chest puffing a little and how did you get such a sweet guy to call her your own?

“If you made it that would defeat the purpose of you relaxing,” You shake your head as you and Quinn walk toward each other and share another kiss unable to resist each other.

While the Kugle continues baking, you reveal part two of your of your surprise. After changing into your comfiest outfit – a shirt that used to be Quinn's and a pair of well worn shorts – you set up a fort in the living room with all the blankets and pillows in the apartment. “A fort?” Quinn's eyes are bright like they should always be and you smile just as bright. “A fort,” You confirm. “Figured after tonight you could use something fun like a fort and something comforting like your Mom's Kugle,”

Quinn wraps his arms around you from behind, his chin resting on your shoulder. “I like the way you think,” He kisses your cheek and you blush.

Getting under the blankets, you fire up Disney Plus and land on Toy Story. You know Quinn as well as you know yourself after having been together for nearly two years now and you know how much he loves this movie. Just like if the roles were reversed, Quinn would know to put on Pretty Woman or Tangled.

The familiar credits start just as the oven dings and before Quinn can get up, you push his shoulder gently saying, “I don't think so, you stay right here,” and he knows better to argue with you, so he stays put, laughing as the toys in Andy's room start to move around, letting the audience in that they're alive.

“You're a Toy!” Quinn shouts along with Woody after the new spaceman toy “lands” in Andy's room and you laugh, getting in a few Bo Peep lines and Slinky moments as Quinn can't help but get in the Woody lines before they happen. It's no surprise the cowboy is your boyfriend's favorite and you can't help but remember your first Halloween together this year when you dressed as Woody and Bo Peep to the Canucks party.

You enjoy the Kugle even stealing some of Quinn's who says, “Hey,” and shields his plate from you.

You're snuggled up together as the last credits play, Quinn humming along with “You've Got A Friend In Me.” He kisses you on the forehead and sings in your ear, “Some other folks might be a little bit smarter than I am, bigger and stronger too, maybe but none of them will ever love you the way I do, it's me and you,”

You giggle sweetly as you finish the song with the familiar refrain, beaming up at Quinn, “Boy and as the years go by our friendship will never die. You're gonna see it's our destiny. You've got a friend in me. You've got a friend in me. You've got a friend in me,”

You kiss each other softly, your tongues meeting as your hands move over each other's bodies. Your foreheads come to rest against each other's, your breath coming in soft pants as you look lovingly at each other, Quinn's big hand on your back, his fingers moving over your spine as you sigh, “I love you so much, Quinn,”

His cheeks flush – even though you've been saying I love you for months, it still makes him blush, like he can't believe you love him, which is insane, how can he love you – and your heart flutters like always whenever you're under the stare of his warm brown eyes. “I love you, too. This was amazing; just what I needed after tonight,” He says softly, his voice so tender and honest.

In your fort it's like nothing can touch you here, like, what happened tonight – the devastating loss – didn't happen. You hope you've given Quinn just a little relief, that his heart doesn't feel as heavy as it did when he watched the last seconds tick away or when he was in the handshake line or addressing the team in the locker room after, and the soft smile on his face as he holds you close tells you, you may have done all of that.

The next morning, you wake up in Quinn's arms, the safest place in the world and you smile at how serene he looks sleeping. The worry he carries with him is gone, the lines in his face smoothed away while his long, thick lashes resting on his cheeks. You see the smile creep across Quinn's lips telling you he's awake and his voice, thick with sleep, teases you, “Take a picture it'll last longer,”.

Quinn's humor is sneaky and you poke him in the ribs. “Like you haven't been staring at me too,”

Quinn's eyes open as he stretches and he says, “Can you blame me? I've never seen anyone as beautiful as you,”

“Smooth,” You remark and Quinn laughs. “It's not often, I am,” He admits and after a lazy kiss you find yourself sitting on the stools of your kitchen's island as Quinn makes breakfast.

Last night may not have ended the way both of you wanted, but today was a new day and there would be a new season on the horizon and you would make sure Quinn's days leading up to training camp and then opening night would be the brightest. You wouldn't let him get down on himself or believe he could have done more. You were going to make him believe in himself and believe in the team he had help build up to be one of the best, and that started today.

[youcouldmakealife]

SOTM: Erin/Julius; cosmic vertigo

For the prompt: More Erin and Julius understanding each other on a deep level

“Have you ever thought about the universe?” Julius says.

“I get a headache whenever I do, so I mostly try to avoid it,” Erin says, then, feeling Julius’ eyes on her, “Yeah, I guess. You’ve got to narrow it down a little from ‘literally everything in existence’ for me to figure out what you're getting at, though.”

“How things — change, I guess,” Julius says. “How if something went just a little differently, your life could be completely different too.”

“So like alternate universes,” Erin says, relieved. That’s much less likely to give her a headache. Not unlikely, but thinking about what, exactly, exists past forever? What a constantly expanding universe is expanding into? The last time Erin let herself think about it too long she ended up with a migraine. Possibly a coincidence, but she’s not risking it. That thing lasted two days.

“Yes,” Julius says. “If I was drafted one pick higher, or lower, I would never have come to Edmonton.”

“And you wouldn’t have met Jared, and therefore me, and neither of us would be lying in this bed right now talking about the universe,” Erin says. “Something like that?”

“Something like that,” Julius echoes, then gazes at her for a long moment, not speaking.

“Stop measuring how good a consolation prize I am,” Erin says. Doesn’t matter how great he thinks she is: nobody’s great enough to make up for the pain and suffering of playing for the Edmonton Oilers.

Julius’ mouth quirks, like she’s said it out loud.

“You’re alright,” he says.

“Thanks,” Erin says. “I do my best.”

“Worth coming here,” Julius says.

“Let’s not get too crazy here,” Erin says.

Under the covers, Julius finds where she’s laced her hands on her stomach and prises the nearest away so he can lace his own fingers through it, that hand thief. She likes to sleep like she’s in a coffin and he knows that. Still, she supposes she can lend it to him for a little while.

“Feeling philosophical tonight, are we?” Erin asks.

She doesn’t have to ask why: he’s going back to Finland in two days. Only for a month, before he flies back to Alberta to train with Jared and his buds in Calgary. She doesn’t have to ask why for that either. Dude isn’t going to train in a city he’s never even lived in, a city that hates his guts, just because he misses her brother, though she’s sure Jared would argue otherwise. She won’t make him say it.

“I can come,” Erin says. “If you want me to. I can come.”

Julius blows out a breath. “Next time,” he says.

“Sure,” Erin says. “It’s not — it doesn’t expire or anything. Standing offer. I mean, unless I have something else going on. Then you’re shit out of luck.”

“I will make sure your schedule is clear,” Julius says.

“Thanks,” Erin says. “Thoughtful of you.”

“Would you like your hand back?” Julius says. Erin doesn’t think she’s imagining the reluctance. A month’s not really a long time if the universe is your scale, but if it isn’t, well. It’s long enough.

“That’s okay,” Erin says. “You can have it a bit longer.”

*

So the thing is, when Erin told Julius she’d go to Finland with him, well — it isn’t that she didn’t mean it, because she did, it’s just that she sort of figured that at some point between her saying that and him taking her up on it, she might just spontaneously get past her fear of flying.

Except, fear is such a strong word, isn’t it? She’s fine. She’s been on planes without dying. She even hopped on a plane to see the Canucks host the Oilers — would someone with a lifelong fear of planes do that?

And yeah, sure, it was only ninety minutes, and by the time she quit telling herself that they probably weren't all going to die — but if they did, they better not fuck up and identify her as Bryce’s girlfriend in all the death announcements — they’d pretty much already begun the descent.

Then, once she was done a new recital of how they probably weren't to die — at least they’d better not, because Bryce would feel so guilty about inviting her — they were taxiing to the gate.

And while, like, statistically, that was one of the most dangerous times, like how parking lots and the kilometre around your house are the places you’re most likely to get into an accident, it’s hard to work up the same panic when you’re like, twenty feet in the air instead of twenty thousand.

The flight back wasn’t too bad either, and by the end of the trip, she thought she might have even gotten over that whole fear of flying thing.

She was incorrect.

The thing is, she actually did okay on the flight to Toronto. It helped that it was first thing in the morning, and apparently sleepiness beats out panic, a fact she’s going to be taking advantage of in the future. She genuinely thought she'd reached the other side of it, but the flight to Amsterdam has quickly proven her wrong.

Planes aren’t supposed to shake. And dip! She swears they started to drop out of the sky at one point. Julius said that it was a normal amount of turbulence, but frankly, no turbulence is normal, is it? Sure, it can be a typical amount of turbulence, but normal? They’re in a metal tube in the sky, being thrown around by wind. Erin does not consider any of that to be normal.

“You didn’t tell me you don’t like flying,” Julius says, so quietly Erin can hardly hear him over the almost deafening plane sound nobody else seems to be bothered by. Erin thinks that’s pretty big of him, considering she’s had his hand in a death grip since the turbulence began, and she hasn’t relinquished it even now that it’s finally stopped. In his shoes, she’d probably be going with ‘you know these hands make millions, right?’.

Money that means she’s flying in comfort, if not…comfort. For some reason, Erin thought it’d be easier to deal with things in business class. She doesn’t know why — in a plane crash, the front of the plane is the least likely to survive. But hey, at least Erin got free champagne.

The champagne didn’t help. She hadn’t really thought it would, but she’d been hoping.

“Oh, I don’t know if I’d say I don’t like it,” Erin says. It comes out in a voice she's never heard in her entire life, so perky it’s almost shrill.

“Something stronger?” Julius asks, looking about as disturbed by Stepford Erin as she is. She doesn’t know if he’s talking about the word she’d use or the next drink she should have, but either way the answer's probably yes.

“Do you want your hand back?” Erin asks. It’s not so much an offer as a genuine question, because she’s not sure her hand will unclench for long enough to release it, and she’d probably grab it again the next time the plane started rocking, though maybe she can figure something else out. Grab his thigh or something. It also makes him millions, but it can probably hold up to the abuse a little better.

“You can have it the entire flight if you need,” Julius says. “And for the others.”

Erin’s really, really been trying not to think about the fact there are more flights after this one. Plural.

“Might make it hard to eat,” Erin says. He has the window seat — no fucking way she wants to see just how high up they are, even though she already intellectually knows it — and she’s had custody of his right hand since take off.

“I can figure it out,” Julius says, stroking his thumb over her knuckles. It isn’t quite relaxing — nothing is, right now, not with that damn plane noise — but it’s, you know, not not relaxing, which makes it better than pretty much everything in the world at the moment. It makes Erin’s eyes prickle.

“I know it’s irrational,” Erin says. “I’m well aware of all the statistics, and that it’s safer than basically every kind of transportation. I know. It’s ridiculous. I'm being ridiculous.”

“We can drive,” Julius says. “When we get to Helsinki. We can drive instead. Or take the train.”

Erin tips her head back, trying to keep the tears from spilling. That still leaves Amsterdam to Helsinki, but one flight is better than two. “How long a drive is it?” Erin says.

“Does it matter?” Julius asks.

Erin shakes her head, and when they fall, she swipes at them with her free hand.

“We can drive,” Julius says, thumb tracing back and forth, and Erin focuses on it, the slow sweep of his skin against hers, until the flight attendant comes, asking if they’d like something to drink.

“Champagne,” Erin says. “Please.”

“Two,” Julius says, even though he didn’t even finish his first. “Please.”

“What are we celebrating?” the flight attendant chirps, and Erin stares up at her, unable to muster even a weak smile. Beside her, Julius must be pulling out the ‘dumb fucking question’ face he gives reporters, because the flight attendant says, bright and fake as Stepford Erin, “Two glasses of champagne,” then hurries on to the next seats.

“People,” Julius murmurs, and Erin slides down, twisting in her seat until she can put her head on his shoulder. Probably makes it harder than she needs to, since she refuses to give up Julius’ hand the entire time, but he doesn’t complain, just keeps up the slow sweep of his thumb, and when she finally makes herself comfortable — or, as comfortable as she can, considering the circumstances — he kisses her hair.

“Sorry about stealing your hand,” Erin says. She really hopes he doesn’t think it’s an offer to give it back, because he’ll be disappointed.

“That’s okay,” Julius says. “I don’t need it for my job or anything.”

Erin decides to hold on a little tighter, just for that.

[sergeifyodorov]

Your post of all the first overalls to girl interrupted actively makes me feel crazy. Do you have a ranking of the most compelling first overalls?

cody's list of most compelling (active) (to me) first overalls

21. aaron ekblad (2014.) i don't care for the florida panthers

20. alexis lafreniere (2020). his strongest narrative juices are a) the bust thing (he was a covid baby, it takes time) and b) maybe him also going to rimouski like sid, if you really wanted to pull it out like that. but the two of them have little otherwise connection, so not really

19. owen power (2021) this is a list ranked by compellingness and not cutieness or who i would want to provide most with feminizing hrt against their will

18. nico hischier (2017) even some of the least compelling 1oas are still quite interesting IMHO -- nico is the highest ever drafted swiss player + a very young captain on a basement team + a CHL import. all of which *are* juicy. he just lacks... i don't know, a little extra je ne sais quoi

17. macklin celebrini (2024) invoking the power of "He Literally Just Got Here" for this one. the daddy issues are a powerful offset though

16. ryan nugent-hopkins (2011). the power of the longest-tenured member of a team is quite something. earns points for not being an upper middle class rich boy either

15. nathan mackinnon (2013). controversial to put him so low i know but in my genuine and honest opinion he's way more interesting as a Character than a Part Of The Narrative. crucial divide here. i'm about to talk about slaf's personality making him interesting narratively but they do want their good canadian boys to shut up and take it and nate doesn't rebel against that. all he wants to do is win (accomplished) and fuck sidcros (negligible)

14. juraj slafkofsky (2022) just barely edges out the nuge by virtue of a) the whole First Slovak thing (see nico) and b) his new and upcoming beef with the slovak federation??? what's all that about because THAT'S juice. THAT'S spark. slaf's great because not only are his little circumstances compelling but he's also got such a Personality to him. his little rockstar attitude. his little braces. I will show him where is Slovakia. yessss girl

13. rasmus dahlin (2018). im a dahlin attention payer so he's probably higher than he "should" be but CAPTAIN OF THE BUFFALO SABRES I AM SO SORRY.

12. erik johnson (2006) hugely fascinated by his fall from grace via golf cart, which is not a route most people take. and then of course he was a crucial emotional crux of the avs up until their 2022 run and in my belief a much more important part of their fall from grace post-run than whatever landeskog is doing. and of course any flyer is relevant by nature

11. jack hughes (2019) you cannot deny the hughes are interesting narratively because they are important. he's not as interesting or as important as quinn though so obviously not as high on the list as he might have otherwise been

10. taylor hall (2010) actually super interesting because he has, throughout his entire career, been on one (1) good team (the 2022-23 boston bruins). he has a hart trophy!!! you guys know he has a fucking hart trophy right???? while they were drafting davo et al, he was an oiler. while they were drafting nico, he was a devil, while they were drafting owen, he was a sabre, and when they drafted connor bedard he was a blackhawk. always the bridesmaid, never the bride

9. steven stamkos (2008). there's always something to be said for waiting a long time to get what you want. and then once that goal's been accomplished, they throw you out.

8. connor bedard (2023) Let's Get Generational With It

7. john tavares (2009) brief let's un-get generational with it to talk about mr magic amulet breaking TWO entire playoff round curses as captain, twice. about him choosing toronto. about Him

6. auston matthews (2016) what if you were a vain shy arizona boy who wanted nothing more than to be a star and then they gave it to you and then you immediately had to learn that it's not nearly as good as you thought it was going to be. and you were actually kind of gay the whole time (im biased. this is cody sergeifyodorov's immense toronto bias. be normal)

5. patrick kane (2007)

4. marc-andre fleury (2003) the whole saga of him in pittsburgh AND the whole saga of him in vegas AND the whole saga of him in minnesota (and the brief intermission when he was in chicago) are all massive narrative moments of their own, but to have all of them? to be a goaltender that lucky and that loved for that long? it's not done. it will never be done again.

3. connor mcdavid (2015) I Love It When The Ginger Man Suffers

2. alexander ovechkin (2004) you know i could write essays on ovi. i could write dissertations. people have already done so -- i would not be the first and will not be the last if i join their ranks. i could take about the goals and the record chase. i could talk about the way he's been juxtaposed against the guy who you really should have known going in was going to be number one for his whole career. i could talk about the hunt for 2018, and the long, long time they said he was useless, no matter the record. but i will say after me. after me, i give it to you, baby.

sidney crosby (2005). obviously

[haddonfieldwhore]

bad idea - matthew tkachuk

flames!matthew tkachuk x draisaitl!fem reader

summary: in a bad mood after losing to calgary, your brother is a dick to you. you decide to get back at him with a little bit of help

warnings: mention of injury/fighting, language, implied smut, crying inside that i wrote anything oilers related

word count: 1.8k battle of alberta 2018

in all your years of watching your older brother leon play hockey, you were sure you had never seen a game as rough as this one. you knew it was to be expected; the game was advertised as the ‘battle of alberta’ for good reason, the edmonton oilers and the calgary flames quite literally going to war on each other from the very second the puck dropped. you weren’t the biggest hockey fan, but you rarely got to see your older brother with his busy schedule, and were looking forward to hanging out with him after the game.

it wasn’t even two minutes into the first period before leon laid a huge hit on calgarys matthew tkachuk, the younger player hitting his head on the ice as he landed and leaving the game for the time being.

while you were cheering for your brothers team to win, as were your friends and family sitting in the crowd next to you, you found yourself hoping that the calgary flame was okay. you would be crucified if you said it out loud, but you found the flames player kind of cute, and always enjoyed watching him play; despite the rivalry that seemed to be brewing between him and your brother. your eyes always ended up on him whenever he was on the ice, and you found it hard to look away. you were pretty sure that tkachuk was only a year older than you, and you found yourself breathing a sigh of relief when he returned to the game, seemingly uninjured.

as the game went on, edmonton had a two nothing lead, but after many more fights, (most of them involving tkachuk in some way) and four goals from calgary, the game was over.

‘this is gonna be a fun drive home,’ you thought as you walked out of the stands to find leon. you had to wait for awhile for the team to change and shower, and you were growing tired waiting around for your brother. your friends and family being bummed about the loss was not helping the time go by faster as you stood around awkwardly while they caught up with eachother.

it was around thirty minutes later that leon finally emerged from the hallway that lead to the visitors dressing room, greeting your group unenthusiastically.

“hey,” you replied, and he merely grumbled in response, barely paying attention to the fact that you were there; and it stung. leon greeted your parents and friends without much more warmth but still you suddenly felt invisible as he talked with them and not you. you hadn’t seen him in months, and he couldn’t even say hello properly? and to make matters worse, your parents had already seen him before the game.

“leon-“

“let’s go,” he mumbled, his jaw clenched as he bumped into your shoulder with his, causing you to stumble slightly.

maybe you were being overly sensitive, but no one seemed to notice how cold he was being; either letting it go because the team lost, or perhaps you were just expecting a warmer greeting from your big brother.

you tried to grab his arm to keep up with him as he walked away, but he pulled it away and shot you a glare.

“i know you’re pissed, but it’s not my fault you guys lost.”

“so it’s my fault?” he countered, and you sighed.

“that’s not what i said-“

“that’s what you’re thinking though, isn’t it?”

“no, leon!” you sighed, trying to remember how he was feeling right now. “if i had known you were gonna be such a sore loser i wouldn’t have come.” he had never been this grumpy after a loss before.

“then maybe you shouldn’t have,” his jaw clenched again, and you could tell from his expression that the conversation was over. you stopped walking while he continued down the hall, your parents catching up to you, oblivious to the argument between you and leon.

“you know what, i’m gonna catch up with you guys tomorrow,” you said, faking a yawn. your family had planned to go for dinner after the game while you were all in town. the oilers had a day off tomorrow, and you hoped by then your brother would be in a better mood.

“are you sure, honey?” your mom asked, and you nodded.

“yeah, i’ll just get a cab back to the hotel. i don’t think leon’s really in a celebrating mood so i’m sure he won’t care. i’ll see you guys in the morning,” you said, before hugging your family and watching them leave the saddledome.

you sighed as you stood in the now nearly empty hallway alone, and before you could do the smart thing and actually take a cab home like you said you would, your felt your legs begin to carry you in the opposite direction.

your feet slowed outside of a certain closed door, fiddling with your hands nervously as you lingered outside the flames dressing room. just as you were deciding that the players had probably already left and began to turn back, the door opened.

after one quick look at your jersey, branded with the oilers logo and leon’s number, matthew tkachuk shook his head with a slight laugh.

“i don’t know how you got back here, but if you’re looking for him you have the wrong locker room,“ he said pointing at your jersey.

“and if i’m looking for you?” you replied, and he looked you up and down again, slower this time as if actually taking in your appearance, not just your wardrobe.

“depends why you’re looking for me. if you’re going to stab me or something for beating your team-“ he joked.

“relax, leon’s my brother; you don’t have a security issue,” you laughed, and he smiled slightly. “and i promise i’m not here to stab you,” you raised your hands in surrender.

“that’s a relief,” he laughed, a more genuine smile on his face this face this time, and you realized that he was even cuter in person. his long curls were messy, still slightly damp from the shower, and he stood quite a bit taller than you. his expression changed as the words ‘brother’ and ‘leon’ clicked in his head, and he crossed his arms over his chest, his muscles flexing under his shirt. “so why are you looking for me?”

“i… uh,” you stuttered, not having thought this far ahead. “i don’t know. i kind of felt bad that my brother hit you so hard, but i guess you got him back in the end,” you said, your gaze falling to the floor. matthew had gotten a few good hits in on leon during a fight later in the game.

“well, i appreciate the thought, but i’m okay. and yeah, i guess we’re even; for now.”

“does that mean you wouldn’t be interested in doing something that would really piss him off?” you asked, looking up to meet his blue eyes, his eyebrow twitching upward slightly with intrigue.

“why do i get the feeling you’re hoping i am interested?” he took a step closer, and you could smell his cologne now. “big brother do something to make you mad?” he asked, and you found yourself smiling, despite the fact that he was teasing you.

“that’s irrelevant,” you rolled your eyes playfully, taking a step closer so you were only about a foot apart now as you looked up at him. “besides, i’m thinking as much as i would like to get him back, it’s probably best he doesn’t know what i’m thinking right now.”

“yeah, i’m sure he wouldn’t be too happy to know his sister was waiting for me after the game,” he agreed, his eyes travelling up and down your body again.

“leon and everyone left already. i told them i was going back to my hotel room…”

“will they notice if you’re not there?” he asked. and you shook your head with a smile. “then i think we could make a quick detour first..” he trailed off, throwing an arm over your shoulder and leading you down the hallway. “here, don’t want to draw too much attention to yourself.” he threw his suit jacket over your shoulders to cover your jersey as the two of you snuck out of the arena and to his car.

“embarrassed to be seen with me?” you teased as he opened the passenger door for you.

“i was more thinking about how it might look to the paparazzi if they happened to stumble upon us leaving together.”

“wouldn’t that be the scandal of the season,” you laughed as he started the car and drove out of the parking lot and towards his house.

you were barely inside the door before you were trapped between it and his body, matthews hands holding your waist firmly.

“you sure you want this?” he asked, his hips pressed against yours as you stared up at him. “it’s probably a really bad idea…”

“i thought you liked breaking the rules?” you smirked, placing your hands on his chest and sliding them upwards to tangle in his hair.

“hmm i have been known to do that,” he leaned down to capture your lips with his, and tou tugged on his hair as his hands slid under your jersey, bunching the material up. “either way, edmonton jerseys are forbidden in my house so this has to come off,” he smiled.

•

“so not that i care, but was this just to piss your brother off?” matthew asked as he walked back from the bathroom after getting cleaned up, dressed in just his sweatpants.

“sounds like you care a little bit-“ you teased, covering yourself with the blankets on his bed.

“i don’t!” he laughed, and you shook your head with a smile as he handed you a t-shirt to wear.

“mhm,” you hummed. “i’ll be honest, i’ve thought you were cute for a while. pissing leon off was really just a bonus.”

“good to know you weren’t just using me-“ you threw a pillow at him and he laughed as he caught it, crawling back into bed next to you. “okay, i kind of used you just as much, so i guess we’re even. i do love any chance to make your brother angry, but i think that this might be my new favourite,” he said before he kissed your lips.

“agreed,” you smiled, reaching over to grab your phone as it began to buzz on his nightstand. leon’s name appeared on the screen, and you rolled your eyes as you answered it, gesturing for matthew to be quiet.

“hello,” you said plainly, still a little mad at him despite how good of a distraction you’d had for the last two hours. you could see matthew moving closer in your peripheral vision, and you felt his breath on your ear.

“i’m sorry,” leon said on the phone held to your other ear, and you sighed, your breath catching as you felt kisses up the side of your neck. you froze as matty nibbled at the skin of your throat, leaving a light bruise behind as you tried not to make a noise.

“yeah, you were kind of an asshole. i’m kind of glad you lost, actually,” you said, and it was half true.

matthew had to stifle a laugh as he laid down next to you, covering his mouth with his hand.

“i wish you had come to dinner. we missed you,” leon sighed.

“it didn’t seem like you missed me very much earlier,” you replied. “i’d appreciate if you didn’t take it out on me when you lose.”

“i know, i’m sorry. i’ll see you in the morning?” he asked.

“yes, i’ll be there for breakfast. goodnight leon.”

“goodnight,” he replied, before ending the call. you tossed your phone aside as you hit matthew playfully on the shoulder.

“do you know how much trouble we would be in if we got caught?”

“i thought that was the half the fun?” he smiled, crawling on top of you and kissing your lips.

“maybe i’ve decided i want to live to do this again sometime.”

“i like that idea.”

disclaimer: all screenshots, events, and/or interactions depicted in this are a work of fiction. i have no association with any parties mentioned

[toasttt11]

A

August 28, 2021

Hayden was on a zoom meeting with some of the Edmonton Oilers management team, their coach Dave, Connor and Leon. Hayden was definitely a bit confused why she was asked to be at the meeting but had joined anyways.

Hayden’s brows furrowed when their coach started taking about their third alternate captain, they didn’t have one right now.

“Hayden will be our third alternate captain.” Dave said making Hayden freeze slightly and her eyes widened in shock that is not what she was expecting.

“Really?” Hayden questioned in shock not expecting them to pick her, it is only going to be her third season and she is still the youngest on the team.

“We can’t think of anyone better.” Connor smiled at his computer seeing Hayden’s shocked face.

Hayden may be younger but she doesn’t realize the impact she had on the team, the way she encourages everyone and always pick up slack for anyone when it’s needed.

The coaching team discussed with Connor and Leon about picking their third alternate captain and everyone had the same player in mind.

“Thank you.” Hayden blinked and quickly thanked all of them.

Hayden was told some of the things she needed to know before the rest of the management and coaching team signed off the zoom call leaving her with only Connor and Leon.

“Congratulations Mäuschen.” Leon proudly congratulated her with a proud smirk.

“Thank you.” Hayden smiled at the both of them before she said her goodbyes and they ended the zoom call.

Hayden took a deep breath as she shut her laptop. She couldn’t wrap her head around the fact she got chosen to be an alternate captain.

It meant more than anyone probably realized because her Dad was an alternate captain and he was given his A in his third season too. Her dad always played with an A for the rest of his career and it was something Hayden has always secretly wanted to accomplish too.

Hayden headed down the stairs of the lake house where her family and Trevor and Matt were. The lake house was pretty empty compared to how filled it had been most of the off season.

Trevor and Matt usually spend the most of the time at the lake house than anyone. As Trevor has always been a bit more comfortable being him self around the Hughes/Blake family and Matt can get stressed out in his family’s house and tends to not spend a lot of his and usually spends most his summer time between Michigan especially since he lives in Boston all year now so he’s sees family more.

“Hey how did your meeting go?” Ellen asked her niece as Hayden walked into the living room and she noticed the odd look on Hayden’s face.

“Uh you’re looking at the new alternate captain of the Oilers.” Hayden grinned slightly as she told them.

Ellen gasped, Jack and Luke were immediately beaming, Quinn with a soft proud smile, Jim a proud look on his face, Trevor immediately started cheering and Matt looked at her so proudly and softly.

Luke immediately got up and hugged her so tightly and looked so proud of his sister, “So cool Haydes.” Luke mumbled in awe.

Hayden smiled font and ruffled his curls before Jack pulled Luke away and pulled Hayden into the tightest hug, “Congrats Haydes.” Jack proudly told his best friend.

Hayden smiled in thanks and squeezed him once more and Trevor immediately swept in and spun her around in a hug making her laugh as she held onto him.

Hayden let go of Trevor and hugged Quinn softly, Quinn gently kissed the side of her grand and squeezed her softly.

Ellen waited till the boys besides Matt finished and hugged her niece tightly and pulled back cupping her face, “They would be so proud.” Ellen told Hayden softly making her smile and blink back tears.

Hayden leaned into her uncles warm embrace and Jim pressed a soft and proud kiss to Hayden’s cheek.

Hayden looked over at Matt seeing his proud and soft face looking at her, He opened his arms and she immediately fell into his warm awaiting arms, “Im so proud of you Hayden Lee.” Matt softly mumbled into Hayden’s ear so only she could hear.

Hayden smiled softly leaning her forehead on Matt’s shoulder, Matt was one of the very few people she knew that is taller than her and it’s extremely comfortable for her when she hugs him.

“Thank you.” Hayden whispered softly back to Matt. She closed her eyes enjoying the comfort she always gets from being with Matt.

Ellen watched Hayden and Matt with a knowing smile, Maddison and Ellen have known since Hayden introduced Matt to them that one day Hayden and Matt would end up together.

Ellen knew how much Maddison wanted to see them get together and it made her slightly sad that Maddison would not ever be able to see Hayden and Matt get together.

Hayden reluctantly pulled away from Matt’s warm embrace still leaning against him, “Thank you.” Hayden spoke gratefully to all of them.

“Of course Hayden.” Ellen proudly smiled at her goddaughter, “We have to celebrate!” Ellen clapped her hands together looking excited to celebrate Hayden’s accomplishment just as she is every time she gets to celebrate one of her kid’s achievements.

“Of course.” Hayden titled her head easily agreeing knowing her aunt will always want to celebrate them and could never say no when Ellen gets so happy.

“Perfect! We can go to the country club!” Ellen suggested knowing Hayden always loves eating there especially as she likes the food a lot but also the dinning room at the country club faces the lake and Hayden loves looking out at the lake.

“Okay.” Hayden agreed and watching as Ellen made all the boys go get dressed and not just be in their swim trucks anymore, Matt and Hayden shared a snickering look as they decided to head up to their rooms before Ellen started telling them too.

“Congratulations Hayden Lee, You deserve it.” Matt told her sincerely as they reached the door of her room.

“Thank you.” Hayden softly whispered back as she leaned up and pressed a soft and quick kiss to his cheek before heading into her room.

Matt stood frozen in the hallway as he watched her walk away and his hand went up to his cheek in awe.

[nhlclover]

ATLAS | TREVOR ZEGRAS

summary: your boyfriend comes home after a rough game, only to let his frustrations out on you

warnings: arguing & angst

word count: 0.99k

I turned the tv off after all the Ducks had walked down the tunnel after having given up 6 goals and marking none against Edmonton. The boys were exhausted and frustrated after an abysmal season. I was seeing that firsthand in my boyfriend. 

With every loss, he would come home a little less joyous than the one before. Trevor did a good job at leaving it all on the ice but he’s also the type of person that blames every loss on himself. He carries the weight of every loss on his shoulders, letting it pile up till it becomes too much. That leads to him taking his frustrations out on the ice and being reckless with how he does it. 

I knew it would take a minute for Trevor to get home, so I finished some chores while waiting for his arrival. I was just starting the dishwasher when I heard the door click open and shut, paired with him kicking off his shoes and his backpack dropping to the floor.

I enter the living room where Trevor’s shuffling through, unbuttoning his white dress shirt. He grimaces as he removes it, stretching out his arms. 

“Hi, my love.” I say softly, sitting on the edge of the couch in front of him.

“Hi.” He sighs.

“How was the game?” I ask, even though I know exactly how it went.

“Did you watch?” He asks me.

“Well yeah, of course I did but-”

“Then you know how it went.” He grumbles.

I’m slightly caught off guard by Trevor cutting me off and his curt tone, but I understand where it's coming from. I watch him grimace again as he rubs his shoulder, which I assume is sore from being checked into the boards by one of the Oiler's D-men.

“Are you alright?” I ask.

“Yeah, I’m fine.” He replied sharply.

I sigh, getting up and standing in front of him, delicately placing my hands on his shoulders. “Hey, how about we take a hot bath together? Hmm? I can get the Epsom salts and maybe a couple of candles?” I ask him.

He finally looks into my eyes, but his are tired and slightly frustrated. “I’m just going to take a shower on my own.” He says.

“Are you sure?” I ask, rubbing my hands up and down his upper arms. “I mean you never turn down a bath.”

Trevor suddenly pushes my hands off and steps away from me. “Yes, I’m sure, holy shit.” He said in an exasperated tone. “Get off my back.”

“What the fuck, Trevor?” I ask, not bothering to watch my tone anymore.

“What?” He shoots back.

“Don’t say ‘what?’ like that.” I snap. “I don’t understand why you’re taking your anger out on me.”

“I’m not.” He grumbles.

“Yes you fucking are, Trevor! You’re being so short with me and for what?” I ask. Trevor runs his hands over his face and walks away from me.

“Whatever, I don’t need this right now. I’m going to take a shower.” He mumbles, heading down the hall and into our master bathroom. 

I feel like screaming, but I don’t out of fear of bothering my neighbours. I get that he’s stressed and frustrated, but it doesn’t excuse him being a complete and utter asshole. It feels unfair for his anger to be misdirected to me. When the shower turns on, I walk into our bedroom and prepare for bed. I try to fall asleep before Trevor’s done with his shower but I find myself kept awake by my anger and our unresolved argument.

I hear the shower turn off and a bit of movement in the bathroom before the door opens and Trevor begins changing. I stay still and shut my eyes, pretending to be asleep. I don’t have the energy to argue some more with Trevor tonight, so I hope that his attitude will change by morning.

I hear the drawers of his dresser slide open and shut as he changes into some sweats. He slides into our bed, and his arms snake around my torso pulling me close.

“I know you’re still awake, baby.” He whispers, pressing a delicate kiss to my shoulder. His tone is a stark difference from before, now soft and mellow, a hint of sadness trailing every word. “I’m sorry for how I was acting earlier and how I treated you. That wasn’t fair for you. Shit’s been difficult with work and I took it out on you, but you didn’t deserve that. I’m sorry.”

I let out a breath of air I had been subconsciously holding in, twisting around in his arms to face him. “Lay it on me.” He says, expecting my outburst to continue.

I chuckle softly, brushing his wet hair off his forehead. “I forgive you,” I say, knowing he truly didn’t mean to take it out on me. “But I need you to talk to me. Or Troy, or Jamie, just somebody. It’s not good for you to just let this all bubble up and then lose your temper like this when you get a little bit upset.”

“I know, I know.” He sighs. I pull him close, resting his head against my chest, our legs tangling together. “It’s just so fucking frustrating. It doesn’t matter how much I score if I can’t fucking get back and defend. I’m letting way too many shots get to Gibby or Stolie. And we’re just getting dominated in every game."

“You need to stop putting every loss on yourself,” I tell him. “It’s good to recognize what you need to improve on but at this point, you’re taking on the faults of others.”

He lets out a deep sigh and presses his forehead into my sternum. “I’m so proud of you, you know that right?” I ask him, feeling him nod in response. “I love you.”

“I love you more.” He replies.

[annieqattheperipheral]

Players & team front office responses

The Florida Panthers hosted the league’s first Pride Night in 2013, and the promotion gradually spread across the league until all teams were wearing rainbow-colored jerseys and using Pride Tape during the 2021-22 season without issue. (x)

Oct 2023:

An NHL spokesperson told ESPN that Pride tape had been allowed for years as an exception to its stick tape restrictions, which otherwise would allow players to use only black or white tape. The league said the current ban on Pride tape was to prevent teams and players from using it as an "end around" to violate the new uniform policy.

Stickers and ribbons are also banned from player uniforms, although coaches are allowed to wear ribbons.

...

Commissioner Gary Bettman: "What happened last year was that the issue of who wanted to wear a particular uniform on a particular night overshadowed everything that our clubs were doing. So what we said, instead of having that distraction and having our players have to decide whether or not they wanted to do something or not do something and be singled out, we said, 'Let's not touch that,'"

ESPN

Deputy commissioner Bill Daly: “I think the primary point is that nothing’s really going to change in the sense that our clubs will continue to celebrate these special initiatives and these causes and do a lot of cause messaging around those events,” he said. “The only difference this year is we’re asking the clubs not to employ use of the players on the ice during the game. As you know, probably, we had some issues last year with players feeling uncomfortable in supporting certain causes and we didn’t want our players to be put in those situations going forward.”

Sportsnet

"Game/practice restrictions don't interfere with players' ability to support in other settings. In fact, we encourage them to. (We) just don't want to put other player(s) in a tough spot simply because they don't choose to join."

Toronto Maple Leafs

Morgan Rielly - A

“It’s unfortunate. But I think as players and as people,” Rielly said Tuesday. “We’re going to continue to support those people and those causes that we think need it or are worthy and very deserving of it. Whatever statement was made is fine, but as players, we’re going to continue to offer support and be allies. We want to be a part of this community.”

...

Rielly, for one, won’t be deterred from speaking in support of marginalized groups.

“I wish players had the right to kinda do more and be more involved,” Rielly said.

“I’m going to continue to be involved in the community and offer support to those communities and those groups that want that and need that. As players, we’re going to continue to be involved, pretty much no matter what the league says.”

Brad Treliving - GM

Maple Leafs GM Brad Treliving said that both he personally and the Leafs as an organization have always been supporters of the 2SLGPTQ+ community. Memo or no memo.

“Nothing’s gonna change that,” Treliving said. “We’ll figure out our ways that we make sure that we do the right things and support as we always have and stay true to what we believe in. There’s always challenges in in the world, but that doesn’t affect how we support.”

sportsnet

Mitch Marner - A

“That’s something that I think a lot of people in our organization take pride in and have supported that community for a long time,” Marner said on the Jeff Marek Show Tuesday. “I know I have a lot of friends, I’ve got family, so that’s something close to my heart. I think I’ve said before, but everyone in this world should be able to express themselves as best as possible, and love who they love. They shouldn’t be looked at any differently… It’s unfortunate, but it is what it is. We’re still obviously going to support those communities, and still got a lot of love for them.”

Sportsnet

Edmonton Oilers

Connor McDavid - C

"I've expressed disappointment in not being able to wear the various jersey or the tapes ... whether that's Pride tape or pink tape," McDavid said Tuesday.

"Is it something that I'd like to see back into place one day? Certainly," McDavid added.

ESPN

"In terms of a league standpoint, is it something that I'd like to see put back into place one day? Certainly. You know, but that's not the way it is right now," he told reporters at Rogers Place.

...

"I've commented on this before. I think everyone knows how I feel," said McDavid, a three-time MVP of the NHL.

"I've enjoyed all the nights that we've celebrated here in Edmonton, whether that's Pride night or military night or Indigenous night, all the various nights that we've had and had a chance to celebrate. I've always enjoyed them. I can't speak for anyone else or the league."

Zach Hyman

McDavid's teammate, Zach Hyman, also used the word disappointing when asked about the ban on Pride tape but suggested he won't stop supporting the LGBTQ2S+ community.

"We'll be able to support them individually, but collectively that's out of the players control. Disappointing, but out of our control," Hyman told reporters.

"It's out of our hands. I know personally I enjoyed wearing the Pride jersey, the Pride tape, the military jersey, we had Willie O'Ree night, Indigenous night, all those great things that we support."

CTV News Edmonton

Nashville Predators

Ryan McDonagh - A

"It's a fine line in today's world and today's sports culture," McDonagh said before the Predators faced the Tampa Bay Lightning in their 2023-24 season opener at Amalie Arena. "You want to be your own self, be your own individual, represent yourself. But you also represent your company, your brand and your employer —everybody that you're working for.

"I think it's a work in progress as far as what's right and what's not. Ultimately the individual has the final say. I think that's what you found out last year with guys that made certain stances on things. That has to be continually discussed ... letting people make their own choices."

...

McDonagh said there are other ways players can show support for causes, though. For example, the rule doesn't prohibit players from wearing supportive shirts in arenas.

"Just because I'm not given the opportunity to wear a jersey doesn't mean I can't speak out for something I believe in," he said. "One opportunity closes, another opportunity opens.

"If you feel strongly for something, there's a will and a way to support anything you want in this world."

The Tennessean

Calgary Flames

Mikael Backlund - A

"I mean, it's their decision," said Flames captain Mikael Backlund.

"We're going to support Pride any way we can, other than the tape, and we're going to follow the rules and do what we're told."

Rasmus Andersson

"I mean, it sucks," said Flames defenceman Rasmus Andersson.

"It's something that's close to my heart and something I would love to support but, you know, it is what it is and we've got to find other ways to support it."

CTV News Calgary

Jonathan Huberdeau - A

“I fully supported it, and still support it,” Huberdeau said. “For me personally I still support it, and if I get the chance to do it, I’ll do it.”

Sportsnet

Vancouver Canucks

Patrik Allvin - GM

"Decisions like that, that’s something we follow the NHL, what they recommend,” said Allvin. “I think this organization has done a lot of good things in the community…we will continue to do that. But we definitely follow the league rules and what they’re telling us to do.”

Quinn Hughes - C

"I preached it before, last year in this locker room, this organization, with Pride, will always support that,” said Hughes. “It starts at the top of the organization with the Aquilinis on down. Whether we’re wearing the tape or the jerseys, it’s something that we’ll always support. We may not be doing anything on the ice but we’ll still be doing things off the ice to support it.”

Ian Cole - Canucks’ NHLPA union rep [fr??!]

"I know the reputation that this organization has,” said Cole. “When I came here, it was a really great selling point of this organization — how they approach these things…I think it is very important.”

...

“I think that the NHL wants zero controversy, which inevitably gave them controversy,” said Cole. “Unfortunately, they are the iron fist there and what they say goes…They’re the ones that make the rules. Unfortunately, as employees, we don’t get a ton of say in it. But I really respect and like what the Vancouver Canucks have done.”

[sidenote: this dude's got his own horrendous serious issues (tw: sa) so consider this the worst person you know said something passable. Also he had the NHLPA's support when he was suspended for the allegations so it makes me wonder if he gets at all that they need to take a stand here.]

Vancouver Is Awesome

Winnipeg Jets

Josh Morrissey - A

"It's always been something that I've tried to embrace, the different theme nights and, obviously, the inclusivity around the game of hockey," Morrissey said. "Try and have everyone feel comfortable to either play or watch or be a part of what I think is the greatest game on earth. So that won't change, I guess, as a goal personally to try to grow the game, regardless of what the memo says."

Kevin Cheveldayoff - GM

"I do know that this organization takes great care in wanting to be inclusive and the theme nights," Cheveldayoff told reporters in Winnipeg. "What the specifics of the memos are, I really can't speak to. I don't really have that yet.

"I'll have to obviously get briefed on that a little bit more. But I do know that the commitment from an organization standpoint is we'll do everything we possibly can."

CBC

San Jose Sharks

Anthony Duclair

"I know a lot of guys are supportive of that. I have no problem in the past to do it. It sucks that’s not going to be part of the league moving forward,” Duclair, who has worn both Pride jerseys and used Pride tape on his sticks in previous years, told San Jose Hockey Now. “It’s a little weird to me, a little puzzling to me.”

...

“For me, you’re also banning Black History Month,” the San Jose Sharks winger, of Haitian descent and also an outspoken member of the Hockey Diversity Alliance, opined. “I think we’re taking a step backwards, to be honest.”

...

All these guidelines might affect Duclair, who famously, before Martin Luther King Day during the 2020-21 season, wore skates that featured, per The Athletic, “the letters ‘BLM’ to support the Black Lives Matter movement, a raised fist logo and the phrase ‘Change Hockey Culture.’ The left skate also [featured] the logo of the Hockey Diversity Alliance.”

Duclair isn’t sure if such on-ice statements are now banned during Black History Night.

"That’s something I’ll have to ask,” he said. It sure looks like it though.

But one thing that Duclair knows, the NHL, is once again, falling behind other leagues, by not opening the door for new fans to feel welcome.

“That’s why the NBA, NFL, leagues like that, they’re always growing year after year, always getting new fans, new viewership,” he said.

San Jose Hockey Now

Pride Tape

The Pride Tape team is extremely disappointed by the NHL's decision to eliminate Pride Tape from any league on-ice activities.

The league has used language in recent days which would prohibit the tape from any proximity to NHL Hockey. We hope the league - and teams - will again show commitment to this important symbol of combating homophobia. Many of the players themselves have been exceptional advocates for the tape.

For the last six years we are grateful for the clubs and their players' support and visibility for inclusion in hockey. The NHL's amplification and global influence has been integral to Pride Tape connecting with players, parents, coaches, officials, fans at all levels in over 40 countries.

Seven years ago, Pride Tape was born out of adversity as a grassroots hockey initiative that remains resilient, and optimistic about our plans with hockey clubs, organizations and their partners at every level.

Thank you to everyone around the world who has had the courage to speak up for inclusion and stand up to the idea that Hockey is For Everyone. Despite this setback, we are encouraged for what lies ahead based on our recent conversations from every corner of the sport.

You Can Play

If Hockey is for Everyone, this is not the way forward.

It is now clear that the NHL is stepping back from its longstanding commitment to inclusion, and continuing to unravel all of its one-time industry-leading work on 2SLGBTQ+ belonging. We are now at a point where all the progress made, and relationships established with our community, is in jeopardy. Making decisions to eradicate our visibility in hockey- by eliminating symbols like jerseys and now Pride Tape immediately stunts the impact of bringing in more diverse fans and players into the sport.

We continue to be encouraged by our ongoing work and conversations with individual clubs, where we are working collaboratively to ensure Pride Nights remain vibrant events, providing visibility and a message of inclusion to the entire hockey community all year-round. We know this issue is not within the hundreds of dedicated staff within individual clubs who go to work daily to create a culture of belonging for everyone, everywhere in the hockey ecosystem.

We call on all allies, players, fans, and coaches at every level in hockey to amplify their voices and join us in this important conversation and to remind the NHL #WhyThisMatters. This includes the NHLPA and the NHLCA. Hockey is safer and better when more of us belong.

[drysaladandketchup]

5 mattdrai for the writing meme please

I wasn't entirely sure how I wanted to handle this prompt, but I hope it's still to your liking, anon :)

5. things you didn’t say at all

"Hey."

Matthew really isn't in the mood for this right now. He was having a good time being back home in St. Louis for his first All-Stars, talking to some of the best players in the league, watching the skills competition, going out with the guys, and now the game is in a couple hours--

"Tkachuk."

Yeah, no, he's real. That's Draisaitl yelling at him. Well, he isn't yelling, but since he apparently is so hard pressed to even be around Matthew, it'll probably escalate to that soon.

I'd probably get off the ice.

Even if it was a joke--and maybe Matthew is willing to entertain the idea that it had been, coming from mister 'taken out of context'--it makes sharing the locker room awkward.

The thing is, he kind of likes Draisaitl. Admires his game, anyways, even if he is playing for fucking Edmonton. If Matthew had actually been drafted by the Oilers back then, like he thought, they probably could have been friends.

If he's being honest with himself, he kind of likes Draisaitl beyond hockey, too. Because he'd watched Leon's interviews, checked out his Instagram a little--he was curious, sue him--and because McDavid talks a lot when they're training at Gary's. Also, come on, Matthew's not blind. He hates the concept of him in Edmonton, but it's not fair to say Matthew genuinely hates the guy.

Right now though, this may be the first time he's heard Draisaitl ever actually say his name, and he wishes it was anyone else.

"Hey. Hang on." Draisaitl is in front of him now, stony and unreadable, and only then does Matthew realise like a fool that he has actually stopped. They're face-to-face, alone in one of the maintenance halls, the hustle and bustle of the arena a distant hum.

Matthew stares at him, not unkindly, because his mom taught him some damn manners, but not openly friendly, either. Not until he can get a gauge on what Draisaitl wants. Leon. It's Leon. That feels like the only thing Matthew really knows about the guy, sometimes.

"Did you want something?" Matthews asks coolly, leaning against the bricks with his hands shoved deep in the pocket of his sweater.

Leon glances down the hall, up to the buzzing florescent lights, running fingers through his hair. It's hard not to follow his tongue when it pokes out to wet his lips. Damn it, he has no business looking this good.

"I wanted to talk to you," he finally says, and even after all this time Matthew is still caught off guard by how soft he sounds.

"Talk to me?" Matthew narrows his eyes. "I didn't think you'd even want to be seen with me."

Which is a shame, because they'd look pretty damn good together. In his opinion, anyways.

Leon doesn't take the bait. "I saw that interview you did."

"Buddy, you're going to have to be more specific. I've done a few lately. It's the All-Stars."

"Before the break. I don't remember with who. NBC, I think? They asked you about me. What I said."

He doesn't need to elaborate. Matthew raises a brow, scratches the sudden itch at his neck. The air in the hallway is stuffy and warm.

"What about it? I said you were a great player."

"After that, though."

Leon doesn't need to elaborate on that, either. The intensity of his stare does the job well enough.

What did Matthew say again? I probably can't answer that or he'll get mad at me.

Yeah, because the only thing running through his head when he heard what Leon said was, Well damn that sucks because I wanted to find out if he fucks better than he fights. He remembers biting his lip because his brain unhelpfully supplied him with some tempting ideas that were not exactly family friendly. He's twenty-two, he's got hormones, what's he going to do?

But he was pretty sure declaring he wants to fuck a rival player wasn't going to win him any favours with anyone, let alone Leon. And maybe that comment irked him a little in the moment, but no one's opinion matters to Matthew more than his own. Accidentally outing himself during an interview was not high on his list of career moves, so he'd played it safe, locked it all down, and assumed that'd be the end of it.

"I didn't say anything," Matthew says.

This feels strange. Leon doesn't look pissed, he looks curious. Piqued, like he's waiting to hear something specific.

"I know."

"So what's your problem?"

"What were you going to say?"

Matthew cocks his head. "What, you thought I was going to burst into tears because the German Gretzky doesn't like me?"

Except he knows Leon's not an asshole. Not all the time, anyways. Not off the ice. Which makes it fucking hard to just blow him off.

"You were all over us that game," Leon says. "Kass was pissed. You're a fucking pest, what the hell did you expect me to say?"

"Is this you trying to apologise? Because if it is, you're doing a hell of a job."

"You never hold back on anything."

"Why the hell does it matter?" Christ, it's like Leon is trying to pick a fight.

"You looked like you had something to say." There's a hint of suspicion--of implication--in Leon's voice that makes Matthew tense.

"You think I'm an asshole, so I don't know why you care."

Maybe this is a prank. Maybe he figured it all out and he's waiting for Matthew to break down and declare, I think I could fall in love with you if you let me.

Leon shuts his eyes briefly, shoulders rising and falling as he takes one long, deep breath through his nose.

"I didn't mean it how it sounded."

"Yeah, I heard." Matthew's stomach rolls in ways it shouldn't. "I don't know what other context you want me to take it in, though. It's not even a big deal, anyways. I mean, yeah, it kind of sucks finding out a guy you like thinks you're a piece of shit, but it's whatever, right?"

"I didn't call you--I don't think you're--"

Groaning, Leon thumps his head against the wall and drags a hand down his face. He takes a minute to compose himself, staring up at the ceiling, then down between his feet, face screwed up in thought. Finally, he looks back to Matthew.

"You like me, eh?"

It's been a long weekend; Matthew's too tired to backpedal and try to make up some excuse. Part of him just wants to drop it out in the open and be done with it. Just come out and say, Yeah, the 'I want to take you home' kind of like. The 'I want you to make me scream' kind of like.

Just to see what Leon would do. At the very least, he probably wouldn't punch Matthew. He's not a glove-dropper, after all, and he's not so scary without a stick in his hand.

He tries to imagine Leon's wide eyed, slack-jawed expression. Maybe the little 'Oh' that would slip through his lips. Because yeah, 'Oh' would be about right. It would be the most embarrassing conversation of Matthew's life; more embarrassing than when he came out to his family and Brady asked him to rank his favourite players by 'fuckability'.

"It doesn't matter." Matthew shakes his head, clears his throat, looking anywhere but at Leon. "Look, man, let's just go back to beating each other up on the ice and pretend this never happened, okay?"

"No, hey, don't"--Leon grabs Matthew's arm as he pushes off the wall, fully ready to disappear and never talk about this again--"It does matter. Tell me."

Matthew would rather go dunk his head under the sink and rub the embarrassing flush from his cheeks. He's hot all over, from the beating in his chest to the blood in his veins. Where Leon's touching tingles with an intimacy they've never had. It may be the first time they've touched without the aggression of a game to justify it.

And damn, Leon's looking at him like he can read Matthew's mind, or trying to get Matthew to read a little of his own. It's all heat and intensity and a look that says, I don't think you hate me, and I don't want you to think I hate you.

"What do you want from me?" Matthew says. "Why's this so important to you?"

It's possible he imagines the way Leon's eyes flit down and back. They're pressed almost right against each other now. That must be why Matthew's overheating, struggling to catch a full breath.

"i just want to know..." Leon swallows the rest of his words as he takes half a step closer; a little too close to be innocent. That brick wall of a chest is pressed up against Matthew's arm, nearly crowding him against the wall.

"Know what?" Matthew barely gets the words out.

It's scary to wonder. Ideas are forming in his head--excited, hopeful ones. Matthew won't pretend he's never wondered about Leon; what he could do with him. To him. How his mouth tastes, how his hands feel, what it'd be like having him over and under and around and inside.

And Leon is looking at Matthew like he genuinely cares how he feels. Like maybe, just maybe, he's thinking, too. Wanting.

Wouldn't that just be the biggest fucking drama of Matthew's life?

There's still too much they're not saying.

Neither of them gets the chance.

Something clatters down the hall, followed by the echo of voices.

Leon lets go abruptly, hand dropping to his side. "Shit, sorry. I should, um... Never mind. Just... forget it."

He spins and walks away, just like that, shoulders hunched and hands shoved in his pockets. For a guy who never backs down from a challenge, it looks a little too much like running away.

But it's not like Matthew can call him a coward when he can't even get his own voice to work. Breathless, he slumps against the wall and tries to piece together what just happened, how they managed to say everything and nothing. It feels like he's been through a tornado.

Fuck, he can't deal with whatever this is right now. He cannot be thinking with his dick come game time, let alone worry about whatever the hell his heart is doing.

He stands alone in the hall for a good five minutes, waiting for his nerves to settle, until he finally has the courage to head back, falling into the bustle of players and staff and media.

He avoids Leon in the locker room as best he can. On the ice, too. They don't talk and they keep enough bodies between them on the bench.

Once this is over, they can crack open that can of worms again, figure out what's going on. But there's more important things right now.

They play the All-Star game like they're bitter rivals.

Matthew feeds him a slick pass that turns into a goal.

He skates off without a celly, and Leon gives him a "fuck you" with a smirk and a tongue between his teeth.

But it's fun. Really fun. And despite it all, they're both smiling at the end. Leon's smiling at him.

And Matthew wants to believe that means something.

[fleurywiththesave]

Arranged marriage and mattdrai (or larsdunn you write both wonderfully) ♥

p.s the meet cute one lived up to it's name! Adorable!

thank you so much! i really loved writing that one. hope you like this too!

44. Arranged marriage

"The collar is too tight," Matthew grumbles.

"Maybe it wouldn't be if you stop acting like you were trying to escape from the suit," Taryn snarks.

"You're a literal infant, what are you even doing here?"

"I'm thirteen, you idiot."

"Like I said." Matthew really doesn't think the topic merits further discussion. It's his suit for his wedding and if he says the collar is too tight, it's too tight and needs to be fixed.

His wedding. Jesus fucking Christ.

Their parents had the bright idea when he and Leon were both in still in bantam. Merge two mini hockey dynasties for the future of the sport or whatever. He's not sure if anyone ever asked Leon what he wanted, but they certainly didn't ask Matthew.

He turned eighteen in December. It's May now. In a couple weeks, Matthew will play for the Memorial Cup. At the beginning of June, he and Leon will get married. And at the end of June, he'll be drafted by the Oilers and follow Leon to Edmonton.

Does it even count as being drafted if the Oilers have to take him? Matthew flatters himself that he'd go high no matter what, but sometimes he lies awake at night wondering how things might look different if his professional fate weren't sealed to someone else's. He'll never know what he could have done all on his own.

He knows that's not Leon's fault, but it's hard not to resent him for it. Purely by virtue of being the oldest, Leon is the one whose skill has decided their future. Edmonton.

They've hardly spent any time together, with Leon having spent the last however many years hopping back and forth between Germany and the Canadian prairie and Matthew in St. Louis, then Michigan, then London. Matthew knows almost nothing about his soon-to-be husband. Well, he knows that Leon is gruff and unfriendly, not particularly chatty, and hates smiling.

Or maybe that's just how he is with Matthew.

There's supposed to be a family dinner tonight, after everyone's fittings are done. Matthew's sure it won't be at all awkward. Maybe he can bribe Brady to throw a stink bomb or something so they can all go home early and he can pretend for a little longer that none of this is happening.

No such luck, of course. As soon as they all get to the restaurant, their parents shoo them into some stupid little lounge in the back and won't let any of the siblings in, saying that they need a chance to "get reacquainted" before dinner. Does it count as getting reacquainted if you were barely acquainted to begin with, Matthew wonders.

Leon instantly throws himself onto one of the obnoxiously fancy chairs and refuses to even glance Matthew's way. He looks as grumpy as ever, and keeps checking his watch and tugging on his hair. But even around Leon, Matthew can only stand silence for so long.

"So," he says. "How was your first real NHL season?"

Leon snorts. "Seriously? We're going to talk hockey?"

"Do you have any better ideas?"

"How about we don't talk at all?" Leon suggests icily.

"Is that what we're going to do forever?" Matthew asks. "Not talk at all?"

"Works for me," Leon shoots back. "I might have to marry you, but I don't have to like it."

"None of this was my idea, you know," Matthew snaps. "Everything that's happening to you is happening to me and I don't like it any more than you do, but I also don't plan to be completely miserable for the rest of my life just because my husband is a total dick. So maybe, if you pull your head out of your ass long enough, we can at least figure out how to be teammates, even if we're not going to be friends." Leon looks completely shocked by Matthew's little outburst, but Matthew doesn't give him a chance to respond, just turns around and stalks into the main dining room.

Dinner is...interesting, to say the least. Thank god for Taryn, who can talk to anyone about anything and has the Draisaitls completely charmed in about three minutes. Matthew tries to focus on that, but he's almost painfully aware of the fact that Leon keeps looking at him. His expression is unreadable and eventually Matthew starts to feel like there's not enough oxygen in the room. He manages to mumble out an excuse me before he bolts for the bathroom, where he splashes some water on his face and commands himself to chill the fuck out.

He's not entirely surprised that the door swings open and Leon walks in, looking...kind of contrite, actually, when Matthew makes eye contact with him in the mirror.

"You're right."

"I am?"

"Yes," Leon says. "I was being a dick." Matthew turns around and looks at him warily.

"You say that like it's not your default setting."

Leon snorts at that, but it sounds amused, not bitter like before. "I really am capable of being nice. I know I haven't been, and that wasn't fair. This isn't your fault."

"No shit, Sherlock," Matthew says, but he tries not to make it mean. He must succeed, because Leon doesn't immediately take back everything he just said.

"We should try to make this work. We both want to win, right?"

"We will win," Matthew corrects him, and Leon nods decisively.

"Can we start over?"

He's tempted for half a second to tell Leon to go fuck himself, but that would kind of defeat the purpose of his whole speech earlier, so he shrugs and nods. "Sure."

Leon holds out his hand and Matthew shakes it. His hand is huge and warm, swallowing Matthew's up.

"I'm Leon," he says, mouth quirking up slightly at the corner. For the first time ever, Matthew feels a tiny flicker of hope.

"Matthew."

[notthequiettype]

@okaynowkiss tagged me in a game a while back and i have had it open in a window on my laptop ever since but then vic posted and i was like oh yeah this is a great distraction from me doing my job, just what i needed, ty m!!

Rules: you will be given a word. share one sentence/excerpt from your wip(s) that start with each letter of that word. my word is: NOTE.

four different wips bc ofc and under the cut bc they're excerpts not sentences, also ofc

if you want to play i am giving you the word HOME because o and e were SO HARD for some reason and i also want you to suffer a little

N: "No," Connor says, and shakes his head. "I want-- She's right. If this is gonna work, we have to be a team. I don't want you guys to be strangers. Even if it means you're like... discussing me."

"There's certainly plenty for us to talk about."

"God, shut up," Connor says, flushing across his cheekbones and up his throat. "I get it."

Leon hums and sinks back into the couch a little, spreads his legs more, shorts riding up to show his inner thighs.

"You're so annoying."

"Am I? You don't seem annoyed."

"I am," Connor says. "I also just want you."

"Then have me," Leon says, and tries not to be too smirky about it.

O: Only he-- Davo, has no idea that's coming right now. He remembers now, the strangeness of being in his room in Edmonton while Gaz and Hallsy were on the road one minute and and being here the next, how disorienting it was and how Leon's hand on his shoulder had made him feel so safe, familiar even though it wasn't really, a different Leon, one he didn't know yet.

Connor couldn't remember any of this, not really. He remembered being here and Leon's palm on his shoulder keeping him grounded when he was about to freakout, but everything else was hazy, like he couldn't remember it while he was still living it, and he wondered if he ever would, if once it was over the memories would click back into place. He can't imagine knowing he and Leon would end up here when Leon kissed him that first time, or for all the awful months before it when it felt like he couldn't think about anything else, but thinking about how all of this worked made him feel seasick, so maybe it was better to leave it be.

T: They get into it again at the end of the first, both of them ducking penalties because the period ends, but Connor gets a shove in, the smirk on Draisaitl's face pissing him off more than Connor should let it. He's had guys in his ear and in his face since he was a kid and he has to be better at not letting it get to him now. It's the NHL, if he's lucky, and if he breaks his hand trying to fight again he'll never live it down, especially in a prospect game that doesn't count for anything.

E: "Eisbären, yeah."

"Are you guys any good?"

"Well we're not the Edmonton Oilers."

"I didn't mean it like that," Connor says, and huffs. "I don't know the DEL at all."

"Looking for our fifth title in six years when we get home."

"So pretty good then."

"Pretty good, yeah," Leon says, with a laugh, his whole face going pleased in a way that Connor almost can't stand to look at. Rapidly developing an unbearable crush on a near stranger he might have to play against in the Olympics isn't the smartest thing Connor's ever done, but it could be worse. Probably.

[bropunzeling]

ooh, this looks like a fun game! AU where the Oilers snap Matthew up instead of Puljujavri!

matthew and leon get along really well practically from the start. they're the same kind of annoying, at the heart of it; leon thinks it's funny when matthew pisses off a whole bench, and matthew likes when leon is a smug asshole who just put up 4 points. neither of them are the big guy on the team (how can you be, when it’s connor mcdavid's team) but they’re both hanging out as joint number two. putting up points. causing problems.

but the oilers keep being that little less good than they're supposed to be. they keep falling that little bit - that whole mile - short of expectations. and leon's - it's not to say he's used to it, or resigned to it, but he can work with it. he thinks they can get to a place where they can turn things around.

and he thinks - knows - matthew's gonna be a part of that. sure, the bridge deal isn't as good as an eight year guarantee, but he figures contract negotiations will go fine. matthew's gonna stick around.

more to the point, he wants matthew to stick around. matthew's his friend, matthew gets what it is to be one of connor mcdavid's oilers. he makes the team better. he makes leon's life better, he doesn't want to give up ragging matthew about his shitty taste in tv or competing at golf or hanging out after practice, watching matthew play with his dog. he likes it all. they could do it for another eight, ten years.

and then instead of signing with edmonton in the summer, matthew goes to florida.

leon's had this happen before. friends leaving. but he didn't - this one feels personal, and painful. especially because matthew never let it slip, never even hinted at what he was thinking. it stings, and leon reacts the way he always seems to, which is to get mad, to lash out.

that first game in november he's furious, and upset. seeing matthew on the other side of the ice in the wrong colors, being on the receiving end of his stare or his chirps or his slashes - it just pisses him off more.

and then after, they all have to go out, because of course they do, matthew has to show them his favorite bars, and the win should make leon okay with it all but he isn’t, he's still frustrated and angry without any reason for it, nursing his beer and barely conversing, when matthew comes by and nudges him. asks how he's been, needling and yet sincere. they make stilted conversation, and leon wouldn't be mad if matthew bailed. he knows he's being dickish even if he can't stop.

matthew says, rolling his eyes, i miss you too, asshole. and leon looks at him, and it’s like a camera clicking into focus, matthew's grin and his creased eyes and the warmth of his arm against leon's and fuck, fuck --

of course leon figures out he wants matthew after he's left

[stereax]

I seek your wisdom, o wise one.

Exactly how screwed are the sharks, the flames, and the oilers?

You can't see me but I am RUBBING MY HANDS IN DELIGHT at this ask. Nothing I love more than talking about why teams suck. As always, meet you under the cut! ���

(Also, sorry this took so long! Had to make a presentation on the Chinese Super League for sports diplomacy and it siphoned my will to live.)

Do I have you? Great! Okay. Let's go one by one.

CALGARY FLAMES: CANDLE IN THE WIND

I, for one, never got the hype behind the Flames. Every pundit in the entire NHL was saying "Oh, the Flames are going to have a massive bounceback year, last year was a down year for everyone!" And now look at them. 3-7-1 to start the season with a mere 7 points in 11 games.

Spoiler alert: Trading your best forward in points production to literal Satan for a single corn chip is not going to help you be competitive. Who'd'a thunk it?

In addition, there seems to be a major coaching problem. On theory, this team should be solid. Maybe not top of the league good, but solid enough to make a wildcard spot at least. But you watch the systems at play and they just don't work with the players. For instance, Huberdeau is an east-west player being forced to play a north-south system. He can't do what he does best, make plays, because the current north-south system simply won't allow it. Firing Sutter was supposed to fix this locker room. It only seems to have made the problems worse. Christ, Zadorov is apologizing to the fans because they're playing that shittily.

How screwed are they? Probably a solid 8/10. Markstrom seems to have bounced back, but the team in front of him has not, tanking his save percentage because the defense simply cannot defend. We're being treated to a classic Huberdeau and Kadri Disappearing Act (2-4-6 and -12; 1-4-5 and -12). Mangiapane and Andersson have both gotten suspensions already for no god damn reason. All extension talks (Lindholm and Hanifin chief among them) have been suspended. It's chillingly possible this team will have to sell big at the deadline to get any value out of their expiring UFAs - and then what? You've got a few good pieces (Cary, Sharangovich, Wolf) that can lead your retool, but you've also got anchor weights in massively underperforming contracts, like the aforementioned Huberdeau's, that come with no-move clauses and are just such bad deals that even if those clauses were waived, who'd take them?

EDMONTON OILERS: BULLS ON PARADE

I think if you told anyone in July that the Edmonton Oilers were going to start their season 2-7-1 in 10 games, you would be laughed out the door. And yet.

I do have to preface this by saying yes, McDavid was out for several games, and when you're without the best player in the NHL, it gets tougher to win games. But fuck, man. The Devils are now down BOTH their top six centers for the foreseeable future and yet they're still managing to win games. You know why? DEPTH SCORING. Something that the Oilers have not had since seemingly the 80s. If your game plan revolves so strongly around one guy, chances are you'll be fucked anyway if that guy goes down.

Also, Campbell cannot stop a beach ball in net. Skinner isn't much better. How much of this is the defense and how much is just the goalies sucking? Unclear, but it is NOT a good sign. Although the Oilers mostly work under "outscore your opponent before they outscore you", you want to be able to make SOME timely saves. Neither tendy is giving any hope recently.

And all this can ultimately be traced back to Ken Holland fucking this team over with contracts. Nurse did not deserve that much. Kane is questionable at best. Campbell? Christ. And then you have no cap room to sign actually decent bottom sixers and then wonder why they're getting shelled. Why is Sam Gagner, a random legacy Oiler on a league minimum contract, on your second line? Make it make sense!

The thing is - you CAN win if you have a few guys getting paid the big bucks. Just look at Vegas for an example of that. You CAN'T win if you have a few guys getting paid the big bucks and almost no depth beyond your top line where you stack McDavid and Draisaitl to try to get SOMETHING going. You can't doubleshift those two across the entire lineup. I know, it sucks.

SAN JOSE SHARKS: COLD WATER

How screwed are they? I'll give them a 6/10. We're seeing the "or bust" part of "cup or bust". Can they turn it around? They have McJesus. Anything is POSSIBLE when you have McJesus. But it's not looking pretty, at all. I bet they end up in the wildcard hunt, or close to it. Just enough to maybe make the playoffs but too exhausted to do anything else.

Remember, Draisaitl's contract is up after 24-25. McDavid, 25-26. Will they want to stay in this garbage fire? If one, or God forbid both, ask to be traded, this team better channel the early 2010s and tank hard.

And now we reach the ultimate lolcow. These guys STINK. 0-10-1 in 11 games. .045 points percentage. The only point they managed to get was because Blackwood stood on his motherfucking HEAD in game 2.

But then you have contracts like Hertl, Vlasic, and Couture, which you can't move and which will weigh down the franchise for years while it tries to rebuild. What are you going to do with them? How will you get rid of them?

What's the problem? More to the point: What isn't??? There's zero star power on the entire roster. The defense doesn't know how to defend and the offense can't score against a Shooter Tutor, much less an actual NHL goalie. The goalies... they're trying! I think! Give them credit. And Quinn's trying, maybe, to coach? But when do you kick his ass to the curb too, just to try to put some life back into that lineup? That is the world's deadliest team. It's like hockey is a punishment to them!

FanDuel is running bets on when they will finally win their first regular season game. That's how ass they are. I wish I were kidding.

On top of all this, the locker room seems like it's going up in flames. Remember the Nucks' 10-1 beating of the Sharks? Kahkonen, the Sharks' tendy, got injured after the sixth goal, when Kuzmenko ran into him. Kuzmenko and the Canucks made sure Kahkonen was alright and that it wasn't a major injury. The Sharks? They just went back to the bench!

This unironically is probably the worst team in my lifetime, and maybe for decades before I was born too. They're just so BAD. There's no redeeming reason to watch Sharks games at all except to laugh at the Sharks as they get 10 goals dumped on them.

How screwed are they? 10/10*. I'm sorry, but fucking Zetterlund is leading your team in goals. ZETTERLUND. I cannot name ONE player on that roster who I would send to an All-Star Game. Maybe Blackwood, if he doesn't crumble into fucking dust first. And knowing how injury prone he is, he just might.

But this is a 10/10 with an asterisk. And here's why: * They WANT to be bad. The worse they do this year, the better their chances for Celebrini or whoever is the first overall. That's the idea of the Shark Tank. And if that's the goal, it's being executed perfectly.

There you go, anon! Hope this helps! If you have any more questions, feel free to drop into my inbox! 💜

[hopetorun]

if youre still taking those fic asks i would LOVE to know what leon is thinking in the second winner's room when matthew chooses to suck his dick

sorry this took me so long but here is some pov flip for you!!

January 29, 2020 Rogers Place, Edmonton Flames 4 – Oilers 3 (SO)

Leon’s feet are cold as he shuffles down the hall to the winner’s room. If he had suspected he was going to get tapped tonight, he would’ve taken the time to put on socks. He didn’t really think—it wasn’t his best game, especially with the miss in the shootout, and there’s always the option of picking Connor, or Kass to get the final word in his back-and-forth with Tkachuk.

But here he is, punching in today’s door code—it takes him two tries—and the door swings open to reveal Tkachuk sitting on the bed.

Maybe Leon shouldn’t have made the blowjob so good last time. He knows there’s rumors about Tkachuk, even if he makes a point of not seeming too interested in any of the rumors. About anyone, but especially about Tkachuk.

“Hey,” Tkachuk says. His gaze is unsettlingly even. All he did tonight was let himself get beat up, Leon thinks, and then feels mean for it.

“Hi,” Leon says.

Tkachuk doesn’t say anything else, even though it’s his room and he’s the one who wanted Leon here. He looks Leon over, but there’s no leer in it. Leon squirms anyway, feeling like he might be getting graded. It’s easier to be on the ice with Tkachuk, taking swings at each other or—or making passes. It’s only been a few days since Leon made him laugh, mouthing fuck you even though he knew all the cameras would see.

“What do you want?” Leon asks, because he doesn’t want to think about that any more than he already has.

“What if I want to suck your dick this time?” Tkachuk still has that steady gaze, like this is normal for him. Maybe it is. Leon doesn’t manage to keep his own expression level, surprise showing on his face before he pushes it back down. There’s rumors about Tkachuk, sure, but that doesn’t mean it’s a good idea for Leon to make things obvious. If Tkachuk wants to, though, it’s not like Leon hasn’t ever looked. His sweaty curls, his lips curled around his mouthguard.

Tkachuk raises a single eyebrow and smirks at him. It looks ridiculous. Leon liked his real smile last week better.

“If you’re not game we don’t have to,” Tkachuk says. “I know some guys—”

No one’s ever offered this to Leon before. Even when they’re both—no one has ever used their own room to suck Leon off. He’s never done it either, won a game and then gotten on his knees. He sees the appeal immediately, though. Too many guys in this league think that the only way to be in control is to shove your dick inside someone until they choke on it.

“I thought,” Leon starts, but it doesn’t matter what he thought. He knows what Tkachuk is offering, and it’s Tkachuk’s room to do what he wants with. “Sure, whatever you want.” That’s the way it goes, after all.

Tkachuk takes his sweatshirt off, and his shirt too. There’s still red marks from his pads, and a few smudges that look like they’ll be bruises by tomorrow. Leon does a very bad job not staring. He says something stupid, Tkachuk also says something stupid, and then Leon’s sitting down on the bed and Tkachuk is dropping to his knees. The movement looks comfortable, familiar. Leon has to put a lot of thought into breathing, and it takes him too long to remember that he should take his pants off.

Leon slides a hand into Tkachuk’s hair before he even stops to think that this is Tkachuk’s room. Maybe he doesn’t want to be touched.

But all Tkachuk says is, “Being on this side is more fun when you choose it.” Leon doesn’t pay any attention to what he says in response. Tkachuk’s hair is still a little wet, the curls tamed slightly by the water. He’s rubbing Leon’s dick along his cheek, just barely touching it with his lips. There’s no way this isn’t—he’s absolutely sucking dick outside the room. No one learns these tricks while somebody’s fucking your face to teach you a lesson for being a shithead. And that must happen to Tkachuk a lot.

Leon’s even thought about it. He’s not going to think about it anymore, not when he could be thinking about Tkachuk’s cheeks hollowed around his cock and the long eyelashes he’s looking up through. It’s obscene. His cock is so deep into Tkachuk’s throat. Leon clenches his fist tighter in Tkachuk’s hair, breathing slowly to keep from embarrassing himself. It’s hard to keep his hips still.

Tkachuk’s cheeks are flushed, and his chest is too. Easy to see, since he took his shirt off. He’s into this, and he’s not bothering to hide it. He’s—trusting Leon with that? Leon wants—

He wants Tkachuk to not jerk himself off before Leon can touch him. He pulls Tkachuk off his cock. It makes Tkachuk whine, which is going to feature in more of Leon’s fantasies than he cares to acknowledge.

“What are you doing?” he asks, even though he knows.

Tkachuk says, “Giving you a blowjob?” because he’s apparently always going to be a bit of a shithead. His hand is still pressed between his legs, even if his hips aren’t moving against it.

“That part,” Leon says.

“Saving you the trouble? I have to get off, and if I leave with a massive hard-on it’ll be pretty obvious I didn’t.”

Tkachuk groans when Leon tightens his fist. His lips are so red. Leon wants to touch them. Leon wants to touch him.

“What if I don’t want you to take care of it yourself?”

That puts them on the same page. They’ve both shown their cards. Tkachuk knows that Leon wants to touch him. He can do whatever he wants with that.

“What are you gonna do about it?” he asks, and that’s like he is on the ice, pushing, needling, trying to get a rise out of Leon. He’s so good at it there, and here too, apparently, as he licks Leon’s cock like a fucking lollipop once. Leon definitely does not feel like he’s in control right now.

“Hands where I can see them,” he says, and even when Tkachuk does it, it doesn’t stop the feeling that this is all spinning out of his grasp. And then Tkachuk’s mouth is back on him, and Leon decides there are worse things than being out of control.

[toasttt11]

eliminated

May 20, 2024

Carter shot the puck once more, the goalie blocking it right as the buzzer rang out through the arena.

Carter let out a long breath having felt this way before.

The canucks have just lost in game seven of the second round in the playoffs.

Carter shook her head slowly titling her head back and blinking back the tears that desperately wanted to escape but she couldn’t let them on the ice especially because of the cameras.

Carter looked around the ice seeing the Oilers shouting happily, jumping around the ice on each other with wide smiles etched on their faces.

Carter stomach was in knots as being that close and coming back with two goals and still falling just short, it was devastating.

She looked over seeing Quinn looking spaced out and she could see the quivering of his shoulders knowing he was trying to his emotions for everyone around them.

Carter legs felt shaky as she skated over to her brother and gently tugged on his arm and felt her heart break even more seeing his eyes look heartbroken.

She pulled him into a tight hug and Quinn tightly gripped his little sister as if he was going to disappear without her.

Quinn let a few tears slip against his baby sister’s shoulder knowing no one would know about them except her.

They reluctantly pulled away from each other and Carter quickly wiped off his tears from his face.

Carter stood behind Quinn as they went through the line.

Leon pulled her into a gentle hug, “Good job little one.” Leon softly whispered, Leon and Connor both became close with Carter once she got drafted.

“Thank you Leo, enjoy this.” Carter mumbled and pulled back and was then pulled into another hug by Connor.

“It wasn’t your fault.” Connor reassured her whispering quietly, he knows exactly how she is feeling and wants to make sure she knows it is not her fault.

“Thank you.” Carter squeezed him once more before continuing down the line and finally being allowed to get off the ice.

The locker room was tense and filled of sadness, Carter frowned seeing so many of her teammates in tears.

Carter just wanted to be held by Connor.

Carter was picked for media and headed over to do that, she kept her answers short and blunt not having enough energy to be polite.

She finished media and headed straight to the showers and put the water on the hottest temperature and she did not know how ping she just stood under the water letting her tears finally fall silently.

Carter shook her head turning the shower off and got out slipping back on game day suit and she did not want to do her hair and just scrunched out some water and did not touch it.

Carter saw Quinn dressed and walking around the room talking with some of their team before he finished and walked over to her and they silently walked out of the locker room together.

Carter hopped into the drivers seat of her car as Quinn got into the passenger seat, they had the music off and just drove in pure silence to home.

Carter pulled into their parking garage and they hopped out of the car and walked up to their apartments.

They stopped in front of Quinn’s apartment and he pulled her into a gentle hug kissing the side of her head.

Carter squeezed him once before they pulled apart and sent him a small smile before turning around and walking to her apartment and heading inside.

Cooper came trotting over and quickly rubbing himself all over Carter, “Hey Coops.” Carter softly mumbled petting his head softly.

She walked through her house and quickly got out of her suit and quickly changed into a pair of sweatpants and t-shirt that is Connor’s and turned on her heated blanket and quickly hurrying under her blankets in her bed.

Copper jumped onto her bed and laid down next to her and on Connor’s side.

Carter ignored all the notifications on her phone and pulled up face time and clicked on Connor’s contact.

Connor quickly answered and Carter could see the morning light as he laid in his bed looking like he woke up recently.

“Hi Roo.” Connor softly cooed hating his girlfriend looks so upset, he was also mindful of his roommate next to him who was still sleeping because Connor got up early to watch Carter’s game.

“Hi Connie.” Carter softly mumbled back and felt herself relax hearing his voice and seeing him.

Carter knew there was only one thing that would make the loss in the playoffs feel better, Connor.