#this is not to say that i don’t appreciate the Sidney Crosbys of the world because i do

[simmyfrobby]

i think part of the Min Wild appeal is that they don’t have the written-in-the-stars-first-overall-pick-superstar. there’s no two-headed-monster-like core of inevitable hall-of-famers drafted to the same team at the same time. what you get instead is this 135th overall russian kid discovered by complete coincidence and his 37 year old coworker whose stick is taller than he is. and they’re obsessed with each other.

[malk1ns]

december twenty-two: meeting the other’s parents/family and being nervous

Sidney Crosby, Zhenya thinks as he turns his car’s window defrosters on and sets his seat heater to high, is the best in the world at a lot of things.

Hockey. Managing the media. Charming everyone who ever meets with him in person, no matter how badly they were determined to hate him (Claude Giroux, who is now on Sid’s Christmas card list, being the prime example). Being unfailingly considerate, helpful, and polite. All of these things, Sid excels at.

Something he has not mastered, though, is time management.

He constantly underestimates how long it will take him to get from place to place, and thus schedules things too close together. He can’t remember all his myriad responsibilities without his phone calendar sending him alerts, but half the time he forgets to actually turn the alerts on. There is at least one person in the PR department whose sole job responsibility is to manage Sid’s schedule and ensure he’s going to get to where he needs to be, when he needs to be there.

Sometimes, though, personal obligations slip through the cracks. He’ll forget that he told a friend something while also committing to an event for the team. Sometimes it’s caught in time. Sometimes it’s not.

And that’s why Zhenya is sitting in his SUV, waiting for it to warm up enough so his knuckles don’t ache around the steering wheel, steeling himself to drive to Pittsburgh International Airport to pick up the Crosby clan while Sid is at the children’s hospital distributing presents.

It’s not like Zhenya hasn’t met the Crosbys before. He’s been to dinner with Troy and Trina plenty of times, and when Taylor worked for the team he’d swing by her office to gossip as often as he could. After his conversation with Sid the other night, though, picking up his family from the airport feels more significant than just doing a favor for a friend.

He idles at Arrivals for long enough that the security guard is starting to give him the hairy eyeball, but finally he spots Trina pushing the door open, Taylor and Troy behind her with the luggage. Zhenya flashes his lights so they see him and hops out of the car, tugging his hat down as low as possible to keep incognito.

“Geno, thanks so much for getting us,” Trina says warmly, pulling him into a hug before he can grab any of their bags. “We could have taken a cab, but we appreciate it.”

“No,” Zhenya says, snatching the suitcase from Taylor’s hands and sticking his tongue out at her when she pretends to fight him on it. “No cabs, you’re not wait in the cold. It’s easy drive.”

Troy refuses to let Zhenya take the bags he’s wrangling, and once he stuffs them into the trunk shakes Zhenya’s hand warmly. “Good to see you,” he says with a smile.

Taylor’s claimed the front passenger seat, and when Zhenya adjusts his rearview mirror and catches a glimpse of Troy and Trina next to each other in the middle row, he’s struck again by just how much Sid looks like his parents. The older he gets, the more obvious it is.

“Got a playlist for me?” Taylor asks, picking up his phone as Zhenya buckles himself in. When she lived in Pittsburgh he’d gotten into the habit of sending her the most obscure, ridiculous Russian music he could find, and when she moved he presented her with a CD of all her favorites; ever since then, whenever he has enough compiled, he’s shared a Spotify playlist with her.

“Not today,” Zhenya says, snatching his phone back and scrolling through to the one Sid shared with him at the start of the month. “Sid gives me his Christmas songs, we’re listen to those today.”

“Oh God, he finally got to you,” Taylor says with a mock-groan as Perry Como starts to croon through the speakers. “I guess I should have expected this, considering he—”

“Taylor,” Trina says sharply, and when Zhenya glances back in the mirror, Trina’s frowning at the back of Taylor’s seat. “You promised not to tease.”

“Sorry,” Taylor mutters, shifting and jabbing the seat heater to high.

Zhenya figures it’s better not to ask, especially when Trina catches him looking back and her frown transforms into a pleasant smile in the blink of an eye.

Mothers are always scary, especially the mother of his…whatever it is Sid is to him now. Whatever it’s going to turn into. But as they drive along the highway towards Sewickley, Zhenya’s nerves melt away at the joking and laughter.

It’s not that big a deal after all. The Crosbys are still themselves. Change doesn’t have to be bad.

a series of ficlets based on the prompts in this post—with a few added and modified to suit my purposes :)

december one: A lends mittens to B even though they are way too big but B is blissfully happy and doesn’t plan on giving them back

Sid’s insistence on being the most Canadian Canadian to ever live is gonna kill him one day, Zhenya thinks, watching idly from the bus as Sid subtly flexes his bare fingers after pocketing his sharpie, shifting back and forth on his feet and gamely making conversation with the fans who’d found where their bus was parked at the arena and asked for autographs.

They’d hit the jackpot—everyone was in a good mood after the win, so Jason had the group of three stand near the bus door, and as the team filed in they all paused to sign something, endure a little small talk, and maybe take a picture or two. Even Zhenya had ducked down and done his best to smile naturally for a selfie, trying not to grimace even though his knee was aching at having to crouch so low to get in the frame.

Sid, though. Sid had been last in line as always, darting outside with his curls still wet against his jacket collar, and of course he’d been stuck with the brunt of the fan adoration—and he didn’t have on gloves.

Finally, Sully leans out of the bus door with a smile Zhenya knows is as fake as Sid’s jawline, saying something Zhenya can’t quite make out; whatever it is, the fans disperse, and Sid finally gets on the bus, scowling at the sarcastic round of applause Zhenya leads.

“Fuck you all, sorry for being nice,” he snaps, which is weak even for Sid.

He makes his way unsteadily down the bus aisle, holding onto the seat backs as the bus rumbles into motion; a particularly strong jolt as they go over a speed bump almost sends him toppling into Zhenya’s lap.

Zhenya steadies him, but instead of leveraging him back into the aisle, tugs him down further, scooting over to the window and pushing Sid down into the aisle seat.

“Hey,” Sid protests, but it’s perfunctory, and as soon as Zhenya pulls his hands back Sid relaxes into the seat, curling up a little into himself.

Zhenya opens his mouth, a chirp about how Sid being too bottom-heavy to be so clumsy at the tip of his tongue, but he stops, eyeing Sid’s trembling hands with disapproval.

“Sid,” he scolds, hooking his foot around the strap of his bag and tugging it out from under the seat in front of him, “where gloves? Hair all wet, no hat, no gloves—you gonna freeze. Not smart.” He bends down, splaying his knees out and knocking into Sid’s, pawing through his bag until he finds his own gloves. “Here, put. Stupid, Sid.” He shakes the gloves in front of Sid’s face.

Sid wrinkles his nose and snatches them away from Zhenya, dropping one in his lap and examining the other. “I was fine, G, stop fussing, you’re turning into your mom. It’s warm in here anyway.”

“Put,” Zhenya insists, staring down his nose at Sid until Sid slips the glove on with an aggrieved sigh, tugging it as far down his wrist as he can.

He wiggles his fingers at Zhenya, then jabs his hand into the seat back in front of him. The material collapses until his fingertips hit the seat. “Jesus, your hands are big,” Sid observes.

Zhenya’s glad the bus is warm and he’s still got his coat on—an easy way to explain the sudden rush of heat to his face. Because that’s—Sid doesn’t mean it that way, Zhenya knows that, but when he says it like that, with his voice all low and raspy from yelling during the game, looking at Zhenya from the corner of his eyes, it sounds like a come-on. Zhenya’s heard less blatant lines in the gay bars he sneaks away to sometimes.

Sid’s still looking at him. His cheeks are still pink and chapped from the chill outside, and his hair is curling as it dries. Zhenya swallows, forces himself to poke his tongue through his teeth. “No, is normal, you’re just smallest,” he says, jostling Sid with a sharp elbow.

Sid rocks away, then back into Zhenya’s side. “You can think that,” he says casually, working his bare hand into the other glove. “Thanks, G. I’ll give them back to you later.”

“Okay,” Zhenya says, looking out the window and trying to ignore Sid’s thigh pressed along his like a brand. Sid isn’t cold at all.

[rinkrats]

What stands out about Crosby’s captaincy?

Yohe: Probably how incredible Crosby is with young players. If I had a dime for every time I’ve seen Crosby hanging out with players recently recalled from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton after games or practices, I’d have retired long ago. He has a special way with people and his greatest strength is that, though he’s one of the world’s most famous athletes, he’s almost freakishly down to earth. He literally has time for everyone and treats Evgeni Malkin the same as he treated Dustin Jeffrey. It was the secret to the 2016 championship. The Penguins decided to go young and bring up Bryan Rust, Matt Murray, Tom Kuhnhackl and Conor Sheary. He made them feel at home.

Rossi: The Penguins staged a media event inside the Igloo Club at Civic Arena to officially name Crosby as captain. About a month had passed since their opening-round loss to the Senators in the 2007 playoffs. Crosby, who played that series with a broken foot, showed up in a suit that fit snug. “It’s tight, right?” he said, poking fun at himself. “I haven’t been able to do anything because of the foot. If this is what happens when I don’t work out for a month, I’m probably going to get huge after I retire.” His combination of self-awareness and self-deprecation was startling given everybody in the room had gathered on his behalf. But I’ll never forget the last thing he said to me at that event: “Hey, good luck with the house thing — that’s a big deal.” Somehow, Crosby had heard from somebody that I was headed straight for the closing on my house after covering the event. I vividly remember driving to the closing in my car and thinking how ready he was to wear the ‘C,’ that his recognition of my big moment on his big day was something only a natural captain would do.

Favorite quirk?

Rossi: When Crosby really wants to get a point across, he uses a person’s first name instead of their nickname. Don’t know if this is intentional or something from his subconscious. But it’s rare, sort of private, and probably the thing I’ll remember most about him after everything else.

Gentille: Probably the times he randomly grows a mustache and doesn’t shave for a while. Sometimes, there’s no rhyme or reason — just a dude making a goofy facial-hair decision and sticking with it. Nothing to see here. From a guy who isn’t all that funny, deliberately or otherwise, it’s a window into … something. It’s also possible that he just likes having a mustache from time to time, but I’m choosing to add another layer of intentionality. Also, I know I mentioned it already, but the sandwich thing … putting jelly on top of peanut butter, not on the other piece of bread, is unfiltered insanity.

Yohe: I always enjoy watching him stickhandle on the logos in each building during warmups. You know why? It’s the only time you’ll ever see Crosby act like anything resembling a showoff. I’m not even saying he’s being one. But you could theoretically argue, “He’s got some of the greatest hands of all time, and he’s letting people know.” His work on the McDonald’s logo at PPG Paints Arena is very much the stuff of legend.

Crosby’s future looks like …

Yohe: It’s a tough one to answer because he’s so incredibly guarded in certain ways. But I would suggest he’ll always be involved in hockey, and presumably with the Penguins. He truly does love the game and, though he might take some time away from the game after he retires, I bet it won’t be for long. He comes from hardworking people, and he’s not the type to do nothing the rest of his life. My guess is he’ll play until he’s at least 40, maybe longer if his body allows. Then he’ll join the front office in some capacity, or perhaps ownership. He’s got the money to do it.

Gentille: I don’t think anyone knows, really — and that’s cool. The only guarantee, to me, is that whatever he does, he’s going to want to do. Maybe that’s playing until he’s 40, maybe not. Maybe it’s taking the Steve Yzerman route to the front office, maybe not. Maybe it’s spending a couple of post-career years hanging out in Southern California, maybe not. He’s in control, though. And I’m not sure he’s gotten enough credit for that so far.

Rossi: Here’s what I’ve never heard Crosby say, on or off the record: that he plans to play past his current contract. That being the highest-paid player is important. That he wants to play for another franchise. He has said he appreciates that people in Pittsburgh respect his privacy. He has said that he’d like for him, Malkin and Letang to finish what they started. He has said he doesn’t think about where he’ll finish on the all-time goals and points list. And I’ve never known him to lie, so taking Crosby at his word seems a safe bet. I’d like his future to include fatherhood because there’s a joy to him when he’s around teammates’ children that makes me wonder if what Sidney Patrick Crosby was put on this planet to do just about better than anybody else isn’t limited to playing hockey.

-Sidney Crosby through 1000 NHL games, 18 Feb 2021

[fruitcoops]

hiii i've just spent the last 36-48 hours reading your works and oh dear do i lOVE your writing and this universe :') . i dont know if you are taking requests but i think it would be kinda interesting (and low key hilarious) if you would write the lions reacting/reading thirst tweets? idk if this is a dumb idea or not but just like some of them reacting to them and going "well i'm actually gay/married so.. no!.. but thank you!"

Part two of the six-month celebration, everyone! Thank you thank you THANK YOU to everyone who submitted comments--I had over 60 come in, and while I couldn’t include them all, reading them was a true joy. The Lion Pride channel was something I started writing on a whim; I never expected it to grow like this <3 Much love to all of you!

TW for alcohol mentions and thirst tweets (nothing explicit)

“Why do I always fear for my life around you?” Sirius asked as Marlene settled into a cushy chair to the side of their table.

She smiled, catlike, and crossed her legs primly. “Because only Finn appreciates me.”

“That’s just the Aries connection, Cap,” Finn said with a smug grin.

“We’re both Leos, Harzy.”

“Eh, close enough.”

Remus raised an eyebrow at her. “You should probably start asking questions before this devolves further, Marley. He’s gonna keep digging himself a hole and we won’t get anything done.”

Marlene’s smile returned with a vengeance. “That’s where you’re wrong, Loops! We’re not doing any questions at all today.”

“I don’t believe you.”

“Read it and weep.” She tossed a small posterboard at him like a frisbee; he caught it, barely, though both Talker and Sirius had to duck out of the way. Marlene faced the camera and winked. “Welcome back to Lion Pride, everyone! Today I’m here with Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, James Potter, Thomas Walker, and our wonderful cubs to react to your comments on our videos!”

“Bet you thought we’d never see ‘em, huh?” James asked.

“The comments fall into four categories: thirsty, funny, mean, and sweet. I will be reading two of those groups, and my lovely fiancée will be reading the others because she is the human embodiment of sunshine.”

“If you make Dorcas read the mean ones, I’ll be sad,” Leo laughed.

Marlene gave him a look of disbelief. “You think I’m passing up a chance to roast you guys? Puh-lease. We’re starting off strong with some thirsty, thirsty comments! Loops, you’re up first.”

“This is going to be fun,” Sirius said, leaning back in his chair.

She cleared her throat, then turned a smoldering look on their table. “I didn’t know I had a freckle kink, but then Remus Lupin appeared and now here we are.”

“Oh, shit,” Remus muttered, covering his face with his hands as the others howled with laughter.

“Lupin has been looking sexy as hell on the bench for years now. I'm so glad people are simping over him like he deserves,” Marlene read. “And there’s a little heart emoji, just for you.”

“This is every one of my nightmares come to life,” Remus said, though his voice was muffled by his forearms.

James lifted his glasses to swipe away the tears of mirth that had gathered in his eyes. “Are you kidding? This is everything I have ever wanted.”

“Y’know, it is so good to see people drooling over this hot piece of ass at last,” Finn sighed, reaching over to ruffle Remus’ hair as his face turned bright red.

“One more, and it’s a good one,” Marlene warned. She licked her lips, then had to take a moment to laugh before speaking. “I feel like Remus Lupin is the type of guy to bake you muffins—”

“Accurate,” Leo said.

“—but is also a kinky motherfucker.”

Remus’ mouth dropped open as the table erupted into cheering. Logan pumped both fists in the air and Sirius was laughing so hard no sound came out; Talker sank so low in his chair that only his head and shoulders were visible as he applauded.

“Why do people comment these things?” Remus asked, barely above a whisper. “Holy fuck, I’m engaged!”

“Speaking of…” Marlene raised her eyebrows and Sirius smile drooped.

“Oh, no.”

“Oh, yes. Buckle up, Cap!” She rolled her shoulders out. “Get someone who looks at you the way Sirius Black looks at a hockey puck.”

Remus snorted; James’ laugh was so short and sharp that it set everyone else off as well. “That sounds like I have a hockey puck fetish!” Sirius complained. “Which is so, so not true!”

Finn made an ‘ehh’ noise, and he leaned around Remus to smack the back of his head. “Hey!”

“Next one!” Marlene announced. “Sirius Black was my bi awakening.”

A beat of silence passed. “Is that it?” Sirius ventured, looking nervous.

“Yep.”

“Aw, man, that one’s lame,” Talker said, shaking his head. “Everyone thinks Cap is a little hot.”

Remus shot him a look. “A little?”

“Fair. Marley, I dare you to find one person who wouldn’t tap that.”

She rolled her eyes. “Me, though that dovetails nicely into the last one for our lovely captain. Ahem. I understand why Remus is with Sirius: he's hot as hell and rich, I'd hit that too.”

“Oh, fuck, you’re right,” Leo gasped. “Why didn’t I think of that?”

Finn and Logan turned to him in unison with a mix of disbelief and offense written all over their faces. “Dude.”

“First of all, Leo, you found yourself two hot rich boys,” Remus interrupted. “Second, that comment is forgetting that he’s funny, and smart, and nice, and—”

Seconds after the initial cover, Sirius took his hand off Remus’ mouth as if he’d been burned. “Did you just lick me?”

“Moving on! This is in all caps, so be prepared.” Marlene shuffled through her posterboards and turned to Leo with an ominous smile. He glanced toward the camera in mild fear. “What does a person have to do to get some hockey player ass?! Like why is Leo Knut so fine?!”

“Amen!” Logan called as Leo blushed.

“According to six of the seven people at this table, the answer to that first question is to be a hockey player,” Talker laughed. “The world may never know the answer to the second, sadly.”

“Lily could play hockey,” James said, resting his chin on his hand. Every single one of the others rolled their eyes. “She could! She’d be so good at it, too.”

“We know,” Finn groaned. “You only mention it every other day.”

“Speaking of the lovely Mrs. Potter,” Marlene began with a sly look as she held up a new card. “Do James and Lily Potter need a third? Asking for me specifically.”

James paused, dumbstruck, while the others drummed their hands on the table. “…no?”

A general sigh of disappointment went up. “I was really hoping he’d say yes,” Leo said.

“Ask Lily next time,” Remus recommended.

James turned to him and blinked slowly. “What are you insinuating, Loops?”

“Oh, nothing.”

“Don’t worry, James, you’ll like this one,” Marlene assured him. “James Potter is the ultimate dilf.”

“You’re damn right I am!” James whooped. “Vindication, bitches!”

“Marley, what have you done?” Talker whispered. “He’ll never shut up about that, now.”

“Oh, never,” James all but cackled. “I’m officially a dilf, you guys!”

“I hate you,” Sirius groaned.

“Tremzy, are you ready? We’ve got a couple very special ones for you,” Marlene said.

“Anything to get us out of this hell,” Logan begged.

“In that case: Logan Tremblay’s ass is better than Sidney Crosby’s. I said what I said.”

A pleased flush rose to his cheeks as Finn and Leo high-fived over his head. “Really? Thank you!”

“And they would be correct!” Finn announced. “Best ass in the league.”

“Come on,” Remus scoffed, though he was smiling.

Marlene cleared her throat to get their attention. “I don’t think I can legally read this on air without being censored or getting the video taken down, but…”

She turned the board around; all seven of them leaned forward to read it, then slowly looked at Logan, who turned vivid red. “Mon dieu. Is that—someone commented that on a video? Like, for people to see?”

“I feel like I need to bleach my eyes,” Sirius said just as Finn began shaking with silent laughter.

Leo’s face fell. “You wrote that, didn’t you?”

“I did,” Finn wheezed, scooting forward to fist-bump Marlene. “We wanted to see what you guys would say. Fuckin’ hell, your faces.”

“Alright, Talkie, are you ready?” Marlene asked around her laughter. “Seeing Thomas Walker with a baby makes me want to have his babies…please hit me up.”

He held up his index finger and took a second to laugh before responding. “If that’s Noelle, yes. If that’s anyone else, I’m flattered, but absolutely not.”

Logan made a face. “Ew.”

“We have two more,” Marlene warned. “For some very special people that aren’t here today, but I think you’ll like them anyway.”

Sirius narrowed his eyes. “I don’t trust the look on your face.”

“Daddy Dumo makes me swoon.”

A muddle of horrified noises echoed through the studio as all seven of them cringed. “Oh, my god, that’s my dad!” Logan yelped, covering his ears. Sirius looked vaguely ill and Remus’ shoulders crept toward his ears; James shuddered.

“The worst part is, we all know he can get it,” Finn said with a grimace. “God, I feel like I just heard someone talking about my parents having sex.”

“I’m sure he’ll love to hear that,” Marlene laughed. “Last one, from one of our truth or drinks.”

Remus went pale half a second too late. “N—”

“Hope Lupin is a milf.”

A broken noise escaped his mouth and he clamped his hand over it while Talker rubbed his back in sympathy. Sirius shook his head. “Somehow, that’s worse than Dumo’s.”

“Whoever sent that in, show some respect!” Leo said indignantly as Remus bonked his forehead against the table. “Hope Lupin is a lovely woman!”

“I think they noticed that particular fact,” Marlene pointed out, earning herself several scandalized shouts of her name and a whine from Remus. “That’s all we have for thirst comments! Are you ready for some funny ones?”

“Anything,” Remus pleaded. “I am begging you, anything else.”

Marlene shook her head as she stood, still smiling, and kissed Dorcas on the cheek when she entered the frame. “Go for it, love.”

“Dorcas!” they all cheered, lighting up immediately.

“Hey, guys, it’s been a while!” She curled up in Marlene’s vacant spot and took her own posterboards out from underneath the seat. “Alright, let’s rock and roll. Pascal Dumais is the team dad and nothing will change my mind, and Tremzy is the annoying youngest child.”

“That is so accurate,” Sirius laughed, leaning just out of range of Logan’s playful punch. “Whoever commented that has no idea how right they are.”

“We’ve got a whole sibling dynamic thing going on,” Talker agreed. “Tremzy’s the baby of the family, Cap is the quietly chaotic middle child, and Pots is the older brother that starts shit and inevitably gets blamed for however out-of-control it gets.”

Dorcas nodded. “You are one hundred percent correct. In a similar vein: Pots was the dad jokes friend before he was even a dad.”

“Painfully so,” Leo confirmed, shaking his head as they all groaned in agreement. James looked rather smug about the whole thing. “So many puns.”

“Oh, you’ll like this one,” Dorcas mused as she drew a new card. “If Tremzy looked directly into my eyes for even two seconds, all of my problems would be solved. I am sure of it.”

“Yes,” Finn and Leo said in unison.

“It’s something about the eyes, I think,” James added. “They just stand out so much that it’s a little startling straight-on.”

Logan looked to the camera and stared at it, unblinking; it zoomed in slightly on his face. “Everything will be fine,” he said with mock solemnity. “Your problems are solved.”

“Well, that was terrifying,” Sirius said drily. “Got any more for us, Ms. Meadowes?”

“Of course I do! We’ve got quite a few for Loops and Leo.” She took a sip of her water before getting comfortable again. “My favorite thing about these videos is that we can all see Loops get steadily buffer as the season goes on. Good for you, king!”

“Flex! Flex! Flex!” the six of them chanted; Remus rolled his eyes, but slid his sweater sleeve to his elbow and flexed his forearm, resulting in enough hoots and hollers that they could probably be heard a block away. Talker fake-swooned into Leo’s arms and Remus lightly whacked him on the shoulder.

“Remus Lupin looks like he has squishable cheeks,” Dorcas read aloud.

“He does!” James cooed, scooting over and reaching out.

Remus narrowed his eyes. “I swear to god I’ll bite you.”

Sirius cupped his face between his palms and kissed his nose, then pinched both his cheeks gently. “Ta-da!”

“How many of these do we have?” Remus asked, though his voice was a bit muffled by Sirius’ hands.

“Just one more for you, and it’s my personal favorite.” Dorcas assured him. “I love how the team probably had no impulse control until Loops joined.”

Sirius let go of his face and dissolved into laughter as Finn nearly fell on the floor. “Oh my—you think he has impulse control?” Talker slapped the edge of the table as he shook his head. “Absolutely not. Hell no, Loops is the first person to do stupid shit with us.”

“Yeah, I just don’t get caught,” Remus added around his own laughter. “Everyone thinks I’m such a hardass goody-two-shoes and it lets me get away with so much more than you delinquents.”

“Speaking of delinquents,” Dorcas continued. “This one is from our ‘Taste Testing Sexy Alcohol’ video: ah, yes, now I know how to do a body shot. 10/10, very educational video.”

“Do not take educational advice from us,” Finn blurted instantly. “I know this is a joke, but please exercise caution. That video was a ton of fun but a nightmare to recover from.”

Sirius winced at the memory. “I took two naps and then wished for death for a full day.”

“On a lighter note, who’s ready for some Knutty appreciation?” Dorcas smiled at her cards. “I've only had Leo Knut for a season and half, but if anything happened to him, I would kill everyone in this room and then myself.”

“Big mood,” four of them said simultaneously.

Leo turned to the camera with a concerned look on his face. “That’s a meme reference, but are y’all okay?”

“No,” Dorcas answered. “Especially not this next person: Sometimes I do something productive and then I remember @LeoKnut is a 19 year old professional athlete who radiates happiness and with two of the hottest boyfriends the good lord has made, and then my bowl of packaged ramen seems less impressive.”

“I’m proud of your ramen,” Leo said, even as the corners of his mouth twitched in a smile. “And I appreciate the note about my boyfriends, because they are definitely the hottest people the good lord has made.”

Talker stuck his lip out in a pout. “Rude.”

“Sorry, Talkie, I’m biased.”

“Last one before Marlene comes back, so you’d better enjoy it!” Dorcas announced. “Did the Lions effectively utilize girl power when they wrecked toxic masculinity, yes or yes?”

“Can we utilize girl power?” Remus wondered, resting his shin on his hand. “Isn’t that exclusively for, y’know, women?”

“We can utilize himbo power,” Finn suggested.

James gave him an offended look. “Not all of us are himbos!”

“Okay, but you definitely are.”

“I am not!” James held up his fingers to count. “There are only, like, three qualifications, right? I might be strong, hot, and respectful, but I’m not dumb so it doesn’t count!”

“Pots,” Remus said quietly, hiding his smile for half a second. “Buddy, that was four things.”

James paused, then sighed in resignation. “Ah, fuck, I’m a himbo.”

“You really are.”

“At least we don’t promote toxic masculinity.”

They raised their waterbottles in a ‘cheers’ motion as Marlene and Dorcas switched spots; Marlene stretched her arms over her head and grabbed the new boards. “I’m back, beloved himbos. Talker, Leo, you are beloved by the people and have no mean comments. Cap, we’re starting with you.”

“Are they actually mean mean?” he asked.

“Sirius Black seems like a little bitch. Not in a bad way, necessarily. He just. Seems like he'd be a little bitch."

Sirius raised his eyebrows. “Oh, okay. That answers one question.”

“He’s not a little bitch,” Leo said. “Pouty on occasion, but not a little bitch.”

Remus gave him a long look, then shook his head. “Yeah, I mean, you teared up a little when Hattie got a splinter in her paw but didn’t even yell when you almost sliced your finger off while making dinner.”

“Duality of man,” Finn said sagely.

Marlene cocked an eyebrow. “Finn O’Hara’s hair kind of reminds me of Garfield the Cat.”

“Alright, that’s just rude.”

“It does not!” Logan gasped at the same time Leo made a noise of agreement.

Finn turned to him in utter betrayal. “Nutter Butter, I thought you liked my hair!”

“I do!” Leo defended. “But they’re not entirely wrong. It’s very orange in the sun.”

“I’m never going to forget that,” Finn muttered, staring at the floor.

“Ugh, it bothers me so much that Lupin just objectifies Black all the time!” Marlene read in a high-pitched, nasal voice. “No respect in that relationship!”

Sirius raised his eyebrows. “Pardon?”

Marlene stared at it for a moment, then shrugged. “Yeah, I have no idea what videos they were watching. Do you feel objectified in your relationship, Cap? I know the opinion of total strangers really bothers you a lot.”

“I’m really glad you picked up on that,” he said with false gravity. “Yeah, it’s such a bummer when my hot fiancé says I look nice. Such a blow to my self-esteem.”

“That was supposed to be a roast against me,” Remus said, looking amused. “Talk about backfiring.”

“Are you ready, Pots? This one’s pretty brutal,” Marlene warned. James nodded and Finn linked their hands for moral support. “James Potter is a swiftie and you cannot tell me otherwise.”

He furrowed his eyebrows. “…yeah? That’s true? T Swift is a regular occurrence on the locker room playlist.”

“Also, James Potter looks like someone who would think black pepper was spicy.”

“Now that one is mean,” he complained as the others burst out laughing.  “It’s not my fault I have sensitive taste buds!”

“Oh, honey,” she said under her breath as she took a new card. “Get ready, Tremzy. This first one is short and sweet: Logan Tremblay looks like a lesbian.”

“That is not an insult,” Logan laughed. “Every lesbian I know is rad as fuck. I wish I looked that good in a leather jacket.”

“I just realized Logan doesn’t look short cause he’s next to bunch of hockey players, he’s short cause he’s 5’9.”

The smile slipped off his face in a millisecond as the others roared with laughter. “Quoi?”

“Oh, she got you good,” Sirius gasped, patting his shoulder clumsily. “Holy fuck, can I frame that?”

“That’s not what it says.” An edge of distress appeared in Logan’s voice. “Marley, that’s not what it says.”

James sat on the floor with the heels of his palms pressed against his eyes. “You’re fucking—whoever sent that in, you are my new favorite person. Jesus.”

“Do you need a second to recover before we move on?” Dorcas asked as she draped her arms over the back of Marlene’s chair. “The next one is our biggest section by far.”

“It’s the sweet ones, yeah?” Leo asked.

“Right.”

“It might be a good idea to do those before Lo spontaneously combusts.”

“Agreed!” She swapped with Marlene and hauled a short stack of posterboards out from their hiding place with a smile. “A hug from Dumo can probably solve any issue.”

“Facts,” Logan said. “I could really use one right about now, too.”

“Has anyone noticed how blue Leo Knut’s eyes are?”

“Yes,” the six of them chorused.

Finn gave him a dreamy look. “Every single day.”

“When I first read this one, I thought I wrote it,” Dorcas said with a snort. “Someone give Marlene a raise. No reason why, I just love her.”

“Can we do that?” Sirius asked, looking toward the camera crew. “Can we lobby to give you guys raises? Because you definitely deserve it after all the bullshit you deal with to make these videos watchable, and Marlene, you’ve drawn the short end of the stick ninety percent of the time.”

“How?” she called off-screen.

“You have to actually talk to us and try to get answers.”

“Fair.”

Dorcas finished scribbling something down on her notepad. “Just making a note of this conversation for future reference. Moving on! Sirius Black and James Potter are a prime example of hockey husbands, and I adore them.”

“The ironic part of that is that we’re both in committed relationships, but we’re basically married,” James mused.

Remus shook his head. “You guys are so married. Lily wanted to get you matching rings for your birthday, Pots.”

“That would be so cool!” they said in perfect unison. Remus turned to the camera and spread his hands in a case in point motion.

Dorcas stifled her laughter before moving on. “This one is cute. Give Remus Lupin all the hugs! I feel like I could tell him he’s an inspiration and he’d be so nice about it—” She paused to glance up at them. “—this next bit is in parentheses: all the LGBT Lions give me that vibe, but Cap and Knutty are super intimidating so I wouldn’t have the guts.”

Leo’s face fell and Sirius’ eyebrows pitched. “I’m not intimidating!” Leo protested. “I thought we already went over that! Loops gives fantastic hugs, but I want some, too.”

“He definitely deserves all the hugs in the world, but I promise I’m nice,” Sirius said, a bit softer than usual. “Is it because we’re tall?”

Dorcas half-shrugged. “Probably. It’s a little startling at first. Oh, I could’ve written this one, too: The Venn diagram of men I trust and the Gryffindor Lions is a full circle.”

Talker beamed at the camera. “Thank you!”

“So many hockey guys are such douchebags,” Logan said with a shake of his head. “I’m really glad we don’t do that shit.”

“Me, too.” Dorcas slid her old card under her chair. “Sirius Black’s hair looks so soft and I just want to touch it so bad.”

“It is so soft,” Remus agreed immediately. “You have no idea.”

“Everyone wants to touch Cap’s hair,” Finn said, sighing. “It’s so majestic.”

“I need a haircut.”

“No, you don’t,” Remus said as he tugged a stray curl. Sirius hummed.

“This one is from the interview some you did with Jules and Katie: these hockey boys being so soft with kids is my aesthetic! Like, it’s just so adorable to see these big, intimidating dudes be so, so sweet! Love them all!” She turned the card for them to see. “And then they added a heart at the end.”

“It’s impossible to be around those kids and not be happy,” James said. “They’re just too cute and wonderful.”

“Yeah, I love kids.” Finn nodded. “Especially the Dumais and Jules. They’re a hoot.”

“Jules would die if he heard you say that,” Remus laughed. “The hero worship is still going strong with most of you.”

“This one made me laugh when I first read it, but it’s really sweet,” Dorcas informed them. “Anyone else feel like we were deceived these past five years into thinking Cap was this hard-ass man, when in reality he's a cuddle bug who definitely captures and releases spiders instead of squishing them?”

“You weren’t deceived, I was just closeted,” Sirius said. “Also, I absolutely squish spiders.”

Remus gave him a look. “No, you do not. That’s my job. I’m the catch and release person if I can get away with it.”

James shook his head. “The third week of practices you saw a spider and threw me at it.”

“You did what?” Finn asked.

“There was a spider in my stall,” Sirius sighed, looking as if he would rather be anywhere else. “And Pots and I were talking so I didn’t see it until I almost sat on it, and my brain decided the only logical thing to do would be to grab him and shove him toward the spider.”

“That was after you shrieked,” Talker added. “Like, literally shrieked. I’ve never heard anyone make a noise like that.”

“Alright, alright,” Sirius grumbled. “We get it, I don’t like spiders.”

Remus shrugged. “But you are a cuddle bug. They got that part right.”

“We’re in the final two!” Dorcas announced. “This one has some pictures to go with it, so it’s on my phone. Fuck Romeo and Juliet, I want what these bitches have.”

“It’s us!” Leo cooed as the phone made its way down the line. In the upper corner of the screen, the photo appeared—it had been taken in New York, and Logan’s whole face was alight with happiness as Leo and Finn each pressed a kiss to his cheek. The camera caught him mid-laugh, so his eyes were closed and his chin was tucked slightly into Finn’s Strand hoodie.

“That’s my screensaver,” Finn said with a grin, pulling his phone out and turning it toward the camera without moving away from Leo. “One of my favorites.”

“I forgot you took that one,” Logan murmured. He hooked his chin over Leo’s shoulder and kissed his cheek; the four others at the table gave soft are you seeing this? looks to the camera and Dorcas smiled.

“Pots, I think yours is next. I hate to break it to you, Talkie, but they didn’t get any of you and Noelle.”

“We don’t take a ton of pictures together,” Talker said as James took the phone. “I mean, we take a bunch of selfies, but we don’t live close enough to each other to actually post that often. What picture is it, J?”

James was staring down at the picture with an unbearably sweet expression. “It’s our wedding. That’s my favorite one, actually.”

Like Logan, they had been captured while laughing—Lily was bent slightly at the waist as James clapped, his glasses just as askew as the flower crown on her head. It was impossible to tell who had told the joke originally, but they were both radiant in the sunset.

“That’s a really good one,” Sirius said with an unreadable look on his face.

“Well, well, well, fancypants, you two got a video.” James wiggled his eyebrows and Remus leaned in to see.

“What kind of video? One of our tikt—oh. Oh, this is so cute.” He shifted his chair over as the short edit began to play. “D, who made this?”

“A fan.”

“It’s really impressive,” Sirius said without taking his eyes off the screen. The edit was a series of photos, both on and off the ice; Sirius knocking their helmets together, then Remus looking back over his shoulder, then both of them in the water playing chicken in the sun. It was a slideshow of their life and their love.

“Can you send that to me?” Remus asked when it was over. “Cause that’s super cool.”

“Sure thing. Are you guys ready for the last one?” When they all nodded, she drummed her fingers on the posterboard and cleared her throat. “Arthur appreciation hours. He deserves it after managing to control the team.”

A cheer went up—all seven stood and applauded, half-laughing and half-whooping. “Miracle worker!” Sirius called.

“Best coach in the league!” Finn added.

“Most tolerant man to ever walk the earth!” Remus raised his water in a toast and they tapped the plastic edges together, nearly spilling all over the table.

Dorcas’ eyes crinkled in a smile as she turned to the camera. “That’s it for today, Lions! Tune in next time for more content of our boys, and thank you for such wonderful comments!”

[myhockeyworld87]

Not So Dangerous Liaison - Sidney Crosby - Part 22

Word Count: 2,440

POV: Sidney’s

Warngings: Language

Notes: So it’s been a hot minute for this story. Sorry about that guys, but thank you for being patient with me. As always love your feedback and Happy Reading!

Not So Dangerous Liaison Masterlist

You couldn't believe that (Y/N) just wanted to up and go to Pittsburgh without even thinking about telling you. Well, she actually did tell you; it's just she'd made all the plans without giving any thoughts about what you wanted, and that's what aggravated you the most. She could've at least wanted you to drive her to the airport, but no, she'd simply called your sister to have her do it instead. It was going to be almost a month before you were able to see her and that just wasn't acceptable.

You were driving around in your car, not knowing where you were going until you landed at Nate's house. It was probably for the best that you didn't head to your parents, for they would probably take (Y/N)'s side. Nate was at the door before you could even ring the bell. "Hey man, what's up?"

 "Can I stay here tonight?"

 "Uh, sure." He stepped aside so that you could enter. "You and (Y/N) have a fight?"

 "Something like that."

 "Anything you want to talk about?"

 "Not really." Nate just sort of gave you a look. He didn't ask you anything more about (Y/N) the rest of the night which you appreciated. Instead, the two of you just ordered food and played video games, like you were twelve-years-old and not professional athletes. It was a nice change of pace but as you laid in Nate's guest bed tossing and turning you were regretting not being with (Y/N). Maybe she would have a change of heart and end up staying. That was doubtful, considering they needed her at the house, and she took her job very seriously. There was always the off chance that she would fly there then fly back. That option seemed more realistic and the one that you hoped would happen as you laid there staring up at the ceiling.

 Eventually, you were able to fall asleep, but it seemed like hours before that actually happened. You headed off to train with Nate in the morning like you usually did. As the two of you were warming up, he broached the subject again. "So ready to talk about what happened yet?"

 "It's stupid really. They need (Y/N) back in Pittsburgh. I told her that I wanted to go with her and she said no because we were in the middle of training here."

 Nate just waited for you to say more, but you didn't. "And you're mad about that because?"

 "Well, she could fly back after she takes care of things, but she's not. She's just going to stay in Pittsburgh for the next month while I stay up here."

 "Isn't it more like three weeks?"

 "God, you sound like her now." (Y/N) had argued the same point last night. "I mean I suppose if you want to get technical about it, it's three weeks and a day."

 "Weren't you already cutting training short to go back with (Y/N) though? Like I thought you'd at least be here another week or so."

 "Maybe, but she didn't need to know that."

 You could see Nate thinking things through, at least he was finally understanding your side of the story. "So, let me get this straight. You left your house mad because your girlfriend has to go back to work and she wants you to stay here so that you're ready for the season?" When he put it like that, it didn't sound the way it had in your head, so instead of answering you just nodded. "And she's flying back when?"

 "Today."

 "Now wait, maybe I'm confused again," he said giving you a dumbfounded look. "But you're clearly upset because you won't be spending time together, right?" Again, you nodded. "So, instead of spending your last night with her, showing her all the things she's going to be missing in the next couple weeks you spent them at my house, eating pizza and playing call of duty?"

 God, you were an idiot. Nate was right, you should've spent the night with (Y/N) giving her a reason to want to fly back here, or at least let you fly back to Pittsburgh early. "Fuck, I'm stupid."

 "Yeah, you are."

 You side-eyed Nate, but you knew he wasn't going to let it slide. Checking your watch, you noticed you had about an hour until her she'd have to leave for her flight. You could run home real quick, tell her your sorry, and maybe show her what she would be missing. "I'll be back in an hour." Nate just winked at you and laughed, and you vaguely heard him say something like 'Go get her buddy.' But you weren't one hundred percent sure.

 Luckily, where you and Nate trained was only a ten-minute drive from your house and you made it there in record time. You rushed inside the door, not even sure if you left the car running or not. "(Y/N)!" you yelled as you looked around for her bags. You'd thought they'd be by the door waiting for Taylor. "(Y/N)!" Running upstairs, you opened the bedroom door, to find the bed neatly made. You threw open the closet doors, checking to see if she'd left anything in there. She hadn't. Her side was completely bare, except for the hangers which were empty. Your heart started to sink. Maybe Taylor had just picked her up early and you could get her to turn around. You dialed her number, but it went straight to voicemail, so you tried Taylor instead.

 "Hey Sid," she said and you noticed she had a very cool tone with you.

 "Tay, is (Y/N) with you? You're not too close to the airport yet, are you? I mean there's still time to turn back around."

 "Sid, (Y/N)'s not with me. She took an earlier flight when someone," Taylor paused and you knew that she was pissed at you as well. "Decided to not come home last night. She didn't even let me take her, just called an Uber to drive her. I don't know what the hell happened between you two, but you fucked up big time brother."

 "I know that, why do you think I hauled ass home." You blew out a frustrated breath that she was already on her way to Pittsburgh. "Now what do I do?" You kept going before Taylor could even say a word. "Normally, I'd just jump on a plane and try and make things better, but I have a feeling that's the last thing (Y/N) wants me to do, but I can't just do nothing, you know?"

 "I repeat, you fucked up big time."

 "Thanks, you're so much help."

 "Look, you're stuck between a rock and a hard place. All I know is that you better fix it, because (Y/N) is the best thing that's happened to you besides hockey."

 "I know that." Taylor scoffed at your response. "Ok, so I might have had a lapse in judgment last night." And now you were regretting it, but you had no idea what to do.

 "I think it's safe to say, you better give her some time to cool off. I'm sure she's heading over to the house to get things straightened out as soon as she lands. Just call her tonight and…well grovel."

 It wasn't the best plan in the world, but what else could you do. "Thanks, sis, I'll definitely do that." The two of you said your goodbyes and then you made a quick call to your florist in Pittsburgh to have flowers delivered to (Y/N) as a peace offering. Only after that did you head back to the training facility. You threw yourself into the workout, trying to forget that (Y/N) was now in Pittsburgh and that you wouldn't see her when you got home tonight or any other night for the next couple of weeks. It was frustrating, but as Nate tried to remind you later on in the day, that was the way most relationships were. The fact that (Y/N)'s job with the organization let you see her every day was a bonus; a luxury that most players didn't have.

 It was around seven in the evening that you walked into the empty house. You'd picked up something for dinner on the way home and sat in the living room eating with Sammy watching, while you debated on what to say to (Y/N) when you called. You worried that she wouldn't answer the phone and that she'd send you straight to voicemail, so whatever you said had to be good enough to get her to call you back.

 It was something you didn't have to worry about, as she answered on the second ring. "Hey, Sid." She wasn't her usual jovial self, but she didn't seem extremely angry either. In all honesty, you couldn't really read her tone.

 "Hey (Y/N)." There was a pause as your mind went completely blank. "I'm sorry." It wasn't the fancy apology you had planned but it was heartfelt.

 "I'm sorry too, Sid." You really didn't know what she had to be sorry about. "I should've called you the minute I knew I had to come back to Pittsburgh." Before you could say anything, she continued. "And I should've let you drive me to the airport."

 When she finally took a breath, you jumped in. "No, you have nothing to be sorry for. You were just doing your job, and I…well, I was acting like a brat." She laughed then, and you would've given anything at that moment to see her smile. Why you hadn't facetimed her, you weren't sure at this moment, other than you were a coward. "I should've never stormed out of the house like that and not come back, that was completely juvenile of me."

 "It was, I won't argue that. I wish you would've stayed so we could work things out."

 "I promise that it won't happen again." Though you didn't plan on fighting with her again either. "I really am sorry (Y/N). Can you forgive me?"

 "Always." And just like that the world seemed right again, only you couldn't kiss her or hold like you wanted to, but you would definitely make up for that in a few weeks.

 "So, how's Pittsburgh? Is the roof still on my house?"

 "Pittsburgh is good, and I'm assuming your house is fine or someone would've called."

 "Aren't you there now?"

 "Um no, I'm at my place. Why would I go to your place if you're not there?"

 "Why wouldn't you?"

 "Because that's your house and I have one of my own." You could hear the irritation in her voice and knew you were headed down a slippery slope but you went anyways.

 "We've been living together for months now, so why wouldn't I think that that would continue."

 "Maybe because you never asked me to move in with you."

 "I didn't think I had to." As soon as the words were out of your mouth you wanted to take them back. They felt wrong, even to your own ears, and now you knew why you hadn't facetimed her, it was so that she couldn't see you wince when you fucked upped like you just did. "I didn't…"

 She was about to say something when you heard a man in the background yell. 'Hey (Y/N), the food's here.'

 "Who the hell is that?" She'd literally been gone for less than twenty-four hours and she already had a guy over at her house. You were livid. How could she do that to you? "We had one fight and you're already fucking someone else?"

 "Are you fucking kidding me right now Sidney? Did you really just say that?" She was yelling but then so were you. "You're un-fucking-believable you know that. I would never in a million years do that." Somewhere deep down you knew she was right, but at that moment you were too angry to see it. "For your information, I ran into Cully at the airport, and since Bridget and the kids are still in Minnesota, I invited him over to grab some take out. If you don't believe me you can call and ask him."

 Fuck, you knew Matt had been planning on going back to Pittsburgh early; you'd talked to him on the phone about it the other day. Now you felt like a complete ass. "(Y/N), I'm sorry…"

 "Save it, Sid. I don't want to hear it. Goodbye." She hung up the phone then, you could imagine her slamming it down if it actually been a regular one and not her cell. You pulled her number back up and called her back hoping to apologize. It went straight to voicemail.

 On the third attempt, you decided to leave a message. "(Y/N), I'm so incredibly sorry. Of course, I didn't think that you were sleeping around. Jesus, I don't know what's gotten into me. I sorry. I'm just so fucking sorry, babe. Please pick up the phone." You hung up, planning on waiting five minutes before calling her back, only you made it two. She still didn't pick up. Your only option was to try and call Cullen. He actually did answer.

 "Look Sid, I know you want to talk to her, but it's not a good idea right now."

 "Please, I just need to tell her how sorry I am. I fucked up man and I need to make it right."

 There was a pause on the line and you hoped that Matt was somehow convincing her to get on and talk to you. "She doesn't want to talk to you right now, Sid, and for the record, nothing is going on with the two of us."

 "Jesus, I know that. I just…fuck." If you could only talk to her. Make her see that you were just being a jealous idiot, that you loved her so damn much you couldn't see straight.

 "Just give her some time. I'm sure she'll come around," Matt told you. "And not like five minutes ok. Like some real time. I've been in your shoes before. She'll forgive you."

 "God, I hope so." You really, really hoped so, because there was no way in hell you could lose her over something like this. "Tell her I'm sorry."

 "I will."

 Matt went to hang up but you stopped him. "Wait…tell her I love her too."

 "Will do man." With that, Matt hung up the phone, while yours dropped to the floor, as you put your head in your hands. You'd really fucked it up time this time, and if she took you back it'd be a  miracle.

[himbeaux-on-ice]

I posted 21,075 times in 2021

7852 posts created (37%)

13223 posts reblogged (63%)

For every post I created, I reblogged 1.7 posts.

I added 13,848 tags in 2021

#habs - 2188 posts

#queue minutes for hooking - 2096 posts

#habs lb - 2034 posts

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#pittsburgh penguins - 1443 posts

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#vegas golden knights - 951 posts

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Longest Tag: 138 characters

#i’ve never seen a man go from ‘yay!!!’ to ‘oh i’ve massively underestimated the physics involved here’ faster than max in that moment lmao

My Top Posts in 2021

#5

hiring Kevin Bieksa might be the best decision Hockey Night has made in decades 😂

627 notes • Posted 2021-02-14 04:02:37 GMT

#4

rough thoughts on today’s Pride Game and “empty symbolism”

what really matters most I think about the Pride Game, and the way the teams are openly and aggressively promoting it, posting flags, etc, is twofold:

it is a decisive and visible move to very openly tell every bigoted or uncomfortable fan would would say “just stick to hockey” that no, they are committed to this, without plausible deniability or room to weasel out and call it something else. it is a way of saying that those who will threaten to burn their jerseys or stop watching games because of this can go right ahead, because the teams are fully and openly committed to doing this and allowing bigots to feel alienated by this simple gesture it if necessary. like I said, there’s no plausible deniability here. it is an open, highly visible commitment to say “we’re willing to associate with this without shame” which cannot be selectively hidden today. it goes beyond just Pride tape. they have taken it beyond just pasting out a blanket rainbow flag and calling it a day. that is important. that emphatic emblematic statement amongst the toxic masculinity and macho culture of hockey does mean something.

even more importantly: queer kids are going to see this. kids who play hockey, who want to play hockey, or who just love to watch the game, are going to see this and see the message that their team is not hostile to them. that they don’t have to hide who they are to be here. that the team they love (in that way that kids love stuff, so reverently and with such a pedestal to put it on) doesn’t consider them too dirty or shameful to be visibly associated with. I know that we as more politically educated (jaded) queer adults can look at the issue in greater depth and say “well this is just an optics show” or “we don’t know how the players really feel” if we want to. but the truth is that this kind of simple visible thing means so much to kids and teenagers who are struggling to feel out their place in the world, and I will not discount it as “empty” when it accomplishes that, regardless of the difficult-to-judge sincerity of some people involved (impact, not intent, right?)

is there still a lot of work to do? yes. are there more concrete actions that individual players can take to make constructive progress on changing hockey culture and show that their caring is authentic? yes. is optics-based action always a inarguable sign of a sound personal politic or ethos? not always, no. is there more to be done beyond just visibility stuff? always, ALWAYS

but we can acknowledge that these things are true, while also acknowledging that steps like these DO mean something. those truths don’t have to oppose each other. every action taken doesn’t have to be “changes everything instantly and irreversibly by leaps and bounds” OR otherwise “empty and pointless” with no middle ground.

small steps are important and do have a place in change, and it’s okay to appreciate that value and find it meaningful, while also continuing to ask for more concrete steps forward to follow next 💜

751 notes • Posted 2021-04-17 17:53:15 GMT

#3

I ask Subban if there’s anything no one ever thinks to ask him that he wishes they would. At first, he bats the question away, saying if you have a clue what’s going on as a hockey player, you realize people aren’t there to ask what you want to be asked. But then he says: “I’d love people to ask about the marketing of the NHL and why it’s the fourth-best sport. Because I’ve got a great explanation for that.” Suddenly, Subban launches into an impassioned and quite savvy discourse on branding, fan psychology and how his sport may be shooting itself in the foot.

The way the NHL does business—he uses the word “we” here—restricts it from growing, he says, and the league hasn’t fully embraced that things are changing around it. You hear musicians and rappers reference basketball and football players, even baseball and soccer stars once in a while, he notes—but never a hockey player. And why is that? “If 700 players do an interview on TV, not all 700 players should sound the same,” Subban says, practically pleading. “Guys should feel confident going on TV and giving their two cents. We’re not asking them to go on and say inappropriate things, but just go on and be opinionated.” Instead, hockey is about “taking it one day at a time, one shift at a time”—Subban drops into a faux-hoser drawl as he recites the approved lines—and “it’s boring.” But until the culture of the game changes, he believes players with skin thinner than his are going to worry about ruffling feathers with their teammates and never feel like they can be themselves. As he finishes this thought, Subban suddenly flashes a smile, waves and calls, “Hi, guys!” to a couple of kids who are gaping at him through the glass door of the restaurant.

“I’d love people to ask about the marketing of the NHL and why it’s the fourth-best sport. Because I’ve got a great explanation for that.”

There’s this prevailing notion in hockey that if you make a big deal out of your goals or you’re outgoing, you’re not a leader, Subban says, sounding exasperated—and that just doesn’t make sense to him. “Bobby Orr didn’t celebrate because that’s the way he was—he just didn’t feel the need to. Great. Tiger Williams used to go down the ice sitting on his stick. That doesn’t mean he’s a bad guy—that means he gets excited. There’s nothing wrong with that.” To Subban’s mind, hockey is the one pro sport that eats its own. If you listen to basketball coverage, he says, 90 percent of what they’ll say about the game’s biggest stars is positive, but hockey just isn’t like that—for him or anyone else. “Even Sidney Crosby—look at all the heat he’s been taking. This guy’s the best player in the world, and he’s getting the heat he’s been getting? Really?”

So, has Subban ever been surprised by the blowback he’s gotten for his various supposed missteps? At first, he deflects, insisting that nothing bothers him. But then he says, “There are things in the past where I didn’t know I was offending anybody.” Like celebrating after a goal, for example. He gets why the other team would be mad: “Because I scored.” Here Subban pauses, a dripping morsel of sashimi pinned between his chopsticks, his face an open-mouthed smartass emoji, enjoying himself in a way that’s impossible not to like. But then, his opponents should be upset about the goal, not his reaction to it, he argues. “If you’re mad about the celebration, then you just sound like a big suck. If you don’t want me to celebrate, don’t let me score.” And really, there’s some unassailable logic to that.

I ask what people get wrong about him most often. “Cocky,” Subban says, archly. “I don’t think people know the meaning of cocky. If I asked somebody to give me the meanings of cocky and confident, they might give me the same definition.” (For the record, the Merriam-Webster definition of cocky is “having or showing confidence in a way that is annoying to other people.”) Subban tries not to pay attention to his critics, for the simple reason that he doesn’t get to talk back, to refute their claims by pushing them to give an example he’s sure they can’t, to make them look like idiots. “If I ever get to the point where I’m sitting on a [TV] panel, well, I hope God’s on their side that day.”

Hockey is changing—slowly—he concedes, but it still demands the players who should be its public face function like identical widgets stamped out on an assembly line. “The perception is that in order to be a good team player, you need to be like everybody else. And I don’t understand that.” It seems too obvious to ask if he’s talking about himself, so I ask if he thinks the NHL does a poor job of marketing individual players. “The NHL doesn’t market individual players—they market teams,” he says. “The NFL markets players. NBA? Markets players. The Montreal Canadiens don’t really market players. They market the Montreal Canadiens.” The way he looks at it, people can’t become a fan of you or your sport if they don’t know anything about you as a person. Of course you have to be a good player, but fans also need to feel like they know you a little, like they could come up to you on the street and say hi.

“If I ever get to the point where I’m sitting on a [TV] panel, well, I hope God’s on their side that day.”

[…] Now, this whole savvy sports-marketing seminar doesn’t mean Subban wants to burn the temple of hockey to the ground and rebuild it in his own image. He loves the sport—he can just see so much potential being left on the shelf. As he devours a plate of riceless sushi rolls, the final dish in the enormous parade of food from Park’s kitchen to our table, Subban sounds like a devoted but frustrated parent who sees their kid’s star power but worries they’ll flush it away with silly choices. “There is a culture to the sport that I want to see respected and I don’t want to see change,” he says. “You want to respect the jersey, you want to respect the logo, you want to respect your players—but be yourself! Have fun.”

—Why Hockey Needs P.K. Subban; Shannon Proudfoot, 2015

related: P.K. Subban Joins ESPN as NHL Studio Analyst for Remainder of 2021 Playoffs

938 notes • Posted 2021-06-09 22:01:04 GMT

#2

[John Mulaney voice] “so then I go to the NHL Department of Player Safety, which is an oxymoron-”

1281 notes • Posted 2021-03-31 17:00:03 GMT

#1

i can’t get over the Cowboy Dobby mask. it’s fucking killing me, i’m in hysterics. if i was some 19-year-old meme-brained rookie who just got up to the NHL and i happened to skate by the opposing goalie and saw this on his helmet with no explanation it would throw me off-kilter so strongly i’d probably just skate right into the glass. this is psychological warfare. i’m delighted

1424 notes • Posted 2021-01-05 19:05:36 GMT

Get your Tumblr 2021 Year in Review →

[hockeynascarfan91258]

Okay here is my first fan fiction I ever posted on here! If you read it please leave me feedback I will appreciate it but please be kind! Thanks and Enjoy 😉

Lips of an Angel

Disclaimer: I don't own Kris Letang or Sidney Crosby nor do I own anything that pertains to them or the Pittsburgh Penguins. I don't own the song or lyrics to Lips of an Angel as they belong to Hinder. I do however own Aurora and anyone else you don't recognize. I also own the plot however it is based off my interpretation of the song.

Aurora was born and raised in Montreal Canada. She grew up and went to school with Kris Letang. They started off as best friends but it quickly grew into more and they became sweethearts. They were the same age and when they graduated high school they wanted different things. Aurora wanted to go to college and eventually go to Med School to be a Doctor with a specialty in Sports Medicine where Kris wanted to peruse his love of hockey. So, they parted ways and never looked back. Aurora went on to obtain a degree in Sports Medicine and then went on to become a Doctor. While in school she met Sidney Crosby as she worked for his junior team in Rimouski. After finishing college and completing her residency Aurora landing her dream job working for the Pittsburgh Penguins where Sidney had been drafted too.

Kris continued to play hockey. He played for the Val-d'Or Foreurs for a few seasons and also played for Team Canada in World Juniors. He was drafted to the Pittsburgh Penguins the day after Sidney Crosby but was sent down to the farm team the Wilkes Barre Penguins.

What happens when fate intervenes and a love Triangle is formed.

Chapter 1: Seeing Kris after all those years

Aurora and Sid had moved in together and the Sid’s first season was under way he was the Captain of the team and it was pretty neat to watch him play. It was a home game and Aurora didn’t have to work so she was attending the game as a fan. Sid and Aurora had just woken from their pre game nap.

“So are you excited to be attending your first game that you don’t have to work?” Sid asks he dressed in his suit and tie.

“Yes I am. I will actually get to watch you play.” Aurora replies.

“I know. I am glad. Are you sitting with the other wives and girlfriends in their section?” Sid asks.

“Yes I plan on it. Or do you not want me to? I know you are private.” Aurora says.

“No baby sit with them. I am not ashamed of you or our relationship. Besides our engagement is going to get out eventually.” Sid replies.

“True.” Aurora says.

She put on her Crosby jersey and jeans. A few minutes later Sid finished dressing. Aurora fixed his tie and then then head out to the car. Sid drives them to the arena and parks. They head inside.

“Good luck baby. I love you and will see you after the game.” Aurora says kissing him.

“Thanks baby. I love you too and will see you after the game.” Sid says before returning the kiss.

Aurora heads to grab food and then heads to the wives and girlfriends section. It was right behind the players bench so she was happy she would get to see Sid during warmups and when he was sitting on the bench during shifts he wasn’t playing. Aurora sits down and eats waiting for warm ups to start. That was when someone comes over to her.

“Mind if I sit down?” She asks.

“Nope not at all.” Aurora replies.

The girl sits down. Aurora had never seen her before so she was curious how she got into the wives and girlfriends section.

“I am Allison, my fiancée just got called up from Wilks Barre to play.” Allison says extending out her hand.

“Nice to meet you Allison. I am Aurora Bradley, I am engaged to the captain of the team Sidney Crosby.” Aurora replies taking her hand.

They chat and banter back and forth. That was warmups started and the Penguins took to the ice. Aurora was standing on the Penguins sidelines. That was when Kris came off the ice and stood right in front of Aurora. She had to do a double take not believing he was really there. Kris also did a double take not believing she was there as well.

"Aurora?" Kris says.

"Hi long time no see.” Aurora replies.

He had gotten so much better looking since the last time she saw him. All the feelings she had for him came back full force. You know they say you never get over your first love. But then she looked past him and saw Sid whom she loved a lot.

"What are you doing here?" Kris asks snapping her out of her thoughts.

"I am dating someone from the team.” Aurora says.

Sid skates over.

“I see you met my fiancée Aurora.” Sid says.

“You are engaged to Sid? Wow.” Kris says.

“Hey baby good luck.” Allison says to Kris standing next to Aurora.

“Thanks baby, Aurora I see you met my fiancée.” Kris says.

“Yup.” Aurora says.

“Why do I get the feeling this isn’t the first-time you guys met?” Sid asks.

“Because it’s not. Kris and I are from the same area and we went to school together.” Aurora replies.

“Oh that is right you are from Montreal too.” Sid says.

Aurora nods her head yes.

"Well it is really good to see you again. It has been a long time." Kris says.

"Yes it has Six years." Aurora says.

"Well the game is about to start but maybe after we can catch up." Kris says.

"As long as Sid and Allison can come." Aurora says not wanting to be alone with him.

“I am okay with that.” Sid says.

“Me too. It will be fun having someone to hang out with as I am new to the city.” Allison replies.

"Well duh that would be a little awkward not having them there." Kris says.

"Okay I will see you both after the game." Aurora says.

“Yes we will see you both. “Allison replies.

Sid and Kris head to get ready for the game. Aurora and Allison head back to their seats.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kris and Sid went back with the team. He couldn't believe Aurora was here. He hadn't thought about her in so long but seeing her in his face brought back so many strong feelings. He didn't know what to do about it since she was engaged to someone who was becoming one of his best friends and he was engaged to Allison, whom he loved with his heart.

"Earth to Kris come in." Sid says tapping Kris's helmet.

"Huh." Kris says snapping out of it.

"So you and Aurora went to school together?” Sid asks.

"Yeah we were friends." Kris says.

"I call bullshit. She was way more than a friend." Sid says.

"Okay, she was my high school sweetheart. I thought we were going to get married but she didn't want to follow me as I perused hockey she wanted to go to college. I couldn't hold her back so I let her go." Kris says.

"Wow so you two dated?" Sid asks.

“Yes but that was a long time ago Sid. She’s with you now and I am with Allison.” Kris says.

"Then why dinner?” Sid asks.

“To catch up man that is it. I promise.” Kris replies.

“Okay. It will be nice to have our girls get along and be friends since we are.” Sid says.

“See that is another reason why. Let them become friendly.” Kris says.

Sid and Kris go out to play the game. Even though Aurora was on his mind he somehow, he was able to focus on the game. They ended up beating the Flyers 6-1. Kris and Sid both had three goals. After the game ended they showered dressed and went to meet the girls for dinner.

[burkymakar]

Hi! I was wondering if you could post the Athletic's Olympic roster predictions please?!

ok here’s a lot under the cut, i’ve included men and womens for both Canada and USA. 

Canada Mens

Remember how the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang unfolded? Canada won a hard-earned bronze medal playing a stingy brand of defence under coach Willie Desjardins and lost only a single game in regulation – to Germany in the semifinals – before defeating the Czech Republic to earn a place on the podium.

Just one thing was missing: NHL players. Hockey’s crème de la crème. Three years ago, the NHL decided not to participate in the Winter Olympics for a lot of reasons that made little sense to the hockey world which made the Games look a little like the Spengler Cup.

Thankfully, as part of the collective bargaining extension signed last summer, the NHL is returning to compete in the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing — assuming the logistical details can be ironed out among the league, the IIHF and the IOC and that the pandemic is under some sort of control.

With apologies to all the players who competed so hard for Canada in 2018, the selection process this time around will be far more difficult because of the staggering depth of the talent pool.

One thing Canada never lacks at the highest level of hockey is oodles of options at both forward and defence. The players who don’t make the grade for Canada would fill out a ‘B’ team that would contend for gold.

How might Team Canada 2022 look? Thought you’d never ask. In our eternal quest to be helpful to the managerial powers-that-be, here are our projections for a 25-player roster, which is what the IOC permitted for Sochi in 2014.

As always, remember that in Canada, for an exercise such as this one, there really aren’t many bad options. Just too many good ones.

The last time men’s hockey had a best-on-best tournament was back in 2016 and if that World Cup taught us anything, it is that the younger generation of players dominating the game today had no stage fright whatsoever when they were got a chance to play together as North America’s 23-and-under team. They were fun to watch and unlucky not to advance to the medal round.

In previous Olympics, sometimes Canada’s management team would opt for veteran players over young up-and-comers because of a fear that they might be overwhelmed by the moment. Team Canada’s biggest Olympic bobble in the NHL era came in 2006 and you wonder what might have happened if they’d injected the youth and vigour of Sidney Crosby onto a team that seemed slow and plodding on the big ice of Turin.

By contrast, the decision to go with the 20-year-old Drew Doughty in Vancouver proved quite prescient – he was one of the key contributors that year and then again in 2014 in Sochi, as Canada won back-to-back golds.

Nowadays, Doughty is one of the more polarizing players in the game. He still plays a ton of minutes for the Los Angeles Kings and oozes confidence. On a blue line that features a whole lot of next-gen talent – from Cale Makar and Shea Theodore to Thomas Chabot and Morgan Rielly — chances are they’ll opt for one or two steadying veterans on the blue line. We’ve selected Alex Pietrangelo and Doughty to fill out what is otherwise a talented but relatively green defence corps that’ll get the puck up to the forwards, with great dispatch and accuracy.

Canada’s 2014 gold-medal team won with a stingy brand of hockey and timely saves from Carey Price, whenever he was called upon. That can be a challenge sometimes – playing goal on a team that surrenders few Grade-A opportunities and tests your level of focus and concentration because there will be the occasional breakdown that you will need to be in a position to respond to.

Long-term, Carter Hart will likely take over from Price as Canada’s go-to starter in goal, but there are still some inconsistencies in his game that drops him down to the No. 2 position. One wild card I considered here was the Devils’ Mackenzie Blackwood, who had an excellent rookie season last year and was off to a good start this year as well. Chances are if Blues’ GM Doug Armstrong has the final say, Jordan Binnington would likely be the third goalie on this roster.

All of which leads us to the hardest, most controversial decisions which involve the forward group. There’s the usual problem of having too many natural centres on the roster and so someone will have to switch to the right wing. Among the elite-level centres in Canada, both Nathan MacKinnon and Mark Scheifele are right-handed shots and could swing over to the wing. One likely will have to and in this scenario, it’s Scheifele, if only so that MacKinnon and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, who developed some familiarity playing for Team North America in the World Cup, can play together.

That creates some flexibility if the coach – we’re picking Barry Trotz – ultimately wants to shift Nugent-Hopkins up to Connor McDavid’s line.

Splitting Crosby and Brad Marchand may also just be temporary. In 2016, those two along with Patrice Bergeron were the clear top line for Canada, and scored all the important goal. But Bergeron will be 36 by the time the Olympics roll around, and thus, didn’t make the final group here. You could theoretically put Marchand, Crosby and MacKinnon (playing right wing) together on an all-Nova Scotia line and the chemistry could be magical.

The beauty of Canada’s roster is the versatility of so many of the better forwards – Ryan O’Reilly, Sean Couturier, Brayden Point and Bo Horvat could all play the wing as well as down the middle. Chances are, every line that Canada rolls out will include two natural centres making face-off match-ups easier for the coaching staff, if they can fit both a right- and a left-hand centre onto each line.

The bottom line: With a player pool so deep, Canada has incredible talent and flexibility. Talent enough to get the go-ahead goal in a tight game.

Flexibility enough to juggle lines as needed and get the defensive match-ups as required. The greatest coaching challenge is usually selling a one-for-all and all-for-one vision. If a star player is forced to adopt a secondary role, he’ll need to handle it with maturity and grace and cannot start pouting because he isn’t the first option on the PP or the PK the way he might be on his club team.

Managing egos is as big a part of the job for the coaching staff as setting lines and spooling out ice time. — Eric Duhatschek

I’m going to keep this very simple.

Hockey Canada has a formula. It involves a few key rules that have helped Team Canada dominate best-on-best competition to an unprecedented degree over the past decade:

1) Everyone plays on their strong side.

2) Wherever possible, bring pairs of players that play together in the NHL so you have an immediate chemistry advantage in a short tournament.

3) Bring extra centres and just have them play on the wall.

4) Experience and tenure matter. If you were on the last team and are still elite, you have an edge in the event all other factors are equal.

Now, Hockey Canada has also opted to play grinding, low event hockey over the past decade. It’s cynical, it’s ruthless and it delivers gold.

However, this approach stinks. It shows a certain ruthless focus, which I appreciate, but it actually lacks any grander ambition.

Hockey Canada could aspire for more. They should aspire for greatness.

They should aspir for a national men’s team with the purpose of articulating a national vision of a beautiful, skillful and yet still assertive and physical two-way brand of hockey. Canada’s men’s team could play hockey beautifully if Canada decided to play hockey beautifully, and that’s what this team is going to do — within the framework of Hockey Canada’s otherwise winning formula.

Right off the top, I’ve built the fastest first line in the history of the sport. McDavid moves to the wing mostly for handedness reasons. A top line of McDavid, MacKinnon and Mathew Barzal are going to test the limits of what’s possible to accomplish in hockey playing at the highest possible speed.

Until one of Marchand, Crosby and Bergeron fall off and aren’t among the NHL’s best individually, they’re a set line for Hockey Canada. This is the easiest choice there is. They have chemistry, experience, swagger as a group, and they bring the DNA of Hockey Canada’s decade-of-dominance to this forward group.

The third line is where things get interesting, particularly because this is where the toughest omission from my team — Jonathan Huberdeau — kicks in. Ultimately I’m going to make a decision to prefer John Tavares’ experience, ability to cover in the event of a centre injury and his chemistry with Mitch Marner over Huberdeau’s electricity.

I’m not bringing Rob Zamuner or Kris Draper to fill a role or anything, but my fourth-line definitely has the identity of the highest-end possible version of an energy line. Honestly, in some matchups, this trio may well end up being Hockey Canada’s matchup line ahead of the Crosby line, since it’s just a collection of the countries most willful two-way players.

I’m bringing Steven Stamkos and Couturier as extra forwards, basically two centremen — a lefty and a righty — which means snubbing Bo Horvat and Claude Giroux, my toughest omissions besides Huberdeau.

We weren’t asked to name coaches, but I should add that I’ve named Pete DeBoer and Jared Bednar as assistant coaches, partly because they’re deserving and partly so that my top-four can get reps together throughout the NHL season leading up to the 2022 Games.

There’s a factor in the international game that I still don’t think Hockey Canada has fully incorporated into their player selection process, but they really should: Puck-moving defenders are everything.

Which is why Samuel Girard — probably my most surprising selection — is a slam dunk no brainer for this team and is likely to play a prominent role. Thanks to Bednar’s colluding with me to win a gold medal, he’ll spend more time with Makar in the season leading up to the Olympics (although they’ve spent 200 5-on-5 minutes together the past two seasons, so they’re not exactly strangers). Same goes for Pietrangelo and Shea Theodore, who have played together a bit at 5-on-5 in the early going for Vegas (about 35 minutes so far), but will become the Golden Knight’s fixture top pair in 2021-22 for the purposes of Olympic preparation.

Doughty makes the team because he’s still performing at a high enough level that his status as the most important Hockey Canada veteran defender matters. And Morgan Rielly will be his partner on a mobile third pair, narrowly edging out Giordano.

Ryan Ellis is custom made for the international game and my Hockey Canada will have zero reservation bumping him up the lineup if injuries call for it.

In net, Price and Hart are coming to represent the past and the future while Jordan Binnington gets the nod to round out my trio of netminders. I’m comfortable enough with all three goaltenders that whoever is performing the best ahead of the tournament will go into the round-robin as my defacto starter. — Thomas Drance

Canada Womens

Picking a Canadian roster a year ahead of an Olympics is never easy.

And this time around, looking ahead to Beijing 2022, might be harder than ever, as the years since the 2018 Games have been unlike any other post-Olympic period for Team Canada.

First of all, Canada is coming off a silver medal finish at the last games in Pyeongchang — the first time that’s happened in two decades. If that wasn’t difficult enough, on the eve of the 2019 world championships, the Canadian Women’s Hockey League announced it would fold after nearly 12 years in operation, taking away most Canadians’ daily training environments. Canada ultimately lost in the semifinal of the tournament and took home a bronze medal, the first time Team Canada hasn’t won’t at least silver at a world championship. Then, the 2019 4 Nations Cup was cancelled due to contract disputes between the Swedish Ice Hockey Association and the Swedish women’s team.

On top of all of that, there have been further complications brought by a global pandemic, which led to the cancellation of the 2020 4 Nations Cup and the 2020 women’s world championships.

Essentially, the women’s hockey calendar through the first three years of the Olympic quad cycle has been almost entirely wiped out.

“This quad had been a huge challenge, not only for our program but certainly for women’s hockey globally,” said Gina Kingsbury, the manager of the senior women’s national team. “We’re sitting at Year 3 of our quad with a very little amount of critical experience that we were able to share across our athlete pool to be able to evaluate them and be able to prepare them for an Olympic Games.”

The last time Team Canada played at an international event was 660 days ago at the 2019 worlds. Since then, they’ve relied on games against the U.S. national team and mini-camps throughout the season hosted by Hockey Canada, but even those have been largely put on hold due to the pandemic.

Still, with all that being said, as part of The Athletic’s one year out from the Olympics package, we are going to try our best to project the 2022 Team Canada women’s Olympic roster.

Guided by 2018

To start, let’s take a brief comparative look at who played for Canada in 2018 and who would make the team today. Players selected for the 2022 team are highlighted in red.

FORWARDDEFENCEGOAL

Meghan AgostaRenata FastShannon Szabados

Bailey BramLaura FortinoAnn-Renée Desbiens

Emily ClarkBrigette LacquetteGeneviève Lacasse

Mélodie DaoustJocelyne Larocque

Haley IrwinMeaghan Mikkelson

Brianne JennerLauriane Rougeau

Rebecca Johnston

Sarah Nurse

Marie-Philip Poulin

Jill Saulnier

Natalie Spooner

Laura Stacey

Blayre Turnbull

Jennifer Wakefield

From 2018 to 2022, we’re projecting 15 returnees among the 23 roster spots. Nine up front, four on the blue line, and two in goal. It’s not a ton of turnover between the four years, but there are still several spots for younger players to break onto the senior national team and for others to make their Olympic debuts.

Now, let’s look at the projection.

How did I arrive at these names with so few evaluation opportunities?

Well, despite the cancellation, Hockey Canada still named its 23-player roster for the 2020 world championships.

And, in early January, 47 players were invited to a training camp at Hockey Canada’s home base in Calgary. Thirty-five athletes attended the two-week camp — players such as Rebecca Johnston and Sarah Nurse were invited but unable to attend — and were split into two teams for scrimmages, with the line rushes and defence pairings posted daily.

It’s not a huge sample size, but using the previous Olympic and World Championship rosters, and taking stock of the two-week camp, which ended on Friday, you can get a pretty good idea of where things stand one year out from Beijing 2022.

As mentioned above, this roster consists of 15 returnees from the 2018 Games. And 22 of the 23 players projected here were named to Canada’s roster for the cancelled 2020 Women’s World Championship. Brigette Lacquette is the only player on my roster who didn’t make the World Championship roster, as she was unable to play.

These lines and pairings certainly aren’t set in stone, but they were consistently used at last week’s camp, except for Nurse on the line with Emily Clark and Blayre Turnbull, as Nurse did not attend camp.

To start, there are some names on this roster that should be no-brainers.

Marie-Philip Poulin, 29, is now over a decade into her international career and is arguably the greatest player of all-time in the women’s game. She’s Canada’s captain and scored the game-winning goal in the gold medal games of her first two Olympic appearances (2010 and 2014). A knee injury kept her mostly out of the 2019 world championships, but she’s healthy now. And it would take something completely unforeseen for Poulin to not be in Beijing.

Her frequent winger for club (the now-defunct CWHL Les Canadiennes) and country, Mélodie Daoust, is also a natural choice. With three goals and seven points in five games, she led Canada in scoring at the last Olympics. And scored one of the most impressive shootout goals in the gold medal game.

Natalie Spooner and Brianne Jenner have been consistent staples for Team Canada in the last two Olympic Games, with Spooner making her World Championship debut in 2011, and Jenner in 2012. The duo ranked No. 1 and 2 in scoring for Canada at the 2019 world championships. Spooner scored six goals and 10 points in seven games, only one goal behind Hilary Knight, who led the tournament with 11 points. Jenner wasn’t far behind with nine points.

Lauriane Rougeau and Jocelyne Larocque are also steady veterans, albeit on the blue line, who have the 2014 and 2018 Olympics under their belts. While, Nurse and Clark, who played together at the University of Wisconsin, both made their Olympic debuts in 2018 and should be natural choices to return in 2022. Similarly, Fast made her debut in 2018 and has established herself as one of the top defenders in the women’s game.

Youth vs. experience

I wanted to strike a balance on this roster with returning players, veterans and young players, or those making their Olympic debut. Because according to Kingsbury, as much as you want to win a gold medal, you have to keep an eye to the future.

“Often you tend to lean on what you know, and the unknowns of the young players obviously is a little scary, but I do think we’re at a point in our program that we do have to sometimes take calculated risks,” she explained. “We’re aiming at winning a gold medal in Beijing, but we’re also making sure that we’ve got a sustainable success here down the road as well and that we’re looking ahead in the future of our program.”

With that front of mind, there are some obvious omissions on this projected roster.

Both Johnston and Laura Fortino, who played in 2018, were among the final cuts for the 2020 world championships. I left them off this roster.

Shannon Szabados was a steady presence in Canada’s crease from her Olympic debut in 2010 until 2019. She recently had her first child and is currently not playing. She could certainly decide to come back but will be 35 by the next games and 39 by 2026.

So, this feels like a natural time for a passing of the torch in the crease to younger goalies like Ann-Renée Desbiens, 26, and Emerance Maschmeyer, 26, who have been given a lot of the net over the last two and a half years, along with Geneviève Lacasse, 31.

Similarly, Meaghan Mikkelson, a three-time Olympian, was one of the most experienced players at last week’s camp, with just under 50 games for Canada at the Olympics (14) and world championships (35) over the last decade. She last played in 2017-18, taking a leave after the birth of her second child. This will be her second comeback to the national team.

This was one of the more difficult decisions for my projected blue line, and I assume this will be the same for the real decision-makers at Hockey Canada. Mikkelson will be 37 when the Games begin. If she can re-elevate her game, she can be a force on the ice. But could, say, Claire Thompson, 23, have a similar impact?

If we assume Rougeau, 30, and Larocque, 31, make this team, with two other returning blueliners in Fast and Lacquette, the Canadian blue line isn’t going to be inexperienced. So bringing Thompson to Beijing over Mikkelson could be one of those “looking ahead in the future” decisions.

There could be a similar decision in looking at a player like Erin Ambrose, who was the most difficult omission for me. Ambrose was one of the last cuts for the 2018 Olympics, but played her way onto the 2019 and 2020 World Championship rosters. She could realistically do the same for Beijing. But again, how much does Hockey Canada want to look forward to the future?

Admittedly, Ambrose, Mikkelson and even Meghan Agosta — a four-time Olympian who is a full-time Vancouver police officer who hasn’t play for Canada since 2017-18 — could be the ultimate wild cards for 2022. However, for this exercise, I decided that if I was undecided between a player on the way up and an older player, I erred on the side of the former.

This brings us to the Olympic rookies, projected to be: Jamie Lee Rattray, Victoria Bach, Sarah Fillier, Loren Gabel, Jaime Bourbonnais, Micah Zandee-Hart, and the aforementioned Maschmeyer and Thompson.

All eight of these rookies were named to the 2020 World Championship roster, and they were all featured in the 2019 world championships except for Bach and Fillier, who were among the final cuts. Rattray, 28,  has been in the Hockey Canada program for a while now and has seemed to solidify a place within the core group. Bach was set to make her international tournament debut at the world championships, and while that debut has been delayed, her standing on the team remains.

There are two young stars to watch for here, too, in Gabel and Fillier.

Gabel, 23, made her senior team debut at the 2018 4 Nations Cup and won the Patty Kazmaier Award — the biggest individual honour in women’s college hockey — in 2019 after scoring 40 goals and 69 points in 38 games, including 11 game-winning goals for Clarkson University. She graduated that year as the all-time leading scorer with 213 points on 116 goals and 97 assists through 160 games.

Fillier, 20, was nominated for the Patty Kazmaier as a rookie at Princeton in 2018-19 after she put up nearly two points per game (1.97) to lead NCAA women’s hockey. Fillier, a centre, also led her team in scoring (22 goals and 57 points in 29 games) and was named the National Rookie of the Year. Like Gabel, Fillier made her senior team debut at the 2018 4 Nations Cup.

These two have been on the rise and should certainly crack the 2021 World Championship and 2022 Olympics rosters.

Bourbonnais, Thompson and Zandee-Hart further make up the young up and coming core of Hockey Canada’s roster, specifically on the blue line.

As mentioned, all of the above players were named to the 2020 World Championship roster, which shows a lot of trust from the decision-makers to put them into best-on-best competition. The world championships is often a dress rehearsal for the Olympics, too. That they were all chosen over veterans like Johnston and Fortino means a lot.

Finally, there are some other young players in Hockey Canada’s talent pool to be highlighted here, such as Élizabeth Giguère, Emma Maltais and Daryl Watts.

Giguère won the Patty Kazmaier last season, while Watts currently leads the nation with 11 goals and 21 points through 10 games to start the NCAA season. There are some key complications impacting their Olympic chances.

None of the three were at the recent camp, a key evaluator for the 2021 world championships. Kingsbury said “it was impossible” to bring any U.S.-based athletes to camp due to COVID-19 travel restrictions. (Fillier decided to take the year off from Princeton with the questions around if Ivy League schools would have a season and the Olympic considerations in mind.)

“Having our college players not here is definitely another challenge,” she said. “You’re trying to scout online, and it’s hard to see what they do in college and try to figure out if that’s going to have an impact at the international level.”

So while they are talented, without camps and potentially cracking the 2021 World Championship roster, it will be hard to jump into the 2022 Olympics. Especially if they are trying to take spots from returning players such as Turnbull, Jill Saulnier and Laura Stacey, who have all shown they can be reliable forwards who can play up and down the lineup.

For everything laid out here, all it takes is a really good tournament or training camp by one or two players to change my entire roster. Every year before the Olympics, Hockey Canada invites its Olympic hopefuls to Calgary for a six-to-seven month “centralized” camp before the Games.

Typically, there are some surprises on the roster, as Kingsbury said some players come in “like sponges” and elevate their game.

Such is the difficulty in this exercise. Anything can happen once we officially get into the final year of the Olympic quad. But regardless, Canada is going to have a deep talent pool to chose from when it comes time for Beijing 2022.

USA Mens

I remember covering the 2010 United States Olympic men’s hockey team — that came within a Sidney Crosby overtime goal of winning a gold medal — and before the tournament wondering: How the hell are they going to fill out this roster?

Ten years later, there has been a seismic change in the hockey landscape at the highest levels in the United States. Depth is no longer an issue for the U.S.

We often joke Canada could enter two teams in these best-on-best tournaments and both would be gold-medal worthy. The U.S. is not so far behind that and it’s illustrated by the difficult decisions we’ve made with this lineup and the hard decisions that await whoever builds the 2022 version of Team USA. There will be no shortage of heated debate about those tabbed to wear the red, white and blue and, of course, those whose names do not end up on the 25-man roster.

In starting to narrow down our roster here, we hearkened back to that scrappy 2010 team built by Brian Burke and David Poile and coached by Ron Wilson and looked for clues as to how to build not just the most talented team but the team most likely to win gold. What was it that allowed that group to defy projections and push a superstar-laden Canadian team to overtime?

Conversely, what was it that led a talented American roster to fall short of a medal in Sochi four years later and to flame out spectacularly in the 2016 World Cup? You will hear over and over that this version of Team USA will be the most talented ever iced in a best-on-best tournament. Maybe. But we focused in this exercise on building not just the most talented American roster but a team that can overcome disappointment, obstacles and the unexpected en route to what would be the first American gold medal in men’s hockey since the Miracle on Ice in 1980.

Let the shame-talking begin. Yes. No room on this roster for Johnny Gaudreau, Zach Parise or Paul Stastny. No room for 2019 first overall pick Jack Hughes. Sorry.

This is as good a team down the middle as any Team USA has iced, starting with Auston Matthews and Jack Eichel. A little bit of everything from this group of centers including solid leadership, ability to play shutdown hockey and, of course, create offense. That meant excluding worthy pivots like Kevin Hayes and Hughes even though one former coach and executive we spoke to felt Hughes would continue to evolve and push his way onto the roster before the end of 2021.

As for the wingers, there is so much to like from this group including the size and speed of Blake Wheeler, Jake Guentzel and Anders Lee and the offensive creativity of J.T. Miller and Kyle Connor. And of course, who will every team in the tournament love to hate from the word go? Matthew Tkachuk.

We kept Stanley Cup champion and Olympic shootout hero T.J. Oshie (T.J. Sochi as he is known after his exploits in 2014) given his experience. If you wanted more speed on the right side, you could go with Bryan Rust and/or one of our favorite emerging players, Conor Garland. We love the natural connection between usual Winnipeg linemates Connor and Wheeler and we wanted Stanley Cup champion Blake Coleman on this roster for his versatility and his ability to play both ends of the ice.

At one point, we had Gaudreau as one of our extra forwards in place of Max Pacioretty but the experts we spoke to felt Pacioretty needed to be on the roster and the fact that Gaudreau has struggled to produce in the playoffs we went with Pacioretty. Both the coach and former player we spoke to suggested two Brocks, Nelson and Boeser, and Columbus captain Nick Foligno should be considered. Another dark horse forward in the former player’s view is Alex Iafallo.

There will be no more critical decisions for Team USA’s management team than the ones made on the blue line.

The Beijing Games will be played on North American-sized ice so it will be critical to include not only those defenders who can skate fluidly and make good, quick decisions with the puck but who can defend vigorously. Team USA’s entry in the World Cup in 2016 is a good illustration of why you should never build a team with the notion of facing one particular opponent. But given Canada is in the same round-robin pool as the U.S., the ability to defend a physical, skilled team like Canada will be paramount.

As in all things, the balance will be crucial. This group is split evenly right shot/left shot and does have a good mix of youthful zest and solid experience. Some may quibble with leaving a guy like Zach Werenski off the roster, especially given his familiarity with Seth Jones. Fair enough. But a number of NHL sources we spoke to felt Torey Krug needed to be on this team.

Jeff Petry has established himself as one of the most effective defensemen in the game excelling in all situations and playing more often than not against opposing teams’ top talent. Jaccob Slavin, who is the motor that drives the talented Carolina blue line, must be on this roster. Charlie McAvoy has emerged from the shadows of Zdeno Chara to become the Bruins’ undisputed number one defender and he will be a key part of this blue line.

So having to leave Werenski off the list of eight is difficult but a function of the breadth and depth of options that will be available. Others who were on the radar included young John Marino, who has been so impressive in Pittsburgh, and the venerable Ryan Suter, who is a perennial participant in these best-on-best tournaments.

Goaltending is probably the most clearly established position for Team USA. Connor Hellebuyck is the defending Vezina Trophy winner. He’s an elite netminder who has endured his own share of ups and downs en route to his current lofty status.

John Gibson, playing behind a rebuilding Ducks team, won’t have the gaudy numbers that other top NHL netminders boast but he is recognized around the hockey world as an elite netminder and he will push Hellebuyck for the starter’s role in Beijing.

Ben Bishop’s lingering health issues excuse him from our list but if the multiple time Vezina Trophy finalist went on a roll later this season or to start the 2021-22 season he could play his way into the picture. Two-time Stanley Cup winner Jonathan Quick is Hall of Fame worthy but past his prime so we went younger with Thatcher Demko, who was stellar in the bubble playoffs for Vancouver.

We’ll admit one former NHL coach and executive with whom we shared our roster felt unequivocally Bishop should be on the team ahead of Demko. And one longtime netminder and analyst felt that the Kings’ Cal Petersen in Los Angeles might actually jump over Gibson by the time the Olympics roll around. — Scott Burnside

Let’s start with the fourth line. I was chatting with Blackhawks director of amateur scouting Mark Kelley for another story on the way about Team USA and he suggested this one. We were debating the merits of Jack Hughes on the Olympic team and he said, if he were to do it, he’d throw him out there with the two Tkachuks.

“No one will get near him,” Kelley said of Hughes. “It’ll be like he’s walking his two pit bulls.”

To pull it off, we’re probably costing a guy like Jake Guentzel a deserving spot, but it’s fun. I like the idea of T.J. Oshie as an option for shootouts but just couldn’t squeeze him in. I’d also like to find a spot for Joe Pavelski, who is averaging like three goals per game this season, but am skewing younger because we’re a year out. This team is loaded.

Quinn Hughes has gone from a guy knocking on the door to make the roster to the top pair over the last year. Just think of how good he’ll be a year from now. Zach Werenski could be penciled in to play in the place of Ryan Suter but it would be great to have Suter’s Olympic experience available in the top six. It’s also possible we’re suffering from some recency bias following Werenski’s slow start. Adam Fox, Neal Pionk and Matt Grzelcyk all have to be on a watch list this season.

The debate in goal will be about who starts between Gibson and Hellebuyck but the most interesting slot might be No. 3. Chances are, that goalie isn’t playing, so I’m bringing the future of American goaltending — world junior gold medalist Spencer Knight — to get experience on the big stage and soak in the experience much like a young Jonathan Quick did in 2010. — Craig Custance

Team USA is due in best-on-best hockey.

They lost the bronze medal game at the Sochi Olympics in 2014. They were embarrassed at the 2016 World Cup.

Now they’ve got a whole new generation of stars ready to bring USA Hockey back to gold-medal contention.

The difficulty in this exercise of selecting the roster for the Beijing Olympics is proof of how things got to another level for USA Hockey over the past decade.

It’s probably a crime to leave off T.J. Sochi but there’s plenty of time for me to change my mind before next year. Anders Lee, Jake Guentzel, Blake Coleman, Bryan Rust, Chris Kreider and James van Riemsdyk are among other names I passed over for now. It speaks to the elite U.S. depth. I’m probably one of the few who has young Brady Tkachuk on this roster this far out but, believe me, when we get closer to the final roster picks next December/January, he will have worked his way on to a lot of people’s lists.

I may also be one of the few to select Kevin Hayes but I wanted the extra center on the roster and given the fact the tournament will be played on North American-sized ice, I like his big body as a factor.

Four lefties and four righties, talk about balance in this defense group. I do worry I put too much offense on here but I’ve got my penalty-killing units in Slavin-Jones and McDonagh-Petry. Obviously, it’s tough to leave off a quality veteran like Suter and no doubt USA Hockey may not. Zach Werenski and Cam Fowler are other names to monitor over the year. But I really like the balance in those eight I put down.

Not much to debate in goal as Hellebuyck-Gibson is pretty much locked in at this point as the 1-2 punch. Now, I went with youth as the No. 3 with Demko but obviously, a healthy Ben Bishop or a resurgent Jonathan Quick would force USA Hockey’s hand. — Pierre LeBrun

USA Womens

It’s been nearly three years since USA Hockey forward Jocelyne Lamoureux-Davidson unleashed her gold-medal winning shootout goal at the 2018 Winter Olympics. The “Oops I Did it Again“ move shook Canadian netminder Shannon Szabados right out of her pads and sent the United States back home with their first goal medal since 1998.

Much has changed in the women’s hockey landscape since the national team was paraded around the United States media circuit. From “Ellen” to “The Tonight Show” to some players visiting the White House, we seemed on track to see the best leadup to the next Olympics ever.

However, the U.S. women’s team hasn’t competed in an official tournament since the April 2019 women’s worlds in Finland and has had very few competitive games since. It’s been a rocky road that has been only further complicated by the pandemic. The last official roster we got from USA Hockey was ahead of the cancelled 2020 world championships.

The 2022 Winter Olympics are officially one year away and soon we can expect USA Hockey to name a roster for the 2021 worlds and enter residency in the fall ahead of selecting the roster for the Beijing Games. Here is a look at all that has happened since the Pyeongchang Games and what we predict the final U.S. Olympic roster will look like.

The rundown

The Canadian Women’s Hockey League folded as Team USA traveled to Finland for the 2019 world championship — their last official tournament. New head coach Bob Corkum made some noticeable roster adjustments for that tournament, including bringing back the final cuts from the 2018 Olympic roster: Alex Carpenter and Megan Bozek. Kelly Pannek, Annie Pankowski and the return of 2014 Olympian Michelle Picard were other notable additions.

As Team USA was competing on the ice, they were also paving a future for professional women’s sports off the ice. Players made a bold statement with the #ForTheGame movement, vowing not to play for an existing professional league in North America. That was a loud and clear message to then-NWHL commissioner Dani Rylan. The movement has since evolved into the Professional Women’s Hockey Players Association and the #DreamGap tour.

Games were already sparse when the Swedish national team held its own boycott for better conditions. Unlike what unfolded after the U.S. held out of the 2017 worlds, Sweden and its players did not reach an agreement and the 4 Nations Cup was canceled.

In lieu of 4 Nations, USA Hockey and Hockey Canada held a joint training camp in Pennsylvania. Canada opted for a young roster for the training camp, while the U.S. went with the usual suspects.

The next scheduled official tournament was the 2020 worlds. However, the pandemic shut that down and we haven’t seen USA Hockey in competition since. COVID-19 also greatly affected the PWHPA’s second year. Some players hit the ice last month in Tampa, but the organization has not yet been able to activate all of its five hub cities.

The 2020 world championship roster was announced and likely gives us the best glimpse at what USA Hockey will roll with as we approach the one year mark from the 2022 Olympics.

2020 world championship rosterFORWARDSDEFENDERSGOALIES

Brianna DeckerLee SteckleinAlex Cavallini

Hannah BrandtCayla BarnesMaddie Rooney

Hayley ScamurraMegan KellerAerin Frankel

Hilary KnightEmily Matheson

Kelly PannekMegan Bozek

Dani CameranesiKacey Bellamy

Kendall Coyne-SchofieldSavannah Harmon

Amanda Kessel

Jesse Compher

Alex Carpenter

Britta Curl

Grace Zumwinkle

Abby Roque

Roster changes

Notably missing from this roster compared to the 2018 Olympic team are Meghan Duggan, Jocelyne Lamoureux-Davidson, and Monique Lamoureaux-Morando. Duggan has since retired and it is unclear if USA Hockey is permanently moving on from the Lamoureux twins, who both returned to the team in November 2019 after each giving birth to their first child.

Defender Emily Matheson has announced she is expecting a baby boy in June 2021. Shelly Picard, who returned for the 2019 worlds, has also effectively retired and now serves as the deputy commissioner of the NWHL.

In goal, it would appear Nicole Hensley is on the outside looking in. Katie Burt and Aerin Frankel might be the two netminders Corkum brings in to join Maddie Rooney and Alex Cavallini. Overall, Corkum has shown he isn’t afraid to mix in some new faces with those synonymous with USA Hockey, such as Hilary Knight, Kacey Bellamy and new captain Kendall Coyne Schofield.

Annie Pankowski had a great world championship in 2019 but did not land on the 2020 roster. She was also missing from the 53-player roster tapped for an evaluation camp in October 2020, while younger players like Jincy Dunne, Natalie Snodgrass and Britta Curl were present.

Corkum emphasized in October the importance of bringing in new players and facilitating internal competition.

“We have a nice blend of youth and veteran talent here and the young players are certainly pushing the older players. And the older players aren’t ready to give it up,” Corkum said in a USA Hockey video recap.

Predictions

It is always difficult to make Olympic predictions, especially when USA Hockey hasn’t hit the ice in so long. I get the impression, though, that Corkum and USA Hockey are ready to shake things up. The roster for the 2021 worlds won’t be a complete youth movement, but it will feature some rising stars who have proven themselves in the 2019-20 Rivalry Series and in the NCAA. Here is my best guess at the 2022 Olympic Roster:

The 2020 world championship roster is the best indicator we have right now and I think we’ll see that team begin to take form as the go-to roster. I came up with line pairings based on the 2018 Olympics, 2019 worlds, and the 2019-20 Rivalry Series.

Alex Carpenter and Megan Bozek should make the next Olympics, though I’m more confident in Bozek than Carpenter.

Both are extremely skilled and are two of the few players currently getting in competitive games overseas. That said, there are a lot of good, young forwards coming up in the USA Hockey system. Abby Roque and Jesse Compher, for example, showed they are ready to play with Olympians in the 2019-20 Rivalry Series.

Roque, the 2020 Bob Allen USA Hockey Player of the Year, is an elite center and all signs point to her having a stellar international career. She scored two impressive goals in the Rivalry Series and injected some much-needed energy into USA Hockey coming off the lackluster performance at the 2019 November camp.

Last year would have marked the second consecutive world championship for Boston University product Jesse Compher. An injury kept her away from the Rivalry Series, but expect her to be back in the rotation. She has a great combination of size and skill for a USA Hockey team that is equal parts fast and furious on the ice.

Making the USA Hockey roster as a defender is tough, but ultimately, I think Matheson will need more time to return. I predict Savannah Harmon and Jincy Dunne will be the two vying for a spot this year, while Matheson will go for hers in 2022. I give the edge to the youth.

In net, Cavanelli and Rooney seem to be the mainstays for Corkum. Hensley attended the October evaluation camp, while Katie Burt did not. Frankel making the worlds roster indicates to me that she is being prepared for international competition.

As a journalist very fond of the eye test, this exercise was difficult, but here is to hoping we get to see players hit the ice for the red, white, and blue sooner rather than later.

[selfindulgentpoorlywritten]

Only You (Sidney Crosby Imagine)

The text got deleted for some godforsaken reason, so I’m hoping this fixes it.

Rating: NC-17

Pairing: Sidney Crosby/Fem!Reader

Words: 3462

Warnings: NSFW

Requested: yes / no

Summary/Request:  hi! are you still taking requests? bc i wanted to know if i could get some sidney smut but like with a girl that's like way shorter than him

(AKA established relationship Sid smut with a super short reader)

No one would say you’re particularly good at dancing, but damn if you didn’t love it. You were always dancing by the end of every party, to whatever was playing over the speakers, whether it was intended to be a soundtrack or not. Today is no exception. At clubs you tended to get lost in the crowd, but since it was only yourself and a few of the other WAGs, you’re still visible from the outside. Visible to Sidney from his seat on the patio, where he’s stopped bothering to pretend to be invested in the conversation taking place around him.

He loves to dance as well-- especially when he’s got a few drinks in him-- but he’s always loved your dancing. He can’t help but watch every time you take the floor, mesmerized by the way you move. By the way you sway just a tad awkwardly, the way you don’t even care. The freedom of it. But more than that, he’s captivated by how stunning you are. His favorite thing to do is remind you of how gorgeous he thinks you are, with quick comments and long nights, depending on how much he gets to see you.

Before you ever met him, you’d already felt short enough. Dating a professional hockey player and spending time with his friends only made you more acutely aware of your height. Considering the entire team is at least as tall as Sidney, who has more height on you than you’d like to acknowledge, you felt like you were Jack after climbing the beanstalk, surrounded by giants. That’s bad enough, though you’d expected the guys to make you feel small and were prepared for it; what you weren’t prepared for was the WAGs. They were all tall and long-legged and blonde and graceful and dazzling. You were the shortest by far, not even reaching Sidney’s chin, and most of them had half a foot or more on you. It rarely bothered you, but when you’re surrounded by literal models all the time, it’s difficult not to feel self-conscious on occasion.

The party is winding down alongside the sunset, and the small group of you retire from dancing to help Tanger and Catherine start cleaning up. You gather some used plates and cups that had been abandoned on tables around the yard, depositing them in the trash bag Kelsey is walking around with. The serving dishes for the food need to be brought inside, but you notice that-- aside from Tanger-- the guys are still sitting around shooting the shit while the girls do the work. On your way inside with a casserole dish, you smack Sidney on the arm and scold the lot of them. They hang their heads and stand to join in with the tidying-up effort, adequately chastised.

Sid keeps shooting you looks, the kind of looks that make your face heat and your heart skip beats. Anticipation coils in your gut. You’d been having a great time dancing and talking with everyone, but you’re suddenly eager for this to be over.

The downside of Sid being Captain is that he can’t beg off team events early unless it’s a legitimate emergency, so you’re stuck cleaning and talking for what feels like an eternity. The party was a “team bonding” event to welcome the newcomers to Pittsburgh, and Tanev, Galchenyuk, and Kahun seemed to appreciate it, at least. You would appreciate if everyone would leave, so you can go home and fully enjoy the promise of the heated once-overs Sidney has been so generously giving you all evening.

You try to appreciate the time with everyone and be present in the conversations going on, but Sid has taken every free moment to shoot you glance after glance, like he can’t keep his eyes off of you. It’s not as if you haven’t been zoning out of various discussions to look at him too, though, so glass houses and all that. The guys slowly trickle out with their better halves over time, until Geno and Anna are the only ones left. It takes you a moment to notice, since you’ve been a bit transfixed by Sidney’s hands for a few minutes, because he’s definitely showing them off, knowing your weakness for them.

Momentarily, you meet eyes with Geno, who looks knowing and smug, before he turns his gaze to Sid. That’s probably going to be embarrassing later, but right now you don’t really care if anyone knows your plans. Despite being an asshole, Geno is actually a good guy, so he excuses himself and Anna not long after. They say their goodbyes, giving out hugs and cheek-kisses and back-slaps before leaving, both giving you a wink on the way out. They really are perfect for each other, huh?

More importantly, you’re now free to go. You make some polite conversation with Catherine quickly, just thanking her for hosting and wishing her luck with the children, offering to babysit if she ever needs a break. Sid switches with you, giving Catherine a hug and thanking her succinctly. It takes a handful of minutes for you to say goodbye to Kris, and you swear you can feel Sid’s frustration at having to wait. Typically, he wouldn’t care about waiting for you, but he’s been clearly turned on for at least an hour and probably desperate to get you alone. You’re definitely on the same page. Unfortunately: societal niceties.

The instant you’ve finished with Kris, Sidney has a hand on your lower back, guiding you toward the door and out with a final farewell thrown over your shoulder. Kris and Catherine stand in the doorway to see you out, making sure you get into the car and start up safely. Luckily, you can justify Sid’s potentially-inappropriate handle on you as coincidence, considering the fact that his hand naturally rests at the same level as your lower back, more or less. It’s just incidental, or a happy accident, or whatever. When he has to remove his hand so you can both load into his car, you immediately miss the contact.

You return the Letangs’ friendly wave as Sid backs out of the driveway. Even if he didn’t have the C, you’d never be able to leave events early because he always parks in the driveway and gets blocked in. Or maybe he lets himself get blocked in because the C means he’s trapped anyway? Not important. What is important is the big hand he lays heavily on your thigh, too high up for polite company and so, so warm. He keeps his eyes solely on the road as he drives, despite clearly holding onto the last of his composure by threads.

“The worst part is that you don’t even mean to do it,” he says, voice far deeper than when he spoke to Tanger. It sends a shiver down your spine, your entire body tensing in a barely-visible wave at the familiar sound. You have no idea what he means, and your confusion definitely shows on your face. Fortunately, he doesn’t seem to want a response, because he just takes a beat and continues.

“You just dance, like there’s no one watching, like you wouldn’t even care if there were,” he says, voice conveying a thousand things; arousal, possession, awe, “And everybody watches you, but you only look at me.” His hands squeeze the steering wheel and your thigh in equal measure. You’re not proud of the sharp inhale you take in response, but you’re also not really thinking of your pride right now, or anything other than the heat and pressure just close enough to tease. Your brain is stuck on a loop of only you only you only you, but you don’t say it, not willing to give him the satisfaction of your devotion yet. Also, if you did give in and say it now, the two of you would probably end up with a ticket for public indecency. You can talk your way out of it once, but twice would probably be pushing it.

You don’t say a word the entire ride home, and his grip on you and the wheel eventually loosens. Though he does periodically tighten his fingers back around you, just sporadically enough to keep you on edge, keep you wanting. And god, did you want. Sid was the most beautiful man in the world on a normal day, so when he’s all focused and deliberate, almost ready to succumb to lust? Truly Athena herself couldn’t keep chaste in his presence.

Pulling up the driveway with his hand tight on the skin bared by your now bunched up skirt-- easily pushed out of the way by Sid’s searching fingers-- has your heart rate skyrocketing. He doesn’t spare you a peep before he cuts the ignition and exits the car, not needing to say a word for you to scramble to follow him, grabbing your bag and climbing out of the car so quickly you almost end up tumbling face-first onto the concrete. By time you get to the mud room, he’s already removed one shoe and is working on the other. He hadn’t worn a jacket, since it’s one of those rare September days where the world forgets it’s supposed to be transitioning into fall, so it’s 91° and 8-fuck-thousand percent humidity, so he doesn’t have to bother taking it off. Good. Less time wasted. As for you, you kick off your shoes and place them in their usual place a little less carefully than usual. Sid definitely has some level of OCD, but that won’t bother him. Probably. Maybe.

Clearly it doesn’t bother him right now, because he walks through the second door into the living room, still without a word. You follow behind, but staunchly refuse to compare yourself to an eager puppy despite the similarity. He leads the way to the bedroom, which seems way too far right now, in your opinion, but that’s not your brain talking. At least you get a nice view of Sid’s ass in his black swim trunks, close-fitting enough to accentuate his figure rather than hide it.

What you expect to happen once you reach the bedroom, is for him to immediately push you up against the door and kiss you senseless. What you do not expect, is for him to slowly crowd into your space, cupping your jaw with one hand and stroking your cheek gently with his thumb. The other hand comes to rest on the side of your ribcage, squeezing gently once as he looks down into your eyes. There’s so much adoration in his gaze that you feel like the swelling affection inside you is going to make you burst.

“I love you,” he says. His expression turns a bit bittersweet, like he knows he doesn’t say it enough, but appreciates you understanding it anyway. You cradle his face in both hands and kiss him once, almost chaste. A far cry from what you anticipated.

“I love you too,” you reply. You know you maybe say it too much, often enough that he gets flustered sometimes, or thinks it’s said out of habit and not sincerity. But you mean it every time, with all your heart. Again his expression changes, this time from bittersweet certainty to overt devotion. He looks at you as if you’re the most extraordinary person in the world, like he can’t believe he gets to have you, like you’re the exceptional one in this relationship. All you can do is kiss him again, longer this time, harder.

This is where the passion you’d expected comes in, where he starts kissing you like he can’t bear to part from you even for the necessity of breath. Where his hands run down your sides to sneak under your shirt, so they can skim back up your stomach to cup your breasts. Your bathing suit suddenly feels like far too much material between his hands and your skin, and you itch to take it off. To take all of it off, to bare yourself to him in a way that never felt so right with anyone before.

With your diminutive stature, he has to bend at the waist to kiss you while standing, and you know it sometimes gives him a crick in his neck. Which is totally the reason you’re eager to get to the bed, obviously. Not because his hands are warm even through your top and his lips are soft and damp against yours and the small needy sounds he makes into your mouth drive you wild. You’re just being considerate. Yup.

Whatever ulterior motives you may or may not have, you nudge him backward, guiding him toward the bed even as he continues to dip down to kiss you between looking back to make sure he doesn’t trip. When the backs of his knees hit the mattress, he doesn’t fall, just stops. He strips off his shirt with an unrestricted urgency he never shows anyone but you, throwing it toward the hamper. You follow suit, shucking off both tops, and pushing down your coverup skirt for good measure. He pauses, brushing his big hands over your shoulders and down your chest, admiring your figure so brazenly you feel yourself blush.

“You just gonna look?” you ask rhetorically, still a tad breathless, but feeling a bit bold yourself. In return, you’re graced with that beautiful crooked smile and a look far too dark to match-- under normal circumstances, at least. He squats down to grab you around the waist, tossing you onto the bed in a feat of strength that’s more than a little sexy. The noise you make is decidedly less sexy, but he just smiles wider, shoving off his trunks like an afterthought before joining you on the bed. You wriggle out of your suit bottoms, not getting a chance to throw them off the bed before he’s on top of you.

Sid is so intense this way, laser focus directed solely on you, fixated on the best way to take you apart. For the most part, you go with the flow. You’re more than willing to follow his lead, knowing from experience that he’ll make this more than exceptional.

With your body bared to him, he looms over you, eyes roaming your upper body. His thick thighs are solid and warm against your own legs, closer to your knees than you might expect of a more proportional couple; though all you can think of is how the scratch of his wiry body hair drives you a bit crazy. He kisses you again, only momentarily, before moving to your jaw, your neck, your shoulders. There will definitely be some dark spots that Malin and Kelsey will tease you about next time they see you, but the pressure and tinge of pain feel so good that you don’t much care.

Before Sid, you had assumed that your breasts simply weren’t that sensitive. Since the first time you’d slept together, however, you’d learned that maybe you just hadn’t had competent partners before. He sucks more hickeys into the thin skin of your breasts, mouthing and teasing at your nipples until you’re arching into his lips as you make sounds a bit too desperate for your liking. It’s just so good.

Occasionally, he’ll ask you to sit on his face. He knows it’s not easy for you, because your height means you have to rest a bit higher on your knees, which stresses your thighs. But he loves it so dearly that you do it from time to time. This evening, however, he seems far too frantic to eat you out as per usual. Instead, he abandons your chest to recapture your mouth. After so long, he knows exactly how to move, to lick, to press, to drive you crazy. Crazy enough that his fingers dipping into your folds make you gasp into his mouth in surprise.

Your focus shuttles between his fingers stretching you meticulously and the way he’s kissing the soul out of you. Your brain simply refuses to focus on one thing, jumping from his lips to his fingers to his thighs on your knees to his dick occasionally brushing your thigh. It’s all so much, his body the perfect complement to yours, no matter how counterintuitive that may seem.. He’s so big and warm, enveloping you in smooth skin and pounding pulse, completely encompassing you.

Once he deems you adequately stretched, he kisses you once again, slow and wet and deep. He asks you for the umpeenth time if you’re ready, if you’re okay with this, and you’re too much of a goner for him to do much more than kiss him and shimmy your hips closer to his own.

You’ll never get used to the first push inward. Sid’s not particularly long, but he’s thick, stretching you wide and hitting all the right spots you never even knew existed before him. His back is curled in a deep arch so he can bury his face in your chest for the initial stretch, like if he looks at you, he’ll lose it. Not that you would know, really, with how you throw your head back into the bottom edge of the pillow. All you can do is make a small “ah” sound, rocking your hips back and forth in an attempt to adjust to his size. Once bottomed out, Sid stays still as long as you need, no matter how the involuntary rolling of your pelvis makes him dig blunt nails into your hips.

“Come on,” you say, finally, hips reduced to tiny twitches, “Fuck me, Sid.” The phrasing draws a broken moan from his throat. He doesn’t bother wasting time with slow, dragging thrusts; just goes straight to fucking you into the mattress with as much speed and force as he can manage. Your ankles barely meet behind his back with how broad his torso is, so you dig fingertips into his shoulders to avoid being driven up the mattress.

No matter how single-minded he may seem as he shoves in and drags out, he still kisses you so sweetly. Whispering endearments and reassurances against your lips (though he still has to crane his head to do so, so maybe avoiding neck pain wasn’t your only motive for getting him into bed), he steadily fucks you into oblivion. By time he sucks a mark just under your jaw that’s sure to last, you’re gone, floating somewhere above yourself. When he comes, he bites into your collar bone, groaning out his pleasure as he fills you. You reply with a groan of your own, acutely aware of the warmth filling you, his cock still spreading you wide.

“Maybe I should dance more often,” you quip, once your breathing settles to something manageable. Sid huffs a laugh into the pillow, rolling to the side to avoid crushing you any more than he already has.

“As long as you’re not looking at any other guys,” he replies, letting his head flop to the side to smile at you.

“You know it’s only ever you, Sid,” you can feel your smile grow into something halfway between giddy and sentimental, “Only you.” He groans dramatically and throws an arm over his face, in a gesture you know means that he wishes he was 18 again so he could go twice in a row. All you can do is laugh and turn toward him, peeling his arm away and giving him a soft, lingering kiss.

“Just make sure you stay on the edge of the crowd so I can actually see you,” he says against your lips, grinning even as you gasp and smack his shoulder.

Over time, you’ve learned that aftercare is important to Sid. He likes to pamper you, to guide you into the shower so he can soap you up and wash you down. He loves to carefully towel you off, pressing gentle kisses to the places he bruised with his mouth and fingers. To cover you with his clothing, a t-shirt that reaches past the mid-point of your thighs and shorts that may as well be capris. To settle you into the bed once the duvet has been tossed toward the hamper, wrapping you in the sheets and comforter, tight against himself. Taking care of you has always been his favorite thing, the way you look up at him with drooping eyes and sleepy voice to thank him for everything. For the reassurance, for helping clean you, for your vaguely sore lower body and the way it makes you feel such deep satisfaction, for loving you, for making you feel loved, for making you believe you are loved. Believe you are loved, are cared for, are worth his love and care. Only you.

[fanforthefics]

writer and editor au for sidgeno? :)

“Page proofs for Crosby,” Phil grunts, dropping a stack of papers onto Geno’s desk with a loud thump. Geno jerks up–he hadn’t heard him come in. “And tell him he really only gets minor copyedits this time, I don’t care if he wants to change an entire section, if he wants that he’s paying for it.” 

“I tell him,” Geno assures Phil, picking up the pages. Then he grins. “But you know, last time he change section, it win him–” 

“I know what it won him,” Phil retorts. “I don’t care. Copyedits only.” 

“Some day i give him your email, let you two fight it out.” 

“Like you’d ever give up your special Crosby access,” Phil rolls his eyes. “You barely give Zach his email.” 

“He doesn’t give me his email,” Zach pipes in, from his cubicle outside Geno’s office. “I get Sid’s assistant’s email. I don’t actually talk to Sid, really. Like, ever.” 

“You, I fire,” Geno tells Zach, who grins at him with the air of someone who knows that yes, there might be infinite amounts of young Lit majors willing to take a seat as an editorial assistant at Big Five publishing house, but none of them would know just how to keep Geno’s editing schedule. “You–” He really doesn’t have any threats for Phil; if you wanted to be quite strict about it, the Managing Editor for the imprint probably outranked him. The whole imprint would definitely fail if Phil decided not to come to work one day, just drowning in a sea of misplaced commas. 

“Neither of you understand,” Geno tells them. “I’m save you. Not have to deal with Sid and his talk and neuroses.” 

“Yeah, Crosby sounds awful to deal with.” Phil snorts. “I have met him, you know.” 

“He always sends me a box of chocolates at Christmas,” Zach pipes in. “Even apart from the one he sends Geno.” 

“You not know,” Geno tells them both, glowering. They didn’t have to sit on the phone with Sid for hours, going page by page through his latest novel, discussing every fucking comma. Sure, it was that level of attention to detail that made Sid what he was in the literary world, and maybe the best parts of Geno’s days were when Sid called and they spend an hour discussing character motivations, and the day the house decided Sid’s contract wasn’t worth the money and he went to a different house was the day Geno walked, but still. He’d like to see them do it. 

“Call me from the Booker Prize dinner,” Phil snorts, and walks out of Geno’s office, shaking his head. 

He pauses in the doorway though, looks back. “I’d take a look at the dedication, though.”

“You think I not look?” Geno demands. He knows this book forward and back. He knows that, fuck everyone who thought Sid was played out, he couldn’t put out another winner, this book was maybe Sid’s best, even better than the first one Geno had gotten, inherited from Mario when he retired. Mario had passed that one on with a grin. You get Crosby, he’d said, and grinned again. I think you’ll enjoy it. 

Sometimes, Geno wonders if he knew. Geno flips past the cover page, makes a note on a typo in the front matter reviews, then he looks at the dedication. Sid usually dedicates his books to boring people, because he is a boring, boring man for all the magic of his words–his mom, his dad, his sister. His last one had been to the entire city of Pittsburgh. 

This one, though. For Geno, it says. Who makes me better, every day, and without whom none of this would be possible. 

“Hey, I’ll email the pdfs and mail the pages to Jake, then you have that meeting with Sully to go over numbers for–are you okay?” Zach asks, pausing halfway through the door. 

“Fine.” Geno doesn’t wipe tears from his eyes or anything. “Yes, email, send. But I’m late for meeting.” 

“Everyone’s going to be shocked,” Zach informs him. Geno narrows his eyes. 

“Fired,” he warns, and Zach laughs. 

“Want me to close the door so you can call Sid?” he asks. Geno considers pretending otherwise, but–

“Yes please,” he says. Zach barely laughs as he closes the door, even though Geno knows he’s about to go message all the other assistants about this. 

Geno types in the number on his phone mostly from memory. It rings, and it rings, and again, and then–

“Sidney Crosby’s phone,” comes a voice that is definitely not Sid’s. 

“Hi Jake,” Geno tells Sid’s assistant–one of them, he thinks Sid picked up a new guy recently too. He can’t actually tell their voices apart yet. “Sid around?” 

“Hey, Geno.” There’s a shuffling. “He’s just working on an interview, he didn’t want to be disturbed. Do you need something I can help with?” 

“No.” Jake is invaluable to both Sid and Geno, and Geno knows that, but–he can’t help with this. But Geno’s not going to disturb Sid when he’s busy. “Just tell him I call. Zach send you proofs soon–” 

“Oh,” Jake suddenly sounds very smug. “Oh, no, he’s going to want to talk to you, one sec.” 

He can hear someone getting up, then moving around–Geno can picture it, how Jake was probably camped out on Sid’s couch, because Sid keeps on threatening to give Jake his own office and Jake keeps on protesting he doesn’t need it even though at this point he’s running a business off of Sid’s coffee table. Then there’s a knock on a door, and Geno knows that door, knows Sid’s office from meetings and late nights and a few times when he’s had to barge in and tell Sid that he could wait a few days for the next manuscript sleep was more important. Then the door opens and, 

“Sid, it’s–yeah, I know, but it’s Geno. He’s got the page proofs–yeah, I thought so,” Jake says, sounding the sort of smug that Geno expects is going to result in an email to Zach. “Okay, here’s Sid.” 

“Thanks,” Geno tells him, then there’s a scratch and, 

“Geno?” Sid says, and Geno can’t help his smile. A decade later, and it’s still Sid, still the same voice that answered him the first time he called with edits. “Hey, sorry, I was writing something up for that tour Jen set up.” 

“Yes, I know, she nagging me to make you finish.” 

“She’ll get her answers on time,” Sid informs him, a little snippy like he tends to get when someone claims he isn’t professional. Then Geno can hear his breath. “You saw the proofs?” 

“Yes.” Zach already took them, but Geno doesn’t need the pages in front of him to see it. “See dedication. Want to say thank you, could have gone in acknowledgments–” 

“It’s true,” Sid says, firmly. Like he always says whenever someone looks in surprise at Geno, who gently suggests that maybe Sid should get an editor who speaks better English, who has more experience, who’s different. Sid has stared down each and every one of them, and firm but polite, told them that he won’t work with anyone else. Every time he says it, it makes Geno want to hug him. This time, he’s too far away. “You do. With the books and in general. I know I get the credit, but each of my books are both of ours, and this is the least I can do to give you some credit.” 

Sid does plenty. Sid is–Geno complains but Sid is the foundation of Geno’s career, sometimes it feels like the foundation of his life. Sid gives Geno credit at every interview he’s asked, and sometimes when he isn’t. Geno still remembers at some prize dinner a few years ago, when Sid had gotten a little tipsy and had ended up, red-faced and giggling a little, telling Geno how great he was over and over as Geno laughed. 

“I know, I’m genius, you just pretty face,” Geno retorts, because they don’t say that stuff. 

Sid laughs. Geno’s not sure he understands, really–that even now, ten years later, Geno’s a little in awe; that Sid’s stories can still move Geno to tears; that Sid’s won almost every award an author can get and Geno still thinks he’s not appreciated enough. 

“For sure, for sure,” Sid agrees. “Are you okay with it? I can still cut it–” 

“You just try,” Geno growls, maybe too fast. Sid chuckles again. Geno is a grown man and doesn’t blush, but he does take a second. “No, Phil kill you if you try change that much.” 

“Actually, I wanted to talk to you about that,” Sid says, and Geno groans. 

“Sid.” 

“No, but I really think we can still tighten up Stanley’s intro, it’s a little sloppy–”

“Phil come to your house and kill you,” Geno warns, but he’s pulling the manuscript up on his computer. “Okay, what you think?” 

Half an hour later, Geno is very late for his meeting and Phil is definitely going to kill one or both of them for the changes they want, but they’re happy with where it is. 

“We good?” Geno asks. “I tell Zach, he–”

“Don’t bother him, Jared can do it. He needs something to do. I don’t know why I needed another assistant–” 

“Because Jake too busy, and you have better things to do with time,” Geno informs him. “This way Jake can focus on charity stuff, and Jared help with things like page proofs.” 

“Yeah, you’re right, I know.” Sid huffs out a breath. “I’ll send him the changes to input. Two weeks for the proofs?” 

“Sooner better, with these changes,” Geno agrees. He glances at his calendar. “Then I’m come down, for launch. Zach send you my travel, hotel–”

“You’re staying with me.” 

“Sid, I don’t–” 

“Don’t be ridiculous, I have the space, you’re staying. Sam misses you,” Sid adds, because he knows how to play dirty. Geno will never pass up time to play with Sid’s dog. 

“Fine, I stay with you. But not work, not all the time.” 

He can hear Sid’s smile. “That’ll be good. We haven’t hung out in a while.” 

“Your fault, write too many bestsellers, keep me too busy.” But Sid’s right. It will be good, to just hang around and watch a game and chat late into the night. To have Sid, spread out on the other end of his couch in shorts and bare feet, maybe even shirtless for the summer, and– “But yes, we remember we friends.” 

Geno only notices Sid’s pause because he’s spent years paying attention to him. “Yes, friends,” Sid agrees. “I’ll get you the pages ASAP, and Jen the interview.” 

“Good, yes.” Geno closes his eyes. “And Sid–thank you. Means a lot, you think this about me.” 

Sid laughs. “You know how I feel about you, G,” he says, then, “Okay, I need to get to this interview.” 

“Bye,” Geno agrees, on instinct, and then Sid hangs up. 

Geno looks at his desk, piled with papers, then out his office window to the New York streets below. Sid’s an author, the best there is; he doesn’t choose words lightly. And Geno’s english might not be 100%, but–he knows what that phrasing means. What it suggests. 

Geno grins, and gets up. Zach’s bent over his computer, which means he’s either working hard or emailing memes with Jusso, the new publicity assistant. Geno knocks on the table. “For when I go down to Pittsburgh, see if I can get there day early,” he asks, as Zach jerks to look at him. “Also, find good restaurant. Need to take Sid out.” 

“Yeah, sure,” Zach agrees, jotting a note down on a post-it. Then he looks up, grinning. “You know, I don’t think you’re allowed to expense a date disguised as an author dinner.” 

Geno scoffs, but–well, between Zach and Jake it’s not like he has secrets. “Fired,” Geno warns again, and heads to his meeting whistling. 

[ijustwanttoexist]

For @ljummen who has written and shared so much, I saw your post and wanted to try to give something back. I think this is going to end up having a couple more parts. I hope this is okay!

Working Title: Love Isn’t Just a Walk in the Park

Pairings(s): Sidney Crosby/Evgeni Malkin

Geno will admit to pretty much anyone that asks that the reason he got more help for his pet shelter was so he didn’t have to deal with the morning shift, or even mornings in general. He’s not even ashamed to admit that the moment they had enough money traffic going around he completely took himself off mornings and divided it between his two employees.

So when he gets a text from one of his morning shift workers at way too early in the morning, he elects to roll over an ignore it. Which was apparently the wrong choice, because a few minutes later his phone rings. 

Geno groans and grabs his phone. He stares at it blearily for a moment, then swipes to accept the call.

“What you want?” he groans loudly.

“Okay, so,” the caller starts, and Geno feels bad for a moment because all he wants is for her to get to the point. He’s never disliked talking with Sara before, even likes the way she’s comfortable enough around him not to use her you’re my boss voice unless there’s someone important around. But right now, at the moment, he wishes she would.

“There’s this guy who just walked in and he asked if we’re looking for dog walkers? Apparently, he lives close and jogs in the morning when he’s not away for work, and he’d love to take a different dog out when he can for some exercise.”

Geno blinks at his ceiling. “Ask if he can wait. Want to come in, meet strange man who jogs before sun is up.” 

Geno pulls the phone away from his face and levers himself up gingerly. They’d had freight come in yesterday, and a long soak in the bath and sleeping on a heating pad in the night had only done so much for the ache in his back. He’s just gotten himself up to standing when he hears a voice back on his phone.

“...come back?” he just catches.

“Sorry, put down phone for a second. Say again?”

“He says he can wait or he can come back, whichever is more convenient for you.”

Geno wants to groan. He wants to schedule a meeting with this strange man, and then climb back into his bed and sleep until he has to get up for his shift. But he’s also already out of bed, and he has some paperwork he’s been putting off.

“Tell him I’ll be in half hour. Can wait or come back, whatever he like.”

“Okay, I’ll tell him. See you soon. Don’t forget to bring your heat packs,” she says as a final parting, then hangs up before he can respond. He grumbles about insubordinate employees as he goes through a highly abbreviated version of his normal routine.

He grabs a packet of pop tarts and a breakfast drink for his breakfast, and grudgingly grabs his heat packs before heading out the door with terrible bedhead and slightly wrinkled work clothes. He speeds to work a little more than usual.

He parks in one of two employee spots, grabs all of his things, and makes his way into the store. The only person in the store is his employee, who gives a wide-eyed look at his appearance.

“Morning, G,” she says.

“He leave?” he asks as he makes his way behind the counter towards his office.

“He’s in the back with the dogs,” she supplies. Geno nods and goes into his office. He chokes down half a pop tart while he waits for his computer to boot, then another half while he waits for it to log in. Then he goes about dredging through his old files for the specific paperwork he’s looking for. 

When he first opened this shelter, he had hoped it would be more enthusiastically received. He’d had some paperwork made up for this specific instance, but had never had a chance to use it. He found it after a few minutes of scouring, then opened it to read through it quickly.

“Printer on?” he shouted to the front.

“It is now,” he got back a few seconds later. He pressed print, then shoved the last pop tart into his mouth and chugged the drink.

He stretched as he walked out of his office, hoping to relieve some of the tension that had formed from leaning over his desk. Today is going to be a long day otherwise. He accepts the newly stapled form that Sara hands him with a thank you, and glances through it one last time.

“So are we really going to let some strange man walk off with our dogs,” she asks.

“What form is for. Get his address. Send police after him if he steals dogs.”

“I didn’t even know we had a form for that,” she says.

“Very old. Never used.” He gets lost in reading through the papers, familiarizing himself with what’s really on it so he doesn’t look like he doesn’t know what he’s doing. His head pops up when he hears the door to the kennels open and sees the mystery man walk into the front area.

And, well, if Geno thought he could get away with swearing in Russian, he would have enthusiastically. But he also recognizes the man with the small happy smile on his face approaching the counter, even though he’d rather not, and he knew this man would surely understand whatever swear words he used. Most hockey players were multilingual when it came to swear words, and he knew for certain that Sidney Crosby had at least the one Russian player on his team.

He takes a moment to appreciate what little he can see of the form of a professional athlete in jogging shorts and a dark t-shirt, before focusing purely on the man’s face. It wasn’t a hardship, with eyes and lips like that.

“Are you the owner?” Sidney asks as he approaches the counter.

“Yes, am owner. Call me Geno,” he says and holds out his hand.

“Sidney,” the other man says and takes it. 

“Have paperwork to go through,” he says and holds up the packet, “and maybe have other question for after you sign. Come back to my office?” 

Sidney agrees, and they go back. Geno sinks into his chair and watches as the other man settles close to the edge of the guest chair.

They go through the paperwork slowly. There were five pages in all, and Geno read through every line and sign every spot marked for initials. And then they’ve both signed at the bottom, and Geno finds himself hesitant to ask his other question. Instead, he stalls.

“How come want to walk dogs now? We been here few years.”

“I just moved to the area,” Sidney says, shyly. “I was living with a... a friend for probably longer than I should have.” And Geno knows exactly what friend he’s talking about, because even though he’s been doing his best to avoid all things hockey related, he can’t really get away with it in a sports town like Pittsburgh. Some of his friends are terrible gossips, and don’t seem to care that he doesn’t care to talk about hockey.

“I saw the shelter a few days ago while I was doing my first jog in the area, and decided to check it out after I got back from a business trip.”

Geno nods in acknowledgment, and feels bad now. It’s obvious this man just wants to remain anonymous to this little pet shelter he wants to volunteer at. But, well, it would be nice to have a bit more activity, and it never hurts to ask.

“Have other question for you. Can say no, if you not want.” Sidney gestures for him to continue. “Was hoping you could maybe give review of each dog you take we could put on our twitter page, maybe with picture of you and dog?” He bites his lip as soon as the question is out, and waits.

Sidney now knows that Geno has recognized him, and wants to use his fame to maybe drum up some business for their store. He settles back into the chair and bites his own lip as he thinks, and Geno tries to let him think it through, but he’s never been good with awkward silences.

“Don’t have to, if you don’t want. Can do just the review, or no review at all. Still want you for walking dogs, if you still want.” Sidney looks up at him and gnaws on his lip for a second more before he leaned forward in his seat again.

“I think, as long as whoever is writing the tweets runs them by me before they post them, and I get to approve the picture, I would be okay with that.”

“Of course,” Geno is quick to say, “don’t want to chase away best dog walker.” That makes Sidney giggle.

“I haven’t even walked any dogs yet,” he says, but he’s still smiling. Geno shrugs.

“Get up early in morning to walk dogs. Must love having opportunity to walk so many good dogs. Must mean best dog walker.” Sidney’s smile grows, and Geno finds himself smitten but squashes that feeling down hard. 

This man is a professional athlete, a hockey player. He knows how insular and conservative that world can be. He’d been a part of it for most of his life, until a few years ago. He tried not to even think about hockey anymore.

“It’s still early enough I can take a dog out, if it’s okay if I start today?” Sidney says.

“Yes, yes,” Geno says, “of course can start today. Go pick first dog.” He watches the man disappear into the back before he rubs his hands over his face.

“He’s cute,” Sara says once Geno is done wallowing.

“He’s famous hockey player,” Geno sighs back at her.

“Oh,” she says, and nothing more. She knows all about the accident, because he’d told all his employees so they could help him watch out for his back. She sighed. “That’s such a shame. He’s got a great ass,” she says, leaning on the counter to exaggerate her dreamy look.

“You could date him,” Geno says. She makes a noncommittal noise.

“You know he’s not my type.” Geno does know.

They see Sidney off with the dog he’d chosen, and then talk through the details of what the twitter posts should say.

When Sidney comes back, Geno is firmly ensconced in his office with the door closed. He doesn’t need to see what sweaty Sidney looks like, or that smile on his face that seems to exist only for the dogs in the kennels.

[rinkrats]

In the minutes following the Penguins’ Stanley Cup victory in Nashville three years ago, Jim Rutherford called Sidney Crosby “one of the best four players in history, now.”

Rutherford might not be wrong and, as a Hall of Fame team builder, he has every right to make such a claim. Still, he might be a little biased.

When another member of that group says the same thing — and we aren’t talking about his owner, friend and former landlord, Mario Lemieux — it carries some additional meaning.

Bobby Orr, in an interview with The Athletic, spoke glowingly of Crosby the player and the person. Orr, who is unanimously considered the greatest defenseman who ever lived, said one shouldn’t hesitate to put Crosby in a class with himself, Mario Lemieux, Wayne Gretzky and Gordie Howe.

“Please, please,” Orr said. “I want you to be very comfortable putting Sidney Crosby’s name with the rest of us. Just trust me on that one. He’s so, so special.”

...“First of all, if you ask those other guys on the list, I know that they’ll tell you the same thing I’m about to tell you,” Orr said. “Sid belongs on that list. Sure, there’s the talent that he has and the drive. But look at what he’s been through. That tells me something. Look at the injuries he’s dealt with, especially earlier in his career. He’s been beat up, hurt, been through so, so much. And through it all, look at what he’s accomplished. He’s won all of those Cups. He’s won the Olympics. Scored the goal to win it, in fact. The World Cups he’s won. The numbers he’s put up. Everything he’s done. He’s one of the greatest hockey players of all time.”

Crosby has missed the equivalent of 2 1/2 seasons of his career because of injuries. Even so, he’s produced 462 goals and 1263 points in only 984 NHL games, his 1.28 point per game average good for sixth all time. Four of the players ahead of him on that list — Gretzky, Lemieux, Mike Bossy and Marcel Dionne — produced a large chunk of their numbers in the high-scoring ’80s. Orr, the other, was just Orr.

But Orr gushes when he speaks of Crosby.

“I can’t say enough good things about Sidney Crosby,” Orr said. “He’s so much fun to watch and plays the game in a way that you can’t help but respect. I just love how hard he plays, how smart he plays. He’s just in a different kind of class.”

Orr is beloved in Boston and, really, everywhere that appreciates hockey, not just because of his remarkable talent but also because of the ambassador he’s always been for the game. There is something almost saintly about Orr, as many who interact with him comment that there is something different about him in terms of how down to earth he is for a hockey god.

Similar things are often said about Crosby.

“They’re almost like the same person,” said Eddie Johnston, who is the former Penguins’ general manager and coach, along with having the designation as Orr’s best friend. “They both go to hospitals all the time, do all kinds of stuff for charity, and they don’t want anyone to know about it. Sid’s just like Bobby in so many ways, and they’ve gotten to know each other over the years. I’m a lucky guy because I’m so close with both of them.”

Orr references another in the pantheon of all-time greats when speaking of Crosby.

“I’ve gotten to know Sid over the years and I’ve made it clear how I feel about him,” Orr said. “And the truth is, I feel the same way about Mario. Those are two special human beings. Take away hockey and just look at the human beings they are. It’s really clear to me that Mario has rubbed off a lot on Sid over the years. I think Sid was always a naturally good person, and I think being around Mario all the time has made him even better. Off the ice, he’s just like Mario. And that’s a good thing.”

Crosby isn’t yet finished writing his legacy. He turns 33 in August and those who know him best believe he’d like to play until he’s around 40.

“There are a lot of great players in the league right now and there have been a lot of all-time greats,” Orr said. “I think Connor McDavid can be up there with them someday. But Sid is there. This is an incredible person and an incredible hockey player. I have so, so much respect for him. I really love Sid.”

-Is Sidney Crosby one of the best hockey players of all time?, 30 June 2020

[smollandtoll]

HC: Public displays of affection Poly AU (OT3)

Venture with us into a universe where polyamorous relationships are the norm, or maybe not the norm but akin to being homosexual. Like Homosexuality is a non issue in this universe and it’s more about if you’re a Mono relationship kind of person or a Poly relationship kind of person. The type of relationship is mostly about how many people are in it and whether you’re open or looking for more. All the terms that follow cascade from that: "closed poly" "open poly" "chain poly" "currently mono looking for poly" etc.

Also we feel like in a poly world there would necessarily be more of a culture of just talking out what you want and are looking for and expecting and what your boundaries are - like having talks about how much romance and what kind you’re good with is very normal and healthy.

PSA: We also wish this was more the norm in our universe as well Do you ever get choked about how extra and romantic Geno is? And how much abhorring-the-media Sidney Crosby would hate it? He couldn’t handle being showered with love in THE BEAMING SPOTLIGHT OF GENO'S ATTENTION AND AFFECTION. So many big declarations.Geno is a big guy, he has big feelings, he has to have his love writ large.

Sid would BEG after a few badly timed jumbotron messages of undying love, "Just get those things for Anna, she likes them. I’m okay without."

Geno would not compute, taking it as some kind of affront to his love like "BUT YOU DON'T LIKE THEM? YOU DON'T LOVE ME AS BIG AS THAT?"

Sid: NO! I mean yes! I do. I do love you huge but like...quiet???????? QUIETLY???? Please…

G would struggle under the weight of not showing off, not screaming his love from the rooftops. He feels like he’s walking on eggshells always, he doesn’t know if he’s embarrassing Sid, or worse distracting him. He constantly has to check his first inclination. Geno being Geno wouldn’t be able to struggle with it unnoticed, he’s the most dramatic emotions in primary colours kind of guy, Sid would plainly know that he’s making G unhappy.

Sid in turn being stressed about it because like, it's such a dumb thing to be upset about, like your partner loves you and wants to yell it to the world, and it's clearly making Geno unhappy but .....HIS PRIVACY IS SACRED.

Anna of course is unbothered by any of this, she knew what she was getting into with G, but eventually probably has had enough of watching them try to sort it out on their own and being unable to deal with emotions like two functioning adults. She has a sit down with Sid, massaging his shoulders and pulling his head into her lap to stroke his hair and tells him gently but in no uncertain terms that she's going to negotiate a truce between them.

It boils down to something that goes like: Geno gets one (1) HUGE PUBLIC DECLARATION a year for Sid. It could be his birthday, or Valentines day, or a random sunday, or Father's day, or Christmas. SID MUST ALWAYS BE ON HIS TOES but at least he knows it's ONCE and then the steel trap comes down and Geno will say nothing more for the rest of the year. IN RETURN because this is a compromise not an ultimatum, Sid must EITHER 1. consent to being in more every day social media posts or 2. Have his own instagram and interact with it a predetermined minimum number of posts and comments a month. Sid picks door number one.

Anna will continue to be showered with gifts and roses and live tigers at every anniversary and birthday and major date and historical event possible and Sid has to consent to having like his knee or half his face in posts now and then. Even that gets negotiated because Sid needs rules, he needs terms and conditions. So he can either choose the occasional selfie once a month OR hands/back of head/legs shown in photos 2-3 times a month. Sid originally goes with the more anonymous hands and his shoulders and stuff first; but then he starts seeing Geno's posts are all like: his tousled bed hair in bed and his hands cupped around that wonky mug Taylor made for him in art class when she was 13, and he realizes they're far more intimate than his face which everyone already sees. So he bounces around, if he's done a lot of media lately, or just finished with a commercial shoot he just says that Geno can take a picture of his hands while he’s shucking corn on the back deck or something. Or if he's tired of seeing bits of his life everywhere he's like “I'll smile, wait let me hide my wine.” This beautiful wonderful poly world where it wouldn't be weird for Geno to post the two of them together, Sid and Anna just like having wine, looking over a balcony together and Geno captioning it Whole Heart with eight heart emojis or something.

With all this photography going around we’re sure Anna needs to get in on this action, Sid is so photogenic esp of late. She definitely occasionally commandeers him to be Hot™ with her for small photoshoots with her iPhone. They usually start spontaneously with her finding Great Light as all selfie sessions do and then asking him to take photos of her and then getting him to be in the photos. So Sid can never really blame her or be bothered by it, it’s always so natural, and easy, and it’s fun to be with her and turn whatever direction she tells him, and smoulder ridiculously for her and laugh as she coos appreciatively.

She hoards the photos she collects of them and him, she doesn't post many or any of them usually. She does occasionally send them to Geno to destroy his life (usually when there’s no way he can get to them in time to start anything), Geno always has really great photos of them on his lock screen. Anyway she always double checks with Sid before she posts anything with him in it, but usually he looks great in her photos so it's fine. We love Sid and Anna together, like they just seem like they’d compliment each other so well and have such deep respect and care for each other. WE ARE HERE for Anna and Sid on a small mission together to like fuckin Costco (w/e the backwards land of Pittsburgh has, Giant Tiger or Sam’s club or some shit) or something so dumb like that and Geno just trailing after them while they strategize being like "Is it possible to be so turned on my balls ache?"

Whenever Anna feels upset about her career, Sid's always there to snuggle her and be like "You say the word I can get you in contact with around 80 media personnel who could find you a job in North American sports journalism in front of the camera or behind."

They probably talk seriously about it sometimes but in the end BABIES. They all want so many babies and she wants to be there for them, and to be their home and stuff. We’re sure Sid still tinkers away at trying to find her like the occasional blogging guest spot or something y'know when her English is up to it. He’s just supportive in every possible way, Geno gets mad or upset on your behalf, Sid just starts strategizing and he’s a really good listener, and he cares a lot.

Geno is empathy and Sid is logic. Anna...Anna is probably reality, the little dose of humility they both need every once in a while, smart enough to tell Geno off when he’s being egomaniacal and emotionally unstable because of it, indulgent enough to shake Sid out of whatever hyper-focused funk he works himself into. Levelheaded enough to balance both of her boys out when they’re going off the rails now and then, game for fun and high-intensity with G and quieter times with Sid. In this sense they work so well together, maybe sometimes Geno has feelings and Anna translates them into wild fantasies but then they can get stalled out because they don’t know where to go from there and then of course Sid swoops in with his reinforced practicality and does some research and then figures out how to have the best and safest kinky time.

BONUS:

Sid’s love language is not big displays like Geno’s is (a combo of words of affirmation and giving gifts). His is more acts of service. Sid is just the devoted loyal type, like he will make food and bring you thoughtful things and quietly arrange things so people leave you alone if you’re upset and that’s what you need. He’s a dependable love: do you have a problem? Sid will move heaven and earth to help you solve it, he'll train you at 4am, he'll walk your dog, he'll water your plants, he'll find you a replica baby grand piano and get it moved into your 3rd floor walk-up apartment. HE'LL FIGURE IT OUT. There’s no end to what he will do for the people he loves, he’s just so like patient and determined, like legit just chugs along until he reaches his goals. Also he’s hyper competitive and won’t be out done:

Rando PTA mom: well I love my wife so I built her this coffee table. I’m a builder by nature you know.

Sid: For sure! I just learned woodworking as well! I built this whole house :) with my bare hands :) for my family :)

[myhockeyworld87]

Not So Dangerous Liaison - Sidney Crosby - Part 16

Word Count: 3,431

POV: Sidney’s

Warning: Language, NSFW, Smut

Notes: Sorry this is late guys, but here’s who was listening at the door hearing what the new drafties were discussing. As always feedback is greatly appreciated. Hope everyone is doing well and loving that hockey is finally back. Happy Reading!

Not So Dangerous Liaison Masterlist

As much as you understood that (Y/N) had to go play tour guide to the new recruits; you absolutely hated it. You'd grown so accustomed to your days together. The two of you fell into a nice routine, waking up in the morning and usually having some form of sex before doing an actual workout. Though some mornings that was foregone for another round in bed, which you totally preferred. Then it was making breakfast together, followed by each of you doing some work. (Y/N) took the living room as her makeshift office, as she said working in the same room together would lead to neither one of you getting work done. Which she was more than likely right, as you found yourself sneaking out sometimes and just nibbling on her neck from the back of the couch.

 You conned her into letting you go with her when she checked on the progress of the team house she was in charge of, telling her that you wanted to see where they were at with it; when in reality you really didn't need all those construction workers ogling over her.  Their eyes would linger the moment she walked in, and you'd place a very possessive hand on her back or waist and suddenly those eyes were back on the drywall in front of them. She was doing an amazing job with the place, which Mario told her one night when the two of you joined him and Nathalie for dinner.

 All in all, the two of you were inseparable that week and a half. So her even leaving for a few hours was not something that sat well with you, but you got it and kissed her goodbye telling her you'd see her soon. It was about an hour later that you decided it wouldn't hurt to meet the new guys. It was just an introduction from the captain, didn't all teams do that. Well, you'd actually already called and congratulated them when they were drafted, but real-life welcomes were always best. At least that's what you told yourself when you pulled into the arena.

 She was out taking them on a tour of the town, so you wander down the halls only to find Mario in his office. You knocked on the open door, before walking in. "Hey boss, didn't expect to see you there?"

 "Though somehow I did expect you," he chirped back with a cheeky smile.

 You couldn't help the blush that rose up to your cheeks. "Well, you know…"

 "Yeah, Sid I do. I remember it all too well." He stared off and you could tell her was thinking of his wife. "You have that same look as I did way back then you know?"

 He didn't have to say what it was. You were fairly certain, you were falling in love with (Y/N), though you've yet to admit it to her or yourself. Call it fear of rejection or something else, you just knew that if you threw the L word out there and she didn't say it back, you'd be crushed. You just needed to give it a little more time. She'd already gotten scared about the fact she was dating you; you didn't need her to go running if you told her you loved her. "Yeah I know," you admitted to Mario. "Just trying to give it time."

 "And you're doing this by showing up, while she's working?"

 "Well when you put it like that," you grabbed the back of your neck, rethinking your decision to come down here.

 "Relax Sid, I'm sure she'll be happy to see you. Plus the new kids will flip out." Which was your excuse for coming down. "While I have you down here, come check out this new skate blade sharpener Dana got in."

 "You know how I am about my blades. I kind of love the old machine." It was well known in the league that if you had a problem with your blades, one of the equipment guys would run down and sharpen it instead of just putting on new blades on like everyone else did. You were kind of particular about those things.

 "Just give it a look. (Y/N) just text and said she's out on the ice with the boys and will be in the locker room shortly, so after you check this out we can drop in and say hi. Then take your girl home, like I know you want to." You liked that he called her 'your girl.' It was the first time in your life that you wanted the whole world to know how you felt about someone.

 "Fine." The two of you headed to the equipment room which was adjacent to the locker room. Dana was in there and the three of you talked about the new sharpener until you heard voices next door. You listened intently as you heard her explain the unique design of the room, a hint of awe in her voice and you remembered walking in there for the first time and all the feelings you had. You could just see these eager young players being introduced to their first NHL locker room. Their eyes were probably wide taking every little detail in. You and Mario continued to listen to the conversation, holding back a bit before you walked in to say hello. (Y/N) left, explaining she had a phone call to take and you were just about to go in, thinking that she'd be surprised when she came back when Mario held you back. What you heard next had your fists clenching at your sides.

 The things these boys were saying. Well, correction it seemed to be one kid, and you wanted to punch his face into the wall. Mario stopped you though, whispering low. "Follow my lead." The two of you moved into the room. "Gentlemen, it's good to have you here in Pittsburgh." All five heads turned at the sound of Mario's voice and in unison, they all looked over, an awestruck look on their faces. "I hope you're finding your stay here pleasant?"

 "Umm…ye…yeah," stuttered out one of the kids, Ryan Jones you thought. You hadn't been paying too much attention when (Y/N) was going over all their bios the night before as you'd been too busy working on getting her out of her clothes. But you were sure you wouldn't forget their faces today.

 "Good, good." Mario continued not really introducing or shaking hands with any of the men. "So I trust (Y/N)'s been good to you?" You found yourself questioning the choice of words your mentor was using, but still trusted him in where he was going. The boys for their part blushed, though one sort of smirked and you figured you'd just found your culprit. You were ready to drag his skinny little body out of the locker room and beat him to a pulp.

 Finally, the kid with the shit ass eating grin answered. "Oh yeah, she's real good." His emphasis on the last part wasn't lost on either you or Mario.

 "Connor isn't it?" Mario asked the young pup and he nodded his head furiously. "Ms. (Y/L/N) is very beautiful, isn't she?" The kid actually had the gull to snicker, and you could feel your nails biting into your skin as you fisted them at your sides. "Anyone would be lucky to be with her, don't you think?" Ok, this may be going a little too far. If Mario started saying stuff about sleeping with her, you were going to lose you god blessed mind.

 "Well, yeah," the boy, Connor agreed, while the others kept silent, still ashamed to be caught gossiping about (Y/N). A muscle in your jaw ticked, itching to take young Connor out and beat some sense into him about how women should be treated.

 "I know her boyfriend feels the same way," Mario stated matter of factly. Eyes went wide as Mario insinuated that (Y/N) dated someone, yet still Connor seemed unmoved. "In fact," Mario continued. "He gets super jealous. Has been known to even drop the gloves from time to time. You can imagine how he'd feel if he knew what you insinuated about her." The boys exchanged glances with each other trying to figure out what player (Y/N) was dating. Realization finally dawned on the one, Bjorkqvist, and you made a mental note to remember that at least of them had some smarts. It would help him out on the ice in the future. The kid took a step back as he glanced first at your face and then at your fists; another smart move. "So you see boys, we're family here and family doesn't take kindly when someone messes with us and those we love." Mario gave them a few minutes to let the gravity of his words sink in. You looked back at Connor, even though every time you did, you wanted to punch him in the face. He finally started to become uncomfortable; good. "I'm only going to ask this question, one time, though I'm pretty sure I know the answer. Which one of you called Ms. (Y/L/N) the team whore?"  You flinched when Mario said the word 'whore,' as thoughts of that bastard Christian came floating back to you. That night at least you had the satisfaction of slamming the man up against the wall. Today you could tell Mario wanted you to take the high road; you weren't sure if you could honor his request or not.

 Seconds ticked by as you waited for the guys to give up Connor, for you knew the boy wasn't going to admit to it himself. Bjorkqvist, the same one that figured out you were (Y/N)'s significant other finally broke the odd silence. "I told him he shouldn't speak about her like that."

 "Finally, I see one of you has some sense." Mario addressed the young winger. "Now if you could be a little more specific on who it was exactly, and let me reassure you that by you telling me who it was will not affect your status with the organization, but not saying anything might."

 There was a chorus of 'it was him' or 'he did,' along with fingers all directed at Connor. You took a step forward only to be stopped short, as (Y/N) walked into the room.

 "Sorry about that. Sid…what are you…is everything ok?" You tried to relax but it was obvious that something had transpired while she was gone. Her head flipped back between you and the group of young prospects.

 "Everything's fine," Mario finally spoke up. "I was just going to show these guys how we have the state-of-the-art equipment here. Right gentlemen?" They all nodded, even Connor. "So why don't you follow me and we'll leave these two lovebirds alone for a minute." A couple of the guys did a double-take as they finally realized that you were in fact (Y/N)'s boyfriend while Connor suddenly turned pale. "We'll be back in a bit."

 As soon as they headed off to the equipment room, (Y/N) was standing in front of you, and you reached out to pull her close, needing to feel her close to you. She pulled back though remained in your embrace. "What just happened here?" You didn't answer, just dipped your head down to capture her lips. Your lips were hard on hers, demanding that she give herself over as you tried to release some of the tension, you'd been holding back for the last several minutes. She yielded but not for long, pushing back from you when you chased her lips. "Sid, talk to me."

 You contemplated telling her everything but didn't want to go there. She didn't need to be subjected to the asshole's words and you shook your head deciding not to talk about it. Her hands that were resting on your shoulders started to knead the muscles there. "I can feel the tension in your body. Will you please talk to me?"

 "It's nothing babe. Just caught one of your young recruits disrespecting the organization." It wasn't a total lie, but it wasn't the truth either.

 "Let me guess, it was Connor?" Again, you nodded not wanting to speak the words and so you closed your eyes. "There was something I found off about him. Hey, look at me?" She cupped your cheeks, turning your face so that you were nose to nose. "Don't let him get to you. I'm sure Mario's handling it." You definitely needed to make sure that Mario was or else you were going to have to yourself.

 "Yeah, I know you're right."

 "Well, I have to finish up here with these guys once Mario's done. How about I meet you at that restaurant we love, in about an hour and we can have dinner?"

 There was no way in hell you were leaving her alone with these guys. "I was thinking I'll just stay here while you finish up and then we can go together."

 "But I have my car here. I can just meet you at your place and we can go to the restaurant from there. No use staying here if you don't have to."

 "I don't mind staying," and before she could protest again, you added. "I want to, and we'll figure out the car thing later."

 She gave you a funny look but said. "Ok," before pecking you on the lips and pulling away. "I'm gonna go see how things are going with Mario."

 "I'm sure he's got them." You didn't need her walking in on Mario giving them a verbal thrashing that's for sure. "They'll probably be back any moment. So, what did you want to do besides go to dinner tonight?"

 "I figured we'd kind of do what we always do? Stay at your place, watch a little tv and well…you know."

 "Mmm, I like the last part." You grabbed at her waist and though she tried to avoid you; you were quicker, pulling her back close to you. "Though I still owe you a proper date."

 "We go out for dinner all the time."

 "Not that often, but I'd like to show you off a little more." You leaned down and nibbled a bit on her neck, but you heard someone clear their throats and the two of you broke apart. It was Dana and he was bringing the guys back, all but Connor.

 "Sorry to interrupt, but Mario thought you could finish the tour."

 (Y/N) adjusted herself before speaking. "Of course, um…where's Connor?"

 "He had to leave," Dana said and you didn't miss the subtle nod he gave you.

 "Oh well, that's too bad. We still have a little bit of time left before your families arrive. Let's check the rest of the building out. Sid, are you joining us?"

 "Absolutely." You trailed along, after her and the recruits making some comments here and there but also wondering where the little bastard was that had called her such horrible things. It wasn't until the end of the tour that you snuck off to Mario's office while (Y/N) handed the prospects back to their guardians. You closed the door behind you as soon as you went inside. "Where is he?"

 "He's gone and before you say anything; he was told we won't be giving him an offer. So, he won't be back." It was a start but you still wanted to hit him, get some satisfaction from feeling your fist connect with his face.

 Still, you found yourself saying, "Good."

 "I'm assuming you didn't say anything to her?"

 "No, I didn't. I felt it best if she didn't know." He thought about it for a second and then nodded.

 "Good, good. Family takes care of each other, now let's put the whole thing behind us."

 "I'm not sure that's possible."

 "It is. Go home Sid, enjoy your girlfriend. Take her to the lake and don't give this incident a second thought." It would be hard, but you thought you could do it.

 "Thanks, Mario."

 "Don't mention it. Have a great summer. I'm sure we'll keep in touch."

 "Yeah, we will and you too." You headed out of his office and went to find (Y/N). Who happened to be in hers at the moment. "Hey babe, you all done."

 "Almost, just finishing some of this paperwork on the house." You walked up behind her, gathering her hair and pulling it to her left side so that you could trail kisses down the right. "That's very distracting but very welcomed."

 "I missed having you around all day."

 She tilted her head to the side and dropped her pen as you hit that sweet spot she so loved. "I was barely gone a couple hours before you dropped in." Her jacket was draped on the back of the chair and you slid the straps of her bra and silk tank down her shoulder exposing more of her skin. "We should take this home."

 "I locked the door, no one will know." You whispered moving her hair over to the other side, so you slide the cami off there as well. Her breath hitched and you knew that you had her intrigued then. "Especially if you're quiet." You spun her chair around and then kissed her lips. She melted into you and you could feel the tension of the day leave your body.

 "We've tried quiet before." She exhaled out once you broke apart for air. "It didn't work so good for either of us."

 You lifted her to her feet, shoving the chair out of the way. "Then maybe we'll settle for fast as well." Straps now completely off, her breasts were exposed to you and you kneaded them in your hands, rolling her nipples and causing her to moan. "Shh," You shushed her before gathering her pencil skirt and hiking it up to her hips. Sliding your hand between her thighs, you could feel her damp panties. "Guess you're not as opposed to this idea as you said." Your fingers danced between her folds, while the other hand pushed her panties down to her knees.

 (Y/N) tore at the placket of your shorts, making quick work of the button and zipper before grasping your cock in her hand. She pumped you a few times before you hit her g-spot with your index finger and her rhythm faltered. "Fuck Sid, stop teasing me." She breathed out, and you slid your fingers out of her, grabbing at your shorts to rifle through the pockets to find that little foil packet you stashed away. You turned her, bending her forward to lean on the desk before rolling the latex over your member. Her legs spread a little further apart, as you lined your cock up with her entrance. Gathering her hair, you bent low to drop kissed on her neck and back as you slid inside her. She clamped a hand over her mouth to suppress a moan, while you had to bite your lip at being sheathed inside her. Your hand skimmed down her side, lightly caressing her breast before you took hold of her hips and start to pump in and out of her.

 A moan left her mouth and she fell to her elbows on the desk, pushing papers and pens out of the way. "You feel so fucking good," you harshly whispered as you picked up the pace. You knew your grip on hers had to be biting her flesh, yet she only breathed out that she wanted more. One hand released her, making it's way to her clit so that you could toy with it. She whimpered in an effort to not moan out loud and the sound almost threw you over the edge. Your finger worked furiously on her little nub and you could feel her pussy start to twitch. "Yes, baby…Let go…Cum for me." She did, stifling a cry that would've filled the room. As her pussy spasmed around you, you joined her, with a few short thrusts. She collapsed on top of the desk, as you fell forward on top of her, peppering her with kisses. "Damn (Y/N), that was amazing." It wasn't lost on you as you tried to catch your breath, that you literally just had sex in (Y/N)'s office after defending her honor, but this was different; it was special because you loved her. You loved (Y/N), with every fiber of your being you loved her. Now you just had to find the courage to tell her.

[nomorelonelydays]

Ovi adventures! - anon submission

This turned out to be way longer than I thought and I’m sorry

Sasha should have known that Zhenya would take him to the same bar that his stupid Pittsburgh Penguins were celebrating their stupid win at. It’s fine, they’re sitting away from most of the team, the only one occasionally wandering over being Crosby, and Sasha just has too much fun ribbing both of them to mind his presence. He does keep catching a glare from their weird goalie though. He rolls his eyes the next time he catches Fleury’s gaze on him, “Can you call off your goalie? You guys won, I don’t understand what he has shoved up his ass.”

“Probably those three pucks you snuck past him.” Zhenya answers with his mouth full of fries. “You got him pulled, of course he’s pissed. Just ignore him, he’ll probably pull a prank on you before we leave the bar. It’ll be harmless. Probably. Probably just something in your next drink. Don’t accept any drinks probably.” He looks up as Sidney comes to bring them a new round of shots. “Except these, these safe. Sid bring, Sid best.” And great, he’s already drunk.

“Sidney Crosby wouldn’t poison me for goalie, right?” Sasha asks, meaning for it to sound like a joke but he supposes it actually comes out a little desperate. Luckily Sid laughs.

“Why would I care, we won.” He shrugs and walks off, and Sasha glances up just in time to watch Zhenya tilt his head and watch Sid walk away with an appreciative sigh. Gross.

“You have to admit his ass is-“ Sasha just is not going to let Zhenya finish that statement.

“It’s nice, Zhenya, yes. Please leave me out of whatever foreplay is happening right now.”

“I just hope you remembered your noise cancelling headphones if you’re staying with me.” Zhenya grins. Gross.

—

He must have gotten more drunk than he thought, because he ends up waking up at Zhenya’s. Which… wait. This isn’t Zhenya’s guest bed, this is his own bed. He has a quick moment of panic wondering how in the hell he got all the way home with no recollection, and decides calling Nicky is the best course of action. Nicky’s always there to fill in the gaps. Except he doesn’t answer. He doesn’t answer any of Sasha’s five calls, but he does text him.

“I’m with Mike this weekend. You know that. Stop calling.”

Which…. what? Mike? Who is Mike? Sasha tries to think fast and immediately he’s hit with a realization. Greenie. He feels trepidation drip down his spine, because he knows full and well what Nicky and Greenie’s past was thanks, and while he doesn’t think Nicky would cheat on him it’s not like he and Greenie really ended on good terms. There’s no reason for Nicky to be visiting him. And…. weekend? Wasn’t it Wednesday? He checks his phone calendar and apparently it’s now Saturday. Which means Sasha was in Pittsburgh an entire four days ago. He considers calling Zhenya for help, but apparently he doesn’t have to because he hears grumbling from the hallway that sounds suspiciously like 6’3” of angry Penguin. He bolts out of bed and slams into Zhenya in the hallway. “Am I concussed?” Is his first thought. Fuck, where is Sidney when you need him? Zhenya shoves him away and continues on downstairs with Sasha trailing after him.

“No you’re not concussed, why would you be concussed? We haven’t even played yet, just got too fucking drunk last night to function. Now it’s time for hangover tea.” He says decisively, yanking open cabinets till he finds what he wants.

“Wh…. We… But we played on Wednesday. Right?” He asks quietly, and finally Zhenya is turning around to look at him and regard what he’s saying.

“No? We’re playing tonight. Wednesday I played the Flyers and you played…. San Jose?” He says, shrugging and turning back around.

“Okay…. okay, then I just had the weirdest dream and… wait, why is Nicky visiting Greenie this weekend if we have a game tonight? He won’t be here?” He asks a little hysterically, because Nicky never misses games.

“Backstrom is in DC. I’m pretty sure you were just bitching last night about Green coming to visit him and defiling him.” Zhenya mutters. “That’s why we’re hungover you idiot.”

Sasha’s very, very slowly putting this all together. “You mean… they’re still fucking?” He asks very quietly.

“Fucking? I’m pretty sure they’re engaged, but who knows because Backstrom is so quiet. I figured you would have that kind of information.”

Sasha feels his heart break in his chest because there is no way he imagined the last 3 years being with Nicky. He sits down heavily at the kitchen table and the chair creaking prompts Zhenya to look at him again and sigh, coming to sit beside him.

“I know, it sucks more when it’s happening near you. Makes it more real. That’s how I feel every time Sid brings his stupid boyfriend around. I wanna smash his face.”

Sasha’s nodding before he really realizes what Zhenya just said. He and Sidney aren’t even together? This is obviously the nightmare world.

“I think I’m gonna go lay down a bit more. I must have hit my head, this is just not making sense.” And leaves before Zhenya can question him. He flops back down onto his bed and closes his eyes, hoping that when he opens them again everything is back to normal.

—

He wakes up in… not his bed. Now he’s in a hotel room, which makes way more sense than waking up in his house. More importantly, someone is in the bed with him and even MORE importantly, they’re giving him a morning blowjob. He sighs in relief; Nicky likes to do this sometimes, and he thanks whatever deity is listening for Nicky being in his bed and not Greenie’s. Except when he reaches under the sheets to thread his fingers through Nicky’s hair, it’s shorter and curlier than it should be. Nicky’s had the same haircut nearly the entire time Sasha has known him. This is not Nicky. He whips the sheets back and gapes at Sidney Fucking Crosby looking up at him while… well. “Sid, Sidney, what the fuck?” He says, hating how it comes out mostly as a breathy gasp. It isn’t his fault that Crosby has a serious case of DSL and now that he’s actually seeing them in action it’s a little hard to look away. He swears he can see mirth in Sid’s eyes and then he honest to god winks before sinking all the way down and taking Sasha deep into his throat. Sasha is only human, and with that fucking eye contact he can’t help it as he comes down Sidney’s throat. He falls back on the mattress and pants, too dazed to care about Sidney laughing at him. He only lets himself have a moment to bask in the afterglow before he sits back up, “Sid what was that? Holy shit.”

“What do you mean? I’m just continuing your hat trick reward, Sasha.” And just when in the hell did Sidney start calling him Sasha?

“Hat… What? Come, come up here, need to. Talk.” He pulls the sheets over his lap, and Sidney’s too because he’s naked as the day he was born. Jesus. “Sid, what you doing? Can’t do this to Zhenya.” Or… whatever boyfriend the Zhenya from his dream was all moody about. He watches Sidney flinch a little when Zhenya is mentioned and that is definitely not normal.

“You know G doesn’t give a shit, Sasha, come on.” He says, but it doesn’t sound flippant, it sounds… dejected. “He’s got better things to focus on than me.” He looks at his watch and sighs, rolling off the bed to find his clothes. “You two have breakfast plans don’t you? You should get moving, you’re gonna piss him off if you’re late.” He leans over and presses a soft kiss to Sasha’s lips. “We’ll finish this later, yeah? Come over after breakfast, we should have time before your flight later.” He says and makes his way out. What.

Luckily he finds the address for the breakfast place in his text thread with Zhenya, and barely manages to get himself there on time. Zhenya has of course spread himself out at the table, looking smug as ever. Sasha hates him. But not really.

“Finally decided to show up, I see.” Zhenya hums, sliding him a mimosa. “Long night with Sid?” And Sasha gapes.

“So you do know about that?” He asks incredulously, still not really sure what’s going on with the whole Sidney thing. Are they sharing him or something? Because Sasha doesn’t think he’s down for that. And where the hell is Nicky in all this? Is he still with Greenie?

“Of course I know, it’s not like you’ve been quiet about it.” Zhenya snorts and doesn’t look the least bit upset. “I’m pretty sure the entire league knows to some degree. It’s okay Sasha; we all have dirty little secrets. Some of us are just better at keeping them than others, no?” He winks and orders his breakfast.

Sasha is still gaping as he orders his own, and slowly reboots enough to ask, “Well surely you can tell me about yours.” He says, just trying to get a little more info on whatever whacked out nightmare he’s in now. Although, considering how he woke up this morning, maybe not a nightmare.

“Oh you know, just in a habit of stealing your playoff luck is all. You could say I fuck it out of your team.” He laughs.

Sasha laughs too, nervously, because what the fuck? “What?”

Zhenya, to his credit, just shrugs. “Fucked Backstrom 2016 and 2017 at the beginning of the series. Coincidence? I don’t think so. You can try all you want to do the same with Sid but I don’t think it’s working.”

Sasha’s ears are ringing. Did Zhenya just say what he thinks he said? “You’re a dirty fucking liar. Nicky wouldn’t let you touch him with your grubby hands.” He says, trying to keep his voice calm and flat. Zhenya smirks and waggles his eyebrows.

“He let me touch him with them last night. You seem pissed. I thought you knew about this? He never said?” And it’s just a little satisfying to watch Zhenya’s eyes get wide when Sasha leans in close enough that their noses are touching.

“I’m going to kill you in your sleep.” He whispers, which is not a rational reaction he knows but the mental image he has right now is making him feel hostile.

“What? I don’t know what the problem is, Sasha, you have Sidney. Backstrom says you barely look at him anymore, not after you two had that blowout. Now come on, shake off whatever weird mood you got yourself in and drink more. You should know Flower’s still pissed at you for last night.” He says and nods over to the breakfast bar where fucking Fleury is just glaring at him, when the fuck did he get there? Then suddenly, like he’d miraculously understood the entire Russian conversation he and Zhenya had been having, he grins, big and mean and that is definitely his pranking face. Sasha’s being played, but how? Sidney would never agree to be a part of this if it was just a prank so how is this happening? Suddenly he remembers a story Zhenya had told him while drunk one night about Fleury being able to travel to different universes, and how one time he had brought Zhenya with him to show him a universe where Sasha was dating Sidney. Sasha and laughed it off at the time and gone on and on about what a lucky guy he was, figuring it was just the drunken ramblings of a man who clearly was threatened by Sasha’s superior looks and hockey. Maybe he’s losing his shit, but the story doesn’t sound so unlikely now.

He frowns at Fleury, “Hey, goalie, come here, need to talk to you right now.” He says, starting to stand up. He watches Fleury snap his fingers and then he wakes up in his bed. Wait, not his bed. A bedroom, yes, but not his and not his mattress. It’s dark enough that he thinks it may be Nicky’s room and sighs when he feels the comfortable solid weight of someone next to him. He hopes its Nicky. He leans over to give Nicky a sleepy kiss and thanks God everything is back to normal, but Nicky’s lips are never this chapped and Sasha only knows one person’s whose are. His eyes snap open and sees none other than Zhenya’s fucking face and honest to God screams. He scrambles back and is about to jump out of the bed when he realizes he’s naked. They’re both naked.

Sasha vaguely thinks he’s having a heart attack, and when Zhenya rolls over in confusion and tells him to “come back to bed, baby,” He actually thinks he sees Gods light calling him home because he must have died and gotten sent to Hell by mistake. Suddenly he hears some weird, bodiless laughing and then he’s in a hotel bed again. He’s too scared to roll over and see who’s sleeping next to him. Best case scenario it’s Nicky. Worst, Zhenya again. Middle is Sidney, while not his preferred choice he doesn’t think he would argue this time. But, as he slowly turns, he sees blonde hair poking out of a blanket cocoon and he almost cries in relief. He flops over Nicky and clings, which of course wakes up his beautiful, sweet, angelic, cranky boyfriend.

“I’m sleeping. Off.” He hisses, one green eye glaring at him.

“I love you. I love you so much, don’t leave me ever for- for Greenie or-” he gags, “-Zhenya, please Nicky I’ll die.”

“What? What is wrong with you. Get off of me.” He elbows Sasha hard in the side to dislodge him, but rearranges himself so he’s at least rolled towards Sasha, a small offering of affection that Sasha is way too willing to accept. “Ridiculous. I would never let Malkin touch me with those grubby hands.” Nicky mutters, his eyes already shut again.

“I knew it!” Sasha crows and he knows it’s way too loud even when he does it, so he really deserves the pillow he’s almost suffocated with. Nicky flops back down onto the bed and rolls himself up in the blankets again, sighing.

“Give me ten more minutes of quiet and then you can tell me about whatever dream caused you to think I would ever sleep with Malkin.” He says, and Sasha is all too happy to comply, pressing a kiss to Nicky’s forehead and settling down to wait. True to his word, after ten minutes on the dot, Nicky opens his eyes and nods to signal Sasha to start.

“Don’t think it was dream, remember how I told you dumb story Zhenya tell me, about Fleury adventures? Remember he say Fleury took him to universe where I’m dating Sidney and not you.” He waits until Nicky hums and nods before he continues, “Think maybe Fleury little pissed about hattie, think he do that to me but he send me to three, and Nicky they bad. Well, mostly bad.” He says. The universe where he woke up with Sidney wasn’t that bad, until Zhenya told him that he was sleeping with Nicky.

Nicky snorted, “Three, hmm? One for each puck you got past him. You did get him pulled.”

“Exactly! So the first he send me to is very bad, I wake up at home and Zhenya is there and he tell me you’re engaged to Greenie, and he was bitching about Sidney having some boyfriend, it was very bad. So I go back to sleep. And then I wake up to blowjob and I think, oh, Nicky is rewarding me for hat trick, hooray!” He smiles when Nicky laughs, “But, is not you. Go to pet your head and hair too short, too curly. I pull back sheets and see Sidney down there. Worse is I go to breakfast with Zhenya and he knows about me and Sidney sleeping together apparently and he don’t care, and then he tells me he’s been stealing playoff luck from us, and I ask him what he means, and he say he fucks it out of you and then I feel like I have to kill him and I tell him that.”

Nicky makes a face, “Ugh. The thought of letting Malkin’s hands or dick anywhere near me makes me want to kill him. And I kind of want to kill Sidney too, right now.” He hums.

“I know, right? Anyway, so then Zhenya tells me to calm down and then he tells me Fleury still mad at me, think he was trying to cheer me up, and there’s Fleury over by the breakfast bar and he looks mad, and then he gets big bad grin on his face and I know I’m being pranked. And then,” He shudders, “I wake up in worst universe in all of universes.” Nicky is staring at him with wide eyes, and he takes a deep breath before he continues. “Wake up. In bed, think you’re next to me, think bad dream is over. Give you sleepy kiss. But don’t feel right so I open my eyes and it’s Zhenya.” He lets out the last bit in a rush, trying not to gag again. Nicky is of course laughing at him now, and Sasha pouts. “He called me ‘baby’! Told me to come back to bed! And then I think yes, I have died and gone to hell. But then I hear weird laughter coming from nowhere and then I’m back here with you.”

Once Nicky is done laughing at him, he gets out of the bed and starts wandering to the bathroom to get ready for the day. “Well, we’re supposed to get breakfast with Crosby and Malkin in an hour. We’ll be sure to tell them all about it, yes?” He says, a mischievous glint in his eyes. God, Sasha loves him.

         When they go out to breakfast later with Sidney and Zhenya, Nicky’s… maybe a little more handsy than he normally would be. Zhenya definitely notices, and winks at Sasha and says, “Nice.” He’s sprawled out over his and Sid’s side of the booth, one arm around Sid’s shoulders, an obviously friendly gesture to anyone who would see them. Meanwhile Nicky’s hand is so far up Sasha’s thigh it basically isn’t his thigh anymore. Nice.

         Nicky starts up a conversation with Sidney about something mundane, like penalty kills or something, which of course distracts Sid enough that Zhenya’s just watching him like a lovesick fool, sipping on his coffee. “So, Zhenya, did you know that there’s a universe where we’re fucking?” Sasha asks conversationally. Zhenya immediately chokes on his mouthful of coffee and ends up spitting it all over Sid. Sasha cackles as Sid blinks and slowly turns his head to stare at Zhenya, who is still coughing and choking and trying to apologize. Sasha spares a glance at Nicky who is carefully blank as he hands Sid his napkin, and Sasha hands his over too. He can see the corners of Nicky’s mouth twitching and he cackles again.

         “Sid, Sid, so sorry so sorry, don’t- don’t know what-“ And then he switches to Russian and snaps at Sasha, “What the fuck? What the fuck?”  before going back to apologizing to Sidney and trying to help him clean up. “Sid, baby, I-“

         “Zhenya!” Sid barks, and Sasha watches in amazement as Zhenya quickly shuts his mouth. Sid takes a deep breath through his nose after he finishes cleaning himself up. Sasha withers a little when that sharp gaze is turned towards him as Sidney asks, “What the fuck did you say?” Sasha just shakes his head and tries to insist that it’s nothing important, but Sid plays dirty. He looks at Zhenya and stares before asking very slowly, “What did he say?”

         “He, uh. He say there’s universe where he and I… uh.” Zhenya tries to stop there but Sidney just keeps staring, “He say there’s universe where he and I are fucking. And so I choke. So sorry Sid, didn’t mean to.” Zhenya is a weak, weak man.

         “Whipped.” Sasha whispers to Nicky, who nods solemnly in agreement. “Sorry Sid, didn’t see he’d taken sip of coffee. Had fun adventures with your goalie last night, he punished me for hattie.” Sid brightens a little at this, understanding dawning on him.

         “Oh, wow I didn’t think he’d been serious when he told me he was gonna do that.” Sasha squawks indignantly, Sidney had been in on this? “Did he take you to three different ones? He said he was thinking about leaving you in the last one.”

         “No, oh no, can’t leave me in that last one. Maybe leave me in the middle one, that’s the one where you woke me up with blowjob. Nice.” He nods, winking at Zhenya who goes from boyfriend-in-the-doghouse to angry-Russian-bear. Sidney, for his part, just looks grossed out. Bless him. Nicky’s grip tightens minutely on his thigh and Sasha has to fight the urge to call him on it. “That was pretty good universe, Sidney Crosby wakes me up with morning blowjob, but then Zhenya tells me he’s sleeping with Nicky and-“ He gets cut off by Zhenya once again choking on his coffee, but this time managing to keep it in his mouth. Zhenya looks at Nicky with wide eyes and his face bright red, and Nicky just stares right back at him with his best blank face and best murder eyes.

         “Never in your life.” Is all he says. Nicky’s the best. Sidney has a considering look on his face, like he’s pondering something.

         “What you thinking about, Sid?” Sasha asks, taking a sip of coffee himself.

         “Just wondering who would be on top between you and Geno.” Sidney says, looking at Zhenya pointedly. Nicky looks Zhenya too, which would be insulting if he hadn’t woken up with some very particular soreness in that universe. Sasha catches Zhenya’s eye and winks, “Going to fuck me good, daddy?” He asks Zhenya in Russian just to watch him squirm. Zhenya gags and so Sasha starts laughing until he glances at Sidney, who is very red and staring very intently at the table. “Sidney Crosby, you kinky fuck!” He laughs so hard he can feel tears in his eyes, because Sidney definitely understood what he’d said to Zhenya and there is no reason for him to know any of those words for normal conversation. He catches Nicky rolling his eyes, and his cheeks are a little pink too. Nicky’s the best.

[slapshotsandoneshots]

Player: Sidney Crosby – Pittsburgh Penguins

Prompt:

Mentions: Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang

Warnings: Cheating, Angst, Curse Words, Drinking.

Preview: The calls from your mother and Sid’s mother, as well as Catherine and Anna just showing up at your house around lunch with sympathetic looks didn’t help the situation either. You were hurt, embarrassed and angry. But the hours dwindled down all your feelings, now somehow you were calm.

Characters: 1275 words.

You sighed putting your phone down. You rocked your son as your three-year-old daughter ran around the room. Sidney was due home from his road trip any moment now. For once, you didn’t want him home. Not after today. You heard the front door open and your daughter ran for her father.

You stayed in your spot in the living room and continued rocking Noah.

You heard Sidney greet Maisy in the doorway. You could hear the dejection in his voice. He knew you knew.

He walked into the room and looked at you. You could see the hurt in his eyes but you didn’t care. The constant vibration of your phone couldn’t let you forget what he had done. He opened his mouth to talk but you put your hand up.

“Not Now.” Was all you got out.

Sidney just nodded and turned back to Maisy. He followed her to her room, so she could show him her latest artwork.

You weren’t far behind. You walked upstairs and put Noah into his crib, praying for him to stay asleep. You jumped at the beeping phone in your pocket. You left the nursery and walked across the hall into your bedroom. You pulled your phone out, but you already knew what you were going to be met with.

There on your screen, another random person had tagged you in the same picture. A picture of your husband up close and personal with a random girl in a bar. It had been happening all day. Apparently the Pens had gone out to celebrate their latest win and Sid did a little more than celebrate.

The calls from your mother and Sid’s mother, as well as Catherine and Anna just showing up at your house around lunch with sympathetic looks didn’t help the situation either. You were hurt, embarrassed and angry. But the hours dwindled down all your feelings, now somehow you were calm.

Sidney walked into the bedroom after he had finally gotten Maisy to sleep.

“Y/N…” he started.

“Don’t. There is no sense in even trying Sid. How could you?” you asked calmly.

“I don’t know…”

“Sidney. I would do anything for you. I moved out here, I had your children, I handle everything so you can focus on hockey and how do you repay me? You cheat on me with the first girl you can find at the bar? I can’t even process what has happened.”

“Y/N. I wasn’t thinking, I got drunk and I was missing you…”

“Missing me? That’s how you handle missing me?” you scoffed.

“There is no excuse for this Y/N. I am sorry. It won’t happen again.”

“All I ever did was love you.” You stated softly sitting on the bed.

“This is the worst thing I have ever done. The darkest thought I ever had. You said you would stand by me through anything. For better or for worse. This is anything Y/N. This is worse.”

You just looked at him, tears pooling in your eyes. You studied the hurt on his face that matched your own.

“Well. Yell, scream, say something. Anything”

“I never thought the worst thing you would ever do, would be to me. I want you to leave.” You finally stated.

“Y/N…” he started again.

“No. This is my home. This is our children’s home. I will not have their lives disturbed any more than they already are. I want you to pack a bag and I want you to leave. We will figure something out with the kids until I figure out what I want to do next. The ball is in my court now Sidney.

Sidney just nodded heading to the closet to pack his things. You walked down to the kitchen and finally let the tears escape that you had been holding in all day. You poured yourself a glass of wine and gripped onto the kitchen counter. You allowed the sobs to rip through you as you listened to the front door open and shut.

You wanted to get out as much as you could before morning, you had to be fine before then. You finished half the wine bottle and you were simply dry heaving now. You wiped the tears from your eyes and headed upstairs to your bedroom. You laid in bed and when you felt the empty side to your right and the slight scent of Sidney, a new wave of tears you didn’t know you had hit you.

Before you knew it, you were standing over your bed and your sheets were scrambled all over your room. You rubbed your hands over your face. You kicked the sheets into the corner and sighed. You laid back down on your now sheet less bed. You cuddled into one of your pillows and cried once again, until you fell asleep.

You were awakened by a tiny finger pushing your face.

“Mommy, Where’s Daddy?” your daughter was asking and you felt the lump in your throat.

“He had to go back on another trip for Hockey Baby.” You answered quickly, hoping she would buy it. She nodded and jumped down from your bed.

“Can we watch the games?” She asked.

“Of course baby.” You mentally thanked the heavens for DVR.

“Mommy were you crying? Do you need ice cream?” She asked, quirking her eyebrows.

You forgot how much Maisy noticed, it was hard to get much past her.

 “I just miss daddy is all.” You smiled slightly getting out of bed and heading for the nursey.

Noah was up and stirring but he was a calm baby. You picked him up with a smile and Noah gurgled back up to you. You headed downstairs, your daughter in tow.

You were almost halfway through breakfast when you heard the front door open. You weren’t ready for another round with Sid. You let out the breath you didn’t know you were holding in when the Malkins and Letangs walked into the kitchen.

“Uncle Geno!” Maisy ran from her place at the table and up to Geno who immediately scooped her up.

“My little printsessa” he quipped sending you a look.

You cleaned up the table as Kris walked over and rubbing your back.

“I am fine everyone.” You answered before anyone could start. As long as the kids were in the room you knew you were safe from the conversation. You knew it was coming. You three had become the great couples of the team. Well were the great couples.

Maisy had run off with Alex and Noah was now asleep in his rocker, Nikita asleep as well in his car seat.

You turned from washing the last of the dishes and found four looks of sympathy.

“I don’t know how much I want to talk about this guys. I haven’t decided what I even am going to do yet. I figured he would have been staying with one of you guys.”

“I no let him, I disappointed in Captain.” Geno replied.

“Catherine wouldn’t even let him in the front door,” Kris added.

The girls were just nodding in agreement.

“I really appreciate the support guys but I just want to figure this out myself.”

Everyone nodded giving you your privacy. Well as much as they could with the whole world watching this scandal play out.

You really did have no idea what you were going to do next.

Was your marriage worth saving? Or was it just too late for you and Sidney?