Nobody’s Hero
Ted Logan was nobody’s hero.
He wasn’t a hero to his wife.
He wasn’t a hero to his father.
He wasn’t a hero to his son.
He wasn’t even a hero to himself.
Ted Logan was a hockey player.
30 years old.
Played most of his life in the minor leagues.
Was called up to the NHL occasionally for a few games but was quickly hustled back down to the farm teams.
Over the course of his hockey career, 6 NHL Hockey teams had held his rights.
When he was traded, it was usually because both the major league team and the farm team wanted to give him up.
Now he was with his 7th NHL team.
But no lucky 7 for him.
Once again he played down on the farm.
But injuries to a couple of players on the 4th line one month before the season was over and Ted Logan had been called up from the farm team as a replacement.
He usually played a few minutes of the game and was then quickly benched the rest of the game.
This was the longest time Ted Logan had played in the actual NHL itself.
But only because a couple of 4th line players were out with injuries.
This would be his last season.
Neither his farm team nor his NHL team would probably want him back.
What was he to do now?
Washed up at the age of 30.
“You’re a bum,” his dad had said to him in his ride over to tonight’s game- the last of the season, “you could have been a good hockey player if you had put your mind to it. Not a great hockey player. But a good one. But you blew that through your excessive boozing.”
In the hallway of the arena before this current period, his wife told him, “I’m leaving you, Ted. I can’t take it any more. At least when you were in the minor leagues, you had some pay cheque coming in. But that’s gone now. And what can you do besides being a bad hockey player? Nothing.”
“Wait,” Ted protested, “maybe something will pan out. Think about it. Wait until the next game…”
“You moron,” she said to him, “you don’t even know what game this is. THIS IS the last game of the season. There are no more games after this. Not for this team. And definitely not for you.”
She walked away swaying in her high heels and left him standing there.
Ted Logan’s son Ted Jr. was at home watching the game.
He could not bear watching his dad make a fool of himself while sitting in the arena.
So here he was watching the game on TV.
Although he had made the mistake of inviting a few friends over.
“Hey, your dad totally sucks,” one supposed friend said to him when Ted’s father passed the puck to an opposing player.
“Logan, your dad is such a loser,” another supposed friend said to him.
And now here Ted Logan Sr. was sitting on the bench- where he had been for most of this game.
Ted looked at the clock.
Only 1 minute 58 seconds left in this period.
And one of his fellow 4th line players had been injured after crashing too hard into the boards.
The clock had stopped as the player lay on the ice.
The team doctor motioned to the coach.
He’d be out for the rest of the game.
A stretcher came out to the ice.
The coach sighed as he looked at Logan with contempt.
“All right, Logan,” he finally said, “get out there and try your best not to lose this game for us.”
Logan skated out on to the ice.
A minute 30 seconds left in the period.
So far he hadn’t done anything stupid.
A minute left.
Again, he hadn’t done anything stupid.
30 seconds left.
Logan stood there paralyzed.
But then so were the rest of his team- standing paralyzed.
The opposing team’s lead goal scorer was coming down the ice towards his team’s goalie on a breakaway.
The only player on his team that was even close to him was himself- Ted Logan.
Logan realized he better do something.
He skated towards the player.
Right at him.
To his shock, he managed to get the puck away from him
Then he skated as if his life depended on it with the puck.
When he looked up again, he noticed he was only feet away from the opposing team’s goalie.
He and the goalie were the only two in the immediate vicinity.
Logan looked back.
Both his own and the other team’s players looked at him with shock on their faces.
He had to do something he figured.
So he shot the puck in the direction of the opposing team’s goalie and hoped and prayed for the best.
* * *
“… yes, he’ll be out for the rest of this game. With a minute and 58 seconds left to go in this triple overtime period of Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final between the Vancouver Canucks and the Boston Bruins, a collective groan has risen up from the fans here at Rogers Arena as Ted Logan comes on to the ice to replace him…
and that other sound you here is the collective groan of fans outside the Arena all over the streets of Vancouver…
“… you’re watching Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final here on CBC’s Hockey NIght In Canada… in this 3rd overtime period of a 1-1 tied game between the Vancouver Canucks and the Boston Bruins… and it looks like it may be headed to a 4th overtime period….”
“… Wait a minute… maybe not… the Boston Bruins’ Brad Marchand has got the puck and is away on a breakaway… he’s heading down the ice straight towards Luongo… who’s been superb for most of this game… but the question is… will he be able to stop Marchand who’s moving at incredible speed…”
“… the only player outside Luongo within distance of Marchand is Logan… and Logan seems to have woken up and is moving towards Marchand… unbelievable, Logan has actually got the puck away from Marchand… wow… look at him go… I can’t believe this… Ted Logan is on a breakaway of his own towards Boston Bruins’ goalie Tuuka Rask… there’s only 5 seconds left in this third overtime period… Ted Logan shoots the puck…”
* * *
Mrs. Ted Logan was driving home back towards the family apartment in Port Moody. She had left Rogers Arena after telling Ted that she was leaving him.
She had the car radio on and was listening to the game.
She had pulled over to the side of the road when she heard that her husband had gotten the puck away from Marchand.
She nervously fingered her skirt…
… and then burst into tears when she heard these words,
“… he scores… unbelievable… Ted Logan has just scored the winning goal in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final with only 5 seconds left in this third overtime period…”
* * *
“Your dad totally rocks,” one of his friends high-fived Ted Logan Jr.
“Your dad’s the greatest,” another friend also high-fived him.
* * *
Up in the stands with the rest of the fans was Ted Logan’s father Conrad Logan.
Conrad was on his feet with the rest cheering and shouting.
A huge smile on Conrad’s face.
And a Pacific Ocean of tears falling from his eyes.
* * *
“In a game and a moment that will surely be talked about for decades to come in Vancouver, Ted Logan has scored the winning goal for the Canucks against the Bruins here in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final with only 5 seconds left to go in the third overtime period… you can hear the cheers all over downtown Vancouver from Griffiths Way in the east to Denman Street in the west and from Hastings Street in the north to Davie Street in the south… the Vancouver Canucks have just won their 1st ever Stanley Cup…”
* * *
Ted Logan’s breath stopped when he saw the red light behind the back of the net come on…
… indicating that the goal had gone in…
…. Ted quickly found himself being hugged by the rest of his team mates…
… he looked in the direction of the bench and the coach was looking at him not with his usual contempt but a huge smile… and a thumbs up…
… The crowd here at Rogers Arena were on their feet…
… chanting his name…
“… Logan! Logan! Logan!… “
Ted Logan…
… was now…
…no longer…
… nobody’s hero.
-A short story written by Christopher
Friday night April 12th 2013.
Dracul Van Helsing 
Maggie Thatcher’s Ghost
April 11, 2013 at 10:34 pm (Commentary, Geopolitics and International Relations, Quotations and Sayings of Dracul Van Helsing) (Argentina, Falklands War, Margaret Thatcher)
One song that Margaret Thatcher’s ghost will NOT be singing I imagine is the song Don’t Cry For Me, Argentina.
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