Xavier Booberry Biography

[CowboyinAmerica 2,708]

 

Xavier Booberry: Biography of a Dreamer

 

On the ponds of northern Minnesota, there is a lot of room to dream. This is big sky country, the deep of the woods, and not many people around to tell you that you can’t do something. This is where Xavier Booberry was born, where he was raised, where he juggled his familial cereal empire duties with the desires to be a pro hockey player. Here his body and dreams alike grew, expanded, took shape. As Booberry began his hockey career, his dreams were as colorful as the northern lights.

 

Of course there were those who told Booberry that he wouldn’t make it. His first two seasons playing hockey in the renowned Cereal Characters League, he backed up Tommy Chocula at goalie. The Booberrys were too ephemeral, the coach said – their transparent bodies would never be able to stop the puck. But Xavier knew that if he just got a chance, he could show everybody what he was made of. And in the semifinal game during his age 14 year, an unfortunate Chocula injury gave him his first chance.

 

As it was the semifinal game, there were scouts all over the place in the stands. They were there for more prominent players of course, especially expected future number one pick Bran Raisin. But it was a newcomer who stole the show: Booberry stopped all 31 shots he faced en route to a Halloweentown victory and the team’s first ever finals birth. Then with all eyes on him, he followed that up with only one goal allowed in a 3-1 finals victory. His early dreams were fulfilled; he was a goalie champion.

 

There was all the reason in the world to believe Xavier Booberry would be a Cereal Characters League regular, that the woods of Minnesota would be his home and domain in a perfectly fine life. But perfectly fine was never in Booberry’s purview. He was a dreamer, and his dreams had a wider scale. He decided that night he would forsake the cereal empire of his family, and seek wider acclaim as a professional hockey goalie.

 

It wasn’t an easy move; there were doubters once again. Booberry first found himself in the absolute opposite of his cold winter home: Houston, where the VHLM’s Bulls picked him up on waivers. But he was young, developing, homesick, and most of all unable to show his talent – the Bulls played him in just one of the team’s remaining 20 games after he joined the team.

 

The following VHLM season didn’t start much better, as Booberry found himself trapped on a largely apathetic team. Despite his own personal hot start, the Bulls were the worst team in the league. Others may have given up, but this is where being a dreamer helped the optimistic Booberry: He always believed there was a better way. He eventually found it, being traded to San Diego mid-season and instantly integrating into his new home. Although the team would be knocked out of the first round of the playoffs, Booberry once again showed his true (lack of) colors when given a chance, and Booberry would win the S79 VHLM MVP.

 

By this point, the pattern had readily established itself: Give Booberry a chance, and he’d come through in spades. It was that potential that would cause the rebuilding Helsinki Titans to take Booberry with the first pick in the S80 Draft, knowing that like the team itself, he’d be able to rebound from the ashes. In the newly formed VHLE, the oft-maligned Vasteras Iron Eagles franchise thought the same. They selected Booberry with their fourth-round pick for the upcoming season, knowing that he’d only stay one season.

 

That proved to be a good decision. In the tight VHLE, Booberry didn’t form particularly admirably, with a 27-21-4 record revealing some average play. But once again, it was when the lights were brightest that Booberry shined. After barely scraping by to make the playoffs, Vasteras would go to two straight Game 7s in the semifinals and finals. And in both, Booberry was there: Vasteras would win the first ever VHLE title. Booberry, for the first time in his professional career, was a champion.

 

Truth be told, that VHLE title would also be the last time Booberry was a champion as of this writing. But he didn’t know that entering his first season with the Helsinki Titans at the VHL level. The Titans were a rebuilding team, and Booberry knew that it would be a few seasons before the team would be competitive. That proved true: Despite strong personal play, the Titans as a whole couldn’t score and missed the playoffs his first two seasons. Everything was gearing towards a run that would begin during the S83 season.

 

And begin they did, with a bullet. In just his third year, Booberry broke out in a big way. His 10 shutouts and .929 save percentage would lead the entire league, and his 40-18-5 record would be the best for a Titans goalie in many seasons. Booberry won the Shaw Trophy as the best goalie in the league that season, as well as the Slobodzian for the Most Outstanding Player in the league. The Titans would gain the second seed in the conference but lose to Warsaw in seven games. Still, it was seen as the start of something great for Booberry’s remaining five seasons.

 

Alas, sometimes life doesn’t go as planned. First was an unlucky Season 84: While Booberry himself had a bit of a down season, Helsinki as a whole would finish seventh in the entire VHL but sixth in Europe; that meant missing the playoffs despite a solid year. Then, after that disappointment came confusion: The team’s entire management ghosted the entire offseason, and not the type of ghosting that Booberry likes. Top players like Nico Pearce and Nezuko would unceremoniously leave in the offseason. Suddenly, the once-promising dynasty was reduced to Booberry and forward Florida Man.

 

Still, as Booberry tends to do, he made the best of a bad situation and proved his worth. And in fact, there’s an argument that S85 was his best effort. Despite a team nearly devoid of VHL talent, Booberry played outrageous with a .938 save percentage and a 21-20-3 record. It was strong enough that another European team, HC Davos Dynamo, knew that they had to have Booberry’s talent. Once Helsinki’s leadership finally returned, they traded Booberry to the Dynamo for a nominal sum. Once again, Booberry had a new home to prove himself.

 

His time in Davos has been a mixed bag. On the good side, Booberry continued his strong S85 play and would end up with another Shaw Trophy for his mantle. But on the bad side, he couldn’t continue his strong play into the playoffs, where Davos would be knocked out in five games in the quarterfinals. A bit shaken, Booberry had an above-average S86 at a .926 save percentage and 35-22-7 record – good enough for Davos to make the wild card game, but not much more.

 

Seemingly, Booberry’s remaining professional career is laid out in front of him. The goalie has signed for two more seasons after this one with a no trade clause, the expectation being that he will be with Davos for the rest of his career. But still, there remains room to dream – for both himself and his teammates. Booberry has still not won a title at the VHL level. The Davos franchise has not won since Season 61. Together, they have their own struggles to overcome. Perhaps they will soon: As of this writing, Davos has advanced to the semifinals for the first time in numerous seasons.

 

Still, many would say that winning isn’t expected, for both Davos and Booberry. But listening to the doubters isn’t in Booberry’s DNA. For there’s one thing you can say about the mountaintop heights of Davos, Switzerland: It’s a big sky overhead. There’s a lot of room to dream.