Wlad's Blog -- Theme Week

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Wlad’s Blog

6/19/2024

 

I was a tiny ball of anxiety. I could not sit still, I just kept pacing back and forth. That was me on draft day. I drove my parents nuts. Once the draft got underway, I started to calm down…well at least I stopped pacing. I just sat there with my friends and family, quietly watching, barely able to contain my excitement. When Houston was on the clock, I don’t know, I had a feeling. I felt that they were going to select me. Hearing my name was surreal. I didn’t believe it at first, but then my friends and family erupted all around me. High fives and hugs all around. The rest of the night was a blur, but I remember falling asleep thinking about the future. 

 

In the coming weeks, I had my things packed and had gone through a farewell tour of friends and family. I opted to take a road trip down to Texas with my best buddy. We had a great trip and made some great memories. Houston had put me up in a team owned apartment for the season. My buddy helped me get settled in and check out the town for a few days before flying home. 

 

That first practice was great. I was anxious, but excited to meet my teammates. It was fun getting to meet everyone, but the practice itself, woof. Coach skated the hell out of us. He was going to make sure that we were in shape when it came time for the opener. We were ready. We played hard. It was a great season. We went to the playoffs, but unfortunately we lost out to a really good Ottawa Lynx team. It was a big learning experience for me as a player. One of those was learning to lose. You’re not going to win all of the time, at least I am pretty sure, unless you are like Superman or something. Regardless, learning how to lose, accepting it, and then instead of wallowing in it, using it to focus your game and your body and start getting ready for the next one.

 

And that is what I did at the end of our run in the playoffs. I got angry for a bit, but then I turned that into focus and motivation. I started putting in workouts. I found out I was going to be moving to the VHLE with Oslo so I used that as my motivation in the off-season. So far, it has been a rough season, but just like any other season, I am learning. I am learning the best way to train and develop. I am learning areas of my game that need attention. I am constantly learning about and from my teammates. Learning their playstyles so that I may better support them and create chemistry. At the end of the day I am learning about the game itself as a whole.

 

On a side note, I am also learning a lot about Oslo. It’s a very fun city!