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[roethlisberger7]

I'd just like to take a moment and thank everyone for their well-wishes, AIM and comments and calls and everything. It's been really appreciated. I'll likely share details later, but for now, I still don't really feel comfortable.

So, well, the family arrived today. And I mean the family - grandparents and uncles and aunts and cousins and stuff

Comments

[v_lecavalier]

Hockey is easy enough to understand. It's what you turn to in Canada with the winters. At least that was my experiece growing up in the suburbs of Montreal. In the few months of spring/summer we had, I could have pulled off being a regular American kid playing baseball and soccer. *grins* Except for the whole French being my first language thing.

You should definitely check out a game if you have the chance, or hit me up on messanger and I will be more than happy to answer any questions.

[roethlisberger7]

Man, winter is football for us. Up until just about February. You guys go longer, I think. But then we got basketball to tide us over... *smiles* Hockey never really entered the equation, y'see. I played basketball, baseball, and football - but not soccer, not hockey.

Yeah, sure, but you guys ain't playin' now, right?

[v_lecavalier]

No, the NHL is not playing. I was in Russia playing all through the winter and I would be playing for Canada in the Worlds at the end of April if not for my knee.

Yeah, we go longer. *grins* October until April. And that isn't including the playoffs. When the Lightning won the Cup, we had played from October until June.

[roethlisberger7]

Russia? Do a helluva lot to keep playin', don't you? I understand though, I think, though I wouldn't wanna play anywhere but home.

October til June? That's crazy. That's 9 months, man! Where's your offseason? We're September to January, playoffs til start of February. But off-season team workouts start in May, and I've been at our practice facility for bout the whole of this month. Still, man.

[v_lecavalier]

Well, without the NHL, the best leagues to play in are over in Europe. My best friend was going there to play too, as well as another one of my teammates from Tampa, so that played a large part in me going there to play.

*laughs* We have an off season! We do not have training camp until September. A long one if you do not make it to the playoffs. Not to mention the All Star break in the spring. You'd be surprised how much you heal up in just a week.

[roethlisberger7]

Guess so. I think the second-best league's probably in Canada, for us. But it ain't even close.

Man, just one month of camp stuff? Our camps start in June, for September games. Of course, that's just minicamps, the real heavy stuff starts late July-ish. You guys live together during camp?

And yeah, I know. S'why we have a week between games.

[v_lecavalier]

Few weeks of camp stuff, yeah. It's very intensive, especially the way Coach Tortorella does things in Tampa. The boys have taken to calling it Camp Torture-ella. *grins* It ends up working out for us.. although it's never a good thing if all of the drills and things makes last year's league MVP puke in the bench. *laughs*

We all stick together during the camp. It's different than when we're on the road because there are guys up from the minor league system and others who got a try out. We had to live together in a hotel all through the post season, even when we were in Tampa. Coach's orders.