One Timers

Being the first woman in the NHL is a huge deal. Fortunately for me, I’m not the first. But I am the second. And I’m the first woman to be on the brink of winning the Stanley Cup.

Time is ticking down in game 7 and the Habs are making another push to even the score. I’m doing my best to keep us ahead, but I need that clock to hit zero already. I’m exhausted. Commentators love to talk about how much time players have had on the ice. They talk about guys having ridiculous numbers, like 30 minutes. But they ignore the fact that us goalies are on the ice every second of every game. Sixty minutes, every night. We don’t get a break. We don’t get to freshen up our legs.

Brendan Gallagher rips a shot just past my glove and I think my heart stops. But then I hear the glorious sound of the goal post and it bounces right back to me. I cover it up and close my eyes, feeling the pushing around me. The clock says there’s only 4 seconds left. They drop the puck and Gallagher wins it. He passes it back and Briere takes the shot. But it’s right to my glove and I gobble it up. The horn sounds and I hear my teammates shout around me. I drop my stick and glove and pull my helmet off, jumping on the closest teammate to me.

The Chicago Blackhawks have just won the 2015 Stanley Cup.

I have just won the 2015 Stanley Cup.

I pretty much black out for the next couple of minutes. But the next thing I know, I’m watching my boyfriend (and captain) accept the Stanley Cup. He lifts it over his head and we all cheer. It’s ours now.

Jon skates around with it before passing it off, a huge smile on his face. I can’t help but beam at his happiness. The two of us have been through so much together in the two years we’ve been dating. We’ve handled the press, the fans, the enemies, the puck bunnies (both female and male!) and even our own families. But Jon and I are meant to be together.

Kaner yells in my ear, breaking me from my thoughts.
“It’s your turn!” He says, pushing me towards where Sharpie is coming back to the group with the Cup.

I skate forward to accept it and Sharpie gives me a huge smile. This is the moment I’ve been working my whole life for. I’m the first woman who will ever do this.

I wrap my fingers carefully around the Cup, taking it from Sharpie’s hands. It hardly feels like it weighs anything, thanks to the adrenaline running through my body. I lift it up and skate around to the roars of the fans, giving it a kiss for good measure.

After it’s been passed around and we take a team picture, they let our families on to the ice. My dad pulls me into a huge hug, tears in his eyes.

“I’m so proud of you, baby girl.” He says.
“Thank you daddy.” I respond.

My brothers do the same.

“Mom would be so proud of you.” My oldest brother Jake says.
“I wish she was here.” I admit.
“She is.” He responds. “I can feel her, and I know you can too.”

He’s right. I can feel her. I’ve been feeling her since the third period started.

Suddenly Jon is pulling my hand. I give him a huge smile and he leans down to kiss me for the first time since I’ve become a Stanley Cup Champion.

“Great game, captain.” I say.
“You were amazing.” He responds. “Can I steal you away for a minute?”
I see my brothers and father share a smile behind my back.

I follow him, thinking he’s taking me to see his family. But instead he surprises me by pulling us away from the crowd of our teammates and their families. He grabs my hand and pulls me to the middle of the ice, right over the Blackhawk logo.

“I love you so much, Victoria.” He says.
“I love you too, Jon.” I respond.
“I know I can be a pain in the ass a lot of the time. I’m cranky and serious and I can be so incredibly difficult. But somehow you still love me.”
I laugh.
“Jon-”
“Wait.” He cuts me off. “I got a whole lot of shit I have to say first.”
I close my mouth and look at him expectantly.

“Victoria, I’d love to say it was love at first sight. But we both know that’s not true. It took a while for me to get used to having a woman on the team. But I’m so glad that you didn’t quit like you originally wanted to. I’m so glad that Kaner convinced you to stay. Because that gave me the opportunity to get to know you. To find out how amazing you are, both on and off the ice. As it turns out, you complete me. You’re everything I’m not, and everything I need.”

He hesitates for a second, looking over my shoulder. I turn to see what he’s looking at and see Kaner and Duncan Keith carrying the Cup over to us. They’re holding it upright, and smiling like crazy. When they reach us, they set the Cup down next to us and skate away. Jon lightly grabs my chin and pulls it so I’m looking at him.

“With all of that being said, I want you to know that you’re the love of my life and I couldn’t imagine ever being with anyone else. I promise that I will always love you and that I will take care of you until the day that I die. I will be there for you through the good times and the bad times. I want to have a family with you. I want to win a couple more Cups with you. And then I want to retire and spend the rest of my days waking up with you in my arms.”

He reaches for the Cup and that’s when I notice the diamond ring sitting in it. I gasp and my right hand comes up to cover my mouth. Jon picks up the ring and drops down to one knee on the ice.

“Victoria Marie Johnson, will you marry me?”
Tears flood my eyes as I furiously nod my head yes. I can’t speak, but he gets the idea.
“Yes.” I gasp. “Yes. Absolutely yes.”

He smiles and slips the ring onto my left hand, standing to pull me into his arms. His lips connect with mine and I feel the tears slip down my cheeks. He pulls me closer to his body and holds my head to his. I hear the roars of our teammates and fans around us, but they hardly process in my head.

Notes

Requested.

It's a little different, but I hope you all like it.

I actually love it.