Quick Flicks

I remember everything about the moment I signed on to play with the Bruins. I remember my parents standing behind me, beaming with pride, as I walked over to Don Sweeney and shook his hand, camera bulbs flashing as pictures were taken. I remember sitting down and gripping the pen, my sweaty hands shaking, as I signed my name and the date. I remember putting on a Bruins baseball cap and my first official jersey, posing with Coach Julien and the rest of the higher ups, a smile on my face even though I was freaking out inside.

I was officially the first girl to be signed to a full contract in the NHL. Others had practiced with teams before or played in exhibition games, and those women were some of my biggest idols, but this was an untraveled territory. I remember the reaction from the media and fans, positive and negative reviews alike. Some applauded the move as a huge step for women in professional sports. Others said I should have stuck to the CWHL or NWHL, which both held opportunities that I would have absolutely loved to take. But, when I was approached by the team about this deal, I couldn't say no. I had always been a huge fan of the Bruins and the thought of playing on the team absolutely blew my mind.

Then, of course, there was the flurry of sexist comments about how I probably "played like a girl" and would distract the team from playing good, playoff-worthy hockey. I remember getting a call from someone at Playboy the week after I signed on, asking if I would want to do a feature with them, "showcasing my other talents". I politely, but fervently, declined the offer. I anticipated more sexist comments as time went on, and they definitely came in. But, thankfully, never from anyone on the team or within the Bruins organization.

I remember walking into the locker room on the first day of preseason, absolutely terrified. I had spent a few minutes freaking out in the bathroom before hand, debating whether or not to just run away and never look back. But, after a good look in the mirror and a quick pep-talk to myself, I calmed down a little bit. I got a little nervous again as a room full of large, male hockey players whipped around to face me. I recognized some of my favorite players among the mix. I tried to stay calm as I wiggled my way through the crowd, taking a seat at my stall. I nearly collapsed when I saw that it would be next to Tuukka Rask, one of my favorite players and someone who had always been an idol to me in the hockey world. As I sat down, he smiled and nodded in greeting, as Coach Julien resumed talking.

"Boys, I'd like to introduce you to your newest teammate, Cassidy Richards. I'm sure you guys have heard about her and her excellent qualifications, and I don't want you to let anything the media may have said influence your perception of this excellent player. She's ready to play and I'm sure she is ready to prove all the naysayers wrong."

Everyone looked at me again, and I gulped, as they waited for me to say something.

"Uh, I'm just excited to get out on the ice with everyone!" I let out a nervous giggle. Claude resumed talking to the team as I looked around and took in the scene.

As the weeks went on, I found my place among the team. Nobody had been downright mean to me. Some guys had been a little slow to open up to me, but others had been quick to befriend me. David Pastrnak was instantly very nice to me, as he was also pretty young, although I was still a bit older than him at twenty-one. We would joke around on the ice and he helped me get used to the team dynamic, while I helped him improve his English and understand American sayings. Patrice Bergeron was extremely welcoming and polite and, as a fellow forward, helped explain every portion of the practice drills.

I figured that because Tuukka and I sat next to each other in the locker room that we would become fast friends. But, surprisingly, he took a while to warm up to me. He introduced himself, of course, and would joke around with the rest of the team, but didn't start really talking to me until two weeks in.

I remember skating towards the exit at the end of practice one day. I was about to exit the ice when I heard a voice calling my name, and whipped my head to look towards the direction it came from.

"Hey, Cassidy, ya mind passing me that puck?" I nodded and reached out to gather the lone puck by the edge of the ice, slapping it across the ice towards Tuukka.

"Hey, you wanna come help me test Tuukka? Gotta make sure he's strong enough to stop every shot." Patrice played with the puck at his feet, pushing it back and forth with his stick and awaiting my response. I stood in my spot for a moment, before taking a deep breath and skating towards the two men. I was taken aback when Patrice shot the puck at me, but fortunately managed to collect it and headed towards the goal. I decided to show off a bit, and faked Tuukka out before sending it right into the upper-left corner. Patrice laughed as he saw the puck go in, clapping his hands. Tuukka still lay on the ice, but slowly got up and whipped his helmet off.

"Wow, you are good." Tuukka looked at me, shocked and a little bit worked up because I had beat him. He pushed the puck back towards me and Patrice stepped back and let Tuukka and I face off.

I skated back to the center line and began navigating the ice towards Tuukka, watching his focus intensify as he watched my movements. I lined up to take a shot, but Tuukka stacked the pads and blocked it.

"Uh oh, Cassidy, now you're tied." I could see Tuukka grin and get set again as Patrice acted as judge to our little competition. We spent the next twenty minutes or so doing this, myself getting a few more shots in and Tuukka making a few saves.

After that, Tuukka and I definitely talked a lot. He'd invite me over sometimes to hang out with some of the guys, and I could count on him for anything. He was super funny, amazingly focused on the ice, and had been extremely helpful in my transition into the NHL. Overall, I felt super welcomed to the team, and was truly very happy with my new teammates.

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I laced up my skates and stood up, leaning against the wall in the hall of the locker room. My heart was racing and my palms were sweating madly. I was terrified.

It was about a month and a half into the season. Although I was on the team, I hadn't yet played a game. Coach Julien wanted to make sure I was truly ready and didn't want to rush anything. He knew this would be a big deal for everyone involved, and wanted to make sure the timing was just right.

Tonight the B's were playing the L.A. Kings. It wouldn't be a particularly tough game, as they were pretty low in the standings, but I had never been more nervous for a game in my life. The B's hadn't announced that I would play tonight, so nobody would know until I stepped onto the ice in a few moments. Besides the number on my back, I'm pretty sure my ponytail would be a dead giveaway, as well. I tried to shake off my nerves and walked out to the hall, the crowd already yelling. Giving Chara a fist bump, I stepped out onto the ice behind Patrice, who had talked to me before the game in an attempt to comfort me and reassure me that I could do this.

I'd been on the ice plenty of times before, but this was completely different. The stands were packed and I could see the other team as they skated next to us. I instantly saw some of the Kings players point and laugh at me, to which I responded by narrowing my eyes.

"Come on, Cass, ignore them. They're all dicks." Pasta patted my back and smiled, and I followed him in warming up.
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We were in the third period of the game, up 3-0. It had been great so far, with a goal from Chara, Pasta, and Brad Marchand, the last of which I had even notched an assist on. The crowd had gone WILD as my name flashed on the jumbotron and I felt the electricity rushing through me as the game continued.

I had been playing well, even with my pre-game jitters, and I was so ready for the game to be over and the win to be official. I hadn't been so lucky with the Kings players, who were intent on chirping me and bumping into me at every chance. I got a few wolf whistles as I skated by their bench, and I had been elbowed multiple times while preparing for a face-off. Each time I looked slightly off balance, one of them would ask if I "was sure I could handle this" or if I "wanted to come back to their place afterwards". I heeded Patrice's advice and ignored them, which only led to being called a "bitch" way more times than necessary. But, that only fueled my desire to win.

The clock had six minutes on it, and I was anxious to make the win official. The whistle blew and we won the face-off, which had been in our end. I received the puck from Pasta, who skated up towards the goal as fast as possible. I felt the crowd grow louder as I raced down the ice, and looked to make a pass back to Pasta when I reached the appropriate place in a few strides.

"Doughty comes from nowhere and OH! Richards is down! Folks, this doesn't look too good. The Refs have blown the whistle and are skating over to the scene. Doughty has been sent to talk to the other linesmen as Richards is checked on. He came out of NOWHERE and boarded her, and she hit that board HARD, landing on her side. It doesn't look like she's getting up just yet. Oh- wait a minute, she's turning over slightly. It looks like she's gonna head to the bench, with some help from the B's trainer. She doesn't look to good. Definitely injured. Slowly but surely making it to the bench. Looks like the refs are- OH they are giving Doughty a major penalty, and he does not look happy."

The trainer helped me walk over the threshold, after instructing me to head down to the locker room, I held it together until I stepped out of view of the crowd, but then I couldn't handle it. I collapsed to the ground, my head spinning and in excruciating pain, unable to hold back the sobs that shook through my body. My vision blurred as I saw the trainer run over, as well as the assistant coach. Then, everything went black.
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Tuukka

The instant I saw Doughty hit Cassidy, I knew it was bad. The way she hit the boards and slumped to the ice, I could tell she was seriously hurt. My heart nearly stopped when she didn't get up. I skated forward a bit, ready to go kill that bastard, but Chara stopped me and told me to just wait the few more minutes and then rush to the trainer's. I listened, but was barely focusing for the rest of the period. Thankfully, the puck stayed in their zone, so I didn't have to focus too much. When the buzzer sounded and the crowd started cheering, I raced to the bench and down the hall.

I remember the first day that Cassidy walked into the locker room. Coach had told us we had a new player, and obviously I wasn't blind to what the media was saying. But, I didn't really think much of it. When she walked in, I couldn't help but notice her bright blue eyes and nervous, yet still shining smile. I must admit, though, I had a hard time believing that she was worth all the hype and was a little irritated by it. That's why I didn't really bother talking to her much.

But then, one day after practice, when Bergy was getting ready to shoot on me a bit, he decided to switch things up.

"Come on, Tuukk. Give her a chance. She's a great player. Plus, I see the way you look at her."

I rolled my eyes and threw my helmet on, which Bergy took as a sign to invite Cassidy over. I got ready to block the shot, not really too worried about it. But then I was on the ground and Bergy's laughter was ringing through the air, and I saw the puck sitting at the back of the net. I stood up in shock, whipping my helmet off.

"Wow, you are good."

I could see her blush a little, as she prepared to take another shot.

"Told ya so." Bergy laughed as I mumbled for him to shut up. Cassidy and I continued facing off for a bit, and boy was she good. I made some great saves, too, of course, but she was definitely not an overrated player.

After that, I had definitely warmed up to her. She was just as great off the ice as on. She was funny, selfless, and a great addition to the team.

But right now, all I could focus on was seeing her and making sure she was live. I shed my equipment as I walked down the hall to the training room, entering the space in all of my gear but my jersey, gloves, stick, and helmet. She was on the bed on the opposite side of the room, surrounded by the head trainer and two assistant trainers, all being overlooked by an assistant coach. I shuffled over, but was stopped the assistant coach.

"Tuukk, give 'em some space. Go shower and change, and then come back in. She'll still be here." I attempted to protest, but knew it would be no use and ran back to the locker room to shower and change.

After the quickest shower of my life, I threw on a pair of sweatpants and a black t-shirt, racing back to check on Cassidy's progress.
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Cassidy

I blinked my eyes, realizing I was on a bed. Not a comfy, cozy one, but one of the hard ones in the training room. My head was still spinning and I was surrounded by trainers, but I was still in my uniform. Someone had removed my skates and gloves slowly, and I tried to figure out what was happening.

"Cassidy, we need to remove your pads and everything. Please tell us if anything hurts. We're gonna take this slow."

I nodded, the voice echoing slightly as I felt my head throb. My socks were removed with little discomfort, and my shorts and lower padding was taken off, as well, causing me to wince slightly. Someone helped me sit up, which didn't feel too good, and told me to raise my arms so that they could remove my jersey. I pushed myself up slightly, about to remove it, when a flash of bright-white pain shot through my torso. I felt like I was going to puke and felt my vision fade as I screamed in pain, everything echoing around me as I fell back on the table.

"Cassidy! Stay awake! Steve, can you go get some ice? Quickly!"

Tears streamed down my face, as my jersey was pulled off completely, along with my upper-body pads, I felt my left side rage with fiery pain. I lay on the cold table in nothing but spandex shorts and a sports bra as the trainer looked over my body and I tried to focus on anything but the raging fire throughout my body. I felt a pair of cold hands touch my side and winced.

"Cassidy, I am so sorry to have to do this to you, but I'm gonna need to set this quickly so it doesn't heal incorrectly. It's gonna hurt. But, just take a deep breath."

I nodded once and closed my eyes. I felt some pressure and the worst pain I have ever experienced, and everything went black again.

I came to a few minutes later, still in pain. I had ice wrapped around my side, as well as an ace bandage. A pillow was behind my head, which was still ringing slightly and overall felt awful.

"Cassidy, you're in pretty rough shape. You broke a few ribs, which I luckily was able to set so they should heal up fine, but you'll have some pretty nasty bruising soon. We are gonna do some testing, but we think you may have a concussion, as well, due to the few blackouts you had after the game and the obvious confusion you are suffering from right now. Does your head hurt?"

I nodded my head, wincing from the pain I immediately felt.

"I thought so, we gave you something that should help that a bit, but we can't give you anything too strong until the test results come back. You have some facial bruising as well, but that's not too bad."

From the reflection in the mirror across the room, I could tell that the trainer was just being nice. I could see some purple already appearing under my right eye, as well as along my jaw. He lightly shook my hand and headed out of the room. I closed my eyes and leaned my head back, my eyes stinging as tears formed. Deep breath in, deep breath out.

"Cass! Oh my God, you're alive." I opened my eyes to see Tuukka standing there. I guess I hadn't noticed him come in as the trainer was leaving. Upon seeing him, I felt a few tears sneak down my face. "Hey, don't cry. You don't look that bad."

He reached out to wipe my tear, but I moved away as my skin stung from where he brushed my bruise. I shook my head slightly, but not enough to cause anymore pain. I closed my eyes again, suppressing the new tears.

"Hey, I was just kidding. Trying to make you laugh." I opened my eyes to see Tuukka sitting on the edge of the table. I studied his face, which carried an extremely worried expression. I had never seen him like this.

"My first game! I couldn't even last one full game! I'm done! That was it."

"Whoa, this was not your fault, at all. That bastard Doughty came out of nowhere and made an absolutely unnecessary hit. I'd be shocked if he wasn't suspended. And, you're not done. You played great! An assist in your first game! We won, didn't we?" I hadn't even thought about the score, because all I could focus on was the fact that I was done for a while. The trainer reentered the room at that moment.

"Well, we can't run any tests right now, but we do think you have a concussion, in addition to the broken ribs and bruising." He handed me a pill bottle. "Take one of these before you go to bed. It's not the strongest, but it'll let you get a good night sleep. You can come back in tomorrow and we'll finish your diagnosis." I nodded and thanked him, removing a pill from the bottle. Tuukka handed me his water bottle and I chugged it back, closing my eyes and trying to relax. Within a few minutes, I felt its affects.

I used a crutch to maneuver into the locker room, supported on my other side by Tuukka. He helped me throw on my team sweatshirt, but I didn't bother putting pants on over my shorts because I didn't want to risk the pain and was starting to feel sleepy.

We both headed to the exit. Tuukka stopped short of the door and turned to face me.

"I don't like the idea of you being alone tonight. Do you want me to come stay with you? If not, I can call someone else."

I nodded my head. "You."

Tuukka opened the door to his car and helped me in, supporting me as I settled into the seat. He chatted with me, or at me, really, as we drove to my apartment about ten minutes away. Upon arrival, he helped me out and I handed him my keys, too out of it to unlock the door. We walked inside and Tuukka helped me to my room. He lifted me onto the bed, careful not to put too much pressure on my injured ribs. Even so, I winced slightly. I lay back on the two pillows behind my head, as Tuukka grabbed the extra blanket from the end and covered me with it.

"Well, uh, I'll head to the couch I guess. I'll come check on you soon." He turned to leave the room, but I stopped him.

"Tuukk?" He turned back and looked at me. "Stay with me? Please?" He nodded and walked around my bed, sitting on the side opposite my injured one. I began to scoot closer to him, but he stopped me by laying down next to me, leaning agains the headboard, and putting his arm around my shoulders. I rested my head on his chest as he ran his fingers lightly through my hair. I nestled closer to him, my arms against his abdomen as I cuddled up to his warmth and felt myself drift to sleep.

As the wave of exhaustion hit me, I felt a kiss pressed to my forehead, and heard Tuukka whisper, "I'll always protect you."

Notes