Occasionally Wright

Best Job Ever

I make a point of not talking about my job on this blog because the more I talk about it the more likely it is that fans will link this site to the one I write for professionally. It wouldn't be the end of the world if that happened, but the fewer fans who connect the two sites the more freedom I have to talk about what I want to here.

All that being said, Thursday morning had to be one of the coolest half-days of work I've ever had. I'm not sure if it topped my first day at a practice, or the first time I interviewed an NHL player or went into the Thrashers locker room, but it was probably the most unique morning of work I'll ever experience.

What did I do? Having never actually played hockey in my life, I strapped on full goalie gear, headed out onto the ice, and took shots from an NHL defenseman. I'm serious. You can read all about it here.

Speechless

Intimidated? Not really. Starstruck is probably a better word. Yup, that's how I felt today after covering my first practice. The practice itself was a piece of cake as I watched the open practice with about 60 fans (the governor of Georgia cancelled school for two days to help conserve gasoline, so lots of kids were there). It was the bit that came after the practice that had me in awe. That was when I went into the locker room and could have asked any player just about anything I wanted. What did I come up with? Nothing. My coworker introduced me to Scott Mellanby, the new captain, and asked him about his new role. I pressed record on the microcassette. Way to go Ben. A few minutes later I met coach Hartley and again hit record on the microcassette as someone else asked questions. I had a few afterwards but they were duds. What do you say to guys whose careers you've been following for years and years?

"Hey Scott? Remember that time you killed a rat in the locker room, and then you got famous? That was awesome. Have you killed any rats since then?"

Right... I really need to work on this Q&A/interview business.

In all seriousness, if you have any real questions you'd like me to ask any of the players let me know.