Then I had 90 minutes of Gretsky practice time. Given that we *never* have late Gretsky hours, I figured it would be packed. Thanks to the Sharks game on TV (I assume) only kids showed up, so we had about 25 people total on the ice and I was the old man by two decades.
First I had some really fast kids show me and push me through some tight 8-turns, pivot and shoot practice which I really suck at but they were really helpful and friendly. Then I ran into Dane, this really talented player from Canada who had given me help before. He approached me and asked if I wanted help! Hell, yeah.
So I got 60+ minutes of intensive training. He'd spend about 10 minutes on one thing then shift me to something else. He even picked on things I had given up on, like omg I can do a slapshot now.
Gah. I only stopped for one 2 minute break, so it was 90 minutes intensive on the ice. Much harder than a game. I was completely wrecked by the time it was over. Absolutely, totally, acid in my mouth, hands won't stop shaking wrecked.
But it was awesome. I feel completely euphoric. I had the friendliest, most helpful people around me all night. And I learned so much more than I ever expected to learn.
