The Novice AA Under Armour Petes experienced a day they will
never forget yesterday.
The day started early, with the players leaving Peterborough
at 7am to travel east to Kanata, where they were on the list to attend the pre-game
skate for the Ottawa Senators and Los Angeles Kings. They were slowed down by snow, ploughs, transport trucks, police, and construction, but none of these kept them from reaching their destination.
The excitement of these young players was contagious; even the coaches
were excited to be able to sit in the stands and watch…with the chance they might get to see, meet or get an autograph from one of the players of either team.
At 10:30am the players lined section 106, as the Senators took the ice. The players 
were in awe of the size and speed of these professional athletes. The ease in which they executed drills was inspiring. Their shots looked effortless. They proved why so many minor hockey players look up to them. When they left the ice, Connor Brown of the Ottawa Senators took a few minutes to come into the stands to talk to the players.
After a quick clean of the ice, the Kings took to the ice for more of the same. This time was different though…Drew Doughty, who hadn’t dressed to go on the ice, took the time to come out through the tunnel to talk to the kids and sign some memorabilia. Following this, the players got to go out on the Kings bench to watch the remainder of the practice. The coaches took some pictures, but Fox Sports captured the big moments on their twitter feed.
Following this, the players attended the game in the evening from a suite. It’s a toss up which was more exciting – the early morning pre-game skate and meeting NHL players or a suite with all you can eat hotdogs and popcorn…
The night was topped off with a visit from Spartacat, the Ottawa Senators mascot, and OT with the Senators pulling out a big win.
It didn’t take long for any of the Petes players to fall asleep last night. But when they did, you can bet they dreamt of playing hockey and the unforgettable experience they had that day.
1, 2, 3…..Petes!!!