Body Check by Matt Christopher

Author:Matt Christopher [CHRISTOPHER, MATTHEW F]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780316093767
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Published: 2009-12-19T05:00:00+00:00

9

For the moment, Brent thought, he was part of the team, and the Badgers were going to play the Cyclones in a couple of days. The Cyclones were tough, so he knew he had to try to forget everything that might distract him and focus on playing hockey.

“All right, you sharpshooters,” said Coach Maxwell, “let’s see how accurate your shooting really is.” He skated to the side of the rink and brought back three pieces of cloth called “shooter tutors.” The coach and two players used bungee cords to attach the cloths to the goals they’d used for the backhand drill and another goal at the far end of the ice. The cloths covered the goalmouths completely and were designed with five circular holes. The holes were located near the four corners of the goals, with the fifth hole in the middle, eight inches above the ice.

“You know how this goes,” said Coach Maxwell. “I divide the team into three groups. Each group has a puck, and you line up. The first player passes to the one behind him, and that player has to shoot, aiming at any of the five holes. Those holes represent the best areas to score: the corners of the net and low in the middle. The group gets two points for each puck that goes through a hole. If you miss your shot, pass the puck back to the next guy in line, and he shoots right away off the pass. If you make the shot, get the puck and pass it back in the same way. The group with the most points after two minutes wins. I’ll keep score for one group, Coach Seabrook will do the second, and, since we’re not using a goalie, Chip can keep score for the third group. Line up!”

Brent enjoyed this drill, even though he wasn’t one of the best shooters on the team. And he was relieved to have something to do that would take his mind off the problems threatening the team.

He was in the same group as Vic, who was directly in front of him. When Vic’s turn came to shoot, Brent wasn’t surprised to see that Vic was barely able to hit the goalmouth, let alone put the puck in one of the holes. Then he seemed to take forever getting the puck back onto his stick. Finally he managed to send a weak pass in Brent’s direction.

Brent fired a shot that caught the edge of the lower left hole and tumbled into the cage for 2 points. “Good goal!” shouted Chip, who was scoring for Brent’s squad.

As Brent hooked the puck out of the goal with his stick, Sandy caught his eye and called out, “Nice shot!”

Brent nodded in response and sent a pass back to Burt, who was next in line. When Brent got another shot opportunity, he aimed for the center hole but missed when his shot went high. At the end of two minutes, Coach Maxwell blew his whistle again. “Time!” he called.

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