Alright, let’s talk about this… this… An-dree-as A-than-a-see-you guy. Sounds like a mouthful, don’t it? My grandkids, they watch him play that hockey game on the TV. You know, the one with the ice and the sticks? Always yelling and screaming, can’t hear myself think sometimes.
So, this Athanasiou fella, he plays for… well, I can’t rightly remember. One of them teams with the funny names. Like animals or somethin’. He’s fast, real fast. Like a chicken with its head cut off, zipping around the ice. My old rooster, he used to run like that when he saw the fox. But this guy, he does it on purpose, I guess. Speedy skater, that’s what my grandson calls him.
They say he’s good at shootin’ the puck too. Puck, that’s what they call that black thing they smack around. Looks like a big ol’ button to me. Anyway, Athanasiou, he scores goals sometimes. Not all the time, mind you. But enough to make them young’uns cheer. Goal scorer, I think they call it. He ain’t no Wayne Gretzky though, that’s for sure. My husband, bless his soul, he used to talk about Gretzky all the time. Said he was the best there ever was. This Athanasiou kid, he’s got a ways to go, I reckon.
- He’s fast. Real fast.
- He shoots the puck. Sometimes it goes in.
- He plays for a team with a funny name.
My grandson told me he used to play for another team before. And another one before that! My goodness, this boy can’t seem to stick to one place, can he? It’s like that time my prize-winning pig got loose at the county fair. Chased him all over the place, I did. Finally found him eating a funnel cake. Athanasiou, he’s probably just lookin’ for the right team, the right fit. Maybe he’ll find it someday.
I saw him on the TV the other day. He almost scored a goal. Almost. The puck hit the post, clanged real loud. My grandson, he groaned like he’d just stubbed his toe. “So close!” he yelled. Yeah, so close. That’s hockey for ya, I guess. Lots of almosts, lots of maybes. Like that time I almost won the pie-baking contest at the church social. Almost. Ended up comin’ in second. Still got a blue ribbon though, which was nice. Almost Scored, that’s a story for him eh?
They talk about this fella online too, you know. On that internet thingy. My grandson showed me some videos. Highlights, they call ’em. Just the good parts, like when Athanasiou scores a goal or makes a fancy pass. It’s like lookin’ at the prize-winning tomatoes in the garden, but ignorin’ all the ones that got eaten by bugs. Makes him look like a real superstar. But I know better. There’s more to hockey than just highlights. There’s hard work, there’s teamwork, there’s… well, there’s a lot of stuff I don’t understand, to be honest. NHL Highlights are fancy, but it ain’t the whole story.
So, Andreas Athanasiou. He’s a hockey player. He’s fast, he shoots the puck, and he plays for a team with a funny name. He’s not the best, but he’s not the worst either. He’s just… there. Like that old oak tree in my backyard. It’s been there forever, doing its thing. Not flashy, not fancy, but it’s part of the landscape. And sometimes, just sometimes, when the sun hits it just right, it looks pretty darn beautiful. Maybe that’s like Athanasiou. Maybe, just maybe, he’ll have his moment in the sun one day.
Hockey Player is what he is, plain and simple. And that’s all there is to it, I reckon.
Tags: [Andreas Athanasiou, NHL, Hockey Player, Speedy Skater, Goal Scorer, Almost Scored, NHL Highlights]
