Member-only story
The Last Chance
Sometimes reality sucks
Frankie Cohen felt the puck hit his mask from a slap shot two feet in front of him and that’s all he remembered from the seventh game of the ECHL final.
The Kelly Cup was at stake and the game was in overtime. He was playing for the Savannah Ghost Pirates and he knew he had to win to get a chance to move up to the American Hockey League and from there the big time with the National Hockey League. The thing was his Agent Jack Eisen said it was very important his name to be on the winning trophy to get his shot to move up, otherwise he would be stuck in the lower leagues for at least another year.
Duff McKegan was saying something to him as he lay on the ice. Duff was the team’s trainer and bus driver. Frankie thought about his family. His Sister Susie was a Surgeon and his brother Eddie was a very successful Accountant. His parents had wanted him to continue his education (he had been accepted to Law School) but he had a passion for hockey, and things hadn’t worked out the way he would have liked.
He played many years on semi-good teams but he never stood out. While he got called up twice in Junior to play for the Oshawa Generals, he spent most of his time playing in the B League. He could never establish himself as a great goalie. He knew he was a solid player but his record never showed it.
