March 28th 2004

Now before i get into this i just wanna tell all of you people to go here: The Jibs and join in this group, fill out your information, post messages, and check out the pictures.

“It isn’t even about the game right now it is about the people, Babcock said. “The team is more then friends, best friends I have ever had in my life. It is going to be hard not to see and play with these guys again.” --- Thats what I was quoted as saying in the Mining Gazette up here.... Today was an emotional day, i had to say goodbye to some of the best friends I ever had.. Now lemme say my piece on how i felt about this team.

During the summer of 2002 i went to of course bible camp and had a good time, after camp i was in Houghton with my ugly cuzin Dan and the rest of my family when someone asks me if i want to try out for this hockey team.... i was like ok i get to skate this should be a good time. Tryouts were fun, i didn't really get to know anyone i just remember watching everyone else talk to each other.. and i talked to my cuzin and the other kids around us. None of the kids i was talking to made the team :( And i did somehow... I didn't know what this would mean, and it took until now, this moment, for me to realize that is was definetly worth it. Well the week after tryouts we had practices and stuff leading up to a tournament in Chicago... this all flew by but i remember a few things. First i remember driving two kids home one night and having the most aquward silence ever, but then when we did talk having to laugh at the southern accent i heard... thinking back now i realize it was Smusz and Peter.. both good kids (smusz is the one with the accent...). Another memory is that first party out at markahms.. i felt like such an idiot i didn't know anyone and they all had good conversations going and I just watched. The we picked numbers... and other kids had advantage over me three times.. i wanted 9, then 5, then 12.. and they all got taken :( so i had 6. The last thing i remember is Burger King with Corey... i had no idea who he was i just asked if he wanted to go get some food we had to walk like 4 miles to get there i was so mad.. but it was worth it the guy in there spoke like no english, and he started asking corey questions about his order.. i know now what corey did was.. as normal as it gets with him... but at the time it was the funniest thing ever.. Finally after the trip i committed to Nevy that i would come up to Houghton and be an Eagle.
Finally i got up there to go to school and of course the first thing that happens when i get up there is I see hendu driving by so i wave and he waves.. i had no idea who he was though (but i later figured it out..) :P. School was interesting a lot smaller, but i got to know everyone up here... i first sat with Whitney at lunch because she was one of about 3 people i knew.. she was a life safer those first few weeks because i'm pretty sure i only left her side like twice... i never really did say thank you to her and to the others who i knew before but thank you to all of you for showin' me around (my teammates, holly, sammy, Jessica). School eventually jsut became another school to me, nothing really special.. but i still like it :D. Back on subject.. I then got to knwo my teammates better and got to know the game better, ti was so much differnt playing so many games, but i loved it, and i still do love playing that many games.. i wish i could still play :(. Throughout the year i became good friends with the Hancock bunch.. (core, du, pete, ev, hemi, and nubbs) and we had a good time... Throughout the year i met a lot of people.. had crazy crowds in Houghton, Hancock, and Calumet... We had a few things we always did for a good time... we'd either run up to caly to see the caly girls (hi), and that is where we met Jonny Mack, great guy :D... and the rest of those people. Also we'd end up going to every high school sporting event there was just for a good time we always enjoied those times, or we'd end up at nubbs playing NHL 2003 :p. The season ended on a happy note when we won the blizzard buti that was after the toughest loss of my life when the Tros came back and beat us 4-3 in OT in states.... Some other highlights from the 2003 season were Haaps speaches, bakers crazy fights with me, hot tub parties!, Christmas party (latex gloves), and everything else that we enjoied... But that was last year...
This year was a lot different from the start.. my ugly cuzin was on the team :D and Nubbs was not :(. Plus we had a whole lot of new faces. It was still hockey though. THis year we did not win nearly as many games as we should have but we still had a great time. I will go into a few of the better times.... One thing that we did this year that we didn't last year was chill in the lockerroom, that was always tons of fun. Another memory from this year was our schedule.... We had 5 weekends at home before christmas, and not a single one after. After christmas we were on the road nearly every weekend! Our schedule read... marquette, the soo, Green Bay, Madison, Chicago, Madison, St. Louis.. then finishing up with playdowns and states. Every road trip was a great time the team always had fun where we went even if we were losing. On those trips we all go to know each other very well. One almost all of those trips we lost.. except the one that really mattered.. for playdowns we were matched up against Lansing in Lansing. They beat us in the first game of the 3 games series but we managed to come back and take the series two games to one! I scored the overtime goal in game 3.. and still have that puck, the moments after my goal were amazing... i had my whole team jump on me it was just awesome. In states we just let ourselves down by playing not our best game, and getting eliminated before the medal round. We didn't just have fun at hockey though. Throughout the year we found ourselves doing things much like last year.. attending every sporting event in the area, heading up to cal-city to hang out with that fun group, BSing with the team. This year we added a few new things though.. such as coming to my grandmas. Everyone on the team made it to my grandparents house a few times this year, i have proof on my camera :P, and it was ALWAYS a good time. We also gained a new group of good friends in the Hancock group.. as the year went on we saw more and more of them and it was again always fun. This year brought so many new jokes and good times it is hard to talk about even half of them.. harharhar, heheeheh, circle, meow..... Just say a word and we'll have a laugh about it. All of us kids on the teams were friends with each other.. and not just friends because we were on the team, but good friends, the kind of friends you could count on, and lean on. That friendship is what made this team more than a team, it is something i've never been able to experience, and probably won't get the chance to do again. This year was the greatest season of my life and i hope all of you teammates and friends keep in contact with me, cuz i know i will with you :).

-Mike