Then Mr. Farmer, Mr. Haddock, and some other fathers walked in. Behind them came Coach Fillis and—Tod stared with surprise—Dad.
They stopped in front of Tod.
“You’re playing better hockey than you have all season, Tod,” said the coach.
“Thanks, Coach. I’ve been trying.”
“I’ve been talking with Coach Fillis about you,” said Dad. “I told him about that brand-new hockey stick that sits in your clothes closet.”
Coach Fillis shook his head unbelievingly. “Tod, there are very few boys who would wait to use a new stick until they’d earned it. Takes a lot of gumption.”
“We think that you deserve that hockey stick now, Tod,” said Dad.
Tears almost came to Tod’s eyes, but he held them back.
“But—but my stick’s home, Dad. It’s too late.”
Dad grinned. “I’ll be right back,” he said.
He was gone for a minute. When he returned, he had the brand-new hockey stick with him.
“Had it in the car.” He smiled. “Coach Fillis told me you were good enough to play with it last week. Or even before that. Here, let me take that old stick. You won’t need it anymore.”
When Line 2 skated onto the ice that second period, a brand-new hockey stick flashed brightly. Something about it seemed to do things for Tod Baker that the old one had never done. His face was radiant, his heart lighter. He seemed to skate faster than he had ever skated before. He didn’t dribble much, but he did a lot of passing.
Cries that he had never heard before now filled his ears almost every time he passed the puck.
“All right, Tod!” yelled Biff. “Nice pass!”
And when Tod made two beautiful assists to Skip in rapid succession that resulted in two more goals for the White Knights, Skip said:
“Beauties, Tod! Perfect passes!”
When the game ended the score was White Knights—7; Spartans—6. The White Knights were the league champions with five wins, two losses, and two ties.
White Knights hockey sticks thundered against the boards. On the ice, White Knights players jumped and hugged each other. Up in the seats Tod saw Mom, Dad, and Jane clapping and smiling with joy.
The teams poured into the locker rooms. Coach Fillis’s face beamed with pride. He congratulated the boys. Then he paused in front of Tod.
“Guess our wingman can really play hockey, can’t he, fellas? You know how many assists he had? Five!”
Joe Farmer shook his head. “Imagine keeping a brand-new hockey stick in a closet because he didn’t think he deserved it?” said Joe. “Man, that took nerve!”
“Nerve?” echoed Skip. “You mean gumption!”
Tod looked at Skip. His eyes went big and proud. Coming from Skip, that was a wonderful compliment.
The #1 Sports Series for Kids
Matt Christopher®
Read them all!
Baseball Flyhawk Dirt Bike Runaway
Baseball Pals Dive Right In
Baseball Turnaround Double Play at Short
The Basket Counts Face-Off
Body Check Fairway Phenom
Catch That Pass! Football Fugitive
Catcher with a Glass Arm Football Nightmare
Catching Waves The Fox Steals Home
Center Court Sting Goalkeeper in Charge
Centerfield Ballhawk The Great Quarterback Switch
Challenge at Second Base Halfback Attack *
The Comeback Challenge The Hockey Machine
Comeback of the Home Run Kid Ice Magic
Cool as Ice Johnny Long Legs
Dirt Bike Racer Lacrosse Face-Off
Line Drive to Short ** Snowboard Champ
Long-Arm Quarterback Snowboard Maverick
Long Shot for Paul Snowboard Showdown
Look Who’s Playing First Base Soccer Duel
Miracle at the Plate Soccer Halfback
Mountain Bike Mania Soccer Scoop
Nothin’ But Net Stealing Home
Penalty Shot The Submarine Pitch
The Reluctant Pitcher The Team That Couldn’t Lose
Return of the Home Run Kid Tennis Ace
Run For It Tight End
Shoot for the Hoop Top Wing
Shortstop from Tokyo Touchdown for Tommy
Skateboard Renegade Tough to Tackle
Skateboard Tough Wingman on Ice
Slam Dunk The Year Mom Won the Pennant
All available in paperback from Little, Brown and Company
Matt Christopher®
Sports Bio Bookshelf
Lance Armstrong Michael Jordan
Kobe Bryant Yao Ming
Jennifer Capriati Shaquille O’Neal
Dale Earnhardt Sr. Jackie Robinson
Jeff Gordon Alex Rodriguez
Ken Griffey Jr. Babe Ruth
Mia Hamm Curt Schilling
Tony Hawk Sammy Sosa
Ichiro Tiger Woods
Derek Jeter
WINGMAN ON ICE
Does Tod deserve his new stick?
Tod Baker is sure his new hockey stick will improve his game significantly. But when his team loses to its arch rival, he realizes that good stickhandling and passing require hard work and practice more than top-notch equipment. Blaming himself for his team’s loss, Tod hides his new stick in his closet, vowing not to use it until he’s earned it by consistently good play. But will he have to forfeit the stick for another year?
Matt Christopher is the name young readers turn to when they’re looking for fast-paced, action-packed sports novels. For a listing of all his titles, please see the last pages of this book.
* Previously published as Crackerjack Halfback
** Previously published as Pressure Play