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KenitohMenara · 03-23-2020, 01:15 PM

**2564 Words**

“An Empire State! An Empire’s Crown! Hold your heads high Manhattan, the waiting is finally over! The Manhattan Rage are your Season 52 Champions!”

There are moments that shape us. Moments of triumph. Moments of defeat. Moments that move us and moments that change us. But that moment, as the final buzzer could be heard in Game 6 in Madison Square Garden. That moment defined the Manhattan Rage’s long journey to the top. A season filled with so much drama, so much passion and so much suspense that it could be easily turned into a feature length feel good movie. Finally after so many years of coming up short, disappointing crash outs and rebuilding, the Manhattan Rage stood on top of the entire SHL world. As the hats were passed around and the Challenge cup was handed to the team by the commissioner, for the men that received that glorious trophy, it would be a moment of validation. All the hard work, all the struggle and all the pain had finally borne fruit. Even today, as we gear up for another season, the playoff calls from the commentators are still fresh in the ears of many Manhattan Rage fans.

“What a rocket! Who's gonna stop Alex Winters now!?”

“The Rage have taken over this game! This is Carnage!”

“Veccelli just aced it!”

“Phineas Gold just absolutely speeds past the entire team!”

“The Rage now, they have to make their stand here! Winters up ice, this must be big! HE’S GOT IT! HE’S GOT IT! MANHATTAN LEADS THE WAY! THIS IS HUGE! UNBELIEVABLE!”

“Peter Larson! He doesn’t play by your rules!”

As the confetti rained down, New York almost couldn’t believe their eyes. They had a champion once again. Madison Square Garden, the world's most famous arena, had a championship winning team for the first time it what felt like forever. For GM Jakub Aittokallio, the hall of fame goalie who won the cup three times with the Edmonton Blizzard, this cup was something truly special:

“It was fantastic. I've held it many times before, and there's just nothing like it. It's almost like holding your newborn for the first time, you just can't believe they're there in your arms. But really, the best feeling was watching my son, our team, everyone getting their first chance to raise the Cup. It was incredible and I am so proud of all the work that went into this. I kind of had a flashback to my time in Edmonton. It was a truly special team, a very strong team up and down the line-up. I had an immediate connection, this brotherhood is what was there and what will ultimately bring us this feeling again.”

Truly a special moment between father Jakub and son Jax Aittokallio, to be one of the only father-son duos that won a cup with the same team. Jakub admitted to us in private that he flicked away a few tears as he watched his son skate with the cup. As a man who has watched Jax skate ever since he was three years old, it's a moment that is too precious for any words this reporter can write.

That feeling of triumph was not the only feeling on that Rage team. Assistant GM Arnost Holub, who has been trying to get a cup for nearly a decade, felt a moment of validation after the final buzzer sounded.

“It felt great you know, after 8 hard seasons trying to get into the cup finals to win it on your first one, it's pretty special. And of course beating a team that you were on was a special feeling as well. There was a lot of emotion on the ice, as there was a lot of us that finally got to lift the cup. Im proud of what this team accomplished.”

Before becoming assistant GM of the Rage, Arnost was a player for the San Francisco Pride. A possible bittersweet moment for him considering he could never win it with the Pride but over the last 4 seasons with the Rage, he has made New York his home and has been one of the hardest workers in getting the cup back to New York.

Head Coach Sebastian Frost tried to maintain a professional demeanour when asked about when he lifted the cup for the first time but even for a man as straight faced as him, he couldn’t stop himself from letting his emotions show:

“You know, I got the Cup from my good friend and teammate David Vent and the first time you touch that silver chalice is something else. Any kind of aches and pains just vanish and you’re on cloud nine. Easily one of the best moments of my life, along with the birth of my son, and it was truly amazing to get to share it with some incredible teammates and people. when you’re standing there watching your teammates lift it, it’s easy to think about the times when you’ve fallen short or the times when they’ve battled through that adversity to get to this point. It just kinda puts into perspective all the work that’s gone into getting to that point.”

Defenceman Barrett McCarthy had been waiting for an opportunity like this since he won his first Four Star trophy with the Vancouver Whalers. He almost couldn’t believe it as he was handed the cup but after so many years of trying, a moment of relief washed over him when he won it.

“It was such a relief. We had gotten so close to the finals so many times and to finally reach that point, and feel like we were in a dominant spot going into it with a lot of momentum, seeing, winning, touching the cup was just such a weight off my shoulders personally. I had a flashback to my rookie season in the SMJHL, Season 43, I was a brand new Dman for the Vancouver Whalers, and at the end of that season we lifted the Four Star Cup so, having a 9 season gap wasn't ideal.”

It is one thing to say that you could do what professional players do, as often fans do when their teams are losing but when you are in a situation like this, when you know the cup is right there and all you need to do is push just that much harder to grab it, the stress can be overwhelming. Alex Winters, the man who scored the cup winning goal, broke down exactly what he felt as the third period came.

“Third period was the tensest I’ve ever played hockey in my life. Tie game at home, you know the Cup is in the building, you just don’t want to be the guy who makes the mistake that costs the game for your team. Obviously the later it got in the period, you grip the stick a little tighter, we could feel the desperation coming from the other side. When I scored, I don’t remember anything until after San Francisco’s time-out. Vent had hit me with a perfect pass and that’s about the last thing I remember from that, guess I’ll have to go back and watch it sometime. ‘laughs’ After the timeout though, I was on the bench until... about 45 seconds left? Then it was all defense for us. Won the faceoff which was huge, got it down the ice and once Luke scored, it really hits you that it’s actually gonna happen. When the game actually ended, I was pretty sure my eardrums burst, the building exploded and that was the fastest I’ve ever gone over the boards to get down to Lars and the team.”

Anyone who was there in Madison Square would agree with that sentiment. It felt like the roof was going to come off the building. A moment in time that new york would treasure forever. But the moments leading up to it, as GM Aittokallio and Assist GM Holub can attest, were some of the most stressful anybody associated with the organisation had ever felt:

“Man this last minute is taking a long time. When you get into it, those final moments tick down so slowly. It is incredibly nerve-wracking and anxiety building. It's like the feeling of a rollercoaster, as you go over onto the drop you have that momentary pause where the world stands still and you can see everything so clearly. It's truly incredible, but it really has you a bit uneasy.” GM Aittokallio.

“To get the lead, we were both tied, and we were trying to get the lead, and luckily Winters was able to bury the puck.” - Assist GM Holub

“Just keep it together. It had been a back and forth game, and going into that 3rd period tied 4-4 I knew I had to bunker down and start playing fundamental hockey. We were letting too many chances happen and if we could shut that down I knew we could come away with the final win of the season.” Defenceman Barrett McCarthy

An offseason full of celebrations began. The Rage were thrown a massive parade right down Broadway and huge crowds of new yorkers lined the street to greet their players. They became giant stars in the media but in their hometown, they were practically worshipped like gods. It was a truly wonderful time for New York, the challenge cup was home at last… now though as we approach the 53rd season, the question now becomes… Now what do they do? Now what is left for the Manhattan Rage to do? Finally validated after all these years and their names on the chalice forever, what’s next? Everyone asked gave the same answer:

“Win another one.”

To win even just one cup is difficult, to win two is an even taller order. To win 2 back to back is almost impossible in the salary cap era of sports. There is also the problems regarding possible regression of players and father times unrelenting grip on other players, but those interviewed felt like the Rage would tackle these issues head on and face the Season 53 with a bang. Can they go back to back?

“I definitely think so. I think we have a team that is comparable to the Edmonton teams I played on who won three Cups in four seasons. We have the strengths to our team, and we'll continue reloading for the future as well. We have players like Phineas Gold and Luca Vecceli who are getting the taste of it now and are going to five, six, seven seasons down the line be the guys who get us there again and make us constantly competitive.” - GM Aittokallio

“Keep on keeping on really. I think our team has a strong chance to repeat for the cup, we have one of the top goalies in the league, some of the best forwards and a stellar defensive core. If it all meshes the way we did last postseason, we'll absolutely put up a fight.” - Defenceman, Barret McCarthy

“Yeah I think so, Larson was playing out of his mind, so offensivly I feel like we need to contirbute more in those tight games, but yeah we can. A lot of the younger guys are really taking their next step, so as long as us old guys dont lose a step then we will be back.” - Assist GM Holub

“We’ve had a bit of a target on our back for a while, but this really put it over the top. We know we have one of the best rosters in the league, so our goal is always to win the Cup. We’re going to continue to get better, our young guys like Vesy [Luca Veccelli] and Goldy [Phineas Gold] are going to keep working hard and I think we have an absolutely great chance of winning again.” - Head Coach Sebastian Frost

Even putting the enormous task of winning another cup the year after you win one aside, some fans in New York and even some in the media feel like this is the start of something so much bigger. In hushed whispers they mention one word. An almost mythical word in the realm of sports that very few teams can seriously claim as being applicable to them. A word with so much connotation that many believe that we will never see a sports team earn it again.

Dynasty.

Now obviously, thinking about it objectively it sounds absolutely ludicrous to actually think the Manhattan Rage will win three more championships in a row (The Hall of Fame officially recognises any team with four championships in a row as a dynasty) but then again, could it possibly happen? It’s something that seems so out there and so impossible but at the same time, considering how hard the Manhattan Rage fought to get this last title and how good their players are becoming… could they do it?

“I sure hope it is, but I'm not counting my chickens. New England is a tough team, Buffalo is always incredibly dangerous, Chicago gives me nightmares sometimes. There are teams out there I just don't know how someone stops them, but that's why we have an incredible coaching staff who gives it their all and is the reason we got to where we have. I trust they can figure this out and get us to the promised land again.” - GM Aittokallio

There is a lot of optimism in the locker room, but there is healthy skepticism as well.

“I think so, you know our Coach and GM told us about the plan to win the cup many seasons ago, and I feel like this was the timeline we are suppose to be on, so hopefully the fans will see us making more deep playoff runs” - Assist GM Holub

But then again, barely anyone thought that Season 52 would be Manhattan’s moment.

“I think so. We have players just reaching their prime now. It's hard to not see the Manhattan Rage as a dominant force for the next several seasons.” - Defenceman Barrett McCarthy

Hockey has always been a sport of moments. We always hope that we will see those moments that change the way we think of sports and our teams. Those moments where we are just thankful to be alive and witness it. Manhattan has had plenty of moments like that over the years, not the least of which the moments from last year that fans still chant about. All throughout the offseason, you could still hear chants of ‘Rise Against’ when they were showing replays of games. This city longed for a champion for so long and now that they have had a taste of that glory, they want more of it. They believe the team can go all the way again, a few pundits outside the city believe they can do it again. Even some of the team members and staff feel this team can do it again. Could it be another miracle moment in New York for Season 53?

Wouldn’t put it past the Rage, especially with Head Coach Frost’s final words on the matter.

“I think we have a great opportunity to keep as a top team in the SHL. Why not us, you know? Top roster, top staff, we’ve got a chance to be great and really dominate for the foreseeable future.”

***luke*** · 03-23-2020, 01:18 PM

***Inf1d3l*** · 03-23-2020, 01:19 PM

#RageAgainst

ImShiny · 03-23-2020, 01:24 PM

Fucking Nice

Z0REM · 03-23-2020, 01:54 PM

Love it

Credit to Vulfzilla for the awesome render pic

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