For those S64 players who are looking at which teams that you may want to be drafted by in the coming weeks, come on inside the Tampa Bay Barracuda locker room for a look inside. These highlights are the perceptions of one S63 SHL draftee who has had just over a half of an SHL season to get to know the players and staff. Yet this is enough time to get to know the atmosphere created by a group of people.

The Tampa Bay Barracuda locker room is a comfortably active locker room, but not overwhelmingly so. The locker room is divided into several sections like most locker rooms around the SHL. The “General” section serves as the de facto locker room most of the time. This is a place for general clowning around, but it can also serve as the bench during SIMs. I hang around the TBB locker room more than I should for a pissant prospect, but I enjoy the group and keep an eye on how their games are going even though I’m not yet playing with them. My favorite touch in the general section is the gifs that every player has assigned to their name. Even if it gets repetitive, I like seeing the various creative gifs that people have come up with to represent themselves. It brings both comedy and comradery to the table. None of us should take ourselves too seriously.

The primary locker room is generally reserved for discussions of all things SHL related outside of a few specialty areas. There are other separate rooms for everything from build help, to fantasy to job listings and other announcements. In addition to those rooms, there is the typical space to check on stats and fantasy scoring.

After all of this, among the miscellaneous rooms for music, pets and whatever side interests there may be, is the room that is unique in my SHL experience. That room is labeled “politik”. It is in this room that I have found myself on a team of thinkers and seekers. This isn't a group of delicate snowflakes who trigger at the slightest mention of something that they either don’t agree with or do not understand. If they encounter something sensitive, they pause and ask for clarification. This is a group of free-thinking people exchanging ideas and learning something about the world they are in from each other. This is no Thunderdome either. This is a place where free thinkers gather to exchange ideas respectfully. In these discussions, my colleagues and future teammates whow the kind of characteristics that make me proud to be one of their members.

When it comes to the hockey side, the Barracuda are a competitive team that is loaded with good passers that may be in need of some finishers to sprinkle into the forward ranks. If you are one of those with a talent for finishing, this team and this multifaceted locker room may be for you.