Kadinger's Sober Holidays

Karsten Kadinger's first Christmas away from home was a sober one. In every sense of the word. Aside from being too young to legally drink in the United States, and being legally-conscious enough to care, he didn't spend much time out with his team. He certainly attended the team party and tried to be friendly, buying a few gifts the team at large -- food and party games mostly, with a couple individual gifts for his line-mates. But when things started to get a little more lively, Kadinger slipped out to return to his home to video call with his family back home in Germany.

Anyone that's spent the holidays in Germany knows that it's just a very different feeling than holidays in the United States. It's as commercial as any, but there are more Christmas markets, more wood-crafted decorations and community festivals. Amidst a backdrop of violent shopping is a surprisingly inviting holiday season -- one that, for a young player still adjusting to life overseas, really can't be replicated in Denver. After speaking to his family, Kadinger spent the rest of the night opening up the gifts that were sent from home, before putting on a couple classic Christmas movies.

It may sound depressing, but for Kadinger, the night alone was far more inviting than spending the next morning hideously hungover after a night of heavy drinking. The day after, he was back on the ice, practicing and running drills in an effort to improve his game further. With the Draft rapidly approaching, not even the holidays can be seen as an invitation to take too much time off. Kadinger did take the time to meet up with Fredrich Koenig, his former team-mate from the DNL, to give him a present of his own. He again attended the team's New Years Eve party, but after that -- it was back to business again.