Chapter 13 #2
But then two big security guards run past me and try to . . .
Yup, they’re idiots.
Austin steps forward, as if he’s getting ready to intervene, and I feel such deep appreciation for him in that moment. It’s sad that there’s no time to say anything. The security guards try to talk Ruko down, but he stares right at them while he breaks the fifth frame.
Two more men show up, and then one in a suit who looks like he thinks he has some authority.
“Mr. Jankowski, you’re breaking private property. Stop before we call the police.”
That . . . is the wrong thing to say.
Ruko whirls on him and points right at his face.
“You’re a fucking joke of a GM, Fred.” He says his name with derision.
“And all those pictures have Paul’s or my face on them, and we’ve decided we’re done with this sorry excuse for a team.
You’ve turned our legacy into a disgrace, and you don’t get to use us anymore.
You won’t like the consequences if you try. ”
He takes one step closer and looms over the . . . the GM. That’s the general manager, right? Well, whoever Fred is, he looks like he’s about to piss himself.
Good.
“Your actions have led to my son getting hurt.”
“Hockey is a contact sport—” he interrupts Ruko, which is very very stupid.
“He didn’t get hurt because of hockey!” Ruko screams. “He got hurt because you’ve allowed this place to be full of insecure little bitch boys who are led by the stupidest head coach this league has ever seen.
You’re not going to call the police. You’re going to make sure every picture with my face on it is down by tomorrow, and we’ll see what you’re left with after that. ”
“Dad.” Lex’s voice sounds sad, resigned, and when I turn to see him standing behind him, holding a bloody gauze to his nostrils, I can practically see his heart breaking in two for his father.
Stupid selfless sports boy, I think with all the love I have for him.
“Let’s get out of here,” Ruko rumbles and stalks back, while the only thing I can think of is . . . thank God Lex is getting out of here.
Finally.
One Hour Later
SOMETHING IS WRONG IN (WITH?) LA:
Is Ruko “the Hulk” Jankowski trying to tell us something?
By The Athlete
If he is, like I’m thinking, then he’s not exactly being subtle.
For those (few) of you who aren’t yet aware, Ruko “the Hulk” Jankowski is half of the “Hulk-Smash” pair, the most successful duo the NHL has ever seen. His tight friendship with Paul Wayne gave hockey fans a thrill for fifteen years—and some of the best highlights to date.
Four decades ago, they began their campaign to make the LA Empire a true dynasty, and even after they retired (first Hulk at thirty-four then Wayne at thirty-six) they stayed proud ambassadors of the franchise.
So much so that when Ruko’s oldest son, Ivan Jankowski, was the first pick of the draft and went to Portland, Hulk cried real tears of sorrow.
He was disappointed again two years later, when Ivan was traded to the Las Vegas Pirates (one of many brilliant moves the then brand new owner of the team Gab Darnell made upon acquisition).
Hulk has never once worn Las Vegas merch.
Whenever the Pirates faced the Empire in the seasons since, he wore a sweater with his son’s number, but an Empire-branded one.
To say that he was overjoyed when his second and youngest son Alexei was drafted by LA, would be a massive understatement—his huge smile is a meme that’s still used daily on all social media platforms even four years after that night, and I’m a regular user of it, but it feels inappropriate and borderline disrespectful to use it for this article.
Ivan Jankowski won the Heart Memorial Trophy weeks after Alexei was drafted first overall by LA and very openly joked during his acceptance speech about how his father would definitely never cheer for him.
If it were anyone else, a retired legend’s game-day attire would never be considered newsworthy, but when Ruko stepped into the suite he’s had for decades in the Empire Arena for tonight’s game against Montreal and he was wearing the sweater from Alexei’s junior team (with Alexei’s #15 on display to show who he still supports), I knew that I wouldn’t be the only one to take notice.
And sure enough, not even five minutes into the first period, fans were speaking about it on social media.
“The Em*ire will never recover from fumbling the bag this bad,” one smart fan pointed out on Threads, and millions have followed.
“We’ll probably never know what’s been happening behind the scenes, but this is more than a simple wardrobe choice.”
“I love you, Ruko. You messy bitch.”
“No, you don’t understand. This man went to WAR for the Empire. He put his body on the line to give them FOUR cups. This is a Declaration of Independence.”
“More like a declaration of war.”
I was already in agreement with most comments, but very aware that we don’t have anything even close to the full story, and then the third period started.
Before we get into the biggest story of the night, let’s recap a little.
In the past month, there has been a definite shift in the way the Empire has played, specifically how Alexei Jankowski hasn’t really been playing with his teammates.
He’s been noticeably separate from them on the ice and on the bench the last few weeks.
First, in mid-December he was scratched from a game for illness, but nothing appeared amiss when he made the trip to Tampa with the team two days later.
There was a considerable change in how he played with his linemates, not passing whenever he had possession and never once receiving a pass.
The same happened against Carolina, and then against Washington, he only played the first period then didn’t come out of the locker room for the rest of the game.
Tonight’s game against the Montreal Reapers has shifted the focus from Alexei’s behavior to his linemates, though.
After rewinding the play a dozen times, I think it’s safe to say with some certainty that Girard’s shove against Alexei (yes, his own teammate) that resulted in Jankowski plowing into Gibson, the Montreal goalie, was not in fact an accident, or the result of a loss of balance.
Jankowski paid for the collision the way all players do when the goalie is put in danger—swiftly and viciously—and no one from the LA bench stepped in.
After less than fifteen seconds, the fight—that was never really a fight—ended. Confusion was visible on Montreal’s player’s faces when Jankowski was left to defend himself. I’d even go as far as to suggest they might’ve felt bad for him.
A lot can be said about high expectations, about nepo babies, about talented young men being forced to carry the weight of a legendary name on their backs, but I think in this instance, it’s all rather simple:
The Empire didn’t have Jankowski’s back, and from his father’s actions before the puck even dropped, I assume this isn’t an isolated incident even if it’s the first one the general public has witnessed.
We’re already three months into the season, and with the limited information we have now, it’s hard not to encourage the Jankwoskis to say good riddance.
So maybe I’ll refrain?
For now.