Caley’s Goal

By Judy Selk Seal

Eleven-year-old Caley loves hockey—but not goaltending. While enduring boring drill after boring drill, she just wants a chance to play anywhere on the ice but inside a stupid net.

Despite her protests, Caley’s coach seems stuck on her being the goalie. While standing inside the net during each practice and game, Caley feels uninterested, depressed, and grumpy. Although she knows her professional hockey player dad is proud of her role as a girl goalie, what would he think if he knew she secretly hated it? As Caley embarks on a journey of self-discovery, she learns what it means to be part of a team, where her place is in a family of hockey players, and more importantly, who she is both on and off the ice.

In this young adult tale, a hockey player seemingly destined to be a boring goalie learns valuable lessons about teamwork, grit, and the value of never quitting, no matter what.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: May 10, 2019
• ISBN: 9781728310398

Judy Selk Seal

Judy Selk Seal grew up next to an ice rink in a small Midwestern town where she watched the city league men’s hockey team play while perched on top of snowbanks. When her daughter married a member of the University of Wisconsin hockey team, Judy officially entered the world of professional athletes. Now retired, Judy enjoys following her grandchildren as they make their way in the world of hockey.

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© 2019 Judy Selk Seal. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse 06/25/2019

ISBN: 978-1-7283-1040-4 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-7283-1038-1 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-7283-1039-8 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2019906149

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

CONTENTS

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

For

my grandchildren,

always an inspiration to me.

For Cammi Granato, the captain of the women’s hockey team

that won gold medals in the Nagano, Japan, and Salt Lake City Olympics—

and for Caley’s mother and all mothers who drive through snowstorms so their daughters can play hockey.

CHAPTER 1

My head keeps going up and down, back and forth, like a bobblehead doll. Clink, thunk, swish—the pucks keep coming across the ice. I’m stopping some; others never even reach the net. And then there are those that shoot right past me.

All over the ice, kids are practicing. Some skate around cones. Others skate backward and run into everyone. The Rangers, my teammates, are lined up with piles of pucks they keep shooting at me. And I’m stuck in this stupid net.

In Detroit it seems nearly everyone plays hockey. There are after-school recreational leagues, like our Beginners Eleven and Under League, all over town. In our family, both of my brothers are in a league, and our dad plays for the Detroit Redwings. So here I am playing hockey too. I love it—but not goaltending.

Finally, a whistle blows. The pucks stop. Hockey practice is over.

Good job, Caley, says Coach. You’re becoming a good goaltender.

Thanks, I think. Do I really want to be a good goaltender?

Now, listen up, girls. Remember we have a game tomorrow night at six o’clock. Be there in your gear and on the ice. Everyone, remember to bring all of your equipment—no leaving some of it at home. Caley will be our goaltender for the night.

I roll my eyes and sigh, thinking, Why am I always the goalie? We’re supposed to change positions. I hate being the goalie all the time.

That was a fun drill, says Alex, her dark eyes flashing. We got a lot of chances to hit the puck into the net. With a grin, she gives her long black hair a toss and does her famous thumbs-up as we skate off the rink in our old practice jerseys.

Alex gives that thumbs-up everywhere for everything to everybody. We tease her at school. It gets lots of attention, and I guess that’s why she does it.

She adds, That drill was more fun than skating backward and forward around those yellow cone things the coach puts on the ice for practice. Remember the awful drills we did last year?

We head for the locker room, trying to avoid those kids skating backward, who haven’t given up. The room smells like sweat and wet coats. It’s cold and ugly. Benches are nailed to every wall; gear is thrown everywhere. We get pushed around in a steady stream of kids coming and going.

Suddenly, the smallest girl on the team is standing in front of me. She isn’t much more than half the size of Madison, the oldest and biggest girl on the team. She has long, curly brown hair, a big helmet, and a loud voice.

Ha! the voice shouts. "You’re going to be the goaltender again. I’m always a forward. I score the most goals. The team can’t get along without me.