Higher Than Hope

"Welcome to the first skirmish in the Battle of Alberta", said Taylor as the Oilers prepared to board their bus to Calgary.

"Da, I've heard about it. I hope the Flames fans are not going to be too rough", said Nail.

"Nah, it's not that bad, it's a Canadian thing", laughed Jordan.

"Yeah, he's right. But we play the Flames a lot, we're both in the same division. It's even better when they us at our place, it's an awesome feeling to have the fans behind you like that", agreed Taylor.

Nail just shrugged as he followed his teammates onto the bus, finding an empty seat in the back. It's not her fault or Ryan's fault, it's her father that's the problem, he thought angrily.

He was still deep in thought when their goalie Nikolai Khabibulin sat next to him, taking a book out of his bag and starting to read. His straight dark blond hair was starting to thin on top and graying at the temples, his wire-framed glasses and long nose giving him the air of a scholar rather than any sort of professional athlete. Nail just shrugged and took out his Ipod, turning it to a playlist of Russian techno as he sat back and watched his teammates get on the bus. The fast, cheerful music seemed to perk him up and he felt a bit better, glancing out the window and seeing the equipment being loaded onto the bus.

Besides, after this game we are going to Sweden, Finland and Moscow. I can't let it get to me, he mused.

The bus pulled away from the curb and started on its way south to Calgary, the massive cattle town home to their arch-rivals the Calgary Flames. The flat oil-rich plains of the north around the capital gradually increased in elevation and then morphed into foothills, hinting at how they would later become the Rockies. Here and there were the enormous wheat fields and cattle ranches that provided much of the province's wealth, oceans of golden wheat and corn and innumerable head of cattle that easily numbered in the thousands as they placidly watched cars and buses whizzing past on the highway with placid brown eyes.

The oil metropolis of Calgary had a magnificent setting in the Rockies, the high foothills to the west and the flat plains to the east. The city itself exuded an air of prosperity and forwardness that was exemplified by the gleaming glass and steel skyscrapers, BMW's and Mercedes' and massive tricked-out pickup trucks and luxury stores that catered to the wives and girlfriends of wealthy cattle ranchers and oilmen.

Nail couldn't help but gape at the city, the vibrancy of Calgary contrasting to Edmonton. "This is like Moscow", he murmured.

Nikolai looked up from his book with an annoyed look on his face, pushing up the glasses that had fallen down his nose. "Calgary is certainly not like Moscow, New York is like Moscow", he sniffed.

"Don't mind him, he's an old dude with a stick up his ass", laughed Jordan as the older Russian man gave him a dirty look.

Nail bit his lip to keep from laughing as the bus came to a stop outside the Calgary Hilton. "You better get used to it, dude. No more Motel 6 or Econo Lodge", teased Jordan.

"Jordan, you were the same way last year", chided Magnus as Jordan blushed guiltily.

Nail laughed at his teammate's red face, knowing the big Swede mean no harm. "Dude, you are so going to pay for that", he mumbled.

"Och jag är större och starkare än du, min kanadensiska vän", retorted Magnus, an amused look in his brown eyes.

"You and I are going to be roommates on this whole trip, Nail. The coaches thought it would be a good idea to have a Russian and a Swede room together", said Magnus dryly.

"That is all right, Ryan and I already live together and that could be a bit much. Besides, you are actually part-Finnish", he teased.

"Ja, I know. Anyways, Calgary is a wonderful city. It's like Dallas, Texas. You'll see that when we play the Stars. I do hope you like country music, it's very popular here", said Magnus as he got the key from the front desk.

"I look forward to that then. But what else is there to do in Calgary?", he asked.

Magnus led him inside the elevator and pressed the button for the tenth floor. "All sorts of country bars, but a lot of them are full of Flames fans. The big one is Cowboys, that place is awesome. It's got dancing, pool, a big bar, mechanical bulls and a lot of girls", he said with a chuckle.

They entered the room and Magnus took off his suit jacket and place it on a hanger along with his dress shirt, opening his suitcase and taking out a plain white t-shirt and jeans. "Good idea, I hate wearing these things", said Nail as he shed his own suit jacket.

Nail found the remote and turned on the TV, his eyes going wide when he saw the multitude of channels on the TV, far more than even Ryan had at the condo. "I know, the hotel has satellite and all the cable channels. The porn and the good movies you pay for, though", Magnus said.

He flipped through the channels and smiled in delight when he came across a Russian channel showing a crime show, a tough shaven-headed cop beating up a bad guy with ominous music in the background. "This is one of my favorite shows, Spets. The cop is a very tough, very good man, he gets the bad guys", he said.

Magnus frowned when he cop broke the bad guy's nose, the violence more realistic than North American TV shows. "It looks really heavy there, Nail. What else is there?", he asked.

"Wait until the commercial, my Finnish comrade. The cop is beating the bad guy because he is a pimp for little girls, he very evil", said Nail with disgust as the cop proceeded to kick the prone bad guy.

Magnus sighed with relief when there was a commercial break, an ad featuring a sexy blond in a bikini for a car dealership in suburban Moscow. "Let's see if there's any Swedish or Finnish channels", said Magnus.

Magnus flipped through the channels until he found MTV Sweden, showing a Swedish House Mafia video to his delight. "I like this very much", chuckled Nail.