Ask and Ye Shall Receive

Be persistent. Ask a lot of questions. Make sure people know you are interested.

I've heard these recommendations from everyone in the print and broadcast media that I've worked with.

If you don't ask, you won't know. Be at the right place at the right time. Stand on your head and crochet a sweater while whistling the Senegalese national anthem (OK, not really, but sometimes that's what I feel is expected of me).

Throughout life, I've always felt like asking for more meant I was greedy. I have a Barbie - why would I want more? There are girls who don't have Barbies.

Adjusting my attitude to this "ask or you'll never get what you want" system has been difficult.

Recently, I asked one of my editors, now that baseball season is coming to an end, if he had time to meet in person and if he needed anyone to cover hockey. Two separate questions, but they ended up with one result.

Last Monday, I went to my very first New York Rangers game at Madison Square Garden to meet with my editor. Sometimes I don't believe these things happen to me.

I picked up my press credential in the employee entrance and got in the elevator. We waited for a man in a very nice suit and a small boy in a Rangers jersey to accompany us.

Now, I've watched a LOT of NHL hockey over the past decade or so, especially my favorite team the Colorado Avalanche. And there are some faces you never forget, like '97-'98 Hobey Baker Award winner, '98-'99 Calder Memorial Trophy winner, 2001 Stanley Cup Champion, two-time Olympian, Trumbull, Conn. Little League World Series winning pitcher, former Avalanche/Flames/Sabre, current Ranger Chris Drury.

Chris Drury got in the elevator right in front of me. It took every ounce of my intestinal fortitude not to cry and scream and generally make a scene. Chris Drury is everything that is right with hockey. He's Mr. Clutch (the NHL's version of A.J. Graves, if you will). And he's in the elevator with me.


What a great way to start the evening.

Now, if you've ever been to a hockey game at Madison Square Garden, you realize that it's hockey the way God intended it. There are no obstructed views, and in every seat you feel like you're sitting on top of the ice. I felt privileged to be there to see that game.

I met the other writers along press row, including a wonderful man who does a monthly Rangers magazine and a radio locker room vet. They were intrigued by my odyssey from Wisconsin to Indiana to Madison Square Garden - I do sound like my story is straight out of a Journey song.

As the game goes on, my editor talk about the business and how it took him two years of writing before earning a paycheck (not what I wanted to hear, but still encouragement that I'm not doing everything wrong). He tells me he's "The Guy At the Garden" for Rangers games, and calls in scores updates to the all-powerful four-letter channel. He asks me if I could fill in for him for a few games in the next couple of weeks after his wife gives birth.

So, another semi-paid job with the worldwide leader is in my future. Another example of how it is more likely to work your way in through the back door than waltzing through the front door in this business.

My editor also asks me to write a story for the evening. I keep notes, and toss out a few ideas. We try to come up with a story on the first line playing together for the first time, but it eventually got dismissed.

The Rangers won, beating the Senators in their home pre-season opener. Ho-hum. But when the reporters RAN down to the Rangers locker room at the end of the game, I ended up talking with goalie and three time Vezina Trophy finalist Henrick Lundqvist. Lundqvist talked my ear off. I asked him three questions and we talked for 15 minutes, one on one.

I had my story.

Writing it came naturally. I didn't have to consult the score chart and line-ups the way I usually do for baseball. It just felt right, so I sent it in.

I guess it turned out alright, and I held my composure for being in a professional locker room for the first time, because I may be writing on the New Jersey Devils this season.
Covering the Devils comes with more caveats than my baseball assignment (taking the train to Newark, hauling my laptop along), but it also offers a whole new world of contacts and experience.

I had been to two NHL games as a fan before, both in Chicago at the United Center. I asked to write about hockey, and I ended up in the locker room at my third pro game, and maybe two new jobs. Ask and ye shall receive.