I liked giving that to him.
I liked watching him take it seriously.
I liked that he wanted to get it right because it came from me.
That realization had teeth.
On the ice, he was careful for the first five minutes.
Too careful.
He explained the progression to Lowell and Milo with the sheet folded in his glove, though he never looked at it. He kept his voice lower than usual, stripped of performance.
“Lowell, don’t rush the first touch. If you don’t have the angle, I’m still there. Milo, if you curl before he’s secure, I’m going to make you do it again.”
Milo put a hand over his heart. “From anyone else, that would feel aggressive.”
Jace did not take the bait. “Then don’t curl early.”
Roman, stretching near the crease, looked over at me.
I ignored him.
The first rep fell apart because Lowell rushed and Milo anticipated the wrong lane. Jace blew it dead before I did.
“Again,” he called.
Milo looked toward me on instinct.
I gave him nothing.
Jace skated closer to Lowell, not crowding him. “You’re trying to make the play before you own the puck. Get your hip inside first. I’ll stay available.”
Lowell nodded, absorbing it.
They ran it again. Better.
Third rep, clean.
Jace’s head turned toward me before he could stop himself.
I did not nod. I did not say anything.
I held his gaze for half a second, then looked back at the group.
His next rep was the sharpest one all morning.
That was when the problem became impossible to deny.
He was not performing for the team. He was not showing off because I had given him a little authority. He was seeking the next sign, the next confirmation, and using it like fuel. Every time I withheld, he tightened. Every time I let him keep the responsibility, he rose to it.
I had coached talented men before. I had coached difficult men, proud men, insecure men, reckless men. I knew the satisfaction of finding the right lever in a player and using it to make him better.
This was not only that.
By the time the optional skate ended, Lowell had stopped looking apologetic after every touch. Milo complained less, which for him was nearly reverent. Jace stayed with them through the final rep, corrected one spacing issue, and only then skated off.
He did not look triumphant.
