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  • bhurst99
    All Star
    • Aug 2003
    • 9166

    #1

    The Career of Bryan Hurst (NHL 09: Be A Pro)

    I'm not a religious person, but last night I prayed.

    I got down on my hands and knees and I broke down crying and prayed.

    If my friends saw me, the supposedly tough Bryan Hurst, down there on the carpet praying I don't know what they would have said.

    But I woke up at 3 am in a cold sweat. I was thinking, "What am I going to do after tomorrow. This is all I have ever known."

    So I got down and prayed that tomorrow it won't come to an end.

    Dad says there's more to life than hockey. I know he's right, but it's all I know.
    Tomorrow's the NHL entry draft and this is my last chance to get drafted. But nobody drafts 19-year old players. Who is going to draft a centre who scored 20 goals and 65 assists for the worst team in the Ontario Hockey League, the Sudbury Wolves, as an over-age player?

    No one that's who.

    I'm never going to be a doctor or a lawyer or any profession like that. I've never been a good student. I barely passed high school.

    Getting up at 5 am in the morning to be at the rink for 6 am practise, eight-hour bus trips across Ontario and locker rooms so dirty you wouldn't allow your pet in them -- that's all I've ever known.

    And I love it.

    But is it over?

    I can't go back to junior. My eligibility is up. Either I get drafted and hope to make it with an American Hockey League team or I'm toast.

    I heard Canadian Tire is hiring maybe I can get a job there. I think it pays $12.50 an hour. That's not bad for a 19-year old.

    A scout told me there's always a chance I could get taken in a late round based on what I did two seasons ago. All I need is a chance. My knee felt a lot better last season. It felt perfect.

    I hate thinking about my stupid right knee. I keep thinking, "What if I had gotten hit, what if I hadn't twisted the wrong way? What if I hadn't blown my ACL?"

    That hit cost me nearly 11 months of playing hockey. I was off to a great start: 13 goals and 30 assists in 29 games. I was going to get drafted in the third or fourth round no doubt about it.

    Everyone wants to draft an 18-year old playmaker with that kind of scoring ability. But no one wants a broken 18-year old with a bad knee. No one drafted me in July 2007.

    Last year was difficult after all the rehabilitation. You can't expect to miss that much time on the ice and put up great numbers. I mean 85 points isn't terrible. But when you're playing against teenagers 16-to-18 years old you need to score 100 points. You need to dominate and I didn't dominate.

    Is my hockey dream over before it barely had a chance to begin?

    I'm not even going to watch the draft. They don't telecast the last few rounds anyway. Maybe I'll take a peak at the draft web site.

    Until then, I might just pray a little bit more.

    <a href="http://s262.photobucket.com/albums/ii94/bhurst99_bucket/?action=view&current=NHLBeaProProfile.gif" target="_blank"><img src="http://i262.photobucket.com/albums/ii94/bhurst99_bucket/NHLBeaProProfile.gif" border="0" alt="Photobucket Image Hosting"></a>
    Last edited by bhurst99; 04-12-2014, 12:35 PM.
    Career of Bryan Hurst: Year Six(MLB - PS4)
    Video Diary of FIFA Manager Bhurst99 (FIFA - PC)
    Career of Bryan Hurst: Year Two (NHL: Be A Pro - X360)
    Toronto FC: Second Season (FIFA - PC)
    F1 Challenge Video Diary (PC)
  • AnOldGoat
    Banned
    • Jan 2008
    • 199

    #2
    Re: The Career of Bryan Hurst (NHL 09: Be A Pro)

    Very interesting, nice story. Hopefully he can make it.

    Comment

    • GoldenJet
      MVP
      • Jul 2008
      • 4618

      #3
      Re: The Career of Bryan Hurst (NHL 09: Be A Pro)

      This really rocks, Jason Skyland is coming next month so, be pumped for this until that comes along, and Skyland got drafted 2nd overall shhhh. So lets see if Bryan can get drafted 3rd
      Regrets Aren't Something You Did, It's Something You Didn't Do

      1000 posts achieved on December 21st,2008 at 2:26 p.m in the "birth of the Mighty Blazers" thread.

      Comment

      • SabresKings3623
        Pro
        • Jul 2008
        • 737

        #4
        Re: The Career of Bryan Hurst (NHL 09: Be A Pro)

        Cool Bhurst, i'll follow this, and I'll post one of my BAP dynasties a bit later on. Great storyline so far.

        Comment

        • bhurst99
          All Star
          • Aug 2003
          • 9166

          #5
          Re: The Career of Bryan Hurst (NHL 09: Be A Pro)

          June 20, 2008

          I've got a chance.

          It's the chance based on a phone call from a fool. But it's better than nothing.

          I got a call on my cell from Pete Satt today. Satt is a hockey agent, one of those guys who hangs around midget tournaments all across Canada, pumping up egos, hoping to land a client who will be the next Big Thing.

          Like most agents he's mostly all bluster -- promising things he couldn't possibly deliver. I've known him since I met him at a tournament in Oshawa when I was 15. He wears these impossibly loud suit jackets with pants that never match, like he's a reject from a 1970's action flick.

          He's got a handful of clients who are NHL players. No one special but that's not surprising. It's a crowded, ruthless field. I've seen junior players go through three agents in a season and remember they haven't even signed a contract yet.

          I mean some players have had visits at home from Bobby Orr, who is an agent now. Who are you going to listen to: Some guy who has gone to law school or a Hall of Fame legend? It's no contest. Parents fall to their knees when Orr visits.

          I'll give Satt credit for a couple of things. He works tirelessly. He is always on the phone. He's always talking; he knows everyone in hockey.

          There was this game in Kingston two years ago when about 300 people showed up because there was a huge snowstorm. Satt was one of those people. He was sitting up high in the stands but you could hear him from the bench talking to people on his cell phone. Never stopped talking.

          The problem is he almost always mixes up his facts. He's kind of an absent-minded type. He forgets dates, player's names and even events. He's terrible remembering first names. He'll simply call a player sport or kid, simply because he can't remember. It's very strange.

          Anyway, this morning he calls me at like 8 am. He had probably talked to about 40 players like me -- hopeful late round picks -- by that time in the day.

          "Hey, Hurst, it's me Satt. I got some great news," Satt said.

          "What's up, Mr. Satt?" I asked, barely awake.

          "I've been talking to a ton of NHL guys -- I can't tell you who you understand -- but they're saying teams are afraid of drafting Russians this year because the NHL has no transfer agreement with Russia. They're scared like an a cat in a room of rocking chairs. They figure if they draft a Ruskie, they won't be able to sign him and get him out of the country."

          "What does that have to do with me," I asked

          "Don't you understand? If teams don't draft the 20 are so Russians that are usually taken in the draft, that means they'll be more chance they'll take North American kids. Isn't that great? You got a chance, kid."

          "I guess so."

          "I've heard a mid-western team might be interested in you."

          "WHAT! What team? Who told you that?"

          "I can't tell you. You know what I honestly can't remember the team. I think it might have been St. Louis or Colorado or one of those places."

          "Are you sure they said Bryan Hurst? Are you sure?"

          "I think so ... I think it was you. I think they said Hurst or Hurtz or maybe it was Hirshey. Anyway I gotta a run. Remember if you're drafted who told you first. See ya."

          "Wait-"

          But it was too late he had hung up. You didn't phone Satt back. It was useless, the phone was constantly busy.

          So I've got a chance. The Entry Draft is going to be the longest day of my life.

          Career of Bryan Hurst: Year Six(MLB - PS4)
          Video Diary of FIFA Manager Bhurst99 (FIFA - PC)
          Career of Bryan Hurst: Year Two (NHL: Be A Pro - X360)
          Toronto FC: Second Season (FIFA - PC)
          F1 Challenge Video Diary (PC)

          Comment

          • bhurst99
            All Star
            • Aug 2003
            • 9166

            #6
            Re: The Career of Bryan Hurst (NHL 09: Be A Pro)

            June 21, 2008

            I admit that I have lied to you. Forgive me because I also lied to myself.

            I said I wasn't going to watch the NHL Entry Draft but today I watched the first four rounds on television.

            It was a really bad idea. I told myself I wasn't going to get mad while I watched it and that I wasn't going to become bitter.

            But as soon as I saw the first couple of guys get drafted, walk up to the podium, shake general manager's hands and put NHL jerseys over their heads, I could feel my blood boiling.

            Even if I hadn't blown out my knee, I know I would never have been a first round pick. But I would have gone in the third or fourth round for sure last year. That would have been me up on the podium with an NHL jersey with my name on it.

            Instead, I wasn't taken at all last year and now this year is my last chance to get picked.

            It's difficult to see other players I have played against get taken by NHL teams.

            You can see them beaming from ear-to-ear when their name is announced in the arena.

            You can see their parents sitting there with them, grinning, proud of their sons.

            I'm not going to lie to you anymore: I am jealous.

            Here I sit in front of the television at home hundreds of miles away. When you hope to be a late round pick you don't go to the draft. It's painful enough here in my home. It would be unbearable in Ottawa.

            My dad walked into the room while I was watching and he must have seen I wasn't quite right.

            "Bryan, mom could use some milk and some butter. Why don't you go to the grocery store and get some things for her?"

            I don't think my dad has ever asked me to buy groceries for mom. He knew watching television was killing me.

            "You can always take your cell phone if anything happens."

            I've got to get out of this house before I explode. There's only a few rounds left.

            Career of Bryan Hurst: Year Six(MLB - PS4)
            Video Diary of FIFA Manager Bhurst99 (FIFA - PC)
            Career of Bryan Hurst: Year Two (NHL: Be A Pro - X360)
            Toronto FC: Second Season (FIFA - PC)
            F1 Challenge Video Diary (PC)

            Comment

            • highheatkingsb
              All Star
              • Jul 2005
              • 8152

              #7
              Re: The Career of Bryan Hurst (NHL 09: Be A Pro)

              Sweet stuff man, I passed on this game because I feel 2K9 offers more of an in depth franchise, but it was really hard because of this mode. I'll enjoy reading what you have in store for us.
              Highheat's O's Franchise
              http://www.operationsports.com/forum...l-attempt.html

              Comment

              • ThePebble19
                Pro
                • Jul 2003
                • 827

                #8
                Re: The Career of Bryan Hurst (NHL 09: Be A Pro)

                Keep it up...You've built a good storyline already. Interested to see where you land.

                Comment

                • highheatkingsb
                  All Star
                  • Jul 2005
                  • 8152

                  #9
                  Re: The Career of Bryan Hurst (NHL 09: Be A Pro)

                  Question?, and this may decide if I pick this game up for just this mode or not. When you create your player, is there a random entry draft to decide where you play, or do you just select the team you play for?
                  Highheat's O's Franchise
                  http://www.operationsports.com/forum...l-attempt.html

                  Comment

                  • SabresKings3623
                    Pro
                    • Jul 2008
                    • 737

                    #10
                    Re: The Career of Bryan Hurst (NHL 09: Be A Pro)

                    You pick the team you want to play for, and start out on their AHL affiliate

                    Comment

                    • highheatkingsb
                      All Star
                      • Jul 2005
                      • 8152

                      #11
                      Re: The Career of Bryan Hurst (NHL 09: Be A Pro)

                      Originally posted by SabresKings3623
                      You pick the team you want to play for, and start out on their AHL affiliate
                      Thanks man, I wish it was the other way around, or at least give us the option to have an entry draft with a bunch of random rookies.
                      Highheat's O's Franchise
                      http://www.operationsports.com/forum...l-attempt.html

                      Comment

                      • Madman55
                        Dibs!
                        • Apr 2008
                        • 1255

                        #12
                        Re: The Career of Bryan Hurst (NHL 09: Be A Pro)

                        Yea, pick your team - get assigned to the AHL's 3rd line.


                        Comment

                        • GoldenJet
                          MVP
                          • Jul 2008
                          • 4618

                          #13
                          Re: The Career of Bryan Hurst (NHL 09: Be A Pro)

                          highheat I think there is a random button, which is the closest to an actual draft
                          Regrets Aren't Something You Did, It's Something You Didn't Do

                          1000 posts achieved on December 21st,2008 at 2:26 p.m in the "birth of the Mighty Blazers" thread.

                          Comment

                          • bhurst99
                            All Star
                            • Aug 2003
                            • 9166

                            #14
                            Re: The Career of Bryan Hurst (NHL 09: Be A Pro)

                            June 21, 2008

                            What a terrible, horrific first impression! The last call I'll ever get on that cell phone!

                            When dad told to go to the store today to get my mind off the NHL draft, I decided to contact Pete Satt on my cell. He's the agent who phoned me a couple days ago and told me an unnamed team was interested in me, or at least someone with a similar name.

                            Typical Satt. Talk first, facts second.

                            So I phoned him as I walked to the store. I didn't get through the first couple of times but then it rang and he picked it up.

                            "Hey, Satt, it's Bryan. Bryan Hurst. How's the draft going? Are you having fun in Ottawa?" I asked. I didn't want to be a jerk and ask him about me right away.

                            "No fun, sport. It's all work today," Satt said.

                            "Well, I hate to bug you but I'm just wondering if you've heard any scuttlebutt about me."

                            "I think a western team in Canada might be interested in you," he said.

                            "That's strange. A few days ago you said a mid-western team in the States was interested me."

                            "Bryan, I gotta run. Let me check into it and I'll phone you back. See ya."

                            Satt hung up. Clearly, he was lying. There was no team interested in me. I sat down on a park bench. I couldn't walk to the store, I thought I was going to vomit right there. He was lying. I kept repeating the words in my mind. I must have sat there for 30 minutes. The fifth and maybe the sixth round of the draft must be over by now.

                            My phone rang. It was Satt.

                            "Yeah, Hirshey, I talked to a couple of scouts and they say it's a mid-Western team that's interested in you not Canada."

                            "Damn it, Satt, my name is Hurst. H-U-R-S-T. Not Hirshey. Are they talking about me or Ryan Hirshey?" Hirshey was a rough and tumble defenseman with the Kamloops Blazers of the Western Hockey League.

                            "Sorry, I'll clarify that," Satt said. "Call you right back."

                            Satt hung up again. He's got to be the worst agent ever. I wouldn't have even phoned him in the first place but he knows everyone in NHL circles.

                            Satt phoned back.

                            "It was Hirshey not Hurst. Sorry, kid. But I've heard someone from the Sudbury Wolves might get taken. Wasn't that your team?" Yes, it was my team.

                            "Who is going to get taken from Sudbury, Satt? Who?"

                            "Gotta run, kid. Let me phone you right back. It's insane here in Ottawa. It's draft day, you know. Phone you right back."

                            I vowed right there to kill Pete Satt. I was going to strangle his fat neck. I was going to punch him in that fat belly until he screamed like a pig heading into the slaughterhouse.

                            The phone rang again. Screw Satt. We was going to hear how I felt.

                            "You are the worst, stupidest, dumbest --"

                            "Whoa, Bryan. You sound like one of the columnists writing about me in the Chicago Tribune"

                            That wasn't Satt's voice.

                            "This is Dale Tallon. I'm the General Manager of the Chicago Blackhawks and I just wanted to let you know we have selected you with the 240th pick of the NHL entry draft. Welcome aboard."

                            "Jesus, Mr. Tallon, I'm sorry."

                            He laughed. "I just hope you're that abrasive on the ice. We'll be in touch over the next couple of days. Bye."

                            I threw my cell phone high in the air and screamed. "I got drafted! I got drafted."

                            I jumped as high as an Olympic pole vaulter I started to run home and behind me I heard the crash of my cell phone hit the pavement. It busted into a hundred pieces.

                            Who cares? This is the best day of my life!

                            Photobucket
                            Career of Bryan Hurst: Year Six(MLB - PS4)
                            Video Diary of FIFA Manager Bhurst99 (FIFA - PC)
                            Career of Bryan Hurst: Year Two (NHL: Be A Pro - X360)
                            Toronto FC: Second Season (FIFA - PC)
                            F1 Challenge Video Diary (PC)

                            Comment

                            • GoldenJet
                              MVP
                              • Jul 2008
                              • 4618

                              #15
                              Re: The Career of Bryan Hurst (NHL 09: Be A Pro)

                              congratz on getting drafted
                              Regrets Aren't Something You Did, It's Something You Didn't Do

                              1000 posts achieved on December 21st,2008 at 2:26 p.m in the "birth of the Mighty Blazers" thread.

                              Comment

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