Timberwolf Hunt (2 page)

“Yes,” Johnny said, “but you should let us help Eldridge with the bucket or—”

“Enough,” Coach Elwell said to Johnny. “Or you will be benched for the whole game. Players don't tell coaches what to do.”

Johnny didn't say another word. He did not want to be benched.

All of the other players were quiet too. Coach Elwell was big. Coach Elwell had a big voice.

Coach Elwell looked at Eldridge. Eldridge was still pushing the bucket against the ceiling. “Put that down this minute!”

“But if I let go of the stick—”

“When will you learn that I don't like back talk?” Coach Elwell said. “Players don't tell coaches what to do. Sons don't tell fathers what to do.”

He stepped right up to Eldridge.

“I want you to fill the water bottles,” Coach Elwell said to Eldridge. He put his hand on the hockey stick. “Do it now!”

Eldridge held on tight to the hockey stick. “But—”

“Enough!” Coach Elwell said. He yanked the stick from Eldridge's hands. The bucket at the top of the stick fell from the ceiling. It landed on Coach Elwell's head.

It made a clunking sound on his skull. It fit over his head like a helmet. The water soaked his suit and tie.

The room was very quiet.

Except for Johnny Maverick. He remembered what Scooby-Doo would say when something like this happened.

“Ruh-Roh!” Johnny Maverick said in his best Scooby-Doo voice.

Stu and Tom giggled. Coach Elwell had a bucket over his head. He was still holding the hockey stick. His suit was very wet. The rest of the players started to giggle too.

Coach Elwell pulled the bucket off his head. His moustache looked like a drowned mouse.

The room became very quiet again.

“Who played this trick on Eldridge?” he asked. His voice sounded like thunder. He was big and he looked angry.

“He did!” Johnny said, pointing at Tom.

“He did!” Tom said, pointing at Johnny.

“That's it!” Coach Elwell said. “You are both benched for the whole game. You will watch it from the stands.”

“Tom,” Johnny said. He and Tom were sitting in the stands. “You are disgusting.”

The referee was ready to drop the puck. The hockey game between the out-of-town Grizzlies and the hometown Howling Timberwolves was about to begin. Eldridge Elwell was starting at center ice for the Timberwolves. Usually Tom started the game.

“The bucket with water seemed like a good idea at the time,” Tom said. “I already told you I'm sorry. How could I know that Coach Elwell would grab the stick?”

“Not that,” Johnny said. He sniffed the air. He gagged. “I mean really. Did you have ten pounds of beans for breakfast? You should go into a bathroom if it's that bad.”

Tom sniffed the air too. “Yuck, that is disgusting. I promise, it wasn't me.”

Tom and Johnny looked at each other.

Then they looked down at the floor beneath the stands.

“It's Stinky,” Johnny said, groaning. “Wow. They don't call him that for nothing.”

The stands in the arena were the kind that could be pushed back. There was a lot of space beneath them. Often there would be popcorn and litter on the cement floor. Sometimes little kids walked around under the stands looking for lost coins.

Sure enough, there was Stinky. Mr. Gregg's dog was big and fat and slow. And stinky.

Stinky looked up. He saw the boys looking down. He wagged his tail. Maybe they would drop a piece of hot dog by mistake. No one ever dropped food on purpose if Stinky was around.

“Don't feed him,” Johnny said. “Then he will follow us no matter where we sit.”

Stinky made a long rude noise. The long rude noise didn't come from his front end. Right away the bad smell reached Johnny and Tom.

“Yuck,” Tom said. “There he goes again.”

It was bad enough that they had been benched from the game.
Now this?

Tom and Johnny jumped up. They moved to another part of the stands. Just as they sat down, Eldridge Elwell skated into the Grizzlies' zone.

He fell.

He got up. He chased the Grizzlies' center.

He fell. He got up.

“The new player doesn't look that good,” Johnny said. He wasn't being mean. He was just stating it like a fact.

“Yes,” Tom said, “he needs some different equipment.”

“What equipment?” Johnny asked.

“He needs a pillow on his butt,” Tom said.

Eldridge got up just in time to receive a pass from one

of the Timberwolves' wingers. The puck landed on his stick. He fell again. It looked like the puck had knocked him over. The Grizzlies' defenseman took the puck and skated to center. The Grizzlies' center stayed close with Eldridge.

The Grizzlies' defenseman passed the puck to a winger. Suddenly, it was a four on two.

The wingers for the Timberwolves tried to catch up. They couldn't. Eldridge tried to catch up. He fell again.

In the Timberwolves' end, the Grizzlies' center dropped back. If Eldridge had been able to keep up, he would have been guarding the Grizzlies' center. Instead the center was wide open for a pass.

The Grizzlies' winger dropped the puck back to the Grizzlies' center.

He was all alone. He took a big slap shot. It bounced off the Timberwolves' goalie. But a Grizzlies winger was there for the rebound. He knocked it into the net.

Just like that, the Timberwolves were down 1–0. Less
than thirty seconds had passed after the start of the game.

“Great,” Johnny said to Tom. “You're one of the best players in the league. Without you, the team is in trouble.”

“You're one of the best players in the league too,” Tom said. “How much worse can it get that we are both benched?”

They heard a loud rude noise.

Johnny sniffed the air. He wanted to throw up.

Tom sniffed the air. He wanted to throw up too.

“That's your answer,” Tom said, pointing down at the floor under the stands. Even though they had not given Stinky any food, he had followed them. Stinky wagged his tail, hoping for some food. “It can get a lot worse.”

“Here he comes,” Tom whispered to Johnny. “Remember, if we talk to Eldridge when he sits down, he won't notice our trick.”

“You shouldn't do it,” Stu said. “It's not his fault.”

Tom and Johnny and Stu were in their classroom. They were waiting for the bell to ring and for the teacher to arrive. Eldridge Elwell had just walked through the door.

Eldridge saw Tom and Johnny and Stu standing by his desk.

“Hey, guys,” he said. He put his books on his desk.

“Sit down,” Tom said. “We want to talk to you.”

Eldridge sat down. The plan had worked. Eldridge was so busy looking at them that he had not looked down at his chair.

“Sure guys,” Eldridge said. “What is it?”

“The Howling Timberwolves have lost four games in a row,” Tom said. “You need to do something about it. Now we have to win two out of our last three games. Otherwise we won't make the playoffs.”

“I try my hardest,” Eldridge said. “I'm just not a good player like you guys.”

Stu nodded. Stu wasn't the best player either. He knew what Eldridge felt like.

“We know you try hard,” Johnny said. “We like you on our team. But you have to do something about your dad before our game tonight.”

“My dad?”

“Yes,” Tom said, “your dad is the coach. He puts you on the ice more than any other player.”

This was true. When the Timberwolves had a power play, Coach Elwell put Eldridge on the ice. When the Timberwolves were shorthanded, Coach Elwell put Eldridge on the ice. The other coach had always put Johnny and Tom on the ice together to kill penalties or for power plays. But Coach Elwell always made one of them sit on the bench while Eldridge played.

“I am sorry about that,” Eldridge said.

“Sorry isn't good enough,” Tom said. Tom hated losing games. “You should tell him you don't want to play as much. You don't want the team to keep losing, do you?”

“I don't,” Eldridge said.

“Do you like being part of the team?” Johnny asked. He felt sorry for Eldridge too.

“Yes,” Eldridge said.

“Do you agree the team would play better if you didn't get so much ice time?” Johnny asked.

“Yes,” Eldridge said. “Do you think I like making mistakes when better players should be on the ice?”

“So we agree,” Johnny said. “You'll talk to your dad.”

“I will think about it,” Eldridge said.

“See?” Stu said. “I told you Eldridge was a good guy. We don't need to—”

“Thinking about it isn't good enough,” Tom said to Eldridge. Tom hated losing games. “Otherwise things will get worse for you.”

“Worse?” Eldridge asked.

“Worse,” Tom said. “We like you on our team. You have to help the team win two out of our last three games. We want to make the playoffs.”