ON TUESDAY, Flyers forward Matt Read finally got a chance to catch up by phone with his college hockey coach, Bemidji State University's Tom Serratore. It was the first time they had spoken in "a while."
Sitting in his hotel room in South Florida, Read was reminded by Serratore where he's been and where he is going this weekend.
Eight months ago, Read was playing for Serratore in Bemidji, Minn. He was an ice hockey candidate for the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award.
This weekend, Daniel Alfredsson and Zdeno Chara will be debating about which drills to use him in for Saturday's All-Star SuperSkills Competition, as one of 12 rookies selected to represent their teams in Ottawa. Teammate Sean Couturier will join him in the festivities.
"It goes through my mind quite a bit, actually," Read said. "Like, 'God, you're playing in the NHL.' I was just playing my senior season and I had no idea what would happen."
Even today, it's all a little hard to believe. Read, 25, was pursued heavily by the Minnesota Wild and Columbus Blue Jackets following his junior season. The Wild wasn't thrilled with his age, since few would still consider him a prospect. He decided to return for a senior season.
He was nominated for the Hobey Baker Award, the hockey equivalent of the Heisman. The Flyers - with one of the league's toughest lineups to crack - lured him away with a 3-year, $2.7 million deal that would pay him the same no matter what level he played.
Now, as if making the Flyers out of training camp wasn't a small enough miracle, Read leads all rookies in goals (15) and is third in points (31). He has more points than Danny Briere, James van Riemsdyk and Jakub Voracek at the NHL's unofficial midway point.
Yet, Read still doesn't feel as if he belongs in even Saturday night's competition.
"It's the best guys in the NHL," Read said. "I feel like I would have no chance. I think my best thing would maybe be accurate shot, but I really have no clue."
For Read, that's been the story of most of his life. Read moved from town to town as a child, since his father, Lorne, is in the Canadian military.
Officially, Read lists Ilderton, Ontario, a suburb of London, as his hometown. It's a small town nestled 2 hours northeast of Detroit and 2 hours southwest of Toronto. But Ilderton pops up only because that's where he went to high school.
