"I think it's all Nikita," Blair said, all deadpan modesty. Nikita, mouth splitting in a wide grin, shook his head.
"No, I have a dirty secret. I play well because I draft Blair Boyer to my fantasy team."
Startled into a laugh, Blair rolled his eyes. A few of the gathered reporters shared in the laughter, albeit in that restrained and professional way. Blair couldn't ever tell if they were faking it or not.
Of course half the writers there had their phones recording. The exchange was a social media hit, shared all over Twitter and Facebook by Breakers fans and the more general hockey crowd alike.
Blair couldn't be certain, but he imagined the video was what prompted Eli to finally corner him in the locker room after practice one day.
"So what's your secret?" the Breakers' Captain asked, loosening his skates while Blair peeled off his shin guards.
"My secret?" Blair blinked, innocuous. "Clean living and diet heavy in broccoli?"
