AMHL Thursday Championship: The Legend of Peterborough Pete, Part II
August 24, 2006
Concord, MA
Peter's father unexpectedly sold the business when Peter was 18, so Peter Junior got a job at Timmy Hortons. He toiled in relative obscurity 44 hours a week. During his four-hour Saturday shifts, nine-year-old hockey players and their parents gathered for pre-game snacks or to dissect games they had just played. For ten years, Peter watched others revel in the same game that he could share with only his sister.
By the early 1990s, Ozzie had married and moved to New Hampshire but had not forgotten about her older brother, even suggested to her brother on several occasions that he move to the States and go to college.
Peter finally relented, realizing that as much as he loved Timbits, he couldn't stay at Tim Hortons forever. He lived with his sister and brother-in-law as he pursued his degree in network administration. When he wasn't knee-deep in IP addresses, Peter played hockey on the pond behind Ozzie's house...until an AMHL scout recognized his talent.
Before he knew it, Kokas was playing on a line with the legendary Dana Salvo. Year after year, the two have played on the same team, which makes one wonder if he owes his lofty scoring totals (second place, behind Salvo's 1510 points) to Salvo's precise passing.
This season, with Salvo on the shelf with a wrist injury, Kokas has continued a torrid scoring pace. Two weeks ago, he locked up Tuesday's scoring title.
Now, back in the donut room, after a 6-4 victory, Losier answers my question about his teammate's (and our hero's) performance. Mr. Hockey tells me, "He scored a goal...he was the best."
And how did he do with defensive responsibilities, I wonder?
"Nobody could go around him," Losier says, smiling, knowing that what he has just said, like most of the story I just told you, is make-believe.
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