BUFFALO, N.Y. -- The notoriety gained from playing in this tournament is so immense it can be overwhelming.
Stefan Legein saw his star appeal reach meteoric heights after the 2008 tournament thanks to his style of play and boisterous personality.
Soon after, Legein shocked the hockey community with his decision to quit hockey. He has since decided to come back to the game, but speculation ran rampant as to his reasoning shortly after the news broke.
Although his newfound popularity wasn’t the reason behind his decision, sources close to Legein admitted he felt overwhelmed upon his return to junior.
The fact is it’s hard to understand just how big the tournament is or how closely the microscope will be once the players return. The tournament these players grew up watching and the players they grew up idolizing seem so far removed once the current players suit up.
"It doesn’t seem as surreal," Cody Eakin acknowledged. "It’s hard to picture yourself in the same moment they were in and try to work for the same cup they won."
But the celebrity-status that accompanies playing major junior hockey in Canada means the situation isn’t entirely new. The star appeal will just get bigger.
Team U.S.A. head coach Keith Allain, who coached the Americans to back-to-back fifth-place finishes in the 2001 and 2002 tournaments in Europe, can pinpoint the biggest difference: media attention.
"This is way different than it was in Europe," Allain said. "I think the tournament’s bigger in scope than it was when it was in Europe and the fact that it’s in North America adds to that."
For the Canadian players like Legein, it didn’t matter where the tournament was held. The tournament’s coverage in Canada always dictates the players will live in a fishbowl whenever they return to their respective teams.
Even Casey Cizikas, who hardly ever gets recognized in Mississauga, ON playing for one of the least popular junior teams, is already seeing his popularity grow.
"My phone bill’s going to be massive when I go home," he said. "I’m going to have to figure out how to pay that off. Fifty bucks a week doesn’t really cut it (laughs)."
While most junior teams fly under the radar when driving to the rink, security was on hand with a police escort for the Canadian players when they drove from the hotel to the rink before Sunday’s game.
It was a similar, but scaled down version of the treatment the Americans witnessed.
Team U.S.A. is staying in the same hotel the New England Patriots did when they were in town for a game against the Buffalo Bills on Sunday.
The Patriots were reportedly accompanied by a group of security while at the hotel, but some of the American players were still able to speak briefly with members of the football team.
Defenceman Jon Merrill chanted "Go Blue" upon seeing Michigan alumnus Tom Brady heading to the elevator.
"I’ve been a long-time Patriots fan," U.S.A. forward and Boston-area native Ryan Bourque said. "To see guys like Tom Brady and Wes Welker walking around in front of me was pretty awesome."
The Americans didn’t get the chance to see their popularity grow with the three-time Super Bowl champions staying in the same hotel.
"We were kind of like the stars of the hotel for a little while," goaltender Jack Campbell said. "Then once we heard the Patriots showed up we were like, ‘Oh, man.’ But it was pretty neat to see."
The Canadian players are getting a small taste of what life could be like when they get home with autograph-seekers in Buffalo. Cizikas, in particular, is happy to have the notoriety he isn’t used to experiencing in Mississauga.
"When people do recognize us (in Mississauga) it’s pretty special," he said. "Sometimes it’s nice to go under the radar and not get bugged every time you go out."
That’s easier said than done for his teammate, Swift Current’s Eakin.
"Wherever you go -- especially with red hair -- you don’t get away with much there," he said.
Eakin isn’t sure what kind of reception he’ll receive upon returning to the tiny Saskatchewan city, but figures a gold medal could make it memorable -- even if he doesn’t have a police escort.
"I don’t think it’s far enough from house-to-house," he said. "I’d probably just run home before anybody can get me."
QUOTE OF THE DAY:
Canadian forward Casey Cizikas was asked if he or any of his teammates had seen the New England Patriots at their hotel. Knowing the Americans were in the same hotel as the Patriots, I asked him if he was in the same hotel as the U.S. team. Cizikas was met with a chorus of laughter after his response: "No, I don’t think they’d do that."
