Earlier this week I had the opportunity to talk to Marcus Carroll (8) and I totally bombed it. Marcus was so open, relaxed, classy, funny, and sweet that he actually managed to render me speechless. Those who know me and were with us at the time couldn't believe that I...the 1pen... capable of charming prime ministers and dictators into lunch (true stories, btw, I really have)...simply blanked. But I did. It's the truth.
Marcus Carroll silenced the 1pen with his genuine kindness. I've said it before, but I'll say it again - the Utah Grizzlies are the classiest group of hockey players you could ever hope for. They may lead the league in penalty minutes on the ice, but that should never be confused with their character off of it. Frequently seen mouthing off (though not at the level of the infamous talker Simon Ferguson) and no stranger to the penalty box, one might think twice about trading words with Marcus Carroll off of the ice, and yet, I can assure you...Marcus is nicest-dude-ever.
As bewildered by my silence as I was, Marcus went ahead and doodled on my jersey. He did his best to work through my blank and offered up little tidbits I will share with you now.
As always, it's breakfast to the rescue. I was surprised to learn from Marcus that he once loved waffles... until the Great Waffle-Throwing Incident of 2010 in which a disgruntled fan began throwing frozen waffles at the Toronto Maple Leaf players as they skated by during a game against the Philadelphia Flyers (no one was harmed).
What do we learn from this nugget of information offered by the darling Marcus?
1. Marcus no longer likes waffles.
and
2. Marcus is a fan of the LEAFS?!!!
Don't worry, Marcus, we still love you. Sort of.
