How one Preds fan's "once in a lifetime" moment in Boston exemplifies Nashville
Caleb Miele’s pre-game lineup announcement was so much more than that
During a grief-stricken week for the Nashville community, after our neighbors and children were murdered in a senseless act of violence at the Covenant School, one small act of kindness from the Nashville Predators offered a small amount of not insignificant respite.
In any other week and in any other circumstance, what happened during the Preds' pre-game routine at their away game in Boston might have gone unnoticed.
But not this week and not in these circumstances.
If you aren't familiar with the moment I'm referring to, here's a quick video to get you caught up.
The boy in the video is 17-year-old Caleb Miele, and to hear him tell the story about reading the lineup card before the game, you would have thought he'd just won the Stanley Cup at Bridgestone Arena.
"Just being there and enjoying that and being a part of that moment was just really awesome," Caleb said.
A Preds birthday party like no other
Caleb was in the Nashville airport when he learned Preds defenseman Ryan McDonagh was nearby. He introduced himself as he usually does to Preds players in public, saying that he was a huge fan. He then added he would soon see McDonagh play the Bruins at the TD Garden, where he was headed to celebrate his 17th birthday.
After the brief encounter with McDonagh, Caleb assumed that would be the end of it. He would continue his journey to Boston to watch McDonagh and the rest of the Preds play the Bruins, with the added bonus of having met McDonagh briefly along the journey.
Then, a few hours later, Caleb got a text message.
It was Ryan McDonagh.
McDonagh was asking Caleb to come to warmups, saying that the team had a surprise for him.
"I couldn't believe it," Caleb said.
Then a security guard approached Caleb, asking him to come with him to the lower level once warmups concluded.
"I knew I wasn't in trouble," Caleb laughed, "because Ryan had already said the team had a surprise for me."
But Caleb still didn't know what the surprise was.
"So we get escorted down into the back areas of TD Garden. Little did I know, we were going right to the locker room. And I got so excited, my legs started shaking. It was so cool."
As Caleb was escorted to the visiting locker room, head coach John Hynes came out to meet him. Hynes explained that the team wanted Caleb to read the lineup card to the team before the game, a tradition normally reserved for team members only.
"I think it's the first time a kid has actually done that, ever gotten that kind of access," Caleb said. "So I think that's really cool."
Caleb was given the lineup card and waited outside the locker room. Then, when prompted by John Hynes, he entered the room.
He read the lineup card as printed, announcing the Preds' starting lineup of Yakov Trenin, Colton Sissons, Cole Smith, Ryan McDonagh, Dante Fabbro, and Juuse Saros.
When asked if he was nervous about reading the card or worried he might mess up the lineup, Caleb said he was confident because of his familiarity with the team.
"Oh no, I know these players," Caleb said. "Me and my dad keep a very organized lineup of players, past and present. We always have a Preds lineup somewhere in the house, from a previous game or a current game. "
After the lineup announcement, Caleb and his mom returned to their seats at TD Garden. As an added birthday bonus, Caleb got to watch the Preds beat the Bruins, behind solid performances by players he'd announced in the locker room only hours before: Ryan McDonagh and Dante Fabbro assisted on Cody Glass's 2nd period goal, Cole Smith scored an empty net goal, and Juuse Saros made 35 saves en route to a 2-1 win.
And the context of this particular win for Nashville, taking place one day after the tragic school shooting that rocked our city, wasn't lost on Caleb.
"It was really good to be a part of that moment where something tragic had just happened in Nashville, and just for a brief moment to give the team some encouragement and some words of excitement," Caleb said. "Just to be able to experience that was really awesome."
He also indicated that the Ryan McDonagh Fan Club now has one more member.
"Ryan McDonagh… he is a super star player and also a people person. He's just so chill and super nice. Kudos to Ryan McDonagh."
A moment for all Preds fans
In many ways, Caleb is like many Preds fans who root for their home town team. He's been watching the Preds his whole life ("as long as he can remember", he says). He loves going to Bridgestone Arena to cheer for the team and his favorite players are Pekka Rinne and Juuse Saros. He loves the goaltenders, partly because he briefly played the position.
But on Tuesday, Caleb got to participate in a pre-game ritual not normally given to fans.
The locker room is the domain of the players. It's not just a place where they change into their gear and get ready for the game. It's where they exercise camaraderie, free from the external pressures of professional sports. It's where they can be themselves. It's where they communicate in private, but as a group. It's where they learn a lot about each other, but also probably more about themselves.
Fan access to locker rooms is almost unheard of, especially before a game. It's reserved for very special circumstances, and even then, it's usually only given during preseason games or exhibitions.
Giving a fan the chance to address the team before such an important game as Tuesday's, even if it was just to read the lineup card, means something.
And in the context of the last few days, it means everything.
Mending the soul of our city
The Nashville Predators are an integral part of this city. The team has always exemplified the city's hard-working, creative energy, from its unique game atmosphere to its yeoman approach to winning hockey games (the "Predator Way"). This is a hockey team that "works hard and plays harder" just like its lifelong residents and its many transplants and its many, many visitors (as much as we might roll our eyes at them, they are important to our city).
Neighboring that hockey team, and in many ways mirroring those same values, are many schools and churches, including Covenant School. These communities make up the soul of our city; they are the lifeblood of many businesses and the key to salvation for many of our fellow faith-followers and educators.
Our religious communities in Nashville express themselves in many different ways. They communicate together in the same way hockey players might communicate in a locker room. Free from the external pressures of every day life, while exercising freedom of expression and gathering together in one place toward a common goal. Learning about each other, but also learning about themselves.
You don't have to know about our many churches and schools to know that, right now, one piece of our city is broken. One part of our soul needs mended. The people of Covenant School have been hurt more than we can possibly know. The grieving process has only just begun for the many families whose lives' have been changed forever.
Did the moment on Tuesday night in Boston, less than 24 hours from the horrific shooting, do anything to bring calm to those families? No.
But as a community grieving with our neighbors, it did give an immediate reminder of what Nashville is all about.
I am no expert on grief, and I won't pretend to be. But I will finish with this.
When I was about to become a father, a mentor of mine attempted to prepare me for the experience by describing children as "having a piece of your heart go walk around outside your body for a while."
She was 100% correct. That's exactly what it feels like.
At all times, you are very much aware that this immeasurably sacred part of your body is out walking around in the world. Talking to people, going to school, having life experiences.
It's terrifying.
But also exhilarating and rewarding.
Because though the world can be as terrifying as it was on Monday, March 27th, it can also be as warm and caring as it was on Tuesday, March 28th.
— Featured image via Winslow Townson/USA TODAY Sports —
