Players leave more than just teammates behind

Published 9:00 pm Tuesday, December 12, 2006

EVERETT – Monday night, the Smith family of Marysville celebrated Christmas with Cody Thoring.

It would be the last time the Smiths and Thoring would have a chance to celebrate the holiday together before he went home to Swift Current, Saskatchewan, to be with his family over Christmas break. As a 20-year-old, the Everett Silvertips captain and last original Silvertip was in his final year of eligibility in the Western Hockey League.

The Smiths, Patrick and Keri, along with Tori, 4, and Tyler, 7, would have Thoring for the rest of the season, they thought, when he would leave for other challenges.

“We had a big dinner, we opened presents and we watched ‘The Grinch Who Stole Christmas,’” said Keri Smith, Thoring’s billet mother. “We just had a wonderful evening.”

Thoring wrote in his Christmas card to the Smiths: “Thanks for all the great times. I’m not going to get mushy on you now. We’ll wait until the end of the season.”

Just after 7 a.m. the next morning, Silvertips general manager Doug Soetaert called Thoring to tell him that he, Brady Calla and a draft pick had just been traded to the Moose Jaw Warriors for defenseman Jesse Zetariuk and right wing Carter Smith.

Afterward, in tears, Thoring told the Smiths.

It happened that quickly. One moment, they’re watching the Grinch. The next, they’re driving Thoring to Vancouver, B.C., to catch a flight to join his new teammates.

Tori held Thoring’s hand all the way to the airport.

“It’s sad,” Keri Smith said. “None of us can stop crying yet.”

Although Calla had asked for more playing time and almost expected a trade, Jane Johnson, his billet mother, said the day was anything but easy. While Thoring was the only Silvertip the Smiths have ever had, the Johnsons have hosted several over the years, including Matt Esposito and Devin Welsh.

It was a difficult, difficult day.

“It’s hard,” Jane Johnson said. “He’d been with us for 21/2 years. He was a great kid to have around and we’d already lost Matt Esposito this year. It’s hard.”

It’s a cold business, professional sports, perhaps no more cruel than at this level. Teen-age players build relationships in the community. They attend area schools and make friends there.

They become true members of their billet families. Forget the term “billet” for most. Only the genetic link is missing.

The Smiths knew the day would come when Thoring would have to leave. They even knew the possibility of a trade existed. They simply weren’t prepared for the end to come Tuesday.

Soetaert isn’t a heartless guy. He knows every player on the roster. He jokes with them. Talks hockey to them. Many want to know about his 12 seasons in the NHL.

Nevertheless, it’s Soetaert’s job to improve the team, despite the possible backlash he may get from fans who came to know and embrace Thoring and Calla as their own. When given the chance, Soetaert has to strengthen the team despite personal feelings he may have for those he trades.

It’s a twin set of dynamics that often are at odds with each other.

So in trading Thoring and Calla, an assistant captain who played three seasons and three games with the Silvertips, it was a mixed bag for Soetaert himself. On one hand, he likely improved the team by the acquisitions. In Zetariuk, especially, the Tips are getting a big, rugged defenseman who can anchor the back line.

It was the human element that made the trade difficult.

“Believe me, it’s not a fun thing, calling these young hockey players and (letting) them know we’ve made a move,” Soetaert said. “You’ve got to try to take your feelings out of it if you can. But they’re great boys.”

As for the Smiths, the anguish they felt Tuesday in light of the trade was equal to the love they have for Thoring. Just hours after dropping him off at the airport, the Smiths have not decided whether to host again.

“Cody is such a great kid,” Keri Smith said, her voice breaking. “We didn’t know we’d get such a great kid. We didn’t know we could get so emotionally attached to such a kid.

“I told Patrick, ‘I don’t know if I can do this year after year with kids.’ I just don’t know.”