Don't Step on the Rug.

Hockey players are a superstitious breed.

Some only use a certain undershirt beneath their pads every game day because it is "lucky".

Some break or trade out sticks after scoring with them because their "mojo is spent".

But I had my run-in with a serious violation of hockey superstition a year ago.

I walked into the UCO hockey locker room prior to a game against a high-ranking opponent and without paying much attention to where I was stepping, continued into the center of the room.

I began to hear shouts, so I looked up from my roster sheets and saw several Broncho players waving their hands at me and shouting.

At this point I am thinking to myself, "They're saying 'hi' to me like always."

So I looked around and said, "What's up guys?"

That's when one of the UCO captains ran over to me and gently shoved me aside asking me if I knew what I was doing.

Without my knowing I had ignored the number one rule of hockey locker room ettiquette. I had stepped on the team logo rug on gameday.

Needless to say, UCO lost and I was to blame. The team got over it, but I'm not sure I have.

So if I've learned one thing from my short career in hockey it's this:

DON'T STEP ON THE RUG.