Three hours before Jake Sanderson was set to make his NHL debut, his father Geoff stood inside a hotel lobby in Buffalo and made it clear that he was not going to dispense any last-minute advice to his son.
“He’s pretty serious. For the last three years, my wife and I don’t contact him on game day,” Geoff told The Athletic on Thursday afternoon. “We just assume his phone is off and he’s getting ready for the game.”
At that point Jake was likely just waking up from his afternoon nap across the street at the Senators team hotel. Earlier on Thursday, Jake told reporters that nervous anticipation for suiting up in his first NHL game would not prevent him from taking his customary game day sleep.
“I normally take naps. I feel like I’m pretty calm now,” said Jake. “I’ll definitely go nap for a couple of hours.”
When the NHL schedule was released in the summer, Geoff appreciated the symmetry of the Senators opening their season at Key Bank Center. Geoff called the arena home for parts of three seasons with the Sabres, including a memorable run to the Stanley Cup Final in 1999.
So when he realized that Jake’s first game with the Senators would be in Buffalo, he made sure it was a priority to attend in person. His family debated going to the home opener in Ottawa or attending the first two games on the road, but his schedule would only allow Geoff to choose one or the other.
“This was a game I felt I had to come to,” Geoff said.
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