[MissTeeks]

I know this was in the game thread today, but I thought this article deserved its own thread:

http://www.calgarysun.com/2015/03/27...on-i-ever-made

Calgary Flames rookie Michael Ferland had just sweat through a lengthy bag-skate, fully aware he would be a healthy scratch for a crucial contest against the Minnesota Wild.
That wasn’t going to spoil this special day.
The 22-year-old left-winger marked a significant personal milestone Friday, reaching one year of sobriety.
“This is probably one of the biggest days of my life,” Ferland said proudly. “I never ever thought I’d quit drinking and be sober for a year and be where I am right now. When I look back at everything I’ve been through, that was the best decision I ever made in my life.”
It was in the days leading up to March 27, 2014, that Ferland — admitting “everything kind of fell apart” after he’d suffered a season-ending knee injury in American Hockey League action — realized it was time for a change.

After a meeting with Flames head coach Bob Hartley, who had been starting to worry about the well-being of the power-forward prospect, Ferland entered a one-month treatment program.
“I watch those guys like a mother hawk, and I was noticing problems with Ferly,” Hartley said. “He opened up, and we got him some help. For me, coaching is to win hockey games but ... lives are way more important than careers. I don’t believe that you can have a career if you don’t have a normal life. That’s what I explained to him. He broke down in my office, and I went to see Brian (Burke) and we got it going.
“I’m tremendously proud of Ferly,” Hartley added. “He’s a changed man. Obviously, that’s going to be a daily battle, probably for the rest of his life, but he’s doing it with great pride and, obviously, we’re all very supportive of him.
“I think it’s a great victory for Michael.”

In his off-ice battle, his lengthy list of supporters has included longtime girlfriend Kayleigh Chapman, McGrattan and Mike Thompson, the strength and conditioning coach for the Flames’ farm club in both Abbotsford and now Adirondack.
“The first little bit was really hard,” Ferland said Friday. “At times, I didn’t think I could do it anymore. I didn’t want to do it anymore. I got sick of it. I thought, ‘Life is boring now, I need a drink.’ That’s when I called Grats and called (Thompson). That’s when I needed their help. They just talked with me, talked me through it.
“Like I said, that was the best decision I’ve ever made. I’m playing here right now. Life is good.”

Asked later if Ferland — a fifth-round selection of the Flames in 2010 — would be earning an NHL paycheque today if he hadn’t quit drinking, Hartley replied: “That’s the unknown, but I wouldn’t be a betting man.”
“Going from Abbotsford, down to the East Coast, going back to junior ... Just the way things were going, I don’t even know if I would still be playing hockey if I was still going down the road,” Ferland said a few minutes later. “That was the biggest thing I thought about — if I kept doing what I was doing, maybe I’ll slip by for half the year and maybe play a few games. But if I stopped and just focused on hockey, maybe I could have a good career.
“And that’s what I chose.”