Seven Fatherly Hockey Players You Secretly Own Framed Photos Of

Hello, and welcome back to Fake Or Gay. Today, we'd like to present an article that one of our founding members is exceedingly proud of. As you may know, there are multiple hockey players who, as veterans, are those who younger players look up to. What you may not know, however, is that these veteran players are not only role models for young players, but role models for all of us. You don't need to tell us about these hockey players you secretly keep framed photos of in the locked bottom drawer of your desk. It's alright. Everyone knows already.

1. Joe Thornton.

Why not a framed photo of Joe Thornton? You've had it since he came to San Jose, and you've grown to love him more and more as the days go by. He's fun but he's a leader. You respect that about him. It's probably just strange to have a framed photo of a guy you don't actually know on your desk where anyone could see it. So you keep it where no one can. Flat in the drawer of your desk. Sometimes you forget it's there, but you pull out the drawer to look for a pen and there it is. Joe Thornton. You carefully wipe off the sheer layer of dust that has built up over the glass.

2. Martin St. Louis.

Framed photos of Martin St. Louis are nothing to be ashamed of. A framed photo of Martin St. Louis may have been the first photo of a fatherly hockey player you ever owned; hell, it's probably the first one many people owned. You moved on eventually like most people do, placing it further and further away from wherever was important to you (first your desk, then your mantle, then the bookshelf in the study you never enter for reasons only you know). But it exists, like a reminder, a sharp stab of pain in your chest when you think too much, Waiting. Always waiting. Like it always will.

3. Daniel Briere.

Where in the world is Daniel Briere? Colorado, I think. He's been in a lot of places over the past few years. But if you secretly own a framed photo of Daniel Briere in an orange-colored photo frame, we won't tell. If you have ginger hair and love grilled cheese sandwiches and sometimes stare out the window, the rain beating against the glass panes, the soft howl of the wind a sharp contrast against the roaring fire in your beautiful home, thinking about Daniel Briere and the way he spoke gently to you in French sometimes in the deep, dark of night—well, we won't talk about that, either.

4. Teemu Selanne.

Who doesn't own a framed photo of Teemu Selanne? Everyone does, from a youth ice hockey player in Winnipeg to an adult inline hockey player in Anaheim. Everyone owns a framed photo of Teemu Selanne. There's one, though, that's important: the one you own, a framed photo of Teemu Selanne, his arm around your shoulders. Old friends—best friends. Time hasn't changed anything. (He tells you.) Hung on the wall but almost never looked at, perhaps a cursory glance, every now and again, but it's not there for you to look at. Just a reminder of what you used to have. The phone rings. Your hand hovers over the vibrating screen.

5. Daniel Alfredsson.

I know what you're saying. "Daniel Alfredsson, really? He betrayed me. He betrayed my family," but you know it goes deeper than that. Somewhere inside of you there is a piece of your body that misses him deeply, that has always missed him, even when he left you behind. (You try not to think about it that way. It only makes the wound deeper.) All you could do was watch his back as it disappeared in the distance. They gave you everything after that but you didn't have Alfie—and is it worth it if you didn't have him? The photo remained on the shelf in your bedroom, where it's always been. A thin layer of dust on the frame.

6. Roberto Luongo.

Oh, Roberto Luongo. It's probably a little strange to have a picture of a goalie in your house, but he is your hero, not to mention one of the best friends you had. The photo you own lives on the side table of the living room—he bought the frame. When you look at the picture you can't help but smile; it doesn't hurt anymore. It did, though, before. When everything that happened was still fresh and you still remember the way he sounded when he left. Now you're just reminded of the good times. You knew it wasn't going to be perfect forever but when it was... that was important. You have to remember that. The good times were important. They were.

7. Jaromir Jagr.

How could you not own a framed photo of Jaromir Jagr? Even Jaromir Jagr owns a framed photo of Jaromir Jagr. It's the one that's been in your childhood bedroom since the day Jaromir entered the NHL, a fresh-faced rookie with what seemed like a curtain of hair flowing over his shoulders. You believed in him, then; you still believe in him now. Thinking about the framed photo you never brought overseas with you reminds you of you and your siblings on the frozen pond in the acre of land behind your grandfather's house, sticks clattering, laughter always ringing in the crisp, winter air. You've always wanted to be like him. You hope you can be, one day.

Some honorable mentions are, of course, Patrick Marleau, Dan Boyle, Henrik Zetterberg, Justin Williams, Pavel Datsyuk, Willie Mitchell, Daniel Sedin, Henrik Sedin, Mike Babcock, Steve Yzerman, and Chris Pronger. You probably own a framed photo of one of these players, but you keep it on the mantle. You don't talk about it. You don't need to.