Defenseman Joe Hicketts was signed as a free agent by the Red Wings on Sept. 24, 2014 after a very successful junior career with the Victoria Royals. The 5-foot-8, 180-pound British Columbia native, is one of four Red Wings prospects writing for our Taking Flight blog series, which chronicles the players' ups and downs as they work their way to becoming Red Wings. Hicketts currently plays for Detroit's AHL affiliate, the Grand Rapids Griffins. Here is his third blog entry of a 'Pit Bull in a China Shop.'

Pit Bull in a China Shop - Entry 3

by Joe Hicketts

Hello again, everybody, I hope everyone enjoyed the holidays and a happy belated new year to you all! Christmas for me was great! Getting back home was a refreshing time for me, getting to see family and friends and getting away from the rink for a few days. We are rolling along here in Grand Rapids. As we head into our All-Star break to get some much-needed rest, we sit in first place in the division. It's been a bit of a grind with our travel and schedule as of late, so we are all looking forward to getting some time off. There are certain markers within a season that we as players look forward to and we have just passed two of them; the All-Star break and the midpoint of the season.

The midpoint of the season is when you're really finding your game. Your team has rounded into shape and is playing to its identity, and personally, you've gotten into that routine of showing up every day ready to compete. And as fun as it is to play when everyone is hitting their stride, this is one of the most difficult points in a season. Looking towards the end is daunting, the dog days if you will. As the season gets going, there's that excitement of being back in that competitive environment. As the season winds down, there's always five weeks or so where you're gearing up for the playoffs, whether it be fighting for a spot or trying to play to the best of the team's ability, there's always that added excitement come March. But now is when teams can make up or lose ground depending on their mindset.

Now by no means is anyone not ready to go, but if you think of January 1 as the new year, hockey players' new year essentially starts in the summer. Sometimes we athletes just end up getting caught up in the big picture of looking to the end of the season, and when you see there's still 30-something games left, it is definitely mentally draining. If you think about it, we eat the same pregame meal 76 times in a season, follow the same routines day in and day out; mentally it truly is redundant. There are ways to fight through stretches like this, though. Sometimes you can just get on a roll where you don't really have to think about anything and you just show up, practice and get ready for a game and it takes little effort. Those stretches only last so long and don't normally happen that often. That is why I think it's important to find something to take your mind off the game.

I've played with guys who have taken pottery classes or guitar lessons, but for me, I've found that tying flies for fishing is actually helpful. Being from British Columbia allows for me to get a bit of fishing in during the summer with all the lakes around. The main thing is to just find something that you like and keeps you from just going back home and doing nothing after practice.

This past week, all the Griffins participated in the Great Skate Winterfest, benefiting the Griffins Youth Foundation. The Youth Foundation supports those who cannot afford to play the great game of hockey by providing ice time and equipment to around 350 kids in West Michigan. Griffins players skated 24 hours straight, divided into one-hour blocks, at Rosa Parks Circle to help out this great cause. If you want to get more information about the Youth Foundation, visit GriffinsKids.org.

Thanks again to everyone for not only reading but for following along with my career, both with the Red Wings and Griffins. Hope everyone stays warm this week! Talk soon! - Joe.

In 37 games this season with the Griffins, Hicketts has two goals, 11 assists, is plus-6 and has been assessed 32 penalty minutes.