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DAMON CRISTODEROFor three Lightning players, this Christmas is special because it's the first with newborns.
For Jassen Cullimore and wife Tanya, a full house for Christmas was just a few phone calls away.
Just about everyone from their families wanted to be in Tampa to help celebrate the couple's first Christmas with their first child. But Jassen and Tanya wanted to spend Christmas Eve and Christmas morning alone with 1-month-old Alivia because, for them, and maybe for just this year, the holiday is for private pleasures more than family reunions.
"We're looking forward to starting our own traditions," Jassen said. "Whether it's opening one gift Christmas Eve and the rest Christmas Day; whether we start having some special Christmas Eve dinner or Christmas Day dinner; all those little things you remember as a kid, you want to pass on to yours."
It's fun to watch hard-as-nails hockey players turn to mush. And that is exactly what happened when Cullimore, a Lightning defenseman, right wing Martin St. Louis and defenseman Brad Lukowich spoke about spending Christmas with a new baby in the house.
Left wing Fredrik Modin and defenseman Nolan Pratt know the drill. Their firstborns are 2 and 1, respectively. If anything, they said, the season becomes more exciting as the children grow and understand what is going on.
Whatever the circumstance, the players know Christmas never will be the same.
"It has completely changed the whole feeling," Lukowich said. "Usually, you hear Christmas music and it doesn't really sink in. Now you hear it, and your mind starts to wander and it starts to think back to home."
Home for the holidays: Lukowich's wife, Cara, and daughter, Michaela, 7 months; Pratt's wife, Deborah, and daughter, Ella, 13 months; Modin's wife, Linda, and son, Jesper, 25 months; and St. Louis' wife, Heather, and son, Ryan, 6 months.
"It definitely brings another dimension to Christmas again," St. Louis said. "Christmas is big when you are a kid, but when you're 15, 16, it doesn't mean as much anymore. "But I think I'm going to get to enjoy Christmas again just living it through Ryan's eyes."
And through the lens of a video camera, which will be mandatory equipment at gift openings. As for presents, well, let's just say some children are going to be spoiled.
"I just used to have my wife's gift underneath the tree," St. Louis said. "But now to have our son's gifts underneath, it's kind of neat."
"It's going to be awesome. It's going to be ridiculous," Lukowich said. "I'll probably be like one of those guys on the commercial. "Look, it's a big-screen TV.' "
Actually, Lukowich said Michaela can look forward to "anything Elmo." St. Louis said Ryan is getting toys to help him when he starts trying to stand up.
Ella will have great responsibility one day helping her dad pick out the perfect tree (a real tree, thank you) and creating ornaments that will compete in the annual Pratt family tournament.
For now, though, it will be a blast to just watch her rip through wrapping paper which, many times, is more important than what is in a package.
"She might not necessarily know what she's doing, but when she sees a toy or a stuffed animal now, she wants to grab it and hug it," Pratt said. "And she can interact with us, so we can have a little more fun with her."
Same for Modin and Jesper.
"I'm just excited to see him excited," Modin said. "I know he's still a little young to understand, but I'm looking forward to seeing how he reacts. I hope I'm going to feel great looking at him. I can't wait to spend some time with him and hang out with him. It's going to be fun."
Christmas can be a fleeting holiday in the NHL. Players get the day off, but some teams, such as Tampa Bay, play the next day on the road.
Lukowich said the lack of time off is "unfortunate," and he would like the league to consider "a genuine break of a couple of days so you can spend time with your family."
Lukowich's gift was to fly to Tampa whichever family members wanted to celebrate. He said it will be the first Christmas spent with his family in six years.
"This was set in August," Lukowich said. "This is Michaela's first Christmas, and we want to have all the family around."
To each his own.
"We enjoy spending Christmas in an intimate setting," Cullimore said.
"This year, because we're starting our own family, it's going to be something special. It's just a nice time of the year."