Spina writing his own success story  by Lindsay Kramer | NHL.com

In an otherwise unpredictable AHL postseason, perhaps the surest bet of all is that not many players will choose to wind down the afternoon before a game by reading the book American Shaolin.

Yet that’s precisely what calmed the nerves of San Antonio left wing David Spina as he sat in his Toronto hotel room hours before Game 2 against the Toronto Marlies on April 18. A man’s quest to turn his life around by visiting China’s Shaolin Temple, the ancient home of the fighting monks, was Spina’s latest gulp aimed at his never-ending thirst for expanding horizons.

"I heard it was a good read,” Spina said. “I like to read before a game to calm myself down. Every book I read has a mental-edge approach, a good message or work ethic, or hard dedication pays off. Sometimes I’ll bring three or four books with me on the road.’’

Few feature more compelling storylines than the one he’s writing for himself.

In his first season in the organization, Spina, 24, posted a career-high 50 points (21-29) for the Rampage. That includes a run of eight goals and six assists in his last 10 games. He also scored two goals in the Rampage’s first three playoff games.

That’s the type of heartwarming tale that can unfold when a player comes home. Spina grew up in Mesa, Ariz., as a fan of the Coyotes, who are now San Antonio’s parent club. Developing hockey skills in the desert is pretty much as unlikely as it sounds.

There was just one rink that had a travel team, and as a result, Spina’s youth team traveled quite far to play its games. And Arizona wasn’t exactly a nurturing environment for prospective hockey players.

I think now you can grow up anywhere dreaming of playing pro hockey,” he said. “It was an infatuation of mine. A lot of people out there struggled with that idea. It wasn’t even a question to me.’’

Spina played four seasons at Boston College, then bounced around the minor leagues, spending time with Utah and Springfield in the AHL, sandwiched around ECHL stops with South Carolina and Johnstown. The one thing all those teams had in common was they missed the playoffs. His postseason chances didn’t seem much brighter when he signed with the down-trodden Rampage last summer. But he sure felt like a winner when he pulled on that Phoenix jersey in training camp.

"You always expect a little more out of every situation,’’ Spina said of jumping to San Antonio. Growing up in Phoenix, I was pumped to have an opportunity to go to camp in Phoenix, put on a Coyotes sweater, even if it was just a practice jersey.’’

Once that fleeting moment passed, Spina turned his sights toward making the Rampage successful. His offensive output allowed the fifth-place West Division team to grab the crossover spot in the North for its first postseason berth since its inaugural 2002-03 campaign.

Now what kind of inspirational tome could be written about that?

"I guess the message would be good things come to those who wait,’’ Spina said. “It’s been a year where I had to prove myself. I have no problem with that. I couldn’t have asked for the year to end any stronger.’’