"Clutching paper and pen, they maintain a respectful distance.

Having spied the one and only Olli Jokinen - oversized Gucci sunglasses pushed back on his head, black track-suit cloaking his lanky frame, large cup of java steaming in front of him - father and son wait. Huddling, whispering.

And formulating a plan of attack, no doubt.

Swiftly sizing up the situation, Jokinen excuses himself from his coffee-shop conversation and makes the first move, wandering over for a chat and an autograph.

The grateful fans, all smiles, have no way of knowing that they just served as the perfect prop.

Because, only minutes earlier, Jokinen had been telling his table mate that he gets an unfailingly warm reception in Calgary.

"People have been so nice and positive over here," he was saying. "Everybody we know, everybody we bump into, has been extremely happy we're back."

The Flames centreman shrugs, then adds what he probably hopes will serve as the topic-closer.

"I don't have any other experiences."

Really? C'mon.

No strangers booing you as you walk by?

No snide comments at the grocery store?

Jokinen's return, as everyone knows, had represented a head-rattling turn of events. The July 1development - the Flames re-signing Jokinen, two years at $3 million US per year - caused a citywide freak-out.

Some sunny souls have managed to work themselves into wait-and-see frames of mind. Others, still seething, have written off the winter.

And here sits the focal point, insisting that he and his family have been met with nothing but open arms."