With annual flurry of summer weddings, players learn to balance the fun

During a dizzying 12-week run of seven weddings and three bachelor parties before a season that promised to bring greater on-ice expectations, Kevin Shattenkirk had to pause.

The summer wedding circuit is just a part of life, generally for players who are in their mid-to-late 20s. Whereas most people have the whole calendar year to pick a wedding date, hockey players have only a couple of months to choose from. Their summers can become jam packed with family members' and teammates' nuptials, not to mention a player's own wedding.
Instagram from @shattdeuces: The Shattenkirk wedding
That, in addition to maintaining offseason training, can make for busy summers with buffet tables, cake and open bars abound.
"It kind of, in a way, keeps you a little guilty, keeps you a little honest, forces you to look in the mirror and say, 'Get yourself together, here,'" the New York Rangers defenseman said.
In 2015, Shattenkirk, who was with the St. Louis Blues at the time, was 26 years old and entering an important offseason when the Blues expected him to take a major step forward with his development.
But there were so many weddings to go to. And Shattenkirk is a sucker for them, going to only seven that year because several overlapped, so he tried to create balance wherever he could during that three-month span that had him going to weddings around the northeast and one in Colorado, plus three bachelor parties in Nashville, Charleston, South Carolina, and Reykjavik, Iceland.
"I was in control at the weddings," Shattenkirk said. "Most wedding nights are a little lively], but for the most part, whether it was getting up and going for a hike in Vail or doing something like that, I tried and make sure I maintained and stayed on course, and I wound up coming in the next season and having one of my most productive seasons."
[Instagram from @rfabbri15: Guests of the Shattenkirks
Scheduling can become an issue too. Shattenkirk got married on Long Island, New York in July during the same weekend as his Rangers teammate, forward Jesper Fast, who tied the knot in Greece. That made some decisions for them in terms of the guest list.
Instagram from @zibanejad93: The Fast wedding
Making all those travel arrangements isn't necessarily a financial burden, but finding ways to sneak in some exercise is a tactic often employed when players are spending several weekends traveling to party with their friends and family.
"It's not too bad," Boston Bruins forward Patrice Bergeron said. "It's just for weekends. You make room for workouts. You can obviously work out anywhere, like in the hotel, or you can go outside to run and do some sprints."
The planning is worth it, though, when the result is being there for loved ones' special days.
"It's a great time because if it's a hockey wedding, you get to see guys you haven't seen in a while," said Blues forward Ryan O'Reilly who got married in July.
Instagram from @dayna.oreilly: The O'Reilly wedding
Players also know that the summer wedding frenzies only last for a few years, until most of the guys their age are already married and start having kids, which makes it harder to get away.
Bergeron, 33, says he's past the age of getting bombarded with wedding invitations. Florida Panthers goalie Roberto Luongo, 39, said he still gets a couple of invitations every year, but usually only attends if it's a wedding in his native Quebec or near his home in South Florida.
"It's a time of the year when all your hockey buddies get married," Los Angeles Kings forward Anze Kopitar said. "But they're fun events and everyone's so happy, so it's great to be apart of it."