32 Thoughts: The Podcast - Braiden Epp: Ready For The Fight

Episode Date: August 6, 2021

Earlier this year, the former captain of the Prince George Spruce Kings turned referee was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. When 24-year-old Braiden Epp received the news, he quickly got involved in helping to find a cure for the disease. Braiden joins Jeff and Elliotte to talk about some of the challenges he has faced since […]

No, that will not be the open. Today on 31 Thoughts to Podcast, presented by the GMC Sierra AT4, you're going to meet a really special person. Brayden Epp is a 24-year-old former player, we should add former captain, of the Prince George Spruce Kings, turned official, who's also been diagnosed recently with multiple sclerosis. And as you're about to find out, he's a fighter. He's a positive thinker he leads a charity

drive aimed at raising funds to beat ms he's a passionate hockey guy and he's someone you can't help but cheer for and he very much has hockey opinions as you're about to find out elliot see i didn't like the fact that he had strong and funny opinions because the more people who do that, the less I have a chance of keeping my job. So that really bothers me. Same. On some level. But the bottom line is, you know, Braden has gone through some challenges and he'll describe them all to you. But that doesn't mean that it's going to stop him in trying to accomplish his goal.

And that doesn't mean it's going to prevent him from trying to do some good out of it. Whenever there's somebody who meets their challenges head-on like that, why wouldn't you want to amplify? Why wouldn't you want to help out? And as you said, Jeff, there was some extra comedy and edge in there that maybe we weren't expecting. So we hope you all enjoy this. Team Ep, we're all on it.

Here's Braden on 31 Thoughts, the podcast. Brayden, first of all, thanks so much for joining us here today. In the opening of the podcast, Elliot and I sort of ran down a little bit, sort of nickel and dime version of your story. Listen, you're the authority on your story. In your words, can you describe what's happened to you? Well, it's been a roller coaster of emotions for me for the last probably six months now. But basically, I've been through a lot in my life. And I'll basically walk through what my story was kind of like for me. So one morning I

woke up and I had some back pain and I wasn't quite sure what it was from or I thought maybe I slept funny or something like that. So I went through my everyday life still and I continued to work and at the time I was reffing in the BCHL over here in BC and I continued to work. And at the time, I was reffing in the BCHL over here in BC. And I continued to reff those games and reff through the back pain that I had. And over the course of about two weeks, the back pain got so bad that I could barely walk. But I'm an athlete. I played hockey and everything growing up so I kind of pushed pushed through all that and and over those two weeks more symptoms kind of came in my life

where I'd have uh troubles walking and uh poor coordination in my hands and that kind of stuff and a lot of fatigue and and that kind of things came into my life and I was kind of questioning what was going on with my body because it wasn't normal. So I kept working and reffing through these things and finally got to a point where I stepped on the ice to reff a game and my legs gave out and I had a hard time getting back up and I couldn't actually finish the game because I couldn't skate.

So it was really tough for me because I played hockey and skated for my whole life and now I couldn't skate. So it was really tough for me because I've played hockey and skated for my whole life and now I can't skate anymore. So it was kind of concerning for me. So I left that game and went back to the dress room and called my parents because I was so concerned. And they told me to go to the hospital and get it checked out. So I went in and that's when I kind of got rushed through all the protocols and all the COVID stuff and got to the front of the line and got right in to see a neurologist right away. And she was quite concerned, which was good for me because she obviously saw something that was wrong with me. So to go through all that in such a short time and all that was tough for me, but I'm glad that

we kind of got it all, all figured out. Cause about after two weeks of having all that, uh, symptoms and stuff, I got to the hospital. And then, uh, another two weeks after that, I went through three MRIs and a bunch of testing and, and then we got the diagnosis of the MS. So it all happened really quick for me, but I'm quite glad that it was quick and we could get it figured out because sometimes this stuff drags on for quite a while and causes some other things to go wrong in your life. So I'm just happy to kind of have it all figured out and have a plan now. Can you fill us in on that, Brayden? What is a plan? How do you deal with it?

What are the challenges? What kind of treatment is available? When you're diagnosed with MS, for those of us listening who aren't totally familiar with it, what does it mean? When I first got diagnosed, I got put onto a very high dosage of a steroid to help fight the inflammation in my spine and stuff. It was a five-day treatment of, I think I was taking 35 pills before nine o'clock in the morning, which was just absurd for me. I was not a big fan of that. So I did the five days of that to kind of knock everything back. And because when I was diagnosed, I was,

I could barely walk and get through the everyday functions of life. So that was a big battle for me being such an athletic person and living that kind of life. So the steroids and stuff really helped me for the first, the first five days, I would say I got probably up to about 75% of, of my ability back and strength and stuff. So I was happy for that.

But kind of after I took those pills, I kind of dropped back down to maybe 60%, which was still better than what I was at when I was diagnosed. So ever since then, I haven't been on any medications because I have to wait to get all my immunization all my COVID and basically every kind of shot you can basically get before uh you can go on the medications because once you go on the meds then it'll uh compromise your immune system so I'm waiting for my my second COVID shot which should be here in a couple of weeks. And then, uh, I should have all my, all my shots up to date and everything. So once I get onto the medications and I honestly

don't know what the peak is for me or, or where I'm going to be, but it's going to take a lot of, uh, tinkering around and, and messing with some different medications because everyone, everyone reacts different to different medications. So the plan is to get me back to living a normal life and back to my daily activities. You were a player. You played in the BC Junior League for several years. You played in Prince George, and you played in West Kelowna. And then, as you said, you transitioned into becoming a referee,

and it was your goal to become an NHL referee can you do you think you can still do that is that still a reasonable goal for you Braden I would say it is a reasonable goal yes because well I obviously lost the ability to skate when I was at my lowest but ever since then I've I've been working really hard and I've been on the ice probably half a dozen times with my good buddy here in town, Chris Joyce. He runs a goalie camp here. So he actually gave me a text and told me to come out if I wanted to and just try it and take my half of the ice and work on the stuff. So the first time I went out, it was really hard for me because it was such a hard thing for me to step on the ice and not be able to skate. But over the course of a couple of ice times, I've kind of figured out my stride and all that stuff back.

So I think with the medications and the hard work and rehab that I will be able to get back to being a good skater and a good official again. So the plan is to keep climbing the ranks and keep working towards the end goal of being the NHL official. Well, goalies are terrible skaters, so you must have felt really good there. Yeah, I fit right in. You know, you've been described as someone who's,

of course, I mean, you've always been a really active person playing hockey, now officiating as well. Also a very positive person. When you were first diagnosed, how much did you look at this? Because a diagnosis, like I've had people in my life that have been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. And right away, there's a period of depression or almost near depression. How much did you look at this almost immediately as a challenge for yourself? Probably right away. Obviously, there was some lead up to the actual diagnosis where obviously I'm looking at my symptoms up online and kind of self-diagnosing myself.

So when I was actually diagnosed from the neurologist, I was kind of prepared. My family around me probably was not as prepared as me, but I was prepared. So I kind of flipped the switch right away and said, well, how can I make this into something good? So right away, I called up my good buddy in New Westminster, Dylan Ellison, and he's a good, smart guy.

So I was like, how can we fundraise this and raise awareness for this kind of stuff? So actually, it was funny because after I was diagnosed, we kind of looked it up, and actually in five days' time was the National MS Walk of Canada. So it was kind of lined up perfectly. So we kind of started doing our fundraising and our awareness. We made a goal right away to raise $11,000, which I thought was a stretch in a five-day span because I just thought there was no way.

But the community of Prince George and the reffing community that I've been in and the hockey world is such a tight-knit community. We did some pretty incredible things in such a short time. Within 24 hours, we raised over $11,000 and I was kind of in shock. So I was like, well, what can we do now? So I wore number 11 my last year of junior hockey in West Kelowna. So I wore 26 with Prince George for three years. So I said, well, let's make the next goal 26,000. We have four days, so let's see if we can do it. And within two days, we're approaching that number.

And by the end of the five days, I think our final number was $33,000. That's great. In five days. So to have the support from everyone and getting the text from ex-teammates and coaches and and fans and and players that i say fought in in junior and just wishing me the best and and all this stuff and i think that support was what uh kept me so positive and and out of that kind of depression stage I wanted to do good with this kind of stuff and raise awareness so it was it was obviously hard to stay positive but uh I think I

did a fairly good job and and everyone around me kind of helped me through that tough time so well I think that's so important is that you know you're not alone right like when you set a goal and you beat it so quickly you probably sit there and you know what? I'm not alone in this and people care. Yeah, exactly. And then having my phone ringing 24-7 for about a week, it was just like I couldn't keep up with it. And it just showed how much support I had. And like I touched so many lives in this community and around me and stuff. So it was truly what kept me positive.

So I'm very, very thankful. So I was given Braden's number. You have to tell this story of Braden because you, it's better from your perspective. So I was given Braden's number because someone asked me to reach out and see if we could help amplify Braden and, and give him some help in his fundraising. So you got to say it from your perspective,

what happened? Okay. So I was, I it from your perspective. What happened? Okay. So I was, I was downstairs. I think it was, I just finished a workout and I was stretching on the, on the floor and my phone's between my legs. And this message pops up.

Hey Brady, it's Elliot Friedman from hockey day in Canada. And, and I'm just kind of like, well, who could this be texting me right now? Like who's playing this joke on me? And so I'm texting my buddies like,

is this, is this going to be legit? Like, and all this stuff. And so I took a screenshot and sent it to Elliot on, on Twitter. And I was like, is this,

you just, so I don't say something funny or stupid back to him and ruin everything. Right. Go get rocks for each. Get out of here. I don't need you. Yeah, no,

it was quite funny. I had a good chuckle. Let me ask you about officiating. My brother-in-law is an official here locally with the OMHA, and he just loves it. My two boys play competitive hockey, and I always sort of shake my head at what officials go through on a consistent basis. You're someone that's played hockey, now officiating hockey and when i see the abuse like quite frankly but when i see the abuse that you and your crew take like i always ask myself why would you choose to do this like i always ask james it's like why do you do he goes i don't know i just love it what is it about officiating that you love brayden because i don't get it we're considering

how much abuse you guys take it's funny funny because when I played junior, I hated all officials because I was such an in-your-face kind of player. I was always in the box, and I hated the officials. But when I was on the bench, I was always making those offside calls, and I was always trying to help out the officials. So once I finished playing hockey and my buddy mentioned it to me, I was like, well, yeah, it's worth a shot. I'm playing hockey now, so let's try and live the dream as an official.

So after kind of the first year of kind of the minor hockey stuff, and wasn't a big fan of doing the minor hockey stuff, but once I got to the above minor and the junior hockey, I really fell in love with being on the ice and kind of having control of the game. And I started off as a linesman, and I wasn't the greatest fan of that. I still like being on the ice with the guys and stuff, but having the stripes on and having the game on your fingertips is really something that I enjoy and kind of feeling out the game and all that kind of stuff. Cause I think playing,

I kind of understand how it's managed and all that kind of stuff and where you kind of can let a few smaller things go and all that kind of stuff. So I think I got the tougher skin playing hockey and stuff, so I enjoy getting in with the coaches and that kind of stuff. I kind of laugh it off because they're trying to intimidate you, right? They try and boss you around, but you just got to kind of just take it and just do your thing out there and not let them influence you. What do you think? Because all calls are subjective. I know a lot of fans have think? Because all calls are subjective. Like I know a lot of fans

have this idea that all calls are obvious and should be made at all times when really, I mean, a high stick to one person is not a high stick to another. What in your mind is the toughest call to make? Oh, the toughest call to make. That you see it, you're like, oh geez, I know I got to make a call fast here, but oh, this is is so hard. Like a soft trip. Like you don't know if the player's losing balance or if he's embellishing and going down easy. And you kind of got to – it's such a hard thing to call when someone goes down like that.

And you kind of know the guy went down easy, but at the same time, you got to make that call too, right? So something like that. Or a high stick where a guy flings his head back and you don't even know if it hits him in the face or not, you know, the best angle and that kind of stuff. And if you don't make the call, the coach is coming and gluing the bench and then you lose control of the game. So there's a few out there where, where the players can really embellish it and make it tough on the officials, which is very hard. Okay. I'm going to, I'm going to give you

a test here to see if I would like you as an official or not okay uh player x checks player y's stick with his stick and the twig breaks is it an automatic penalty oh oh you have to call that one oh no i know i know you have to because it's that's the one you have to call it's so frustrating like if i was a player i'd go out there with a 50 flex stick and just let people just break my I know you have to because that's the one you have to call. It's so frustrating. If I was a player, I'd go out there with a 50-flex stick and just let people just break my stick. But it's something that you have to call. You don't have to say, sticks broke before. I hate that one.

That's the one I do not. I hate that rule. I can't stand that call. I hate that rule. I hate that rule. Would that be like if i could say like okay brayden you're you're a referee and we're handing you the rule book and you can change one rule would that be the one that you change i would change that rule for sure i would make it with the discretion of of the official yeah well one thing i want to ask you about is we always talk about the change between regular season officiating and playoff officiating.

Yeah. How much changes? I feel quite a bit changed just from the kind of history of the playoffs and stuff. And I haven't reffed much playoffs, but I've obviously seen quite a few of how it changes and stuff. And I think the playoffs should be a harder thing than the regular season just because it's the playoffs for the Stanley Cup, right,

and that kind of stuff. So I do see there should be a bit of change, but then at the same time you see some of the stuff that is let go and you kind of shake your head and think, well, how can that not be a penalty in today's game, right? But I feel there should be a little bit of a change, but I think they got it tightened up just a little bit. What is the worst thing you said or did to an official as a player

that now that you are a referee, you are embarrassed about? Oh, it was probably when I was playing minor hockey, and it was probably some 13-year-old kid who just got dropped off by his parents. I probably just came on and glued on him and asked him what he's doing out there and all this stuff, and thinking back today, like, why would you ever do that? Like, it's so hard to find officials to do minor hockey and that kind of stuff. And we're all just losing our minds and just burning so many bridges because I know it's really hard to find officials to do those games nowadays.

And kids are actually scared to go out there because of the parents and the players and everyone's just getting mad at them. And it's such a hard job to do, but nothing i'm proud of to yell at officials we talked earlier about prince george where you played with the spruce kings prince george has a really vibrant hockey community whether it's spruce kings whether it's the cougars it's always been a real strong hockey market and hockey place what are your thoughts when i say prince george what comes to your mind right away yeah just a tight-knit community where everyone will do anything for anyone and

and like you said the hockey community is just it's just amazing here like playing for the spruce kings and stuff as a hometown guy it was truly you love to go to the rink and and the fans were were just crazy like it was it's a pretty small rink here we played in when i when i played the coliseum there and it was loud doesn't matter if it's a tuesday night game or or a sunday evening it was it was always loud and they always they love their hockey here in prince george and it's such a good hockey community. Matthew Barzell, I wanted to ask you about. You played with him in an All-Star game about seven years ago.

Was that when it was? Yeah, it would be about seven years ago when I was playing for the major midget team here in Prince George. Yeah, it was the All-Star game. It was about halfway through the season, and I think he probably played probably 15 games by then and probably had 75 points by then he was he was something else yeah and then to play on his line in the all-star game was it was just get open and he'll find you the fuck i think i

think i had yeah two goals that game and just to see him out there and do the things that he did at that age was like you knew he was going to nhl like it was absurd what he was doing was he the best player you ever shared the ice with yes he was for sure he was he broke ryan nugent hopkins record that year in the in the major midget league and he was just he wasn't on a good team and he made the team good and just try and stop him out there, and that's all you could do, and we couldn't do it. He was putting up four points on us every night. He'd always find a way to battle through things and make things happen.

It was truly fun to share the ice with that guy. I'm thinking about a future here, Brayden, where you're refereeing Game seven of a Stanley Cup final. And we'll say it's between the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Edmonton Oilers. There's a loose puck. It's a tie game in the third period. Connor McDavid picks it up in full speed, breaks towards the net. Austin Matthews puts out his stick.

It breaks and McDavid goes down. Penalty shot or not to win the Stanley Cup. Oh, yeah, I do like calling penalty shots. My first ever call. Oh, I like you. I like you. I like penalty shots. My first call in the BCHL, I got called in one day to do a,

it was a last minute call for the game because the flights got canceled coming to town. So I got to ref my first game here in Prince George. And my first ever call was a penalty shot. So you know what, Elliot? I would go penalty shot on that one and give the fans something to watch. So you're talking game seven, Stanley Cup final, tie game. You're giving Connor McDavid a penalty shot against the Maple Leafs.

Well, yeah, it's a penalty. You got to call it, right? You got to do it. Okay, hang on. Watch this one. It's going to be like cheers. Everybody's going to know your name. That's what that's going to be.

Here's the second layer of that test. Does it matter if it's in edmonton or toronto oh good well that's a really good one actually no it shouldn't matter where it is right it's gonna make the call i would call penalty shot just because it'd be awesome to see that just make some more history for connor i think with that quote you just got taken off that game yeah i know yeah do you uh i'm always curious about this one as well uh a do you have a favorite I think with that quote, you just got taken off that game. Yeah, I know. I'm always curious about this one as well. A, do you have a favorite hockey player?

And B, do you have a favorite official? Ooh, favorite player. My favorite player is Patrick Laine. I fell in love with Patrick. Yeah, I fell in love with Patrick Laine at the World Juniors when Finland was so good that year. And I kind of followed him through the ranks with Winnipeg. And I really loved to watch Winnipeg's games and everything. So I was kind of upset when he got dealt last year.

But I still like watching Paddy. And I hope nothing but the best for Lionel there in Columbus. And hope he gets everything figured out there. But as an official, hmm. See, I'm always interested in linesmen breaking up fights and the one guy that i used to love was jay shares who was so strong like he was stronger i would still maintain jay shares was stronger than half the nhl and he would get a grip on guys to end a fight like that was it when jay shares was done. It was this freakish strength.

Is there anyone, I don't know if it's even a fair, is there anyone in the league that you would look at and you say, man, I got a lot of respect for this official? I got respect for all of them for what they do out there. It's such a hard job, but I think what Wes McCauley does out there and how he's so vocal, I think it's so good for the game and what he does. Because when I'm out there, I like to have fun with the guys and laugh around and cheer with the coaches and that kind of stuff

and crack some jokes out there. So I think what Wes is doing out there is good for the game, and I would like it if more guys were like that when they're mic'd up and not be afraid of all that kind of stuff. Because obviously there's some things that go around that you shouldn't be said but uh i think to have fun out there with the guys is is all fair game and and west does a good job with that will you be like that when you get the mic in an hl game and you're calling a penalty yeah i think i will have that kind of jump my step and and that because you want to enjoy what

you do out there right and it And obviously it's a serious job, but to go out there and have fun with the guys and stuff, I think is half the battle. So I would definitely be vocal like that. I want to ask you just to, before we wrap it up, number one, what's your plan for the summer? Are you scheduled to be refereeing when the next seasons begin?

So I've been in contact with the, with the assigner for the, the BCHL. So I kind of told him I'm basically week to week on, on where I am. So I'm really trying to, to get back to, to game shape. And I, I think I will be with the way I am going. So right now I'm, I'm in Prince George and I plan to move to Nanaimo. I was living in Nanaimo when all this went down. I was there for school. So I'm going back to finish off my degree.

So when I go back, my plan is too official. So I basically told them that I'll keep them posted on where I'm at with my skating. And if I feel comfortable, if it's at the start of the year, I'll be more than happy. But even if it's come like Christmas time or after the break, then I really want to help out and continue off on my path to the NHL. So I'll keep working hard. You know, for people who want to donate or learn more about MS, where would you send them? I got most of my stuff from the MS Society website. There's so much good information on there nowadays,

and you can donate straight through there. And if you want to follow me through my journey, I have an Instagram page. It's Braden underscore MS journey. I kind of keep everyone up to date with both my positive and negative days and my setbacks and how my skating, for example, is going and that kind of stuff. So through that, I post most of the links for the fundraising. I think the next fundraiser is the A&W Teen Burger Day where you donate or every teen burger you donate like a dollar, two dollars to the MS.

And I think that's later in August. I think August 19th or something. I like my A&W burgers. Mama Bear, Papa Bear. Yeah, I will be there. Teen Burger. Yeah. Beyond Burger.

Burgers, burgers, yeah. Burgers burgers burgers yeah burgers burgers i do love burgers so that's kind of the next fundraiser for that and then the ms bike ride is in september september 17th so closer to that date i will uh make a webpage for myself and I'm hoping we can figure this out, not just for me, but other people like me down the road where they don't have to go through so much and just keep living a healthy, normal life. So we'll keep fundraising and raising awareness. So we get this thing figured out. Brayden underscore MS journey. Brayden, we hope there are way more positive days than negative ones. This has been a real delight.

Thanks so much for doing this. You're a wonderful person and a, and a credit, um, you know, to anyone who decides to, to pick up a whistle and put on the stripes and, uh, and officiate, you got a great attitude. We wish you nothing but the best, uh, health and happiness. Thanks so much for doing this. Thanks for having me guys. It was awesome. This is my story. This is my song.

It's a song of love and passion. It's a song of true expression. All in there is no other I'll never love another I'll never love again unless

I'm loving you Bye.