32 Thoughts: The Podcast - The European Pack

Episode Date: September 12, 2022

Jeff and Elliotte catch up with a few familiar names while in Europe for the Player Media Tour. They chat with Nino Niederreiter (3:00) about his new team in Nashville, Kevin Fiala (15:40) on why it was time for a change, Hampus Lindholm (26:00) on helping Jamie Drysdale learn the ropes, Nico Hischier (37:00) tells us about wearing the “C” in New Jersey, and Victor Olofsson (47:30) talks next steps for the Sabres.Music Credit: Worn-Tin - BitterListen to the full single hereThis podcast was produced and mixed by Amil Delic, and hosted by Jeff Marek and Elliotte Friedman.The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Sports & Media or any affiliates.

I thought at Portland I thought he was well I mean your whole line was just that was fun that was a good time that was cool you guys just destroyed it that was cool that must have been so much fun it really was I feel we did definitely pushed each other yeah big time welcome once again to an edition of 32 Thoughts, the podcast. Elliot and I will be on our way to Vegas for the NHL Players Tour in a couple of days. In the meantime, today we're going to present some of the interviews from the European version of the NHL Players Tour. Before we get to that, quick announcement. Don't have many details at this point.

Look for those a little bit later on during the week, probably Wednesday. But the podcast is going on tour towards the end of September and into October as well. We're just finalizing some dates and finalizing some towns. So look for more information probably Wednesday. All this being done with an association with our friends at Boston Pizza. 32 thoughts on the road to get you ready for the NHL season. the Road, to get you ready for the NHL season. Meanwhile, something also getting you ready for the NHL season

was the NHL European Players Tour. Elliot and I spent a couple of days in lovely Paris, did a bunch of interviews, many of which we will present today, five specifically. And we're going to break up the pod in two different groups. The first group we're calling the new address group. So you'll hear from Nino Niederreiter, now the Nashville Predators. By the way, John Hines, if you're listening, please, please,

I'm this little junior hockey fan here in Stouffville, Ontario, please put together, reunite two-thirds of what was one of the best lines in junior hockey at that time, the Portland Winterhawks, Nino Niederreiter, and Ryan Johansson. Please, please, please. You'll also hear from Kevin Fiala of the Los Angeles Kings and Hampus Lindholm of the Boston Bruins. Now, technically, Lindholm didn't find a new address in the offseason. We know that was a trade deadline move and then signed the extension, but work with us here. He's in the new address group, okay? Then a little bit later on, something for Buffalo Sabres and New Jersey Devils fans.

You will hear from Victor Olofsson of the Swords and Nico Heischer, captain of the New Jersey Devils. He joins a list of Swiss captains in the NHL, which includes Mark Streit, who was the first, and Roman Yossi, whom we all know about in Nashville. Speaking of Swiss hockey players in Nashville, we'll start there. Here's Nino Niederreiter of the Nashville Predators, Swiss forward. Come on, John Hines, you can do this. That we recorded in Paris a couple of weeks ago. Enjoy. Okay, we joked off here a little bit, Nino,

about the Portland boys back together, Portland Winterhawks, two-thirds of one of the best lines in junior hockey of that era, yourself and Ryan Johansson, back together in Nashville. Congrats on becoming a Pred. Thank you very much uh why nashville for you i think hockey wise thing is going to be a great opportunity myself to be uh playing there i know i know a lot of guys always playing with roman and national team and i was a really good friend of mine so he was

definitely a big reason why i ended up there and i think it's just uh the way they play the game i think it's definitely a good fit for myself. In Switzerland, like Yossi must be like the godfather. So if he calls you and says, come to Nashville, it's pretty tough to say no, I would bet.

Yeah, absolutely. He sent me a couple of texts and he's like, Hey, let's, let's make sure we get you there. And that's what I knew. Like,

okay, I got to go there, but no kidding aside. But like I knew right from the beginning, Nashville could be a great spot for myself knowing Gremlin from my, from Minnesota and Johansson, like you mentioned Portland days. I think those are two players which I potentially have a chance to play with and that would be a lot of fun. So take us through it because one of the things I've learned over the years, you know, is there, there's two types of people.

There's people who see the uncertainty of free agency and they love it. They're like, I want to see what this is all about. And there There's people who see the uncertainty of free agency and they love it. They're like, I want to see what this is all about. And there's other people who see the uncertainty and they're like, I hate this. I just want to know where I'm playing. Where did you kind of fall in all of this? More likely, where could I be playing? There's a lot of players this offseason

which are fairly similar than I am, I would say, with Palat and Borakovsky. I was always a little better than myself. which are fairly similar than I am, I would say, with Palat and Borakovsky. I was always a little better than myself. But for me personally, I always knew, okay, I got to wait till they're gone and then hopefully from there I can see what could be good for myself. And always you make up your mind early on,

okay, I see myself there, here, and what role could I be playing there? And like you said, it's very stressful at some point in the off-season and you constantly think about it as soon as the season ends okay could i be back with carolina could it be somewhere else and i don't think it's as fun as a lot of people think it is so was that was that a strategy then specifically we need to wait to you were gonna wait to see where andre palat ended up. By the way, he's garbage. He's not better than you. You said he's better than you.

That's not true. Palat, he's garbage. Was that a strategy or is that just how the marketplace is going to be? Because once upon a time in the PA, going back years, I mean, there was a strategy from the Players Association. This person is going to sign first, and then this person is going to sign for this number. And it was all sort of laid. I know the NHL didn't like it, but that's the way the players association put it together

it's a lot different now was this like strategic from your point like you're going to wait until palat and burakovsky go somewhere and then you're going to do your deal yeah well i just figured because i mean they both won a cup and i think that's i mean everybody on a team wants to have players who who won something and i personally haven't had a chance to to win a cup yet and hopefully it's natural so for me I was important for myself to like see where they're gonna go because I feel like we're a kind of similar type of players and then go from there wherever I think would be the best opportunity for myself after that was it ever close in Carolina did you ever think it was gonna work out there no not really I mean I I didn't know what kind of direction they wanted to go.

I mean, I think they were in a tough position with Trocek as well and Tony D'Angelo. They didn't know what they want to do there. And then I feel like they maybe hit the panic button and did some things. Obviously, now he's patch ready and now he's got Achilles torn. So it's kind of like you never know what the thought process was behind it. But there were times where I wish it could have worked

out early in the season or during the playoffs. It's a business side, which is unfortunate. I still have a lot of friends there. That team is going to look a lot different next year than what they did the last couple of years. We'll see. I hope the

best for them, but for me personally, I think it was the right decision to leave. Speaking of Carolina, that was a team that many people picked. It's tough to win a Stanley Cup, certainly, but to get to the Stanley Cup. That was a team that had high expectations. Take us into the room during the playoffs, and specifically against the New York Rangers. If I think back, even the whole season season I think we were so consistent all year long

and like we knew what kind of position we put ourselves in and once we got over the hump against Boston we knew okay we got a good chance and we all thought

like it was the Rangers do a regular season we had a good time playing against them I think it was a good fit for us and then I think the biggest problem

was we just couldn't win an away game and I think their matchup very well against us and we had a good matchup at home but on the way we couldn't win an away game. And I think their matchup very well against us and we had a good matchup at home, but on the way we couldn't quite get that done the way we were hoping for.

And we always knew, okay, we just got to win the home games and we're going to be fine. And yeah, eventually time ran out and our game changed a little bit. We panicked towards the end and I think that's what it cost us. You know, Nino, the teams there, especially that team, you're prepared. Your coach always has you ready.

And then I watch what happens in that. Guys just go down. Guys get hurt. And it's like Alain Vigneault, he always had a line. If my goalie's better than your goalie, I win. If your goalie's better than my goalie, you win. And it's not like anybody did anything bad it's just that sometimes the whole sport comes down to one

position and i look at what happened in your net with the injuries and everything like that and i got to imagine like for those players it must have been so frustrating and disappointing when that series was over yeah absolutely but i mean I don't think we can blame anyone, even like the rookie goal. We came in with Peter and he was good for us. I mean, he won games against Boston. Then Ranta made some key saves at some certain times. And I think it also comes down to, like,

we started opening up and changed our game. We weren't quite ready to, even when we were down one not sick of two nothing we saw we gotta change it right away and the next shift you gotta find a way to turn this thing around and i think that's where maybe the saw process or the learn process what boston had like game seven at home like boston it didn't matter if they were down two one going 30 seconds left in game they almost tied it. And so I think that's what kind of we're missing there. I feel like the patience going all the way. It doesn't matter if we're down 1-0 and there's 30 seconds left.

The belief that we can still change that game. Best Rod Brindamore moment. His whole speech just before the game is just remarkable. I mean, the way he speaks for it. I mean, the passion he has for the game. I mean, I loved listening when he was talking. Did you ever go into the weight room when he was in there? Yes.

I mean, if you're a little too early going into ring, he's pushing. And even after, he's always wearing his weight vest and does his push-ups and was on the bike. And actually, I had a chance to do the bike test a little earlier last year. And I was fortunate enough to go right in when he finished it. And he was literally, he was dead. But I felt like, why would you do it? It was 50 years old. Why would you do the same test as we do?

And he just keeps telling himself, well, if the players have to do it, I got to do it. So it was like, I was impressive. And I mean, he crushed it too, but like he was laying on the floor. I think our fitness coach took a picture of it. I was just laying there. He was absolutely dead. And I was, I just got into town.

I was like trying to say, hey, hi, what's up? And then he wasn't talking, like literally straight out. 10 minutes later, he came out and said, hey, how was your summer and all that stuff. So it took some time. Are you going to tell John Hines that at training camp this year? That he should do the same test? out and say hey like how was your summer and all that stuff so it took some time are you uh are you gonna tell john heinz that at uh training camp this year that he should you know what what rod did was no i mean i had a small talk with him but i'm looking forward to getting to know him and yeah i mean roddy was definitely special and yeah you have another uh speaking of fitness freaks in

in tanner you know you're gonna get to know quite well who's – you look at the kid and light matches off of him. He's just torn up, as I'm sure you know by now. We mentioned Ryan Johansson as well, Roman Yossi certainly. Anyone else that you know on this team going in? Cranland, yeah. And now we got to know Forsberg a little bit. But, I mean, there are so many great players on that roster. And from what I heard, a lot of great group of guys.

So I'm looking forward to go there. You know, Nino, it's interesting. Like you've been through Minnesota. You know, you've been through obviously the island. You know, you've been through Carolina. You've been, now you're going into Nashville. You've seen a lot of interesting and different places in your career.

And I, you know, go back to when you first came over. What do you remember about yourself then? And what do you think the biggest and most important lessons that you've learned on your journey? I would say almost like don't, don't cheat the game. Like there's a certain way to play the game and you just got to stick with it. I think going with an on Long Island, I mean, back then, I feel like it was a lot different. Like if you're like drafted early, you have a chance to play almost right away.

And then you had to work yourself up to the first two lines. I mean, I remember I played with Jay Pondolfo and Trevor Gillies on Long Island. And they told me, once you get on the red line, you got to put the puck in deep. And then you four check and then you change. Because that was their way to play the game. And that's what they had to do to be in the league and like they it was important for them to tell me that because i couldn't do what i wanted to do because if i turn over pucks they knew they they probably gonna be the one who are gonna be out of the lineup not myself because they want me to play certain games so it was a

it was a big change over the last year to see what they did and you kind of appreciate what they did and how hard they had to work to be in the league and I think that was for me very important to to know like you gotta you gotta work hard nothing is given to you and you just gotta earn it and even now going to Nashville I know I want like a person I want to earn the spot even though it may be given to me but I want to earn it i want to show that i deserve to to be there have they told you who you're going to play with or anything like that no not really i mean we had some talks there's potential being with johansson but like i said like i want to earn that spot and i want to do whatever it takes to play with him you got to put the portland crew

together but it'll be a lot of fun i hope we still have the same connection it'll be great some things never go away n Nino. It's like riding a bicycle. Once you have it, you have it. I just want to ask you about international hockey. Certainly playing in the NHL is front and center. Here we are in Paris as part of this NHL players tour and all the players that come

through talk about how much it means to play for their country. This is true of all hockey players. You play on the Preds. When you put on the national jersey, though, how important is that? You talk about winning a Stanley Cup. What about winning a world championship,

for example? Olympics. Or Olympics. It's definitely a lot harder with Switzerland to do that, but it is always so exciting to have a chance to represent your country and going to the Olympics. I mean, playing against the best of the best

and playing with your teammates, you speak the same language or same other thing, like in Switzerland, we still speak English because I don't speak French and maybe know a little Italian. So it's still a little mixed match there.

But once you have a chance to represent your country, it's definitely something special. And I think the NHL doesn't realize how big the NHL came already in Switzerland. Everybody's following it. So I think doing gamesL doesn't realize how big the NHL came already in Switzerland. Everybody's following it. So I think doing games in Europe is definitely huge.

You're looking forward to it, I assume, eh? Absolutely. Playing in Switzerland will be extremely fun. My grandma's most likely going to come to never see me play live. Oh, really, eh? Things like that, which is going to be really exciting, yes. Is she going to wear a Predators jersey? Or is she going to wear a Swiss Niederreiter jersey?

Like what's the choice here? Honestly, I have no idea what she's going to wear, but I hope she's going to. I mean, she's 84. I hope they're both going to make it there because one of them, she hasn't even left the country ever. Really? Yeah, and the other one is traveling a little bit.

You should have brought her to Paris as your guest. I know, right? That would be hilarious. What kind of grandson are you? I know, I should your guest. I know, right? That would be hilarious. What kind of grandson are you? I know. I should have done better. No, but I thought that would be exciting. Do you remember?

I remember at the 2006 Olympics, I was in Italy when Switzerland beat Canada. I worked that game. Do you remember that game? Absolutely. Paul DiPietro scored, actually, both goals. Yeah. I do remember that. Gerber. Yeah. That was a huge moment for Swiss hockey. We were there, I remember, in my living room, we watched the game. We all couldn't believe what happened. And then the next day, the news was going bananas about that game and where is that going to go? Everybody still remembers that game.

Nino, thanks so much. Good luck in Nashville. Awesome. Thank you very much. I appreciate it. Thank you that game. Nino, thanks so much. Good luck in Nashville. Awesome. Thank you very much. Appreciate it. Thank you so much. Thank you. Kevin Fiala of the Los Angeles Kings with us here on 32 Thoughts. It always seems profound and real when you see the jersey and the nameplate

and you came in with the Los Angeles Kings jersey and there's the Fiala over there, the name bar, and it just sort of hit me like, I know you're on the Kings, but until I see that, it really feels it. Congratulations. How do you feel being an LA King? Thank you. It feels great. Like you How do you feel being an LA King? Thank you. It feels great.

Like you said, it's a shock. New team. Now in summer especially, you get traded, but you can't wear your jersey. You can't be with the teammates, with the new city and everything. So it's very exciting to get there soon. It's funny. People aren't going to see this on the audio version of the podcast,

but you come in, you're in black and white. Like you're already, like was this planned? Did you say I'm wearing black and white for this media tour? No, not at all. But it fits good. So just take us through those couple of weeks at the end of last season, Kevin, because first of all, the first round series against St. Louis was great theater. It didn't go the way that you guys wanted it to go, but it was a great series.

And then kind of what you're thinking and how things played out from Minnesota to LA. Yeah, like you said, in the playoffs, it didn't work out like we all wanted, for sure, or expected. St. Louis played great, and they were just better than us. It was a tough matchup for us. And yeah, they did a good job to just beat us after that took some vacation and chilled and kind of thinking in the back of my mind it's maybe it you know if Minnesota you have some thoughts you know

they have cap issues they had to do a lot of things to keep me and just preparing myself to to be maybe gone, you know. Was there ever a point where you thought it was ever going to work out? Like in the season? Yeah. Of course, you don't want to bounce around, you know. And I really liked it there. I love the players. It's a big, big family there. Everybody's close to each other. And in the big picture, I thought it was time to go, you know, just try something different.

So in my back of my mind it was kind of preparing myself, you know, for a trade to happen and because in Nashville I got shocked. Even if you could prepare yourself there also because it was a deadline, you were watching the TV, you know, but still it was a shock, you know, you're gone. You have to pack up the things and go and see you guys later, you know but still it was a shock you know you're gone you have to pack up the things and go and see you guys later you know you never you i'm gonna see you guys whenever you know

so it was tough now like like i said before you prepare yourself a little bit more you know you're you don't see the guys anymore because you're home you know it was a little easier to go in my view so no I don't think it was ever like a hundred percent sure I wasn't that I could stay there in Minnesota I always I was actually pretty good at like blocking it you know just play hockey and just coming into the season with a one year deal it was a little weird you know but just kind of block it just enjoy it you know it's maybe the last time i play with these guys and just enjoy it go with the flow and everything is it's going to fix itself you know and when i kind of did that the hockey part went better and better was kind of the second part you know i didn't think too, didn't pressure myself too much, and just go with the flow and enjoy the teammates, have fun.

Now, did you know LA? Because one of the things I heard was they had some time to talk to your representatives, and it didn't work. So it kind of went away, and then it came back. So did you know it would be LA? It must have been a bit of a crazy whirlwind situation. Yeah, in the start, it was a few teams interested. You know, the agent called.

And then he, from nowhere, like, he just called me. And he was like, LA has a deal done. Do you want to get there? And it was a shock, you know. I did my list, and LA was on top of that list, actually. And I was like, whoa. They were we go here we go it's it's crazy it's uh it's gonna happen and and they were like yeah but we have a i don't know how many hours it was like one day we got a we got till tomorrow on this day i was like whoa like i we just have like 30 hours or something

like there was like an exclusive trade window or something like that so it was a little pressure on me because the next day it was like two three in the morning here I had to kind of decide if I take it or not and I was yes it was like three in the morning I was half asleep and I was you were still out we know you I was... You were still out. We know you weren't sleeping. You were still out. Oh yeah.

But yeah, I didn't go through on the first, but the next day I went through and couldn't be happier to land in LA. You know, in Minnesota, you had a great season. And a lot of this was you struck up some great chemistry with Matthew Boldy. It was so much fun to watch you two play specifically what made that work a combination you know sometimes uh two players just click you know and uh that was the case kind of it was from day one you know we we played a little bit together in the in the camp but it was not a lot and uh

there i already saw this guy is good you know i hopefully hopefully he can play with me throughout the season but he broke something happened with his foot i think got sent down and then he came up and we just uh clicked you know we understand the game the same way. We want to give and go. We want to score. We want to pass. We just think the game pretty similar. He's a big boy. He wins puck battles. We were understanding each other great.

Freddy Goudreau fit in very well as well. It wasn't just us two. It was a good line. Do you see someone in LA or a couple people in LA where you say, I'm going to be able to recreate

the same chemistry that I had with Boldy because they think the similar way to Boldy does? Well, you don't know that. Yeah, it's kind of hard as a player to, even when you see players like me, you know, maybe it doesn't work at all. Me and Kaprizov, for example, we want to puck, we want to score,

and everything like that, but it didn't quite work out that well with us because both want to puck too much. So it has to fit. But in LA, for sure, I'm hoping for some chemistry and even something like me and Baldi or something even better you know and so for sure I'm hoping for that did you say I have a preference of Kopitar or Deno or anything like that no I'm gonna play with Kopitar if that's okay with you

guys oh I didn't say anything but it's to be for sure excited to play with whoever. But for me, Kopitar will be very fun. Very fun to play with him because he's in the league for a long time. He's won the Cups. He's done it all. He's a passer as well. So he sees things he can pass pass so i can maybe finish it you know that's also a part but then oh and the other hand is also you know he's a 200 foot player

fast creative can score goals like you know there's two top centers and and more who have you spoken to in los angeles i mean certainly you've talked to rob blake but i mean who else have you talked to in in la you mentioned kopitar before yeah um is he here by the way does he come over here yeah he's he was here okay but um i think he's over now and he's there and he's got kids too and all school yeah school yeah and stuff like that so but i talked to almost everybody actually like dowdy yep so you can't say that name without smiling right like i was just smiling because he's always But I talk to almost everybody, actually. Drew Doughty? Yep. So you can't say that name without smiling, right? I was just smiling because he's always chirping guys.

So it's going to be nice to be on his side. What did he say to you on the ice? Oh, no. Just, I don't know. I can't think of something, but he was always saying something. He doesn't have to be a chirp. But he's very cool with the other team. He's just a fun player to play against and uh for sure play with you know he's a funny

guy but in the other hand to play against him it's a pain in the ass because he's he's a great player so uh no i'm very excited to join him all right just the last one kaprizov what did you learn about him uh a lot. He's a machine. He never gives up. He's just unbelievable on the puck, off the puck. He works like nobody else. I feel like he's like a dog on a bone. With a puck, it's hard to knock him off the skates.

You see, he's so strong and never gives up you know if he doesn't score you can kind of feel um he's gonna score in the playoffs i felt like in against st louis nobody was going but he was he kind of always finds a way to get going to keep going i don't know he had so many chances like 10 chances in one game didn't score he finally scored in the last period or something

two goals maybe so he's like mentally very strong when he does that move where he just circles the offensive zone scans scans

scans scans it's fascinating to watch yeah fascinating it feels like he's seeing everything in slow motion

you know so great kid as well. Now I just talked about hockey, but off the ice, he's a very funny guy. You can go to dinner with him alone and you're going to have a great time with him. He's a funny guy. His English is getting better and better also.

Just a very easygoing guy. Listen, this has been a lot of fun it looks really cool that Fiala name on the back of a Kings jersey best of luck

this year with LA appreciate it guys thank you Hampus Lindholm of the Boston Bruins first of all thanks so much

for joining us today much appreciated you had quite a season still seems weird to hear Hampus Lindholm of but now you're like with you know we're playing with charlie mcavoy you know we talked so much about you know what mcavoy has underrated as many people believe he is and i think we're two people that think that mcavoy is underrated yeah i mean all

of a sudden now you can make the argument that one of the best pairs in the entire NHL is you and Charlie McAvoy. Why Boston? Why is Boston attractive to you? I mean, obviously, you signed an extension. Why Boston? I think it's just the East Coast. I want to try something new. And then the city reminds me a little bit of Europe.

And then, obviously, the team's been around forever, I think, especially now when I came there. And when you sign a contract where you really play there, live there, only visit it there, it's a little scary. But for some reason, I know Boston had interest for a period of time, so I kind of had it in the back of my head being able to get ready for it a little bit. So then when they were one of the teams pushing for me, it made the decision kind of easy.

And then now when I'm there, it just feels like the hand in the glove kind of situation yeah i spoke to someone this season um you know trade deadline is as a portuguese a few months before a trade deadline and this person said to me if anaheim moves hampus land home he's not going to go back to anaheim i said why do you say that he said he's a player that looks for new things always he's's curious. I want to live here. I want to play there. I want to try this. Hampus Lundholm is a hockey person, certainly, but he doesn't think like a lot of other hockey people do. There's almost this different curiosity that he has. What do you make of that comment?

No, I think that's a compliment because that's how I want to be known. I always strive to be better. And I think this is one of the reasons with boston they believe in me and gave me a great opportunity but i think personally the pressure that comes from my side i'm just super excited about coming into sports town and showing people what kind of player i can be and what i am and it's like you said there i'm curious about what i can actually become here in boston what legacy hopefully i can create here in boston you talked about there I'm curious about what I can actually become here in Boston and what legacy hopefully I can create here in Boston. You talked about there a little bit about signing the extension right away. How much time did you have to think about it?

Of course, it's a little scary. But then it's also you can try to look at things always from the positive side. You have someone that says they believe in you so much that they want to sign an extension for you. So in that way, it's the belief around the team for having me, it kind of made an easy decision. But it's always hard to be at one spot maybe for that long, but just knowing the organization and how they always push and strive to be the best possible team each season,

that made my decision a lot easier. Okay, so you played against them. What did you think about Brad Marchand before you got there? And then what did you think about him after you had him as a teammate? I feel like that's a question I always get. But funny thing with Marchand,

I'm not to the level like he is, but I like the competitive guys. There's always a certain guys on each team. And over my career, I've always played against other teams' top line. And there's always been a few of those guys that stand out, that used to compete and want to really, really beat you and do those little things and those

little pulls and tricks to get around and i i love that because it just brings the best out of me as well so i never had anything against marshy and that we never tried to lick you yeah that's true yeah not yet at least we'll see maybe now i got my summer here. It'll come around the corner. But no, he's a great guy and great to have on the team and super nice guy. He's a phenomenal player. One of the best players in the league. Who would you put in his class as the players who are not only talented, but they're great at getting under your skin? When I say that, I don't mean like getting under skin.

I think I focus on more just like mentality of just want to beat you. All the time. Yeah. Like obviously he brings it with the chirping and stuff too but there's a lot of other guys like i played against copitar a lot in the kings he's definitely not a guy like really talks but when you come in the corner he's just got that grit to him and wants you to dominate you try obviously never did that with me but no but it's fun it's fun to play against those guys because it's like a challenge you know i mean like as a player that's like we're talking about here curiosity coming playing against the best that makes the best i like that i like i like that thinking i like that and and that's you i remember talking to someone about you uh not too long ago who said like look in practices like this guy takes every one-on-one in practice as seriously as if it's a game yeah

like every single moment about you is i'm gonna give my best it's an intense competition always do you have any type of off switch can you turn it down and say ah you know it's a tuesday practice it's just another one-on-one who Who cares? Yeah, probably not when I put my gear on. And I think I've been better with age. But I can say my mom and I had some card moments when we walked different ways. So it's not always the best when you're that competitive with everything. But I think now when I'm older, I learned to turn it off and tone it down a little bit. But I can tell you, I try to win. Even if we were sitting here and doing rock, paper, scissors,

I would be a little bummed if I didn't beat you guys. So what cards do you play with your mom? Gin or what is it? Yeah, we have some difference. I don't know if to call it this Swedish difference, but it's probably similar.

We play all kinds of games. She always tells me a story when I was little. We would play cards and if I lose, I wouldn't talk to her for like an hour because I would be so pissed off. So I kind of brought that into me with my hockey. I don't, I, I would play cards and if I lose, I wouldn't talk to her for like an hour because I would be so pissed off. So I kind of brought that into me with my

hockey. I don't think that's a little aggressive. So I think now I've kind of toned it down. I have it at the good competitiveness level and I can let things go a little better. What's your mom's name? Petra. And who's the worst loser?

You or Petra? Probably me. I don't show it anymore, but yeah, I got a little better at it. You know, the Bruins are an interesting group because in a lot of ways, like when they were at their best, the dressing room, it kind of ran itself. Now you're there obviously after Char has gone, but Bergeron, very mature group where everybody knows kind of what's expected of them. You know, Krejci's obviously coming back.

He was a huge part of them. We talked about Marchand. You know, I wonder like when the coaches aren't in there and Bergeron and Marchand are kind of running that group, what's it like in there? Definitely coming in there, you notice right away, like you said, how the room just kind of runs itself with like Berge and Shara, like all

those guys just created that that legacy and uh it's fun to be a part of because it just kind of makes it so much easier for all of us coming in to follow the lead and do the same thing to the people that's going to come in and follow us so and just the way they treat everyone organization you just need a team to win you need a whole organization from equipment guys to staff to physios and everyone you just need to be on the same page and i think they really created that environment and you need that if you you want to win is it much different from where you what you experienced like i think my first year in and i we had the same thing the team kind of the locker room we had timo and getsy and yeah like

also kind of the same you got the same energy as i did coming to boston now it kind of the same got the same energy as I did coming to Boston now it kind of runs itself and then obviously over years guys left and the team wasn't really the same as it was my first three four years

when we were like top in the league but I think if you're a team that's top in the league I think you kind of have that some kind of in the locker room

that it kind of runs itself obviously to different degrees I think Berge takes it to a different level with Boston but it it's uh i've felt a little bit of an enemy before and it's fun to be a part of there in boston let me ask you a question about the ducks the one player i was told who you really helped like out of your way to help this season was jamie drysdale yeah did he live with you yeah no i had him live with me too your thoughts on jamie drysdale and you

know i'm you know you mentioned some of the players that were there when you were a rookie as well. I mean, Getzlaff and Perry, et cetera. But how do you help shepherd this young kid into the NHL? What did you do for Drysdale? There's a lot of things coming into the league as a young guy with coaches and pressure from all kinds of directions. And I think just kind of helping with all that

because obviously I've been going through what he's going through right now and try to just give my advices how i got through it and what i thought about then also like because we were playing together his success is my success that's how i look at it doesn't matter if i play with a guy for use a game i want to be the best deep pairing out there and try to really put that mindset into someone's head depending it doesn't matter how much you play you you want to have that mindset in every shift, and then you can get far, I think, just having that kind of mindset. And, you know, what did you think as he went through last year?

So I changed his number. Yeah. So he's got a low number now as opposed to the high number. But what did you think last year? And what did you say to him when you got traded? You owe me three months' rent? Is that what you said to him? Yeah, exactly.

Yeah. He owes me much more than that. No, so Jamie's a great kid. Super humble, super, like, couldn't ask for a better guy, young guy to have and live with me. I think I'm lucky I didn't have a C there. He's a little bit more of a troublemaker.

So lucky I got Drysdale. No, just kidding. They're both great kids. And he obviously knew the situation because he lived with me, so he was kind of part of the whole thing from a close level. And we just kind of spoke open about it.

I think it was good for him to see the way the NHL works. I think, especially him living with me, he really got the insight of all that. It takes sometimes. I've been fortunate with my teammates. Raquel was probably my closest guy since I was young in

the team we've been together for nine seasons eight seasons and that's kind of rare and now you hate him because he's in Pittsburgh exactly yeah yeah no but I think it was fun for him to just be around and see all that I think he learned a lot from first year and it's it's a tough league to come into and I think he's gonna hopefully bring that into this year to that point happens after you left there was that game in Arizona where the Ducks got pushed around yeah you must have watched it you must have seen it I was curious like you know those guys yeah what did you think yeah no it's obviously tough it's it's a tough league there's really no people that give you free points that's something I learned this league there's there's winning teams and there's losing teams and you have to be going out there with your spikes out every game because

no one gives you anything for free and that's what's so fun it's so competitive and yeah that was obviously i lost some big bodies there in the blue line so it's tough it's a change you have to adjust and i think they're gonna find their way around doing that uh listen we look forward to seeing you for a full season with the Boston Bruins. I know there's some injuries to start the season, but it's good to see the band is back together in Boston, and you're going to be a huge part of it. Hampus, thanks so much for stopping by today.

Yeah, thank you, guys. I appreciate it. Okay, I hope you enjoyed those three interviews, Nina Niederreiter, Kevin Fiala, and you just heard from Hampus Lindholm of the Boston Bruins. Quick pause. When we come back, you'll hear from Victor Olofsson of the Buffalo Sabres and New Jersey Devils captain, Nico Heischer. Nico, first of all, thanks so much for doing this.

We do want to ask you about your summer. We do want to ask about what's on the horizon for you and the New Jersey Devils, et cetera. But as you look down and see that New Jersey Devils sweater, there's a C on it there. What goes through your mind when you see that? I mean, looks good, obviously. Pretty cool.

Definitely a huge honor. I mean, I know how obviously. Pretty cool. Definitely a huge honor. I mean, I know how much it means for an organization and for a team. So definitely an honor for me to wear that. Is that one of those things that, you know, in the back, everyone has goals that they want to set for themselves, play in the NHL, score your first goal, etc. Did you ever in the back of your mind think, I'm going to captain an NHL team one day?

To be honest, for me for me no that was never really one of my goals but obviously uh like i said obviously it's a huge honor and for me it was always uh i want to win i want to be that guy that can make a difference that leads the team to that but that wasn't like necessary a goal in my head more my goals are just winning the standard cup obviously i do i'll do whatever i can to achieve that when they told me i'm going to be the new c i was obviously super excited it's an honor and uh if i wouldn't know how it felt earlier that might as well be been a goal for me but my main goal is still just winning and uh without c or c i just want to win did it change you at all like

did you find that your personality changed at all or your with that yeah uh no i don't think so i want to lead how i've been playing and uh i think or that's what people told me i got the reason why why i wear it and don't change do the same thing uh be the same same person lead your own style then that's what i'm trying i just try to go out there have my teams back do whatever i can to have a team first mentality and maybe even yeah like put my own success a little bit more in the background and do whatever i can to help the new jersey devils win hockey games and championships you know this new jersey team and i'm curious how you see yourself fitting into this. This is a New Jersey team that is transitioning

from having more older players to now having more younger players. And you're going to be surrounded by younger athletes now. Do you have to change at all? I mean, you're obviously going to evolve from one season to the next, but going into this next season, Devils are going to

get a little bit younger more skilled too how do you see your role now i mean same way i just want to be there do my thing that i've been doing uh trying to lead the team out there and apply the right way so our younger guys can follow so the whole team can follow that's what i'm trying to do with changing obviously i want to i want to be a better player next year that's uh that's for sure they'll have more impact to a game and if you do that you're helping your team and uh that's that's my goal next year and i also just off the ice as well i just want to like help the guys that come in the younger guys help them out wherever i can guys on their second year like Mercer or or guys like that just just helping these guys out and uh showing around the older guys that come in

if they need anything obviously I'm there to help and I think that's a little bit the role as well as a captain and I'm glad if I can do that and if they come up to me I'll definitely listen. So when you say you want to have more impact on the game, what are you talking about? Just all around. Being more productive offensively, but being more feared defensively as well. So that's my goal.

See, I don't... It's funny, I was talking to someone last week about you, and this person said, I don't think he gets the credit that he deserves for how well he plays defensively five on five. He said, I don't think he gets a credit that he deserves for how well he plays defensively five on five. He said, if you peel all the numbers away. He was your mother. No one related to you. I said like, look, he's amongst the best players in the NHL defensively

five on five. And I was like, I want to produce more offense, but not at the expense of. Like when you talk like that, and if I'm your coach, I'm loving what I'm hearing, because that's the mentality that wins championships. Do you believe that? I definitely take a lot of pride in my defense league game, because when I was younger, I was just offensively until Coach Bessie told me,

hey, I feel like modern hockey, if you're both ways, it's good. That's a really impact player right there on a team and uh defensively uh you get less credit than uh offensively but i don't care i would say i don't care if i get credit or not that for me it's just uh if i can have a strong defensively game i'll help my team win it's the same uh They're always like these that are more stay-at-home Ds or Ds that are offensively. And the stay-at-home Ds are as important as the guys that go up front, but they just get less credit.

I'm a guy that recognizes that. People that understand hockey recognize that, and that's all that matters. I always describe me as a two-way player. When I came in, when I was in Halifax, I worked on that. And that's why I take a lot of pride in it to be effective on both side of the ice and that coach can put me on the ice if you run up or run down, it doesn't matter. I watched you tons in Halifax and you and Maxim Fortier together was, I mean, it was puck on a

string with you two guys. Is there a part of you that says like man it would be a lot of fun to be able to go back and play hockey like that again because I mean you two guys kind of dominated definitely it was a little easier than that no I mean I had a great time in Halifax great group great coach and the organization yeah they all I could ask for it was just a fun experience for me i could develop me as a player really good i could get adjusted to the smaller eyes to the traveling to more games all that and uh but definitely happy where i am i don't i'm good with one year and uh i want to play hockey on the highest level and that's where i'm at and that's where i want to play hockey on the highest level. And that's where I'm at.

And that's where I want to stay. Listening to you talk about the defensive side of the game, I would bet you had a real appreciation for Mason McTavish in overtime for Canada. What did you think when you saw that? 100%. I saw the whole shift. So I think it was a little mistake up front.

But gets back, digs it out by himself. And right there, that's a by himself. And that's right there. That's a character move. And goes back and right there makes that huge save. And fair enough, after that, they get the OT winner. And if I would be on the team, definitely would run first up to the goal scorer, but immediately turn up to him and say,

that's huge. I can see for a guy like you looking at that and saying, because just as a viewer, I thought that was one of the greatest plays I've ever seen. 100%. Like I said, I definitely would, as an excitement, you run to the goal scorer. For me, immediately the thought would come up to go up to him and say,

yeah, that's safe. That's the game. That's what I definitely would do. It feels like the New Jersey Devils are really close to taking a big step here. How do you feel about that? I'm on your page. I was definitely disappointed last year.

I felt we could do more, and we did not have an easy season with injuries, especially also in our goalies. So that's definitely something I'm looking forward to next year. We have really good goalies, but hopefully everybody stays healthy. But I know during a season players get hurt, but I just feel like if we as a group can stay together

and play on a longer stretch, we can be a dangerous team. And that's why I was really disappointed last year. So even more with all the new players we get in this year, I'm even more excited for this year. And touch wood, like I said, hopefully we stay healthy and I'm sure we can be a dangerous team. How much did you follow Jesper Brat's situation in the offseason?

Yeah, I mean, obviously I was in contact with him can be dangerous how much did you follow jesper bratt's situation in the offseason yeah i mean obviously i was in contact with him and uh i was i'm was definitely happy that they uh figured it out and uh made the one-year deal because yeah i mean everybody saw bratters a huge part of our team huge part of our offense and uh definitely he's a guy too that wants to win and uh we need players like that and i think uh you build up a good team with with players that want to win and uh with like similar mindset to me like you you you need players in the team that are not selfish that are always uh do the job for the team and not look for their own success. And that's how, how you build up a winning

team. That's what I believe in. Last one for me, Nico. Okay. This is the real stuff. Who is the most high maintenance player on the devils to deal with as captain? And who is the most low maintenance player

to deal with? What do you mean with maintenance? Like you have to deal with them the most. Like when we, we joke in, in like people we work with, if you're high maintenance, you always have to deal with them the most. Like when we joke and like people we work with, if you're high maintenance, you always have to deal with them. They've always got something. That's like Elliot at our show.

Yeah. And low maintenance is you never have to worry about them. They've always got everything taken care of. Good question. I would say low, definitely bratter. Oh yeah. Okay.

I could see it. Swede. Yeah. Swede's are low maintenance. He's everything under control, even at home, at the rink, everywhere. So Bradder and Hype, I would say probably Blackie Blackwood. Oh really, eh? Blackwood, yeah, I've been talking to Blackwood a little bit last year,

and he's obviously a funny guy, But yeah, I would say Blackie. It was a tough year for him. Obviously, 100%. Yes. So as the captain, how do you manage that? Because he's a heck of a goalie. He had a really hard year for a lot of different reasons. How do you manage that as the captain?

Yeah, just being there for him, telling him, hey, I'm in between. Hey, I'm here as a friend not like if you're my teammate or whatever like just talk to me and like yeah it was definitely not not easy for him uh this year mentally and with with his injury going on we definitely had uh good talks and uh kind of want to keep those talks uh private but uh we definitely had good talks and i'm really looking forward to see him uh next year in the net. So you're saying he has a big year this year?

I'm calling, yeah. He has a big year. Nico, thanks for this. No problem. Victor Olofsson of the Buffalo Sabres, thanks so much for joining us today. How's your off-season been? Yeah, no, it's been great.

I've been golfing a lot. I've been to Scotland and Portugal playing golf too yeah no it's been great uh i've been been golfing a lot i've been to scotland and portugal playing golf too so it's been good it's your girlfriend's father right who's a heck of a golfer and you're a good golfer so there's a bit of a rivalry here explain this uh he's a very good golfer and he's uh i said we just had a club championship where he beat me, I think, with 12 shots or something like that. So I didn't have a good day. Is it match play or is it just – No, it's – so you play two rounds.

So you play 18 and then you grab some lunch and then you head out for another 18. So it's a tough day, but it's fun. No, wait. So here's the bigger question. Who does your girlfriend cheer for, you or her dad? I hope she cheers for me, but I don't know. Very diplomatic answer.

Well done. You had a really nice season and really turned it on by the end. At the end of the season, there's Victor Olofsson with 20 goals, again, for the Buffalo Sabres and a career-high 49 points, I want to say. How would you evaluate your season? How did you think it went? Overall, I'm pretty satisfied. I had a great start.

I think my first eight games, and then I had a minor injury that kept me out for a while. And then coming back, I couldn't really find my level again. I feel like I struggled for a bit there in the middle part of the season, but eventually I think I finished pretty strong the last 30 games or so. So a lot of ups and downs like it usually is, but I'm pretty pleased with the season. I think you could say a lot for the Sabres same, like last 30 games.

Your division has kind of been Tampa, Toronto, Florida, Boston, but you guys look better. Ottawa looks better. Detroit certainly spent money. Are you guys going in this year with the idea of it's time to break up that quartet yeah absolutely um i feel like just the way we finished last year or even the second half of of last year was was very exciting um and we played some good hockey against uh some some of the top teams in the league i feel like we we did take a step uh last year and and gonna continue on doing that this year you guys really because there are two games one was the outdoor game another it was a game in Toronto. Buffalo-Toronto is a big rivalry. And you guys seem to really like beating Toronto in those two games. Oh, yeah, for sure.

It's probably my favorite games to play. The atmosphere during those games. And it's usually pretty wide open, offensive hockey, a lot of goals. So it's definitely very definitely uh very fun playing against toronto and uh even more fun beating him you know there's so many players on your team that are impressive um we're talking off here a little bit about tage thompson and just the visual of a player that big playing center and doing great uh at it um rasmus dalin has been fantastic who's impressed you from your team like who do you look at and you go, ooh, okay, this player's taking a step here?

I mean, Tej definitely last year took a massive step and they moved him from the wing. What did you think of that? Because I first saw like, you make Tej Thompson a center? Yeah, I mean, it was, I feel like a lot of people was feeling that way before the season, but I mean, he kind of proved everyone wrong.

And a big guy like that with the hands he's got is pretty impressive to see. And I think he's going to continue on getting better. When power showed up, like sometimes professional athletes are difficult to impress. You hear that there's a really talented young player coming and you're like let's see how long did it take until the

Sabres realized that this was something special I think the first game um you just saw some things he did out there during uh he had a couple guys on his back and still managed to find someone wide open in the middle. Just a small place like that makes a big difference. Pretty impressive to see in his first games with us. So I think that kind of shows what kind of player he is. He's not far from Darlene in that aspect, where he can make plays that many defensemen don't usually make. So it was pretty cool to see.

Do veteran players kind of look at each other in a game like that? I guess that one was in Toronto. They look at each other and say, okay, we've got something. Yeah, definitely. I mean, at some points, guys are just laughing at the bench

when they're doing stuff like that. It's pretty funny, but yeah, for sure. You know, Buffalo was a relatively quiet team in the offseason. The Ottawa Senators looking to take that next step and get into that group that Elliot was talking about. They made some aggressive moves. The Detroit Red Wings made some aggressive moves as well. How do the players feel about Buffalo?

It wasn't the busiest summer for Kevin Adams. How does that sit with the Sabres? I feel like we're really comfortable with the group we got at the moment. And I don't think they want to stir that up too much. Just the way we finished last year. And most of our core are very young players. And I think they just kind of want to let the young guys keep on developing. And I think it's going to be a smart move in the long run.

This is a market that's had a lot of challenges and had a lot of frustrations. And listen, Elliot and I both grew up in southwestern Ontario and grew up watching not just Maple Leaf games, which were available everywhere, but also watching Buffalo Sabres games. And we think back to the era of the French Connection and then Danny Gare and all these other, Dominic Hasek and that era of Buffalo Sabres team. When you talk to fans, how do they talk to you about your team? Like there was a lot of frustration there. I get it. We all understand that. How are they feeling about the team now? Now that they're seeing some reason for optimism, whether it's yourself, whether it's, you mentioned, Tate Thompson, Rasmus Dallino, and Power.

How do fans feel in Buffalo right now? I feel like they're pretty excited. I think we kind of got them back a little bit with the way we finished last year. Obviously, it's been a tough few years here for the fans. They haven't seen playoffs hockey in Buffalo for a long time. But I think we kind of bring something to be excited about. And just the way we play.

We really play a high-tempo game. And we play for each other. And we're a hard-working team. So I think they're getting pretty excited again. We all know about the Jack Eichel situation. Was it tough to play this year at the Sabres with that Eichel situation sort of hanging over the team before the deal finally got made? We managed it very well in the team. We didn't put any energy into it.

We just let the management do that. And yeah, eventually when it came to a solution, I mean, it was what it was. Obviously, we did get a lot of questions about Jack and this and that, but I feel like it didn't take too much energy from the team. It didn't bother us too much. Did Tuck coming in, did that change a lot? Yeah, he's a great guy and a good leader on our team. I feel like he was a really good guy that we missed on a team,

a big, powerful winger that could do everything. He was very good for most parts of last year, so it's really exciting having a guy like that on the team. And a local boy. Yeah, I mean, he's been a Sabres fan his whole life, so both for him and the fans, it's pretty exciting to have a guy like that. The other key piece to that deal is, of course, Peyton Krebs. What did you make of him?

He's a very talented young guy. He can make some really slick passes out there, and he's also a very hardworking guy, a fun guy to be around. So the guys that came in was really good for us, and we're happy to have them. I wanted to ask you a little bit about yourself and your shot. Like, when people ask about Victor Olsen, the number one thing they mention is the shot.

You know, there's young people out there, they're going to say, how can I shoot a puck like that? So I guess the question I have for you is, how can a young person, a young hockey player, shoot a puck like that? I feel like it's just practicing, obviously. shoot a puck like that um i feel like it's just uh practicing obviously um just continue to um shoot pucks before and after practice and my uh i had my dad as a coach growing up and he uh kind of forbid me and my my older brother to take slap shots um so we just kept kept working

on our wrist shot is that because you want to buy new sticks all the time yeah probably no he uh i think it's just he said we're wingers it's not gonna we're not gonna have time uh when we get older to fire a lot of slap shots so um we just kept working on the wrist shots and eventually it got better and better how many pucks a day? I mean, at home it could be probably a couple of hundred in the summer. Just went out there for an hour, just kept shooting and shooting. So it's probably been a lot of pucks. How was your dad as a coach? Very good. I had him from I started playing until I was 14, I think.

Wow. Yeah, he's helped me tremendously with everything. He's been a great role model, and he's someone I look up to very much. And yeah, he was very honest with me. Didn't put too much pressure on me, but very honest with things I had to work on and get better on. And so I think I had the perfect coach growing up. Obviously, games happen in the middle of the night in in sweden when you're done a game will there be a text message from him or anything

like that he's i think he's always if it's uh during the weekdays he's uh he's always uh going up early and he's not looking at the score and he just re-watched the game. He's kind of watching it live, but he usually calls me before I go to sleep or even the next morning. We usually talk after every game. He's a big hockey fan, so he doesn't miss a lot of games. That's amazing. That's great.

This has been great. Victor, thank you so much for stopping by. Good luck this year with the Sabres. Thank you. Appreciate it. I want to thank all those players for making themselves available. Nico Hicher,

Victor Olofsson, Kevin Fiala, Hampus Lindholm, Nino Niederreiter. It was a real treat to go to Paris to interview these hockey players. We appreciate their time.

In a very relaxed setting, by the way, I've always maintained the best place to interview European hockey players is in Europe. Just relaxed

and conversational. We had a great time. Taking us out today, an artist from Los Angeles who began making his own music during his high school days. Warren Tin, a.k.a. Warner, would go on to build his own studio in his backyard, crafting every melody and beat. From his 2019 summer mixtape EP, here's Warren Tin with Bitter on 32 Thoughts, the podcast.

Enjoy. I told the baby boy I like to live outside the house It takes the better sins to make me feel myself sometimes She's got her bells around my neck No time to feel alive, I know she's right She's got a job, she owns her own supply Now I ain't the sharpest tool in the shed She says I ain't the hardest thing in the bed Outro Music