Halford & Brough in the Morning - Ryan Gauld & Manny Malhotra

Episode Date: September 17, 2024

In hour three, Mike & Jason chat with Whitecaps attacking midfielder Ryan Gauld (1:59) about his season thus far, as well as his upcoming international play for Scotland, plus the boys chat with Abbotsford Canucks head coach Manny Malhotra (23:03) on the Young Stars tourney, as well as the upcoming season for Abby. This podcast is produced by Andy Cole and Greg Balloch. The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Media Inc. or any affiliate.

8.03 on a Tuesday. Happy Tuesday, everybody. Halford, bro. Sportsnet 650. the hour mark. The Whitecaps have their lead. 803 on a Tuesday. Happy Tuesday, everybody. Halford, bro. Sportsnet 650. Did Ryan Gull score for the 1930s Whitecaps or something? Sometimes. And the Whitecaps won. Sometimes putting highlights over music works. In other sports news,

the Black Sox are out. Vancouver, 1936. What a scandal. The Whitecaps get the lead. Then there's what's happening right now, where it's a little awkward. You are listening to the Halford and Brough show on Sportsnet 650.

How's that brass go? That was pretty good, eh, Doug? Halford and Brough for the morning is brought to you by Vancouver Honda, Vancouver's premier destination for Honda customers. They have a friendly,

knowledgeable staff that can help with anything you're looking for. Sales, financing, the prohibition, or parts. We are coming to you live from the Kintec studio. Kintec Canada. The Kintec speakeasy. I want orthotics.

Delivered by a bowling ball. One orthotics coming right up. Kintec Canada's favorite orthotics provider, powered by thousands of five-star Google reviews. Sore feet? What are you waiting for? Sore feet is also a code word. That's right.

You got sore feet? Yeah, I need a drink. I got sore feet. Why are you winking at me? Sore feet. Okay, let's get serious here, guys. This is a serious radio program, okay? It's not.

It's not, in the slightest. Whitecaps are in action tomorrow, looking to continue their good run of form in Houston. And then on the weekend, the second of a two-match roadie. 7.30 kickoff on Saturday in L.A. against the Galaxy. Joining us now, the captain of your Vancouver Whitecaps, Ryan Gould, here on the Halford & Brough Show on Sportsnet 650. Good morning, Ryan. How are you?

Morning, guys. How are we doing? We're good. Thanks for taking the time to do this. We really appreciate it. And to start, belated congrats on getting back into the fold with the Scottish national team and getting a couple caps in the most recent international window. I know you came on the show before and I said I will stand in line and try and get your Canadian passport all sorted out if the Scotland thing doesn't work out. So despite this, I am very happy

for you that you were able to get back in the mix and you were able to get back on the pitch with Scotland. What did it feel like to get back in the mix and be able to get into both those matches in the most recent international window? Must have felt good. Yeah, it was great just to be back in amongst it

and to get the opportunity to be there again. Yeah, I was delighted to finally make my first appearance. Albeit the results weren't great for us, it was just really good on a personal level for me to be back involved. And hopefully there's a few more to come. How did you feel about your performance? Because I know in the first match, it was a short stint.

It came out in the 70th minute, if I'm not mistaken. But a great chance creation. You ended up having a couple in the match. And I know from reading on Twitter and then reading some of the post-match analysis, a lot of people were very impressed with the impact you were able to make on the match. How did you feel about your impact? Yeah, I feel I've done okay.

I'm always the kind of guy to try and get on the ball and try and create but it was a pretty open game to come onto so there was a good bit of space and I would say it was a more enjoyable game to come on to, so there was a good bit of space.

Yeah, I would say it was a more enjoyable game to come on to than the second one against Portugal. So I'm not sure if you're aware of this or not. You probably are, but I think we were ranking the most popular teams in Scotland right now, and it's Celtic Rangers, then the Vancouver Whitecaps, because every time that you and Stuart Armstrong do something now, there's multiple reports being like, Scotland's team and MLS. What's it like

being reunited with Stuart Armstrong? Obviously, you guys connected for that great team goal on Saturday against San Jose. Yeah, it's great to have Stuart here. It's been a long time since we played together back in the Dundee United days, but yeah, it's great to have him here.

He's a really good player who's going to give us a lot in this last push before the playoffs. And then, you know, when the playoffs come, he's a great player to have to boost the squad. And, you know, not just that, just to have another good guy around the dressing room and just, yeah, another great piece that the club's managed to add. For the listeners that might be unfamiliar with Stewart's game,

what is it that he brings to the table and can bring you guys, as you mentioned, as you get closer to the end of the regular season and then the playoffs? Because he's a very versatile player. He's done a lot over the course of his career, but we've only seen him in small snippets so far. So what can we expect moving forward from Stuart Armstrong? Yeah, he's a great drive from midfield.

He can carry the ball really well. As you've seen in the weekend game, he can produce the final product as well. He's a creative kind of midfielder that likes to get on the ball and try and control the pace of the game. I think he's going to fit in really well to the way

we want to play. Once he gets his match fitness up to 100%, I'm sure he's going to do really good things for us. We're speaking to Whitecaps midfielder Ryan Gauld here on the Halford & Brough Show on Sportsnet 650. Ryan and the Whitecaps are in action tomorrow night in Houston to continue a good run of form.

It has been a good run as of late, Ryan. Been very tight defensively, not a goal allowed over the last four matches. To what do you owe this new sort of defensive responsibility? Because the attacking prowess has always been there. You guys have been able to find the back of the net, but clean sheets with regularity as of late. What do you owe your new defensive prowess?

Yeah, I do think it comes from, you know, all the boys playing. The more minutes they play together, the more comfortable everyone is in terms of, you know, positioning and relationship on the pitch. We're at a great stage now to manage those four games. I think it's not just, like they say, with attacking well,

it's not just the guys up top, it's the whole team. It's the same again defensively. Everyone puts in a shift to make sure we try not to concede. I mean, we went a long time without a clean sheet, so to get four in a row now is a good feeling for the boys, and

hopefully something we can carry on to end the season and into the playoffs. As the leader and the captain of the club, where's your confidence level in the group right now? Because you're firmly in a playoff spot. There's been some good results as of late. And I think there's a real want from everyone that follows this team,

and I'm sure you guys in the room, to not just get into the postseason, but try and make something happen when you're there. Where's your confidence level that the Whitecaps can do that this season yeah i think um i think this team's in the in the best position um the strongest position that we've been in since i've been a part of the club um and yeah like you said um we don't just want just making the playoffs. That's not enough for this group and for this club. We need to be seriously challenging to get to, firstly, the conference final and then the cup final. Two out of my three years here that we've made it to the playoffs,

we've been beating the first round. So that's not enough for us. that we've made it to the playoffs we've been uh we've been beating the first round so um you know that's not that's not enough for for us and everyone's got that drive to uh make sure we we really compete this year and um i think everyone's also got the the same confidence as i do in the group that uh we're more than capable of reaching that stage. Is the idea of the playoffs in the North American style of the playoffs, does that take some getting used to for players that come over from Europe and the big deal is winning the league there, at least with your club champion, at least with your club,

and then you come to North America and people are like, yeah, regular season, get into the playoffs, but then this is when the real season starts. Yeah, it's obviously different. You know, it kind of, not to say it makes the regular season meaningless, but it makes a lot of the games, you know, if you lose or if you drop points, it's not the end of the world. Whereas in every other league, you need to be picking up points every week.

So yeah, there's that side to it. But that's the way it's done here. We're all used to it. I guess it's kind of exciting once we get to the playoffs. It's just elimination. So it's got that so it's it's got that you know exciting side to it so um you know hopefully when when the playoffs come we'll be in in top form so now that you've uh you're representing your your country at the international level um

you can join this fray of soccer players, elite soccer players that are complaining about all the games that they have to play. What do you actually think of this? Because I do sometimes think about all the responsibilities the top players in the world have, and a lot of them are pushing back at all the games that they need to play. I think it was Rodri, the most latest, who was like, we might go on strike soon. And so just some of your thoughts about, you know, what's it been like for you in the last, you know, month or so having to travel over to Europe and then come back to North America and you got to start playing and you've got MLS regular season, you got Canadian championships

and then you'll have the playoffs and, you know, it must... Leagues Cup. Oh, right, the Leagues Cup. Right, yeah. All the competitions that guys like you, the top players in the world, have to play in. Yeah, it's tough. There's a lot of games.

It feels like every year there's always more. But I can only imagine. That's me saying that with the competitions we've got. I mean, I can only imagine the guys in the Premier League, the number of games they have to play. It's almost like 11 months of a game every three days. It is a lot. It's a lot to put on players' bodies.

I think that's why there's a big increase in injuries as well because of the number of games everyone's playing and it's wearing their bodies down. I definitely think in the European side more than for ourselves, there's a lot of fixtures and it all adds up

and it takes a toll on everyone's bodies at the end of the day. We're speaking to Whitecaps midfielder Ryan Gauld here on the Halford & Brough show on Sportsnet 650. Ryan, I've always meant to ask you this. When you first came aboard in Vancouver, your manager wasn't Vanni Sartini. It was actually Mark DeSantos and then he was dismissed

not that long after your arrival and then all of a sudden you get this very demonstrative, flamboyant jeans-wearing manager with the Italian hand gestures and everything and we've had Vanni on the show a number of times he's you know fascinating to talk to really interesting guy very high energy what's it been like being managed by Vanni for the length of time that you have and he's been in this job for a lot longer I would say than I think a lot

of us expected when he first took over on an interim basis from Mark DeSantos. Yeah, I mean, it's been good. It's been, like you said, different from a lot of other manager styles. But, you know, he's really managed to get the group together and got us playing in a way that's, again, it's different. You don't see a lot. So, yeah. It's been really good to work under.

He brings a lot of energy in training and at the games. It's been a lot of fun to be a part of. Ryan, this was great, man. Thanks for taking the time to do this. We really appreciate it. Best of luck in Houston on Wednesday and then against the Galaxy in

Los Angeles on Saturday. Cheers, man. Thanks very much. Yeah, thank you. That's Ryan Gauld, Whitecaps midfielder here on the Halford and Brough show on Sportsnet 650. I should have asked him. I'm like, how do you think Vanny would do managing Hibbs or Motherwell or Ross County, one of the lower tier teams in Scotland

on a rainy December night away at Kilmarnock. His jeans would really be stuck to him then. Away at Kilmarnock, just doused in this wet denim. Oh, man. It is funny that he's lasted as long as he has. Yeah. Because I remember when he first came aboard. He was just the guy who was probably thought of as just the caretaker manager

he has i can't i wish i could remember the actual title that he had because he was in he was like the director and beverage no it wasn't like that close it was like football methodology like he was there as a sort of philosopher philosopher kind of like a thinker of the game like right this is the idea that we want to implement in the club, not a day-to-day tactics manager type guy. He was more than... And he's just sitting in a room by himself thinking about soccer. What are you doing, Vinny?

Working. Yeah, and then he's like, why? Yeah, so it's interesting. But anyway, the Whitecaps are in action, as mentioned, against Houston tomorrow night, and then a big game on Saturday against the Galaxy in Los Angeles. Okay, we're going to talk to Manny Malhotra in about 15 minutes, so let's do some really quick listener what we learned

into the Dunbar-Lumber text line at 6.50, 6.50. Laddie, let's print them off. Print them off. Do the whole thing you do. I don't know. Don't dismiss it. Oh, my God! We're having a fire!

I'm dismissive. We got some titles here. Spanky the Trainee Escort from Pender Island. What I learned, I learned that my on-the-fly podcasting editing skills

are unmatched. I cut out anything to do with the NFL, basketball, golf, EPL, and baseball, except Adnan because he cracks me up.

And I can cut down the runtime of your show by at least half. I also found that if I edit out bruffing anywhere that starts with the letter H, I can get it down to a tidy 45 minutes. Now, we should be insulted by that text because we can make anything interesting. It's true. But I also understand that's one of the advantage of the podcasts. And I am a big skipper-a-header when I'm listening to podcasts too. Skipper-a-header. Yeah, yeah.

How about skip-a-header? Skipper-a-header. Cat. You heard the man. He's a big skipper-a-header. I don't listen to podcasts. Yeah, if I'm not interested. I don't listen to podcasts. Well, just even'm not interested. I don't listen to podcasts.

Well, just even YouTube videos. You know, you just hit the arrow and it goes ahead 20 seconds. I do like that double click. He sees a cue with a break in it. Yeah, that's enough. Skips right in. Yeah. Skipper header.

At least he doesn't do the Bic thing and watch his movies at one and a half speed. Oh, that's brutal. That is so bizarre. I know. That is. It stayed with me. It's haunted me since he told me this. That actually makes me concerned about what type of human being

he is. It's true. It's very true. What are you trying to... Okay, so what are your goals in watching a movie? To get through it. To get through it? First of all, is Bic that busy?

The B in Bic stands for busy. I understand maybe if you're trying to listen to a podcast, you want some information. Boom, boom, boom. You want some information. Or just background noise or whatever. But if it's a movie, hopefully, if it's a good one,

you're getting invested in it. Yeah. Not wanting to skip through it. Luke, I'm your father. Right? Say it again. Slow down. Yeah.

Don't do it out there. It's not right. This movie's great. Gets really quick. Actually, I'd watch Star Wars at one and a half speed. That'd be fun. I got a What We Learned from Colin N. Tawasin. Hashtag WWL What We Learned.

I learned that the Pittsburgh Penguins are such brilliant negotiators that not only do they get Sidney Crosby's hockey playing services for just $8.7 million per year, he's also now their season tickets courier. Yeah. I mean, it was. That's where that audio off the top came from. There was no, it wasn't a quinky dink yesterday that, oh, Sid's going to be delivering season ticket packages today. We might want to call some local reporters and have them out and about. Feels like they've had this done for a while

now. Yeah. I mean, it was carefully orchestrated. I respect it. How pissed do you think Sid is that they didn't get it done on 8-7? That was my thing. Yeah. I was like, why are they not August the 7th? 8-month, 7th day. Usually that's when they announce his deals. Why not?

Why did they wait until now? What's the significance of September 16th? Trouble in paradise. The signing at 870 in the morning. Would have been perfect. Jerry rigging clocks. How do we get extra digits in here?

910? It won't go to 7. Sid's actually got this sickness. It has to be to seven. I can't do it. Sid's actually got, like, this sickness. It has to be eight, seven. This is his apartment. Eight, seven wallpaper. That's the number everyone... I do find that...

I feel like that's a massive negotiating advantage you've got over Sid when everything has to have 8.7. That's what I'm saying. That's why his agent's probably like a chain smoker. He's like, oh, come on, Sid. You're killing me, man. Nick on the drive. Hashtag WWLwo what we learned the mets have installed

a commemorative seat for grimace at city field after going 53 and 31 since he threw the first pitch on june 12th do you see it i didn't see this big purple seat so in case you missed it so is it is an honorary seat can anyone sit in it yeah is it wider i mean it's grimace no no no it's just it's reserved for grimace it's sir we've. No, no, no. It's reserved for Grimace. Sir, we've got a special seat to get a man of your care. That is Grimace's seat. Oh, I'm stuck behind Grimace again. I can't see the game. So remember we were talking about this when it happened.

And then we kind of, like most things on our show, we kind of got tired of it or we just got distracted. There was a shiny new toy. Oh, it's a New York match. Who cares? They're going to go to the playoffs potentially on the strength of Grimace

or Grimace as he's known in Italy. They got a one game lead on the Braves for the final wildcard spot. Yeah, I think the Braves got hammered last night by the way.

Did they have a good time? Yeah, they had fun. They lost the game but they had fun. Does anyone catch the score of the game? Are we still in second? Tambo and East Van,

what we learned, what I've learned is that after watching last year's Canucks team, I will walk through hell or high water for Rick Talkett. So I too will be embracing the hard this season. Whatever he embraced last season

actually worked. So how about we ride this out, keep the giggling to a minimum, and just trust the man. Hashtag ETH, which means embrace the hard. Okay, serious question, though. Do you think Talk It will show up to training camp with an embrace the hard shirt? I don't want to go really hard.

I want to go medium hard. I get to what Tambo's saying, but Tambo, don't worry. We're doing the same thing we did last year. We talked a lot about, we made fun of meat pressure with pressure, but in a way that we agree with it. It was just hilarious that we heard it so many times. It's like propaganda at this point. I stand by what I said yesterday. Well, if you say it enough over and over again,

it gets stuck in their head, right? You have to embrace the hardness. It's going to get really hard. Halford, you'd be the worst propagandist. I don't think you need... You need slogans. I don't think you need a slogan.

It's like Marge to Bart, right? This town is a part of us all, a part of us all, a part of us all. Wow, that really works. There's a real TED Talk-esque vibe to having the slogans, right? Also, like the self-help books.

Listen, low- energy halford over here that could be the name of my book you keep saying that enough and people are like god god doesn't bring much energy to the show pretty low energy halford pretty low energy uh okay we got to go to break because we're going off the rails and we got to talk to manny melhotra coming up next uh i will oh someone's and we're also getting like advanced numerology into the Dunbar Lumber text message in basket. Someone pointed out 916, 9 minus 1 and 1 plus 6 is an 8 and a 7. Oh, my God. That's not Sidney Crosby texting in.

That's very problematic. Do you think that's why he did it? I don't. It's like, OK, we couldn't get this done on August 7th, so I have an idea. Guys, wait for it. His agent's just like, dude, you're killing me. You're killing me.

Okay, and before we go to... If we miss this window, we're screwed. Before we go to break, I need to tell you about JanPro, the leaders in commercial cleaning and janitorial. If your workplace demands a clean environment, contact JanPro for the leaders in commercial cleaning and janitorial. If your workplace demands a clean environment, contact JanPro

for a free no-obligation quote. Visit them online at janpro.ca. Coming up, head coach of your Abbotsford Canucks, former Vancouver Canuck, Manny Malhotra. That's next on the Halford & Brough Show

on Sportsnet at 6.50. Next in left gear, Malhotra hits for by Max Lapierre 2-0 Vancouver 8.31 on a Tuesday Happy Tuesday everybody Halford Brough, Sportsnet 650. Halford Brough in the morning is brought to you by Vancouver Honda,

Vancouver's premier destination for Honda customers. What were those guys doing on the ice at the same time? It was a 3C and a 4C out there. Yeah, what game was that from? Do you have it? I'll have to pull it back up. Yeah, find it. It was a beautiful diving goal.

Yeah, find it for us. Be curious. Halford Brough in the morning, Vancouver Honda. They have a friendly, knowledgeable staff that can help with anything you're looking for. Sales, financing, service, or parts. We are in Hour 3 of the program. Normally, this is what we

learn in time, but Abbotsford Connect's head coach, Manny Malhotra, is going to join us in just a moment here. The highlight of Hour 3. Hour 3 is brought to you by Campbell & Pound Real Estate Appraisers. Trust the expertise of Campbell & Pound. Visit them on the internet at campbell-pound.com today. Yes, Greg?

February 18th, 2012. The opponent was? The Toronto Maple Leafs. That was on James Reimer. Nice. Good pull. That was a good win. That was a good win.

That was a good win. I remember that one fondly. To the phone lines we go. The head coach of the Abbotsford Canucks, Manny Melhotra, joins us now on the Halford & Brough Show on Sportsnet 650. Morning, Manny. How are you? Very well, guys. Thanks for having me.

Thanks for coming on and taking the time to do this. This head coaching gig's pretty easy, eh? Three games, three wins, no problem. Good start up in young stars for you and the rest of the young Canucks. Let's just start big picture here. What were some of your takeaways from the weekend that was? I was impressed. Obviously, we brought some veteran guys to Penticton, some guys who had experience. So that was definitely beneficial to the group,

just in terms of the way they performed and the way they carried themselves. So that right off the bat helped a lot. but i was really impressed with the the way they were able to uh implement the structure that we had talked about obviously it's a real quick turnaround uh we get one practice and a morning skate and we hit the ground running kind of thing so three games in four nights they were really able to implement uh the structure and the systems that we wanted um And that was a big part of why we were successful, I felt. Let's run through some of the individual performances here because a lot of our listeners are keen to hear what you had to think

about some of the guys that were out there. Let's start with Jonathan Lechermacki. I was listening to some audio following the game yesterday. You were very complimentary of his play, not just in that final win, but throughout the three wins in the tournament. What did you see from Lekker or Mackey that impressed you the most? Well, right away, game one,

playing with Rats and Babes, he did not look out of place one bit. You know, he was calm, touches. He made some really good plays, had some good attempts at net. So for him just to hop right into the mix and feel right at home was impressive for me. And then as the tournament went on, each game he had some real flares up, real flair. And, you know, he was able to jump into holes and execute some plays where you kind of take a step back and say,

wow, that was pretty exceptional skill level. But for the most part, he was steady throughout the whole weekend. Arshdeep Bain's a guy that, you know, you talk about the veteran presence is there, has some NHL experience, a lot of experience in the American League. What are the challenges for a guy like that who's going to have higher expectations and more expected are the challenges for a guy like that who's going to have higher expectations and more expected of him going into a tournament like that

because of his experience, being able to match that and put forth the kind of performance that most would expect to see from a guy with that kind of experience? Well, you have to manage expectations, number one. Obviously, you would love for your top-end guys to walk away from a three-game set with three, four, five points, six points. But it's obviously not that easy. For me, Bainsey had a really good weekend in terms of his level of compete.

He won a ton of puck battles, made some really intelligent plays. Between him and Rats. Obviously, they were solid for us over the three games. So from a points standpoint, it wasn't a great weekend for him. But in terms of him getting up and running and now ready for main camp, I thought he had a good weekend. How much did you know about Atiratu's game prior to taking this gig with the Canucks? And what do you know about it now that Young Stars is in the books?

Obviously, just watching video over the course of summer, you get a sense of his game. But that's only a part of the picture. Getting to know the individual around the rink and off the ice, you see he is's a consummate professional like he's a he's a very intelligent player front of the line in every practice drill um knows what's expected very very intelligent when you talk to him uh about systems and what's expected of him um and then on the ice again very reliable knows where to be um and then between the the three of them like a they had some some elite touches some some really crisp entries and and almost for connected for some some opportunities but he uh he was impressive as well for me yeah he's such an interesting

case study because he's still only 21 years old but he's done a ton like he turned pro at 16 he made the junior team at 17 he's already played a bunch of nhl not a bunch but he's still only 21 years old, but he's done a ton. He turned pro at 16. He made the junior team at 17. He's already played a bunch of NHL. Well, not a bunch, but he's played a handful of NHL games, and now he's sort of back at this stage. What were some of the smaller nuances or anecdotal things that you saw that the professionalism that you're talking about and the package that he already brings to the table

despite only being 21 years old. Well, it, it does take a lot. I mentioned just being at the front of the line for every practice drill. It takes a lot just to step up and, and obviously a new set of drills, new systems, new structures to be able to say, you know, I got it. And he would lead the charge and just kind of that leading by example mentality was impressive to me. And then within the game on the ice, his attention to detail. He was positionally sound.

Again, winning puck battles on the right side of the puck all the time. So just those little things, they go a long way in terms of catching your eye as a coach. When you know you can put a guy in a certain situation and he's going to be very reliable and trustworthy. We're speaking to Abbotsford Canucks head coach Manny Malhotra here on the Halford & Brough Show on Sportsnet 650. So we knew a fair bit about Baines and Ratu and Lekermacki. Didn't know a ton about Vilmer Alriksen prior to this tournament,

but he certainly made a statement scoring a couple of goals. Obviously, the size jumps out right away. What did you like about Alriksen's game over the last three? Again, another guy that, over the course of three games, really started to find his footing

and started to get better and better with each period that went on. But the things, obviously, that stood out, his ability to use size. It's one thing to be a big player. It's another to be able to use that size effectively. And he did a really good job of just, you know, protecting pucks, driving pucks wide, getting to the net. You know, at this level, as competition becomes stiffer

and D-men become heavier, there can be a tendency for guys to shy away from the net. Where for me, he acted as a power forward, took pucks to the net, got pucks off the wall. And then again, that intelligence of being positionally in the right place at the right time stood out. And again, he's a young player. So once he grows into that body and he develops that man strength, I'm looking forward to seeing what his total package looks like, his total game. We're speaking with Manny Malhotra, the new head coach of the Abbotsford Canucks. Manny,

what would you say is your main responsibility as the head coach of the AHL team? Well, the importance that obviously Ryan Johnson and Patrick Aldean put on the development of these players. They see the Abbotsford Canucks as kind of the source of the next generation for the Canucks. So I, you know, I used to take that responsibility very seriously. So my number one concern or focus would be to get these guys ready to play at the next level and try to teach them the habits and the structure and again the details within the game that are necessary to succeed at the NHL level or at the pro level I should say. I remember when you were on the Canucks if there was a penalty kill and there was a face-off in the Canucks and always wanted you on the ice

taking that face-off and we were talking about how, you know, there's some guys on, in the Canucks system where they need to identify or define where they will be valuable for a team because they probably, a lot of them won't be top six players. They won't be out there on the first unit power play. How do you approach that when you're dealing

with some players or most players who have come up their entire hockey careers and been the star players, and now you have to develop them and maybe they have to accept a different type of role? Well, that is to me essentially what becoming a pro is. And as you climb the ladder and as you get to higher levels of hockey, all these guys have been, quote-unquote, the man at some point in their hockey careers.

They were power play guys. They were point getters. But at the next level, the guys that understand that they may have to adapt into a different role and accept a different role those are the guys that become pros and understand um so again that would be a part of my uh role and responsibility would would be to help guys identify with what they're really good at and help them hone in on that because as Because as you mentioned before, it takes all kinds of pieces to become a part of a team.

And, you know, you may not be a power play guy or a top six forward, but there is value in all those other jobs, killing penalties, winning face-offs, being reliable in the defensive zone, that shut down forward type mentality. And even to go the other way, for the guys who are expected to be offensively elite, just trying to help them find where on the ice they're effective from and trying to find positions and strategies to produce those points. It's not just about producing grinders.

You have to help those guys that are offensive-minded hone in on those skills as well. Is that something that you had to accept in your career? To a certain extent. Coming out of junior, I kind of adapted that third line or shut down center type role when i came out of junior so uh obviously the high draft pick status with that comes a lot of expectation in terms of being a point getter however you know i understood coming at a junior i was not a point producer i

was the last time i was a point producer was minor hockey so i had adapted to that role um by the time i got to junior and then honing those skills in the nhl once i got to columbus that was kind of the the message for me was we don't need you to score goals we need you to be very reliable defensively we need you to win faceoffs we need you to kill penalties and kind of that guidance really helped me to focus in on, okay, this is going to be how I'm going to carve my niche in this league. Who was the coach that helped the most in terms of carving that niche for you? It started with

Ken Hitchcock in Columbus. Obviously, a very defensive-minded coach. He had the Guy Carbonneaus in Dallas. And he was the one that kind of taught me the importance of those roles and the value of those roles. And then as I continued on, Todd McClellan was a big influence uh for me in terms of uh again we had a an elite team in San Jose and there were times where I'd be on the ice with Joe Thornton and Patrick Marlowe and I fully understood the mission I was not to be uh I was

not trying to set up anybody I was not trying to produce points anybody. I was not trying to produce points, but I was in a position to be responsible defensively. So, yeah, those two coaches for me really helped me define who I was as a player in this league. But that can be enjoyable, can it not? Like a lot of people are like, oh, that just sounds like hard work and not why I play hockey. I play hockey to play goals. But I imagine if you're part of a line or a group

or a penalty-killing unit that is successful and shuts down the other team's best players, that must be something that you can really get up for. I think it's like with anything in life, when you find a purpose and you have value to your group, that becomes important to you. So yes, it's not as fun or glamorous as being, you know, the setup guy on the power play. But, you know, hockey people understand the value of different roles at different times in the game. So I think it's just finding purpose,

finding value in your game and understanding what it means to the team is a big part, again, of becoming a pro and finding your game. How is your son Caleb enjoying his initial experience with the Chilliwack Chiefs? It's been a good experience for him. He's only been there a month, obviously,

but camp has gone well. They've had a few exhibition games. The organization itself has been incredibly welcoming and obviously a great program they have going there. So he's enjoyed his experience thus far. What's one piece of advice that you would have to all the hockey dads out there besides having great genes, which not all of us have. So, you know, like be a good professional athlete, but what's one piece of hockey advice that you've got for the parents out there? Well, that's a tough one. I think just you have to let your kids, you know,

it has to become your kid's journey at some point. And, you know, I realized early on that, like with any kid and parent relationship, the more you push, they may push back. So, you know, we gave him his freedom to choose the path that he wanted to go on. We allowed his coaches to coach him. And when he wanted advice from me, you know, I'd be very open and honest, but I'd wait for those opportunities that he asked me. But the biggest thing that, you know,

he's going on his own hockey journey, wherever that takes him. But just knowing that he has the ability to make the decisions. And because it's now his journey, he is, you know, it's on him to get himself to work out or apply himself in practice, and just how hard he pushes himself will determine how far he goes on this path.

That's very well said. Hey, Manny, thanks for taking the time to do this today. We really appreciate it. Best of luck with the season moving forward. I'm sure it'll be a lot of fun. Hopefully, we can do this again as that season gets underway. Appreciate it, guys. Have a great day.

Yeah, you too. Thanks. That's Manny Malhotra, head coach of the Abbotsford Canucks. Off to a perfect 3-0-0 start. So don't yell at them in the car on the way home. Oh, no.

Still yell at them. As much as possible. It's interesting. I mean... I was standing there in that cold rink. I've seen a lot of parents make sure it's their journey, not yours. I've seen a lot of parents. They make sure it's their journey, not yours.

I've seen a lot of parents. Oh, that's the worst, right? This is not the kid's choice. This is yours. Yeah. This is not the direction the kid wants to go. I mean, it's inevitable, right? I'm sure I'm guilty of it on some level as well.

It's an introspective moment here on the Halford & Brough Show. It's hard not to because I think a lot of us have played the sport and have played it for a long time. And we think we know a lot of things about the sporting experience. Like I'm sure you think that you know a lot about hockey and youth hockey in particular because you played it and you coached it and all that stuff, right? Yeah, I think the frustrating thing,

the hardest thing to control yourself is trying to download all the information onto them in one car ride. Yep, that's a big part of it. You know? The car ride should be saved exclusively for yelling. Should be nothing else other than some good old-fashioned yelling with the windows up so no one can hear you.

No, like, I get what you're saying. Downloading's a good term for it because I think that's what a lot of us think that you can do just give a good speech or just like here's all the information you need please process it and then apply it uh to all these events they're gonna pop up spontaneously out of nowhere so you have to recognize it and then remember everything that i told you in between yelling sessions in the car. No, I'm kidding. But it's a very good term for it because coaching youth athletics, I've seen it countless times. Yeah. Right? It's like the coach has this, you know, there's a whiteboard involved and there's a document that you can read at home or I'll put it in a video form for you.

And it's an overload of information that, I mean, how old are you? 60? Yeah. 48, right? You've had this through a lifetime. So you're trying to relay a lifetime's worth of knowledge and understanding. And you're trying not to project your regrets, right? Like if only I'd known this at eight years old or nine years old.

So actually it's funny because someone... But there's the process that you have to go through to gain the knowledge. And a lot of it is just your personal experience. So someone texted in earlier. It was sort of a pseudo AUA talking about with young athletes, and I guess your children in particular, the messaging that you have when it comes to food and nutrition. And it's interesting because as they get older, you don't want to be like some sort of weird

like pseudoscientist and you definitely don't want to be someone that's making children averse to anything other than like unhealthy stuff. You want to try and curb. But you also don't want an A-dog. No. Who ate what? A-dog, what was your breakfast this morning at the station? What was my breakfast this morning?

At the station. I had a single Coca-Cola Oreo and a cupcake. And that was at 630. Yes. Yes. You don't want that. You don't want that. We're not kidding.

I feel great. Yeah. But it's interesting because you can use sports, I guess, as like a motivational tool. Or you can point to like, well, hey, look, there are certain athletes that you like, you know, they're your heroes and their icons and you're trying to emulate everything that they do. This is how they approach food, health, nutrition, all that stuff. You can do what they do, but understand that it's extremely regimented and really almost impossible to pull off.

Mike, the urologist from Brockville, Texas, and I wonder how many parents out there identify with this comment. I find the hardest thing to figure out is how to make my kids try harder. They're having fun out there, but I just want them to try harder. That is every parent that I see at hockey or soccer. The puck is there.

Go get it. Yep. Stop being so scared to work hard. So there's a few things here. One, sometimes it doesn't look like it. Yep. Stop being so scared to work hard. So there's a few things here. One, um, sometimes what it doesn't look like it, it doesn't mean that they aren't right.

And by that, I mean, you'd be like, you need to work harder. You need to try harder. And they might be trying pretty much as hard as they can, but it might not look like it. Yeah.

So there's that part of it. The second part of it is there might not be, I don't be i realize what working hard is there might not be a less instructive command in coaching or as parenting as you need to try harder because it's completely nebulous it doesn't mean anything no it doesn't do well what what does try harder to look like well you got to try harder you need to work harder like when someone's angry you tell them to relax. Yeah. Just relax. There's no how, there's no why.

You know, it's just, it's this very, very basic primal command that we understand. Yeah. Again, because we know what hard work and trying hard is. I think we've actually had this conversation kind of at a higher level, maybe even with Talk It on the show or some member of the coaching staff, when it comes to things like you hear, you got to win your board battles in hockey. And we hear that at the NHL level. I think it might've been Jeremy Colleton.

It was Colleton. It was Jeremy Colleton. And then, you know, the players being kind of scared to say like, how do I do that? Is there a technique there or do i just go running in there with my stick swinging and like my legs flailing and just try and put your hand up you have to mr call it and a lot of it is you know there are not tricks techniques to doing that a lot of it is body position and then it looks like you are trying harder because you're able to gain leverage on players and push them over a chance you listen to the many

Melhotra interview I specifically asked like what is it about a to rot to like give me some specifics right what did he say he's the first one in line for drills that's something you can control that's yeah it's something you can tell you yeah yeah like so think about you want to make an impression on your coach there's many Melhotra saying he recognizes the kid that steps up to be the first one in line for drills. There's something you can use today, folks, for all of the nonsense that we've blathered on about today.

Oh, there was a lot. We've left you with a fairly decent message at the end. The music means we've got to get out of here for now, though. We'll be back tomorrow. Signing off, I have been Mike Halford. He's been Jason Brough. He's been Adog. He's been Laddy. He's been Arash. This has been the Halford and Brough

Show on Sportsnet 650.