Latest / stormTRacker Podcast | Carolina Hurricanes & NHL Hockey / Hurricanes-Wolves Tensions Rise as Wolves Grab 1st Win behind Morrow OT Winner!

Transcript

Hurricanes-Wolves Tensions Rise as Wolves Grab 1st Win behind Morrow OT Winner! · stormTRacker Podcast | Carolina Hurricanes & NHL Hockey

• 0:32
  Speaker 1: Well, what a difference a year makes for the Carolina Hurricanes and the Chicago Wolves.
• 0:38
  Speaker 1: You know, the Wolves, of course, were an affiliate of the Canes in 21-22 when they won the Calder Cup in the American Hockey League and of course the Canes have loaded up that team.
• 0:50
  Speaker 1: You might recall some of the key players they had.
• 0:53
  Speaker 1: Andrew Putteralski was one of the leaders.
• 0:56
  Speaker 1: He had 102 points that year.
• 0:58
  Speaker 1: Of course, stefan Nason had 48 goals, josh Lebo was there, chatfield was there, piotr Kociakoff and Alex Lyon were there.
• 1:08
  Speaker 1: So what a team that was and the relationship was going extremely well.
• 1:12
  Speaker 1: But, as we recall, there was a little bit of a different situation the following season and a bit of a following out, and obviously last year they did not work together.
• 1:24
  Speaker 1: In fact the Hurricanes did not have an American Hockey League farm team and that was a bit of a problem.
• 1:29
  Speaker 1: But in the summer it looked like things got turned back around and the Canes were able to put together a three-year deal with the Wolves and that was great news.
• 1:40
  Speaker 1: But we're hearing some different discussions recently and to talk about the Wolves and all things around, the Chicago team, of course, is Andrew Rinaldi.
• 1:50
  Speaker 1: Andrew handles the Chicago Wolves for the Calder Times and covers them, and this is great.
• 1:53
  Speaker 1: Welcome aboard, andrew.
• 1:54
  Speaker 1: Thanks for having me.
• 1:54
  Speaker 1: Tom, I'm always happy to talk some Wolves for the Calder Times and covers them, and this is great and welcome aboard in.
• 1:58
  Speaker 2: Thanks for having me, tom, always happy to talk some wolves.
• 2:02
  Speaker 1: Of course, and I wanted to talk a little about to kick it off before we talk about on ice.
• 2:06
  Speaker 1: I wanted to talk a little bit about the off-ice discussion I just raised and, of course, a little bit of a controversy recently with Don Levin in a in-between period discussion saying, hey, not all rosy with the Hurricanes when this deal was done.
• 2:21
  Speaker 1: What can you tell us about that?
• 2:24
  Speaker 2: That was a lot of bit of controversy.
• 2:25
  Speaker 2: If you ask me about the comments that Don Levin made, yeah, I was hoping that these two franchises he had kind of made it to the kiss and make up era and, especially considering this, he hasn't done any kind of intermission interview.
• 2:47
  Speaker 2: For as long as I've been on the beat I saw that and I was like that's really interesting.
• 2:52
  Speaker 2: I'm hoping he's kind of giving an update on the affiliation.
• 2:56
  Speaker 2: And he did, but not really in the way that carolina fans or even I don't even think, chicago fans really wanted to hear, because it was a lot of, you know, grievances aired with how this team was going to be built and just how you know the the affiliation came to be together.
• 3:16
  Speaker 2: I think it's pretty obvious that neither side really wanted this relationship, but unfortunately it was kind of the only option for both carolina and chicago.
• 3:27
  Speaker 2: So the two leagues came together and said well, whether you like it or not, this has got to work right and it's.
• 3:36
  Speaker 2: They don't like it, as we've noticed from what time 11 has said, but, um, you know it's, it's.
• 3:44
  Speaker 1: It's really not a positive vibe when in the first intermission of game one of a three-year affiliation and the owner is coming out here saying that this team is about to get run over well, he also, I noticed he also was concerned about the fact that canes were a little bit light on what he felt with the mentorship side.
• 4:07
  Speaker 1: So the veteran players now.
• 4:09
  Speaker 1: Interestingly enough, the hurricane seemed to move pretty quickly after that and sent joe akim and Brendan Lemieux down to the to the wall, so that was kind of interesting well, even before those assignments.
• 4:22
  Speaker 2: I mean, you had Tyson Jost there with over 500 NHL games.
• 4:26
  Speaker 2: You had Josiah Slavin.
• 4:27
  Speaker 2: Ryan Suzuki is no longer like the, the teenage you know coming through.
• 4:34
  Speaker 2: This guy's played four professional seasons now at this point.
• 4:38
  Speaker 2: So, um, I, I, I, I it's.
• 4:42
  Speaker 2: It's a different way of doing business for the wolves and I understand it, but I, I just I don't understand kind of the angles that they're coming from, because what carolina didn't go out and sign a kyle mar?
• 4:55
  Speaker 2: I don't think that's going to hamper this team in the way that they may think of it down in Chicago.
• 5:02
  Speaker 1: Well, it's kind of interesting when you think about it.
• 5:04
  Speaker 1: I mean the Canes have loaded the team up.
• 5:06
  Speaker 1: Virtually all the top prospects they have that are available to play in North America right now, other than Jackson Blake, are in Chicago.
• 5:15
  Speaker 1: I mean, he's really loaded.
• 5:16
  Speaker 1: You've got Scott Morrow, you've got Bradley Nadeau, you've got Felix Ungersorm, you've got Gleb Trikosov.
• 5:22
  Speaker 1: I can go up and down the list.
• 5:23
  Speaker 1: These are outstanding talents.
• 5:26
  Speaker 1: Now take a look at last year's team and this is kind of funny when you think about it.
• 5:30
  Speaker 1: He's out there complaining about what the Canes are doing.
• 5:33
  Speaker 1: They had a terrible year, of course, but you think about the roster.
• 5:37
  Speaker 1: I mean they were built around players like Rocco Grimaldi, chris Terry, you know, sean Donovan, keith Kincaid.
• 5:46
  Speaker 1: I mean, let's face it, their plan was, hey, we get complete control.
• 5:50
  Speaker 1: I remember the stories about this and they said we'll get complete control.
• 5:54
  Speaker 1: We don't have to worry about the nhl team pulling up players, like they did with people like peter kochekov and others, and we'll just have our own destiny.
• 6:02
  Speaker 2: Well, we saw how well that worked yeah, I, I understood kind of where they, what direction they were going and a lot of the guys that they brought in, you know.
• 6:14
  Speaker 2: Chris Terry and Rocco Grimaldi, for example, are great pieces to add to an already established team.
• 6:22
  Speaker 2: But there was no depth, there was no other kind of building blocks.
• 6:26
  Speaker 2: So here you have Rocco Grimaldi as the second leading scorer in the AHL and he's like a minus 25 or something over the year because the team's just getting caved in consistently.
• 6:38
  Speaker 2: So it was I, I again.
• 6:42
  Speaker 2: They kind of tried to fill these roles either with ahl veterans and a lot of guys who kind of get looked over in the lineup.
• 6:51
  Speaker 2: You know, dominic franco, nate suis, who are don't get me wrong they're good hockey players, but they're not really core foundation guys at this level.
• 7:02
  Speaker 2: They're more complementary pieces.
• 7:04
  Speaker 2: So when you fill a lot of complementary pieces in your roster, well you get a team that finished second to last in the AHL.
• 7:12
  Speaker 1: Well, the other guy that was interesting, of course, was Max Comfoy.
• 7:14
  Speaker 1: He actually played a game for the Hurricanes in the playoffs, so maybe that was a great signing for them, but where is he now?
• 7:20
  Speaker 1: Who knows?
• 7:21
  Speaker 2: He's in Russia.
• 7:23
  Speaker 1: Yeah, I thought so.
• 7:24
  Speaker 1: That's why I said that he's over playing with our good friend Tony D'Angelo, but not on the same team, of course.
• 7:31
  Speaker 1: But anyway, interesting, interesting story around that and that's just a little bit of history.
• 7:35
  Speaker 1: You know, the Wolves are a very storied franchise.
• 7:38
  Speaker 1: They've been around over 20 years now.
• 7:40
  Speaker 1: They've got a fantastic arena, the Allstate Arena.
• 7:43
  Speaker 1: It's like 18,000 seats.
• 7:44
  Speaker 1: I mean it's wonderful.
• 7:46
  Speaker 1: And I think it's great for the Hurricanes.
• 7:49
  Speaker 1: Of course, I've always hoped that they get back with the Checkers because you know, charlotte being so close to to Raleigh, I thought it was a great thing.
• 7:56
  Speaker 1: But in any case, they do have an AHL farm system now that the Canes can work with in terms of Chicago Wolves, and this is good news.
• 8:04
  Speaker 1: Now let's talk a little bit about the on ice stuff.
• 8:06
  Speaker 1: So first of all, quick stuff on last night's game so a big game yesterday for the Wolves, and tell us a little bit about what happened.
• 8:16
  Speaker 2: Yeah, it was.
• 8:16
  Speaker 2: I mean going up in Hershey, a team that's, you know, only won the last two Calder Cups that have been awarded here.
• 8:25
  Speaker 2: It was definitely a litmus test for it to see kind of okay, here you've got a talented squad, but they're young.
• 8:33
  Speaker 2: Here's a veteran group that knows what it takes to get it done night in, night out and has been the most consistent club over the last two years, evident by those two championships.
• 8:44
  Speaker 2: And you know, the wolves kind of weathered the storm a bit in the first period, kind of took it to them.
• 8:51
  Speaker 2: At the bit the back end of that first sp Spencer Martin came up with some huge timely saves.
• 8:57
  Speaker 2: You had Bradley Nadeau's first professional goal.
• 9:01
  Speaker 2: He didn't score one there and it was great.
• 9:04
  Speaker 2: You know, spencer Martin with the outlet pass to Ryan Suzuki who feeds it in on a breakaway, just roof job.
• 9:12
  Speaker 2: That was great to see.
• 9:13
  Speaker 2: But, like I said, hershey veteran team 17 seconds later ties it right back up.
• 9:19
  Speaker 2: So it's like, okay, this is going to be a dogfight, no matter what way you put it.
• 9:24
  Speaker 2: Hershey strikes on the power play to take the lead.
• 9:28
  Speaker 2: But then again, talking about responses veteran presence, brendan Lemieux oh, there's your guy who's going to lead the young kids through 13 seconds short side snipe, the two teams trade chances.
• 9:44
  Speaker 2: Again Martin came up really huge in that third period.
• 9:47
  Speaker 2: And again, I love the speed of these Wolves.
• 9:53
  Speaker 2: I've been saying it since night one when I got to see them in person and there was certain times where they were kind of taking it to hershey.
• 10:05
  Speaker 2: And again you weather the storm when they're coming at you and and you and you throw it right back in their face back and forth and over time there's a couple chances by both sides.
• 10:12
  Speaker 2: Felix underorum makes a fantastic defensive play that ends up springing.
• 10:17
  Speaker 2: It's Suzuki again feeding it over to Scott Morrow for the overtime winner in Hershey's Barn.
• 10:25
  Speaker 2: And so you know, again I said, this has got to be like a litmus test for this team Playing again tonight, on Sunday, so we'll see how they respond after that big emotional high of a win.
• 10:39
  Speaker 2: You love to see what these kids are capable of doing and that shows it against the standard of the AHL right now.
• 10:51
  Speaker 2: It was fun to watch, it was fun to see.
• 10:54
  Speaker 2: Obviously it's a long season, it's still very early, but these are the kind of results that you love to see.
• 11:02
  Speaker 2: I mean, if they would have gotten caved in by this team, no one would have blamed them, considering, like I said, the standard that Hershey is.
• 11:10
  Speaker 2: But going in there and getting a win night one, now you're kind of playing house money with night two.
• 11:22
  Speaker 1: I'm pretty excited to see what these kids are are going to respond with here.
• 11:24
  Speaker 1: Well, that's great, and you know so many firsts last night, of course, uh, felix understorm, as you mentioned, his first, uh, his first point.
• 11:28
  Speaker 1: Of course, bradley dido his first goal.
• 11:30
  Speaker 1: Scott morrow his first goal.
• 11:31
  Speaker 1: And I also saw charles alexis legault got his first point in professional hockey.
• 11:37
  Speaker 1: So the young guy's really getting it done, but good to see the veteran Lemieux come through as well.
• 11:43
  Speaker 1: Let's talk a little bit about the Wolves roster for just a few seconds.
• 11:48
  Speaker 1: Andrew, you've had a chance to take a closer look.
• 11:50
  Speaker 1: As we get ready for this season, there's a lot of excitement, certainly from Canes fans.
• 11:55
  Speaker 1: We followed a lot of the young prospects through the summer and, as they were signed, a lot of excitement certainly from Canes fans.
• 11:57
  Speaker 1: We followed a lot of the young prospects through the summer and, as they were signed, some of them and, of course, into the prospect showcase.
• 12:04
  Speaker 1: When you take a look at the lineup, how do you feel about let's go through the different positions how do you feel about goaltending this year?
• 12:12
  Speaker 2: I think you know Spencer Martin is about as good of a goalie as you can get in this league.
• 12:18
  Speaker 2: You know again I just from a personal bias there's another goalie in the division by the name of Sebastian Cosa who I think is like the cream of the crop.
• 12:27
  Speaker 2: But Spencer Martin is just right up there in that tier A, tier B of goaltenders in this league, especially when you consider his resume, what he's been able to bring I mean, 10 years of professional hockey it's.
• 12:43
  Speaker 2: It's just it's when you have that be able to lean on, it does so much more for your team as well in front of them.
• 12:50
  Speaker 2: So he was great last night he got an assist.
• 12:55
  Speaker 2: He was getting engaged with the fans in Hershey and I kind of liked how feisty he was in the net as well.
• 13:04
  Speaker 2: And it kind of reminds me a little bit of Piotr, in a way.
• 13:08
  Speaker 1: Maybe not as feisty.
• 13:08
  Speaker 2: It kind of reminds me a little bit of Piotr in a way, maybe not as tasty, but you definitely notice a change in the lineup when the goaltenders get involved like that, how it kind of energizes the boys.
• 13:18
  Speaker 2: So I like seeing that and I mean, as for Yanni Peretz, it's all been.
• 13:25
  Speaker 2: You know, unfortunately we just haven't really seen him in game action yet.
• 13:28
  Speaker 2: Maybe he gets the nod today in Hershey.
• 13:29
  Speaker 2: But I mean, unfortunately just haven't really seen him in game action yet.
• 13:30
  Speaker 2: Maybe he gets the nod today in Hershey.
• 13:31
  Speaker 2: But I mean, the potential is there and everything that I've seen and read about him looks like he could be a solid producer here in Chicago.
• 13:41
  Speaker 2: But you know, we can't really make that assessment until he sees the ice here.
• 13:45
  Speaker 1: Exactly Well, I think.
• 13:46
  Speaker 1: Yeah, I agree with you.
• 13:48
  Speaker 1: Deanna Pratt, of course, I've talked a lot about in the past, I think he, of course he had a tremendous career with Quinnipiac.
• 13:55
  Speaker 1: He was there as the goalie for the championship run for them.
• 13:58
  Speaker 1: So, yeah, he's definitely got a pedigree Again.
• 14:05
  Speaker 1: A smaller goaltender but great reflexes, looks like he's going to be a solid number two for sure, and we'll see if he gets more action throughout the season, depending on if the Canes need to recall, of course, spencer Martin.
• 14:14
  Speaker 1: Let's move to the blue line.
• 14:16
  Speaker 1: Of course, lots of excitement on the blue line.
• 14:18
  Speaker 1: Of course.
• 14:24
  Speaker 1: We saw the offensive talent of Scott Morrow last night on display.
• 14:26
  Speaker 1: He's a phenomenal offensive player.
• 14:27
  Speaker 1: He's going to be growing his game in Chicago.
• 14:29
  Speaker 1: What can you tell me about your thoughts on the blue line?
• 14:33
  Speaker 2: Blue line's been my favorite part of this team, from looking at it over the preseason and plugging everything in and being like, okay, what's this team going to look like?
• 14:42
  Speaker 2: And now that it's taken form it still remains my favorite unit of the team.
• 14:47
  Speaker 2: You just have so many smooth skaters, smooth puck movers, guys that can really take it out of the danger areas in their own zone, and that ability to transition from defense to offense, especially when you have so many skilled forwards ready to receive the puck, adds such a dynamic to the team that makes it so difficult to defend.
• 15:10
  Speaker 2: That was my favorite feature of the 22 championship team and I'm hoping that this team can at least kind of mirror some of those traits.
• 15:21
  Speaker 2: I mean the results of course would be awesome, but at least just some of the traits as well.
• 15:25
  Speaker 2: You know I've seen a lot of growth from Ronan Seeley over the years.
• 15:31
  Speaker 2: He's been one of the few names that's actually been consistent with Chicago for as long as I've been on the team.
• 15:37
  Speaker 2: Scott Morrow I think everyone knows about Scott Morrow at this point.
• 15:41
  Speaker 2: Last night was kind of like his hey I'm here moment.
• 15:45
  Speaker 2: If Carolina wasn't so stacked up front he'd probably be looking at an nhl job.
• 15:52
  Speaker 2: But you know, it doesn't hurt to to watch him kind of dance around for for 25 plus minutes a night and and really kind of work on on some of those skills that are going to make him a hopefully a game breaker up there in carolina.
• 16:05
  Speaker 2: But for as long as they have that loaded lineup I am happy to take care of him down here in Chicago.
• 16:14
  Speaker 2: But it goes beyond more than just like your top two guys.
• 16:17
  Speaker 2: I mean you know Joaquin Ryan, again offering that veteran presence.
• 16:21
  Speaker 2: I really enjoyed Dominic Fensore last year and this year he's again proving to be dynamic with the puck.
• 16:29
  Speaker 2: I love the way he skates and it's been a treat.
• 16:33
  Speaker 2: And then finally, lugo and Hemos Almi again, yes, smooth skaters.
• 16:39
  Speaker 2: I love the way that they can move with and without the puck and it creates dependability and it's going to be forced competition for ice time.
• 16:52
  Speaker 2: But I also love that because it's going to force each one of these guys to come out with their A game every single night if you want to see the ice consistently.
• 16:59
  Speaker 2: So the Blue Lions, if you couldn't tell, has been my favorite group of this team so far.
• 17:07
  Speaker 1: Well, you know, it's really an incredibly talented group, as you've mentioned.
• 17:13
  Speaker 1: I mean, when you look at it for sure, we talk about Scott Morrow, and Scott's going to have the opportunity to continue to build out his game and he's going to play in all situations.
• 17:22
  Speaker 1: This is ideal for him and, I think, the right move for the Canes.
• 17:25
  Speaker 1: He's a guy that they're counting on in the future and if he can continue to, you know, fill out his game, as I think he will, man, he's going to be a wonderful addition in a year or two.
• 17:35
  Speaker 1: But a couple of guys that I've talked about and certainly you mentioned Dominic Fonsori.
• 17:40
  Speaker 1: I love Dominic Fonsori.
• 17:42
  Speaker 1: I think he is a guy that the only thing that holds him back, of course, is size.
• 17:47
  Speaker 1: He is just an incredibly talented player.
• 17:49
  Speaker 1: He's very cerebral on the blue line, he's smart with the puck as you mentioned, these guys can get that out of their zone quickly and he's really that kind of guy and a great pedigree too, of course.
• 17:59
  Speaker 1: He was a captain at Boston University.
• 18:01
  Speaker 1: He was a Hockey East All-Star.
• 18:03
  Speaker 1: This guy was a heck of a player, and you know, the Canes have gotten some of these guys kind of under the radar.
• 18:08
  Speaker 1: And Charles Alexis Legault, his partner is exactly that.
• 18:11
  Speaker 1: You know, legault was drafted in the fifth round, 139.
• 18:16
  Speaker 1: And you watch this guy and you say to yourself you've got to be kidding me, because he is just rock solid in his own zone.
• 18:24
  Speaker 1: I know when Darren York drafted him he said this guy, he's just outstanding defensively and he's growing his offensive game.
• 18:32
  Speaker 1: And they found him under the radar, literally.
• 18:35
  Speaker 1: And I think he's a guy that a lot of us have high hopes for in the future.
• 18:40
  Speaker 1: So I'm excited about that pairing.
• 18:42
  Speaker 1: And you're right, boy, these guys are going to be wonderful players.
• 18:44
  Speaker 1: Even Alexei Himasalmy, who I thought was very strong in the prospect showcase in the Canes camp Again a very talented Finn defenseman, a guy that moves the puck smartly.
• 18:55
  Speaker 1: He's a very cerebral player.
• 18:58
  Speaker 1: These guys.
• 18:58
  Speaker 1: They're not going to be able to keep them all.
• 18:59
  Speaker 1: That's the challenge, right?
• 19:01
  Speaker 1: But what a great group.
• 19:04
  Speaker 1: And I'm excited too as these guys start to grow together.
• 19:09
  Speaker 1: And I'm excited too as these guys start to grow together.
• 19:11
  Speaker 1: And it's great to have a guy like Joakim Ryan and, of course, ty Smith and possibly even Riley Stillman will end up with Chicago as well.
• 19:17
  Speaker 1: So I think the defense is going to be the strength of the team, no question about it.
• 19:21
  Speaker 1: So yeah, that's exciting.
• 19:23
  Speaker 1: Now let's talk about some of these young studs up front.
• 19:28
  Speaker 2: Yeah, well, you know it's hard to not start with Bradley Nadell after he opened up the scoring yesterday and kind of just watching the early power plays, very much kind of being focused on giving him the puck and you're watching him kind of fire away and you're like holy hell of it.
• 19:48
  Speaker 2: This guy has really got a nose for everything in the offensive zone and it's been a lot of fun to watch and I really hope that people don't sleep on Ryan Suzuki.
• 20:01
  Speaker 2: I know again I'm a little biased because I've been watching him for the last couple of years but I mean open up with the goal on opening night, two assists last night, and you know again he's no longer that young first-round talent.
• 20:17
  Speaker 2: I mean he is relative to you and I, but relative to the team he's more of the guy who's been around the block.
• 20:26
  Speaker 2: Let me show you like how we do things down here in chicago and I could, just by interviewing him on friday I could tell that he loves playing in chicago, he loves coming in and seeing the calder cup banners and everything and yeah, of course, being a part of that team and in 22 but was injured before the playoff run, he I I think that that kind of lights, a bit of a fire in him and it's like all right.
• 20:52
  Speaker 2: Well, like I want to, I want to be a core piece of a team that goes out and grabs another one, and so I I really hope that you know the injuries and everything of kind.
• 21:04
  Speaker 2: He's kind of like falling behind and some of these other big names.
• 21:08
  Speaker 2: But I really hope that he can use this season as a springboard to propel himself back into the conversation of like hey, we got a good player down here who can really contribute to, if not the canes, then someone else in the nhl, because I think suzuki still got still got a path there.
• 21:25
  Speaker 2: So I mean, between him we've seen Felix Ungersorum and you know all the stuff that he brings offensively, but seeing the play he made defensively in overtime is really kind of like, oh all right, this kid is, he's got something special to him.
• 21:41
  Speaker 2: I can tell it's the one thing that kind of concerned me a little bit with this team early on was the depth that forward Now that's been shored up a little bit.
• 21:51
  Speaker 2: You've early on was was the depth that forward now that's been shored up a little bit.
• 21:52
  Speaker 2: You've got brendan lemieux coming in.
• 21:54
  Speaker 2: So yeah, it's, it's it's.
• 21:57
  Speaker 2: You look up and down the lineup and it's it's, it's kind of filled out a little more and I I like to see that and it's, it's, it's got the potential.
• 22:08
  Speaker 2: you know, once they, once they all kind of start gelling, getting together, getting in their games, it's got the potential to be a really special unit, I believe.
• 22:17
  Speaker 1: Well, and you've got an interesting line there, that man.
• 22:20
  Speaker 1: It really mirrors the Hurricanes.
• 22:23
  Speaker 1: You know Jordan Stahl line.
• 22:25
  Speaker 1: In some ways You've got Jordan.
• 22:27
  Speaker 1: Of course he's got Martinuk and Alex Carrier.
• 22:31
  Speaker 1: That you know.
• 22:32
  Speaker 1: Those guys are, you know, they're hardworking, they're going to be in your face, they're going to be, you know, taking ice time in the offensive zone.
• 22:40
  Speaker 1: They're really key.
• 22:42
  Speaker 1: Now you've got the same thing with the Wolves.
• 22:43
  Speaker 1: Now You've got, of course, skyler Brindamore centering for Juha Jaska and Josiah Slavin.
• 22:51
  Speaker 1: So how does that line look?
• 22:53
  Speaker 2: Oh, it's gritty, I love it.
• 22:55
  Speaker 2: I love my gritty players that, you know, might not always be the most skillful at the puck, but these guys know how to roll up their sleeves and outwork the other team every shift they're out there.
• 23:10
  Speaker 2: There was a wonderful shorthanded chance by slavin going over to brindamore in his backhand that clay stevenson made a fantastic save on and I'm expecting to see more of that through the year as the as this comes on, I I feel like this is just a line that's gonna.
• 23:27
  Speaker 2: That's gonna run through walls for each other.
• 23:28
  Speaker 2: It's gonna get in the corners, get get a little greasy, a little grimy out in front of the net, but that's going to run through walls for each other.
• 23:32
  Speaker 2: It's going to get in the corners, get a little greasy, a little grimy out in front of the net, but that's the kind of hockey that you need to play and you saw Hershey do a lot of that.
• 23:41
  Speaker 2: They're going to be doing a lot of that today in today's second game.
• 23:45
  Speaker 2: Yes, that's what creates kind of championship hockey.
• 23:49
  Speaker 2: I mean, of course, the skill level of a lot of these young forwards.
• 23:54
  Speaker 2: A lot of fun to watch, creates a lot of clicks going towards me seeing these guys making a lot of plays, but those third-line minutes that really kind of eat up the especially, you know, the pressure on the defense and everything, those, those are the ones that that chip away and and lead to a lot of w's on the board.
• 24:18
  Speaker 1: So I'm excited to see more of these guys well, interesting that that's great, andrew, and I think interesting too, of course.
• 24:24
  Speaker 1: Uh, the canes surprised a few people by signing skylar brendamore, but I think he is a he's a centerman that he brings a little bit of size.
• 24:32
  Speaker 1: I think he has that certain work ethic that the Canes could really use.
• 24:37
  Speaker 1: They're not that deep at center, as you know.
• 24:39
  Speaker 1: They do have Ryan Suzuki we've talked a little bit about, but again, I think Brendamore brings a different look and feel and maybe he could be available to be recalled at some point if they need that type of player.
• 24:51
  Speaker 1: The same thing with a guy that I really like in camp is Juha Jaska.
• 24:57
  Speaker 1: Juha Jaska to me, folks don't know much about him.
• 25:02
  Speaker 1: Of course he's flown under the radar as they signed him this past summer, but he's a guy that he works hard, he can skate, he's right in the mix, he's making things happen, he's got a bit of an offensive touch as well and I'm excited about him.
• 25:15
  Speaker 1: So, yeah, this line I think could be really cool.
• 25:18
  Speaker 1: A couple of other guys that you know we haven't talked about, but of course they're of interest too Gleb Trikhozov and Noel Gundler.
• 25:26
  Speaker 1: Now, Gundler you've seen before with Chicago, Of course.
• 25:30
  Speaker 1: He was here a couple of years ago, then went back to Europe and is back now.
• 25:34
  Speaker 1: He kind of had a tough season last year.
• 25:36
  Speaker 1: He was injured, I think, for a good part of the season.
• 25:38
  Speaker 1: So he's back trying to prove.
• 25:39
  Speaker 1: He was a second rounder when the Canes got him.
• 25:42
  Speaker 1: He was pretty highly rated and he hasn't really developed much, so he's going to be an interesting one to watch.
• 25:51
  Speaker 2: And, of course, gleb Trikhizov.
• 25:52
  Speaker 2: What about those two guys?
• 25:53
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I was a big fan of Noel Gunler when he first showed up in Chicago.
• 25:56
  Speaker 2: He played during that Calder Cup run and everything.
• 26:00
  Speaker 2: I liked the tools that he brought.
• 26:04
  Speaker 2: I think he paired very well with Vasily Ponomarev.
• 26:06
  Speaker 2: I think they were on a line together.
• 26:08
  Speaker 2: They showed some great chemistry and I, I I liked the, the trajectory he was on.
• 26:15
  Speaker 2: I just I felt like he maybe needed to add it a little bit more weight to kind of combat against guys, against the boards, and I I think he's done that a little bit, but of course it's been a couple of years since I've seen him last, so I could be mistaken, mistaken but he does look a little stronger on his skates.
• 26:31
  Speaker 2: So I'm hoping he can kind of combine a bit of that along with the talent level that he has and kind of put it's kind of following along in suzuki's path.
• 26:42
  Speaker 2: And you, if you put those you know those bad years behind you where you got hurt and your development wasn't where it needed to be, and you just put your head down, you keep playing your game, get your confidence back.
• 26:54
  Speaker 2: I think it could create wonders for him.
• 26:57
  Speaker 2: And as for Trikazov, I see the flashes of offensive talent there.
• 27:02
  Speaker 2: It's been great.
• 27:04
  Speaker 2: He hasn't really had a ton of ice time.
• 27:08
  Speaker 2: There's a lot of guys that are in front of them in the depth chart, but you see them on the power play a little bit and it's eventually, you know, if he keeps again, if he just keeps to his game, keeps working for those opportunities, they will open up the thing about the AHL guys get called up or guys get hurt or whatever.
• 27:26
  Speaker 2: So you're, if you just kind of stick to your game, stick, keep playing it, earn the trust of the coaches, the ice time will eventually come.
• 27:35
  Speaker 2: It's that's just the nature of the league.
• 27:37
  Speaker 2: So I like what, I like what I see in these guys.
• 27:40
  Speaker 2: I think that there's, you know, the foundation is there for more growth and and just I'd really like to see kind of them continue on that trajectory upward.
• 27:52
  Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean for sure, and a guy like Trikazov.
• 27:55
  Speaker 1: He's very young, so he came over, I think, as a 19-year-old and turning 20.
• 28:01
  Speaker 1: So he's a guy that, again, the Canes have got time with him.
• 28:05
  Speaker 1: They can take their time, they can bring him in, slowly, learn the Canes' style of play, which is part of what all these players are having the experience to do, and that's in some cases certainly on the defensive side is a little bit different than a lot of teams.
• 28:19
  Speaker 1: So they're they're getting their chance to kind of cut their teeth with that, and I think that's really positive.
• 28:23
  Speaker 1: What about, uh, the coming days?
• 28:26
  Speaker 1: What should we look forward to in, uh, in the coming days with the Wolves?
• 28:32
  Speaker 2: Well again, I think today well, yeah, sundays might be in the past when this episode is released that's going to be a big one to see how this team responds to the Bears, who are certainly going to be coming after them for a little payback after Saturday night's game, to be coming after them for a little payback after, after saturday night's game.
• 28:55
  Speaker 2: After that it's, it's a lot of just kind of you just gotta, just gotta keep on growing, you know, and there's certainly going to be growing pains and involved process where you might not, you know, you might skate around a team.
• 29:07
  Speaker 2: But again, like that opening night in milwaukee, I thought chicago kind of took it to them at first.
• 29:13
  Speaker 2: Yeah, milwaukee, milwaukee just kind of buckled their seat belts and rolled their sleeves up and went to work and the wolves kind of looked a little discombobulated after that.
• 29:22
  Speaker 2: If, as long as they continue to grow together, gain chemistry and you know, the rest will work, work out itself.
• 29:31
  Speaker 2: I, I, I don't see the whole disconnect where you can't develop players right.
• 29:37
  Speaker 2: Also, at the same time, I think this team is built exactly to do that.
• 29:41
  Speaker 2: So they got another double header coming up with milwaukee right before halloween.
• 29:47
  Speaker 2: Um, they got before Halloween.
• 29:48
  Speaker 2: They got Iowa at the end of the month.
• 29:51
  Speaker 2: Who I'm trying?
• 29:53
  Speaker 2: To be nice, but Iowa looks like a terrible hockey team.
• 29:57
  Speaker 2: So that should be another litmus test where it's like don't rest on your laurels, just go out and get two points.
• 30:04
  Speaker 2: At the end of the day, you know, you just want to see these kids kind of keep playing their game and keep making plays, like they made on Saturday night to go out and beat a team like Hershey or unseat a king like Milwaukee and just continue.
• 30:20
  Speaker 2: It's consistency, that's really all it is.
• 30:23
  Speaker 2: We can see your highlight package, but if you don't bring a night in and night out, it really doesn't mean anything.
• 30:30
  Speaker 2: So if you can just keep making those same plays and keep bringing that same level of compete, it's going to bear fruit sooner rather than later for these kids.
• 30:42
  Speaker 1: Well for sure and you know it's interesting because there are some similarities of the Wolves with the Hurricanes Both teams new players, kind of cutting their teeth together trying to find their way.
• 30:52
  Speaker 1: We're going to see the ups and downs of that.
• 30:55
  Speaker 1: I think it's going to be a season where, you know, at different times we're going to wonder, hey, what's going on here.
• 31:00
  Speaker 1: But I think at the end of the year both of these teams, I think, will be in the playoffs and I think we'll be enjoying some postseason action with them.
• 31:07
  Speaker 1: Any other closing thoughts from you?
• 31:08
  Speaker 1: Some postseason action with them?
• 31:13
  Speaker 2: Any other closing thoughts from you, andrew?
• 31:14
  Speaker 2: I'm going to give the fans the same advice as hopefully the players are taking, and I know, obviously, heading into this season, those comments from Don Levin sparked a lot of emotions from people, and rightly so.
• 31:30
  Speaker 2: Those are very valid points to hear in game one hearing you know this team's going to get run over.
• 31:37
  Speaker 2: This team's not going to get run over.
• 31:39
  Speaker 2: This team might skate circles around some of these teams and I.
• 31:41
  Speaker 2: The best advice I can give is to just tune out the noise that's coming from off the ice and enjoy the product that's on the ice, because there's a lot of really talented kids here that's going to be playing some good hockey over the next couple of months, and to just enjoy the ride.
• 31:58
  Speaker 2: You know, they're certainly they're young and there's going to be ups and downs, but I think that this, this team's got a lot of potential to make a lot of noise here in the central division and I it's.
• 32:06
  Speaker 2: It's the second week of the season.
• 32:08
  Speaker 2: I'm already just jumping up with excitement, so I think the fans should be too.
• 32:15
  Speaker 1: Well, listen, man, it's been great fun talking Chicago Wolves hockey.
• 32:19
  Speaker 1: We're going to get together and do this again soon, I'm sure and follow the wonderful talent that's on that Wolves team, these great young players from the Hurricanes that we're going to see throughout the year.
• 32:30
  Speaker 1: Again, as always, if you have comments, please leave those down below.
• 32:35
  Speaker 1: If you like this episode, please press the like button.
• 32:39
  Speaker 1: If you want to subscribe, we'd really be delighted if you would, and we'll then alert you of future episodes of Storm Tracker.
• 32:46
  Speaker 1: And, as always, thanks so much for joining us.
• 32:49
  Speaker 1: We'll catch up with you real soon, right here on StormTracker.