InGoal Radio Episode 237 with Casey DeSmith

Intro

Oh, we're sneaking up on the big day. So we got some news on that front and how you can make your favorite goaltender happy. It's the InGoal Radio Podcast brought to you by The Hockey Shop. Thehockeyshop.com Source for Sports Langley, Daren Millard with the cofounder of InGoal Magazine, David Hutchison, and Kevin Woodley. We've got some news in and around the National Hockey League, but first, let's start with how to make everybody on your Christmas list happy if they happen to be a goaltender.

What do we got, David Hutchison?

Ho ho ho. It's time to buy your Christmas presents, and you know I'm gonna suggest that you get an InGoal membership. Head over to InGoal, big bold bar at the top of the site, click on it, and you can send an InGoal membership to your favorite goaltender or maybe to another goalie parent, maybe to a goalie coach. All the great content will be delivered their way. They'll get a nice email on whatever date you choose with a message that you get to write, and they will enjoy your gift all year long.

It'll help them enjoy the game more. It'll help them play better. Let them have more fun. InGoal membership, great Christmas gift.

There's a lot of content there that they can dive into immediately, Woody.

Yes. Freshed up up this week, including everything from tips and advice, video session with Dustin Wolf, who nice to see him back in the NHL. Sad to see that it's at the expense of Jacob Markstrom with the broken finger, but, Wolf, he looked really good on his first start. And we've just... We...

It was perfect timing. We'd done a sit down with him on ProReads. So as soon as he was he was in the NHL and got that start, we uploaded that ProReads. Some great advice from him. We've got a great rotation drill.

It's called four times rotation. Thatcher Demko and the Vancouver Canucks added it to their pregame warm up, and it... So it immediately caught my eye. It was nice enough of Thatcher to walk us through video of the drill as well as Ian Clark. So that's a good one for goalies.

Get those hips warmed up, get moving, get the eyes warmed up, get the hands warmed up. It's a great drill. And then we had a little fun with Marc Andre Fleury, our old friend. Full credit to Goalie Gear Nerd, another friend of the program, so to speak, who was on social media earlier in the week, kinda pointed out that Flower had a new stick grip and perfect timing. The Minnesota wild were in town, so I made my way down the tunnels.

He was coming off the ice. Didn't wait for him to get in the room because by then he's ditched the stick on the rack, and I'm like, hey. I saw your new grip. Show it to me. And so not only did he show us the grip, explain why he liked it, but he actually was dropping down into the butterfly as I shot video to show how it fits better with his butterfly in terms of where his stick is relative to his pad.

So I don't wanna give it all away. You gotta go check it out at ingoalmag.com.

Can you give me a hint, though?

Daren, go to our socials, and we'll... And you will see.

I saw some... I saw the one social post, but I couldn't tell completely. I was I was doing a game, and I was trying to multitask.

You can actually... We actually did share the shape of it. So if anybody's just like, I just wanna see what this looks like, and GoalieGearNerd had it, and we shared the shape because I took a picture of it. But the actual walkthrough, you gotta be a subscriber, Daren. Like, we gotta save something.

You know how much money I spend going down to the game to get this material for our audience?

Just the marking alone. None.

You've got an electric car now.

Yeah. True. Okay.

How many goalies use their own custom grips now or have their own custom grips?

That's a great question. I feel like Is

it 10?

We need to find out the answer.

It's more than that.

More than that, for sure.

Because a lot of guys have the notch cut in for their trigger finger notch. So, yeah, I think it's more than 10 for sure, Daren.

K. We have 64 starting goalies.

NHL goalies. Yeah. They don't all get to start.

64 Sorry. 64 NHL goalies. How many would have their own grips? Not done tape jobs, but actual grips.

I'm willing to say it might not be quite a third, so probably 15 would be my guess top ahead.

Oh, so I wasn't that far off.

And and listen. Like, it depends how far you wanna call custom. Right? Like, we've talked about... You'll look at Bob's, right, with the the slope shoulder.

Like, that's an option. Custom? Well, you can order... That's the thing. You can order a lot of these now through some of the customizers, so it's not crazy custom.

Like, Flurry's is very unique. Some of the notches are very unique and very much one off to that guy. The slope shoulder is something that, you know, I've seen Cam at the Hockey Shop order it for a batch to come into the store. So, it's it's it's a little more readily available. And as the slope shoulder becomes more and more popular among goalies, I think you'll see more retailers order that custom option on larger sort of numbers of sticks that you and I can then go buy.

K. Question for you.

Mhmm.

Can I alter my shoulders on my stick without compromising a composite goal stick?

I would be willing to bet it would void the warranty. I am not going to tell you to do it at home just like I don't tell you to bake your skates in the oven even though I may have done that this week. But I do know it can be done because every year, I get to be on the ice with a pile of goaltenders up at Eli Wilson's camp in Edmonton, and every year, somebody shows me a custom grip on their stick that they have manufactured.

Okay.

So I know it works, but I will not be held responsible if it doesn't.

I can pretty much guarantee you it voids the warranty. Forget I don't know. I can pretty much guarantee you. Yeah. Let's just let's just put it that way.

Do not come back and say, InGoal wasn't sure they thought it would be okay. No.

Yeah. Like,

you're you're screwing your warranty. I... I'd be curious having not done it and being quite tempted to do it because of my own affinity for a a slope shoulder now after having tried it in

foam core. But not

the composite. I have too. I tried to make a Hasek one.

It's just a matter of, like... To me, it's like, how do you smooth it out and make sure there's no splinters? I guess the key is taping it up, Pat.

Taping. Yep.

100%.

There you go. See? I'm learning.

Got a couple guys back in the National Hockey League and some personal history. Let's start with the first NHL win.

Jet Greaves.

Good friend of ours we met this summer.

Yeah. And big fan of Jet Greaves after getting to know him in Montreal. The CCM trip that we took for a week, spent some time with him and Devon Levi on the ice, off the ice, in and around the product testing areas of CCM and their innovation, and research r and d center. So, just... I'm a huge fan.

Like, he is one of us. One of us. He's a goalie geek. He likes all this stuff and is proud of it. And so we're so excited to see him back in the show.

Both his starts in the NHL have been good starts. This time, it ended up with a win. His first in the National Hockey League, and I'm I'm not going out on a limb when I say it'll be the first of many.

Hey. His starts have been good, and his starts have been busy. Columbus Blue Jackets, PR put out a few stats on Twitter that actually really shocked me. He is the first goalie since 1955, Daren, with more than 40 saves in each of his first two NHL games. That's a busy boy.

Made 87 saves for the first two games, passing Kenny Reggit who'd done 86. Don't know what year, but that's the, that's now the record since 5556. That's just incredible, I think.

In the history books. It's all in the history books. First NHL win in and he did it in style. Welcome to the league.

I don't

know who was

the goalie in nineteen fifty five, fifty six, but, Kenny Reggit, there's a good name from the past. That that guy could just get it done.

I bet he could tell a few stories on a podcast.

Oh, yeah. Makes notes.

We've got our Gear Segment coming up with the Brian's iconic line of... Sponsored by The Hockey Shop Source for Sports Langley, thehockeyshop.com. Joseph Woll injured. I I thought it was for sure a knee, but it sounds like it's an ankle, Woody.

Yeah. Which might be worse, the high... The dreaded high ankle sprain. You know, it's funny. We had a lot of guys...

And it was an awkward looking place sort of into his post, like, in a partial reverse, and he went to push off it. And I thought, like, same with you, Darren, the way he moved off it and then collapsed. I'm like, man, I wonder if the knee rolled over inside the gear there. It might be worse if it's a high ankle. Neither one is good for a goaltender regardless now.

And it's too bad because Joseph Woll had been playing phenomenal hockey for the Toronto Maple Leafs. I don't know if you guys saw the two saves he made on Vlady Tarasenko in that game alone, like backdoor, glove side, open net, take it away, right in the webbing. Just beautiful stops. But when I looked it up at clear side analytics, he was top 10 in adjusted save percentage, top 10 InGoal saved above expected. You know, he really stepped into that number one world, Toronto Maple Leafs, and now he's gonna be out a while.

And I'm kinda curious here. You know, this is a tough injury for goaltenders, a really tough injury for goaltenders. We have seen on the football side, players get surgery for high ankle sprains in order to allow them to keep... Come back quicker. I have not sort of had a chance to break down the mechanics of that, the biomechanics, I guess, quite literally how it works in terms of basically protecting you from reentering it and allowing you to get back on the ice.

My hunch is the ankle flexion required to play goal may not make it possible, but it's kinda one of those things where I've been watching this become more and more prevalent in football and started to wonder when do we see one in hockey. And I guess the answer will depend on whether this is even something that could help a goaltender given the the nature of the way the ankle needs to move in our position maybe relative to someone that is playing football and doesn't need to sort of have the foot twist underneath them the way a goalie does or inside a skate. So... But, man, like, as good as he was and as important as he was to the Toronto Maple Leafs, I gotta think that if there's an option to get him back quicker, that's an organization that's gonna no tone stone unturned.

Martin Jones is the guy that, fills in in, place of now. Well, both goaltenders, have been out. Samsonov, had the flu and WHL, injured, and Martin Jones, is now part of the mix there. We've got a great conversation with Casey DeSmith from the Vancouver Canucks, just a little bit in our Sense Arena feature interview. But, before we get to that, Devon Levi, boy, did he embrace the opportunity to play in the American Hockey League and then come back up.

How about the shot with the Eaglehead?

Love that.

Yes. The the Rochester American celebration. Game.

Like Yep. Might be the best award for player of the game I've seen.

Yeah. I don't know that, like, given how many, like, sweaty heads have been in it that I'm putting mine in there at this point. But

You would go there first.

I'm a germaphobe. Germaphobe.

Listen. I may be a germaphobe, but I once had a full body giant... Like, the head was probably two feet wide Elmo costume that I wore to make my kids happy on Halloween, and I wore it out. I'd have kids coming screaming up to me from a... Like, down the road.

Elmo, I love you. Stuff like that. So I I... I'll I'll I'll I'll embrace some germs every once in a while. Listen.

Devon Levi embraced an opportunity to just go out and play and have fun. And now he's back in the NHL probably sooner than anyone expected because, UPL, I believe, was just under the weather, but significantly enough that they called him back up. And he just... He looks more relaxed. Right?

Like, I think we forget how much pressure is on these kids and especially in that situation in Buffalo. And, you know, we're not... As we record this, we're not even quite halfway through his his second start since coming back, but I caught the first period of that second start in his hometown of Montreal. Talk about a place where you could feel a lot of pressure playing in front of family and friends and probably his old goaltending coach, Marco Romano, but he sure looked good in the first period watching it. So, nice to see him back.

But I think also there, if there are more hiccups along the way behind the Sabres team that, let's be honest, struggles to defend at times, knowing that you can go down... Like, it's not a punishment. It shouldn't be seen as a punishment or a failure. It's an opportunity to get minutes with less pressure. We know this kid can play.

And if it has to be from time to time at another level to keep him sharp and playing more regularly, so be it.

I also wanna acknowledge I did not know about this, and I must, offer my sincere apologies. I was not aware that I was hosting a podcast with a couple of legends. I I missed it.

That was funny.

I... I'm really, really...

I'm I'm proud of you guys that

you're truly you too, Daren. I'm sure he meant you too.

This this is awesome that you guys have been elevated to this status.

Legend status. I... Yes. So shout out to Pyotr Kochetkov, if I'm saying that correctly. I feel like I should I should've sounded great.

It should've sounded better than I could ever, ever attempt.

Well, listen. I should've double checked the pronunciation and the pronunciation guy because he deserves all the shout outs in the world. Went to introduce myself this morning after the morning skate. Watched him and Paul Schonfelder out there for a while, and then went into the room. Antti Raanta was already sort of...

Had sort of ducked out of the room, so I was waiting. Not to not to grill him, not to ask a bunch of questions, just to introduce myself because we'd never met. He actually got drafted at the draft I covered. The draft we talked to Marty Brodeur at in 2019 was his draft with Carolina, but he wasn't there present as far as I'm... So I've just never met him.

And I went up to introduce myself, and, like, I said, hey. My name's Kevin. I work for InGoal Magazine. And he said, legends. And I'm like, sorry.

I was kinda shocked. Like like, I'm like, sorry. You mean InGoal? And he goes, yes. Legends.

And I was like, okay. Day made. Awesome. I'm gonna go back to my house now in the afternoon and get a whole bunch of InGoal swag and bring it back for you because that, like, just absolute tire pump for us here at InGoal. I loved it.

So he's now my new favorite goaltender.

Tell me you were recording.

No. Because I didn't go in for an interview. Believe me, I wish I had that on tape because we would just play it, endlessly on loop around here as if my head's not big enough right now.

We need you to have those new Ray Ban stories glasses everywhere you go.

Just Oh, with the camera. Yeah.

Camera, microphone. Yeah.

That would that would be good. I'm not sure. Get

you throwing out. But I

was just gonna say, I'm pretty sure that it kicked kicked out of most locker rooms in the National Hockey League if they knew that. It's kinda creepy, actually.

Anywhere else. Yeah. Yeah. Quite honestly.

That... That's actually quite a fair point. But you're right. I I... Like, the first thing I thought was, like, there was a moment there where I'm like, hey.

Can I just, like, pull up my tape recorder now and we can record that before?

That again. Yeah. Can you just...

Like, call me... Call us because not me. Us, at InGoal. He'd he'd followed us and stuff. So, yeah, InGoal swag on its way to the Carolina locker room postgame tonight for and...

Hey. And and and also Georgie Alves, the Oh, yeah. Equipment manager who came and said hi afterwards. Six set of Vaughn gear. He's got, like, some throwback gear.

He came in every morning skate. He comes out and takes reps so that the goalies can get off earlier. And that is, like, he might have one of the best looking sets in the league.

I love that. The favorite goalie that that I've started following is Dustin Wolf. I just love watching him move around the net. He's so quick, and I know he's got the jump and the different, things that go with guy that we discover along the way. But man, oh, man, if if I could have one hour of moving as quickly as he does around the crease, it'd be so neat.

Well, they had an afternoon game today, Daren. Before we recorded, I got a text message from another, goalie person saying, man, now I know why you guys did the article on Dustin Edge... Or Dustin Wolf's edge work and the drills he does to warm up in the morning. He was watching the game, and he had to text me because he's like, I don't think I've ever seen anyone with better edges. So so now I get it.

It's spectacular. I... And I find myself rewinding and watch... How did he do that? How did he get over there like that?

And it's it's so seamless. It's it's wonderful stuff. And, again, look at it, on the InGoal subscription. If you're a member, you can go through his ProReads with him and learn a little bit along with the guy that's starting to make a name for himself in the National Hockey League.

Well, we've got a bunch of drills with Dustin from his time in the American League, him and Mackenzie Skapski. So, you know, and actually going back to him and Thomas Speer, the Panda, the infamous Panda. Oh, yeah. Start... Started with Dustin Wolf.

So we had lots of wolfy material up on the website. One of our favorites, and we're glad to see him getting this opportunity. As I said, hurts. We talked about Joseph Wall's injury. Jacob Markstrom was playing at a similarly high level for the Calgary Flames.

Like, that's that's a big loss again for a team that was leaning hard on its goaltender, but we've all been there, boys. Like, all know what the instinct is, that there's that open net behind you and you reach back and you turn the blocker over and reach out with the paddle, and you know damn well if it gets you on the hand, it's broken. I think every every goalie I know has got a crooked digit or two from that. I know I got one.

Yeah. They all goes by me into the net.

Yeah. I just miss it. The front

of the blocker or the back of the blocker.

It's did catch a cross ice shot one time. They crossed in front of the net, and I just decided to reach out with my blocker hand.

Really?

I don't even know what... It should... It was just instinct. You see it, so you grab it. It was not comfortable.

I don't know how players knock so many shots down.

It's... You know what? It's it's... Exactly. It's it's instinct, and we know it.

And let... Let's not pretend that I actually made the save. The guy hit my hand. Because if I made the save, it was actually reactionary, I would have got it with the paddle and not the middle finger that now has a zigzag in it.

Gear

Oh, yeah. We've got the Casey DeSmith feature interview brought to you by Sense Arena. But first up, the Gear Segment courtesy of the hockey shop, thehockeyshop.com, Woodley.

Well, and a great place to go right now. Not only do they have the new Brian's Iconic gear and all the new gear we've been rolling out, including the paddle wedge, Trinity glove. Although, I I understand from people that have since visited In the week, the one week since we launched that here, they have sold almost out of it, so there's more coming in there. Whether it's a gift idea or a sale item with all these new gear arriving, that means the old gear goes on sale, make sure you check out The Hockey Shop online at thehockeyshop.com. It's not just the latest and the greatest.

If you've got a favorite NHL team, somebody on your Christmas wish list that needs a jersey, needs it to be numbered, Like, they've got the full store apparel, stylish apparel, all kinds of stuff. Like, it's everything. It's not just goalies. They got everything there that you could need for the goalie or just the hockey player on your Christmas list, make sure you check them out in person in Langley. Hockey Shop Source for Sports at the hockeyshop.com.

Gear Segment this week, the Brian's Iconic line with Iconic. Kevin Woodley and Cam. Iconic.

Welcome back to the Hockey Shop Source for Sports. I'm InGoal Utopia alongside Cam.

That's me.

We've got some... We we did a tease. We tried something different when this first came in. We were already filming other things. We didn't have time to do the full review.

Brian's iconic. We did a quick little teaser on YouTube. Do you call that? What do you kids call that these days?

YouTube shorts.

We did a YouTube short. Boomer. Thank you. I am. I am the olds.

And we've pretty much been... I would say inundated, but we've had some some of our some of our audience has been like, could you please do a full review? So here we go. A full review of the new Brian's Iconic line cam. I think we should start with the pads.

First of all

Yeah.

In custom order because Brian's is the custom goal company. You can do a lot of different things. Stock, though, in the store, have white and black primarily right now?

To start off right now? Yep.

Okay. And more on the way.

Oh, lots more on the way.

Okay. Now we've got that out of the way. Let's get into the details. Show me what's new with the pad.

Alright. So the new Brian's Iconic pad, again, still falling from that GNETik kind of style line. So we're talking about a flexible pad here. So two course to this pad, we'll start up with that first, the internals, the things that you can't see. So they have a regular flex and also a fly flex fly flex.

What's the difference? Soft versus stiff. So the ones that we have in right now are the flex.

That's the regular.

Correct. And as we talked

Fly is

gonna be stiff. Yeah. As we talked about, not necessarily the way to evaluate flex, but it's good to show off the visual of it right here. So turns it for overall feel on the leg and what that now does, the pad kind of reverts back to some more of its, like, hybrid y roots with it. A little bit more

Hybrid y.

Hybrid y roots.

I like that. It's a new word.

I'm gonna coin that one. Hybrid y. Again, with a little bit more of that flex, a little bit more of that feel, but some good stiffness still up on that upper thigh rise. It still have Bright Core into it. They found a way to kinda lighten that up a little bit more too as well.

So we're still getting that rigid point where we need it. But, we're still getting lots of flex where we need it too as well. Okay.

So that's sort of the fit and feel. Some more What are some of the other features? Upgrades. Upgrades are good. We like upgrades.

Look at that knee stack.

Fat knee stack. I love this. I think this is great. Yeah. Gonna It's provide you a lot more stability.

It's gonna raise you up off the ice a little bit more, and it's just a nice firm surface for... In terms of for your lining. We're seeing a lot of other companies kinda move forward in this kind of a direction with having a single stack plus their actual plate themselves. Again, providing more stability down in that butterfly and giving you overall just a great feel

and performance on ice. Can help but notice. And then pardon me, we haven't reviewed Brian's pad at InGoal Mag for a while, like, in terms of deep dive full review, so maybe this is a feature for a while. But the elastic coming through the knee stack Nice. Inset like that.

Yes. Is that new?

No. It's a Brian's thing.

See? There we go. I'm I'm clearly out of the loop.

K. Leg channel still fairly reminiscent of Brian's pads of past. Nice singular calf strap, and then you have your knee strap, obviously, either behind your knee or down to your calf. Also have the ability to add their control strap on the inside.

Does it come with? Nope.

I have to order it separately. If you do want custom orders, you do have

an option to add it if you'd like. A little bit of soft pillowy feel on the inside of that leg channel by the looks of it too.

Yes. Very supple on the leg. Supple?

Wow. Can you look like a thesaurus today?

Another call out. Stock. No bootstrap.

You gotta go custom if you want a bootstrap. Yes.

So something you've always have seen is that their smart boot, kind of almost like a seat belt with Velcro on the backside of it with an alligator adjustment. Stock, you will not find the pocket in that. This is something that if you do want, you get a custom order. But to be honest, the majority of people have just been taking them off anyway. Not necessarily as needed.

Well, I mean, I think the big thing on bootstraps for me is as long as the pad's sized properly and make sure you talk to Cam about how to make sure the pad is sized properly for you or his team. You shouldn't need it. It's only when a pad's maybe a little big, you need to sort of hold hold it down on the skate so the knee stacks in the right position that you really sort of get into that I need a bootstrap. One other thing I noticed about the boot, we've got a defined channel. Mhmm.

We've seen in some of their recent models more of that flat tabletop, and we'd seen the sizing change a little bit in terms of we had goalies that have been long time Brian's customers sort of drop a size, go from a thirty five to a thirty four because it sits so high up on the skate. I'm guessing we're back to sort of more of an original fit with that channel.

Correct. To a point. So we're still kinda getting a good baseline average from, you know, fitting customers in store and seeing how they're they're lining up in the pad. So far, I've seen about a half inch discrepancy based off of what the last year's. So GNETik 5 would be being that this is fitting a little bit smaller versus.

That said, definitely give us a call. This is something we can chat about. 604-598-8299.

Again, without a bootstrap, you wanna make sure your size is probably.

This one, you still need a little bit more market feedback before we 100% say that, hey. This is bigger and or smaller based off of the way the boot's sitting on the skate. So give us a little bit more time, some more market research required. I like this.

Brian's smart toe makes its return. We've seen this on previous years, so don't need to talk about it too too much other than elastic toe strap with a gap already built into it as well.

And the ability to adjust the gap using that little leather flap there ahead of the curve on that one. That's correct. K. Primo, inside edge sliding, better sliding surface? Yes.

There we go. Makes its return. Right. Again. I knew that was there.

You just didn't highlight it. Here, have a blocker. Alright. Talk about it.

K. Redesign from the Gnetick. Def... I... Definitely worth calling out thinner blocker board.

Right away, this blocker is much lighter than the previous year's GNETik 5. Overall feel on the hand, we're getting a much more balanced feel. I really like the way this blocker just generally sits on the hand. Feels more of a centered point. I feel like I have a good control over it.

Steeper angle than Brian's has used in the past as well.

So that's just gonna be a little bit flatter.

So really have a look at this. Make sure that that's right for you if you are looking for something with

a little bit more banana bird. Profile. Iconic.

Massive call out, something new. So before it was boa, now it's a top. That doesn't work, Kevin.

It doesn't doesn't pull up. No. You turn back. Oh. So you saw the click?

They turned back the clock with more of an old school hybrid y pad, and now you turn back the dial to loosen it.

Okay. But we're onto the glove. You didn't like that? So

K. No. No. No. No.

No.

Iconic. Iconic. I forgot whisper. Alright. So GNETik 5 fans, good news.

Not a lot's changed. This is one. They already have a winning recipe. Let's just refine it a little bit more from where it needs to be. So flipping over to the back.

Again, a top now as opposed to

their boa. Exactly. But how does it work? Oh, cranky. Cranky.

Oh, double. Cranky cranky.

So if you like a nice tight fit on me, love you wanna make sure your hand's secure inside. This one's definitely a bar none for sure. Overall feel, especially with the way that that wrist is set up, allows you to cock that glove forward nice and easy, get a nice open presentation.

Fully attached and still, like, full. Like, no problem wrist cocking even though she's locked in.

Exactly. And this is a fresh one out of the shelf. They're game ready fit. It's something that they become very, very known for. Good, easy closure, game ready, getting whipped in the face by the security tag.

That's a nice glove.

It's a nice feeling glove. Brian. Iconic. Iconic. Check it out at the Hockey

Shop Sense to iconic, Cam.

Pretty iconic, Kevin. Yeah.

If you got questions about the line, make sure you give them a call. Check them out at the hockeyshop.com. Cam and his crew will make sure you get fit up with the right size, the right style, and if you wanna do custom orders, the right specs for you. Yes. Thank you, Kevin.

Iconic.

Now we gotta add an echo effect to that too.

That's actually what I did on the video. Iconic.

How how about Cam inventing new words?

Yeah. I don't mind that. I do it all the time, and I don't think that people should make fun of me as much as they do with it. I'm expanding my vocabulary as I go.

Expanding everyone's vocabulary in your role. Yeah.

Public service. Totally. That's fair. Hibridy.

I'm with Cam on this one. Stop making fun of my buddy Cam.

You're just but... You're just sucking up because you wanna order a bunch of stuff before Christmas.

A little bit. There's a little bit of that. I was on their website again. Yeah. I'm probably on the hockeyshop.com four times a week.

That that... That's conservative too, four times a week. And I'm trying to figure out what ships to The States, what doesn't ship to The States. I I spend a lot of time meandering around the hockeyshop.com.

You know, you got a couple buddies here, Daren, that live near the border and are Canadian that could ship it across for you.

But my buddies are busy. Like, you've got game going on tonight. You're you're squeezing this recording in. Really appreciate it. It's awesome stuff.

Feature Interview - Casey DeSmith

And your interview with Casey DeSmith is fabulous, and it, is presented by our good friends at NHL Sense Arena.

NHL Sense Arena, Daren, Woody, I'm pretty sure it's gonna show up under a whole lot of Christmas trees this year. What an incredible gift. We all want our kids to enjoy that experience of the game. We wanna support that dream of making it to the next level. One way, of course, is with an InGoal membership because they can hang out with their favorite NHL goalie and learn from them.

And now in Sense Arena, NHL Sense Arena, they can suit up as a goaltender for their favorite NHL team. They can do drills. They can work their way through the league in a competitive way. They can team up against buddies out there now doing drills. There's so much that's been added into Sense Arena in the latest release, and it's just...

How do you not make it part of your toolkit? I know I know it's it's not cheap. It's an investment, but it's still cheaper than an hour with most goaltending coaches, and you get to use it every single day. Like, as we heard from Woody last week, Joey Daccord of the Seattle Kraken who uses it before games and even occasionally in between periods. That's how good this thing is.

I think everybody should check out Sense Arena. Head over to sensearena.com. If you already have, a headset, you can download a trial. Now is a great time because they've got a great deal on for annual memberships as well. Go check it out.

Use the code IGM50, and you will save enough money to go buy a gift membership to InGoal Magazine.

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I really want this for my kids. Can you set me up? I'm like, I don't need to set you up. You'll never get a better deal than this right now. 50% off annual memberships at NHL Sense Arena right now.

I'm sorry. I forgot to mention that. I just didn't think Woody'd be able to handle the math, Daren.

No. I have buddies that ask me if I can set them up, and I I just give them this deal. And they think that I'm, like, a superhero that I can work that. I'm taking all the credit for it, and they're getting the NHL Sense Arena with it with the headset and the whole thing. It's it's awesome.

I gotta start playing your game, Daren. That's smart.

Own the moment, baby, which is what Casey DeSmith has done in his time with the Vancouver Canucks. He's he's playing behind one of the best in the National Hockey League as Thatcher returns to form and is going to be, if it continues like this, in the conversation for the Vezina Trophy. And, Woody, you had a chance... Chances to catch up with our friend Casey.

Yeah. We didn't do this all in one sit down. We chipped away over a couple of practices, but it was really fun. You know what the best part of not doing it all at once was? It took a little longer.

The final segment was the night after he pitched the goose egg against the Minnesota Wild. And the significance of said goose egg, it was in the all black pads that kinda go against team policy about having white. So score one for the black pads. He's not gonna say it. I'll say it.

I think future NHL goaltenders in Vancouver... I think Thatcher Demko probably smiling to see the black pads get a goose egg too. So maybe there's a chance that these guys will be able to add a little more color into their lives in the future.

Do you know how he got around the rules? Like, the team rules.

Basically, by ordering his gear before he knew about them. Oh,

that's smart. Yeah. Ask for forgiveness. Right? 100%.

Yeah. And, hey, listen. Quick whistles every once in a while. I'm trying to remember if you got any of other night. Like, listen.

We we can talk about dark pads and this and that. Pucks get lost in them. Referees are more likely to blow a whistle, and there were a lot of scrambles in that game. So I don't know if you got the benefit of the doubt on any ahead of when it would normally go, but it is one of the hidden benefits of an all dark setup. Plus, it just looks sick.

It was an eventful offseason for Casey to Montreal and then over to Vancouver. Can you set up the conversation for us?

Oh, we talked about everything. We talked about the changes here in Vancouver because that's something we've discussed in the past. You know, there are some things that they do here differently in terms of Ian Clark's system, but also a recognition that there are things within that system that might not fit for Casey. And so some leniency in terms of what he adds, how long it takes him to add some other things. We talked about what life is like when you'd only play every once every 11, 12 games.

How do you stay sharp? We talked about his love for the book, the game, and Ken Dryden, and why he wears 29. We talked about, yeah, pretty much just about everything, Daren. It was a good one.

Here's Casey DeSmith, the feature interview brought to you by NHL Sense Arena on InGoal Radio, the podcast.

So, Casey, like, what's what's been the adjustment period? What's been the biggest adjustment coming to a new team for the first time, learning a new system, new coach, new goalie coach? What's that process been like for the last couple of months, especially because you didn't have a training camp or a full camp?

Yeah. I guess it's just getting to know how everybody operates, you know, especially the the people you work closest with, like Clarkey and, you know, even Demko. Like Yeah. I don't wanna get in his way when he's playing, and you never know if he wants to talk or what he wants to talk about. And it's just kinda getting to know what everybody wants from you and how everybody operates.

Oh, yeah.

But other than that, I think the game is the game. And it's really, like, dependent upon me to focus on myself and then just support everybody around me. And I think that's where that getting to know how everybody operates thing comes into play because you know, sometimes on a given day, a lot of my job is just supporting the people around me because maybe I'm not playing. So just learning the little ins and outs is part of the adjustment. And then other than that, I think it's just really obviously working with Clarkey and adjusting to the way that he does things and his terminology and maybe the things that he wants to work on in my game might be a little bit different than things I've worked on in the past.

Like, I've worked on a lot of new stuff this year. And so just trying to work on that stuff on my own also in tandem with him.

Give me an example because I know there's some things they do here specifically, but I also know in talking to him that, you know, not trying to force you into everything they do. A little bit of pick and choose, tools in the toolbox that they like to say, what's that process been like?

It's been good. He... I'll be the first one to say he's been really accommodating to me, allowing me to play my game, but also trying to implement certain things, but definitely not pushing things on me too fast or telling me a certain way to play. He wants me to play my game still. But, obviously, some of the new concepts for me and new focus areas for growth, like, especially, you know, post play has been a really heavy one lately.

My post play has been pretty bad. And so just, like, cleaning stuff up like that is something that I know is gonna help my game, But at the same time, it's also some things that maybe are a little bit uncomfortable for me that I haven't worked on so much in the past.

Can you give me an example? Like, when you when you say your game, I think having watched in Pittsburgh and maybe a little bit of the world championships and talking to people, a little bit more flow in your game maybe coming in here than we've seen since you've been here. How do you how do you sort of find that balance?

I think that's something that comes organically through, like, working out in practice and just having a, you know, a mental focus to implement these things while still staying within myself. And that's... It's a hard balance to strike sometimes because, you know, I'm a very competitive person. I wanna... And I'm also a people pleaser.

So I wanna, you know, be my best. I want to be the best I can be for Clarkey and implement what we're working on immediately. You know? I want that instant gratification a lot of the time, and I also want that instant improvement, but it doesn't happen all at once. And it's just kind of trying to deal with that slight frustration every now and again where I'm frustrated with myself because I'm not seeing the instant results because that's pretty hard to do.

It's not something that happens overnight and just putting in the work daily is what what actually makes it real. And that's when you're gonna do it in a game is when you finally are doing it every day organically. You're not thinking about it.

I was gonna say is that the toughest part translate into games, especially if you're not playing every night because it's not necessarily instinctual and not to... Every time I quote this line from Top Gun, people tell me how old I am. But if you think out there, you're kinda dead. No?

Yeah. Yeah. No doubt. And that's part of it too. Right?

You can't be thinking too much in games. And I've never played my best hockey when I'm thinking all the time. It's just not something that is good for, you know, the speed of this league.

It's... You can't be thinking too much in games. And I've never played my best hockey when I'm thinking all the time. It's just not something that is good for, you know, the speed of this league. You can't It's

never been faster. Right. You can't

be caught thinking nowadays. It's everything that happens as fast as you process it, your body needs to do it, and your body needs to do it without thinking about it.

So you talked about post play being one of the things that you... You've made changes to, and I know there's some unique elements here, reverse tracking and trackdowns. And what specifically has been the biggest adjustment, or what are you still working on to get comfortable with?

Man, there's a lot that go... That goes into it. I would say just the the alignment in general. I've... In the past, I've tended to be a guy who maybe got a little steep or a little shallow.

I didn't really have a lot of consistency in my alignment on the post. So just kind of being more mindful and habitual about getting the proper alignment when I go into the post, keeping that alignment, transferring post to post, getting that alignment again. That's something that I've been, you know, really working on and just trying to... You know, like we talked about last week, just being more habitual about it and making it a habit where I don't have to think about it because, like we talked about, I can't can't be thinking about it.

Do you see the benefits of it? Like, how... As a guy who's done it different ways, like, does it make sense? And is that part of buying in, understanding the why as opposed to just a new coach saying, hey. This is how we do it.

Yeah. Of course. Why I let in the goal in Calgary? Because I was too shallow. And I let in the goal in San Jose because I was too shallow when I went post to post, and I couldn't gain any depth.

So, yeah, like, I've seen the opposite where improper alignment can really cost you. You know, who knows? Maybe stuff happens the same way even if I have proper alignment. Like, who knows? But, you know, I know for a fact I didn't give myself as good of a chance on those plays because of improper alignment.

So, you know, I do see kind of the error of my ways in sorts, and it's something that I really wanna try and fix in my game and see where that can bring me as far as, you know, improving my game from top to bottom, but especially, like, down around the post areas. You know, I'd like to see how much better I can get this year on stuff like that.

Okay. So let's switch gears here. Let's get out of the technical talk. How did it start for you? Like, you clearly are passionate about the position.

How did you sort of become a goalie and fall in love with this thing?

Well, I grew up playing hockey just like any other kid, you know, as a as a little kid. And I was a forward for a while, couple years. And then we just... You know, like every hockey team does, every kid takes a turn.

So your first turn, what was the... What do you remember?

I don't remember a whole lot about it. You know, my parents tell me that I liked playing the whole game and, like, not having to come off the ice. I I was a little selfish about that. And then I I liked the gear too. You know? And I was also a little bit of a timid skater.

Like, I was very good. You know, like, one of the better players on my team, but I was, like, timid. Right? When the puck goes in the corner, I would let somebody else get it and then try and take it.

We call that smart.

Yeah. Yeah. That... Yeah. Well, I don't know if that would have paid off in the long run for me as a player, but, you know, I was just kinda, like, one of those, like, shy, gentle kids. And it was, like, one of the reasons I think I made I made the b team instead of the a team as a mite... As a player just because I was, like, too passive. You know? And I think Goaltender kind of suited me.

You know, it's I don't know, in my opinion, it's a little bit more of, like, a technical intelligence game reading type of position, and maybe you can afford to be a little bit passive. Right? It's more of a passive position where you're letting things unfold around you. You're letting the game come to you. And I think that kind of suited me more as the type of personality and player that I was in, know, in hockey.

So, yeah, I just kind of went from there, and I switched, I think, full time when I was nine.

So it's a thinking man's position. That's essentially what it comes out to. You play the thinking man's position. Yeah.

I like the the thinking game reading aspects of it, technical. You know? Like I've said to you before, I think it's sort of an art form. I think it's a very unique position unlike any other in sports.

Like you say, art and science. It's a little... You know what I mean? Like, and how do we each find that perfect blend?

For sure. Yeah. Absolutely. And it's... I think it's fun the way that, you know, as a good goalie, you have to adapt to what's happening around you.

And, you know, maybe you're not creating as much, but you're almost, like, stifling others. I don't know. It's it's a very unique position, and I've always loved it.

Okay. So thinking man's position, and I understand you're a Dryden fan as well. So does that go hand in hand?

Yeah. Definitely. You know, growing up, my my dad was kind of the the advocate of the scholar athlete. You know, scholar comes first, and, obviously, you know, Ken Dryden was one of the smartest people ever play goalie. You know?

And it's pretty amazing what he did outside of hockey, you know, going to Cornell, being a great student, being a lawyer, and, obviously, all the other stuff he's done post career. Pretty amazing to be that adept in the goal and then accomplish so much outside the goal and, you know, obviously writing books and, you know, I I enjoy reading the game.

I was just gonna ask. You've read it? Yeah. How many times?

I think twice now I've read it. So... Yep.

I heard that the the the Habs gave you a jersey even though you didn't play for them, and we're getting in that trade a little bit. Did... It... There was some question about whether it actually had 29 on it, did it?

No. It didn't. Okay.

I was like, okay.

Yeah. I had number 60, the number that I was gonna wear. Obviously, I would have loved to wear 29, you know, given that I wore it in college and I wore it because of Ken Dryden. Whenever I was at the Bell Centre, whether it was morning skate or playing, it was always fun to look up and see his name, you know, up there in the rafters. So...

But, yeah, the jersey had 60 on it. I'll never get that 29, but that's okay with me.

So pretty cool to have. Like, I thought that was a pretty cool thing to do just knowing, like, what the, you know, where that franchise sat in your mind even though you never played for them to to kinda get that.

Yeah. That's... They treated me really well. I have nothing but good things to say about the organization, you know, from the second that I got traded there to the second that I left. They treated me like I was part of the team even though, you know, I think that it was pretty clear that I might have been a, you know, a movement piece, but they were always really welcoming. And it was nice of them to give me that jersey. I I asked for it.

You know, I asked if there's anything that they had that I could have just to give to my dad, you know, a lifelong Habs fan. Before I was even born, he was making six hour trips up to Montreal to watch the Habs and then driving back the same night. You know, he's an absolute diehard. So just to give him that jersey was really special for me and special for him. So it was nice of the organization to

do that for us. K. So the habs thing, were you a Carey Price guy too then as you're coming up? Like, trying to think of the age gap. He's not that much older, but, like, is he a guy you...

Did you actually, like, look at him and, like, model stuff you did after him?

Absolutely. I love the way he played. I think there's very few people who were able to combine the amount of athleticism with the soundness of the technique that he had. You know, it's pretty impressive what he was able to do as far as just the technicality of his game while still not getting away from the athletic position. And I think that that was something that I really looked up to.

You know, there's... Obviously, there's a Jonathan Quick era, and I love the way he played just because of the explosiveness. And, you know, he was in the league of his own there for a couple of years, right, when he was winning those cups and carrying the team. So I looked up to him, but also, you know, Carey Price was... He was in that top three for me as far as modeling my game and looking up to as far as the way he played.

I used to joke that he's kind of a human DVD for how to goaltending for a while there. He's also... Like, Pricer, I know is around the Habs a little bit. Did you have any opportunity to meet him there? Have you had that opportunity in the past?

I was fortunate enough to meet him at the golf tournament. In my brief six days in Montreal, I I was at that golf tournament.

You picked the right six days.

Yeah. And I met him, and then I I actually got his dry stall, his old dry stall. And there was a note in there, you know, from him, not specifically to me, but, you know, to the next owner of the stall. And that was really special for me. I don't know if the organization did it on purpose.

I doubt it. I think it was just dumb luck, but I took a picture of it, and I'll cherish that. So

It's funny how those little context, whether it's, you know, how you play. Like like, Flower was here the other day, and he he has a unique sort of notch on his stick now. And so I asked him about it. It's like a reverse curve on the top of hand. He's like, well, I asked Carey for a stick, he gave it to him, and he had this, and he explained why he had it.

And so now I had... Like, those little things that we pick up from other goalies. It it feels like it's a bigger part of the union than it is maybe any other position.

Yeah. That's interesting.

I think I'll I'll show you the video.

Yeah. Yeah. There's stuff that you can pick up, you know, from any goalie, just the way they play certain situation. You know, I was I was watching Jake Oettinger earlier this year, and I was really intrigued by how he used the overlap. He was almost using an overlap, and he was...

He wasn't square. He was more like, you know, along his goal line.

Flat.

Flat along his goal line using an overlap on the PK. And I just thought it was really interesting. And, you know, I don't think it's something that I'm gonna put into my game anytime soon, but it was just interesting how I've never seen a goalie in the NHL use that. And then I was watching him and just kinda took me by surprise and

Essentially at his size.

Right. And and he was having success with it. You know? He he was handling situations and making good saves and, you know, moving efficiently and all that stuff. So it was pretty interesting.

Just every every time you watch a goalie, you can pick up something that they do a little bit different, you know, and and use effectively. So I like that.

You may have just answered. We actually got a reader question. Sent us a video, Jake, doing that and asking us, have we noticed him doing this regularly? And I I was gonna go dig into video this week. So you just helped answer a question from one of our readers. So you're right.

On the PK, he did it both a bunch of times.

Are there any guys you... Like, do you try and watch guys all the time for that? Are there any guys you like to watch in particular a little more closely?

I like watching Saros. Just given his size, it's... And I think I got maybe an inch on him, but similar stature.

And You can never tell because the listings are never accurate.

Right. Explosive guy, you know, moves beautifully, and he's just really solid, reads the game well, but I like the way he uses motion too. You know, he's always in in flow. And so, yeah, he's definitely probably, right now, one of my favorite guys to watch.

Okay. When you say always in flow, always in motion, it's interesting because I don't know that a lot of people have noticed that on Juuse, but, you know, we talked to Linus last year and and and Boston about the idea of recoil. And Saros has a little bit of that in his game too, and clearly, it's something you've noticed. Is that something you've also played with a little bit? Like, even on a shot release, maybe having a little bit of that backwards momentum.

Definitely. That was something that I worked with a lot with Mike Buckley, you know, through college. And then as I was with the Penguins, Buck was there, and that was a central part of my game. And it's... You know, it has its time and place.

Obviously, having your feet set in certain situations is good. But I think when I'm playing my best, there's always a little bit of motion in my game. I really hate feeling static and stuck. I think that's a tough feeling, especially given the speed of this league and, you know, how you have to be really good at gaining and giving depth when needed.

Obviously, having your feet set in certain situations is good. But I think when I'm playing my best, there's always a little bit of motion in my game. I really hate feeling static and stuck. I think that's a tough feeling, especially given the speed of this league and, you know, how you have to be really good at gaining and giving depth when needed.

Yeah. Definitely. I was just feeling comfortable on my edges even when I'm down, I think, is a big part of it too. It's... You know, there's a couple of plays last night where the pucks just bouncing around in front.

And if I can keep what little size I have, you know, square to that puck even when I'm down, that's gonna help me make a lot of saves and take... At least take away the lower part of the net.

There's times where I've noticed a little paddle down in there too as you move to try and protect the five-hole. Is that... Am I reading that correctly from from up top watching?

Yeah. Definitely. Paid off last night. I think I made one save that probably would've gone five-hole, had my blocker slash stick up in there.

Is that something you practiced over the year?

Yeah. I think it's almost natural. It's like a natural, yeah, instinctual thing. Not something that I necessarily, like, actively think about and train, but definitely something that's instinctual for me to just protect that lower part of the ice when I can, especially when it's, like, really tight.

I was gonna say because that... Like, I... We we... I remember we had Robbie Tallas from Florida. This is, three, four years ago at a summer camp, and he was teaching it at some of the guys.

Because I think that can be a little bit of a lost art form, and the ability to move while also protecting the five hole with the paddle down is something that some guys have started to work on in their game. Again, because it becomes so scrambling in East West now.

Yep. Yeah. Definitely. I think that, you know, it's one of those things that you see it. You see some goalies do it really effectively, and maybe some goalies never do it.

And they're also really effective, but it's individualistic. And I think if you're good at it, why not use it? And if you're really comfortable in a a tall butterfly and you can really move effectively, you know, big and tall, that's even better. But I think that every goalie has comfortability with whatever that they feel is best.

It's important to stick with what you know works best for you. We talked about watching other guys and picking up things. Any you've picked up from from from Thatcher since you've gotten here, and do you also have to be careful? Because I'm guessing just on a sheer size standpoint, there are things he does that you probably can't get away with in the NHL.

Yeah. No doubt. Yeah. He's he's down a lot more than I would be, especially when the pucks below the goal line. Maybe even along the half-wall a little bit, he'll be in that reverse.

But he's also extremely good at moving out of it, and he's really trained that for years and years and years, and he's really perfected it to an impressive level in my opinion. So he has a system of play that dictates, you know, I'm gonna be down if the puck is anywhere, whatever, from the hash marks all the way around to the other hash marks on the other side. I'm gonna be in that reverse, and I know that I can... You know, I have effective coverage, and I can move up out of it into whatever position I need. And he's...

That's his game, and he does it great. For me, I don't feel like I move as effectively from the reverse as I would from my feet. So if the puck is above the goal line at all, I probably usually wanna be on my feet. And if the puck's in the corner, even below the goal line, I probably wanna be on my feet just because that's my comfort zone. And I think given the skill and speed of this league, I think that that's something that I need.

And once again, that's totally individual to me. And Demko doesn't play it like that, but I do. And, you know, Clark, he's great. He he says, that's not your game. Don't play like that, which is music to my ears because I know that I can't play like that.

So I love that it's... Like, to me, this is my favorite part of the position.

There is no one way to do this.

Yeah. That's a 100% accurate. I I think that any goalie coach who has a new goalie that they're working with and says we need to change this and change this and do this this way and do this this way. I think you're opening up a huge can of worms for that goalie. I think that if you wanna make changes, it has to be organic.

It has to be over time.

Probably likely starting the summer.

Yeah. Or, I mean, you can train stuff during the season for sure. I think that's... Because you have so much ice time. Right?

Like, that's probably the best time to make sweeping changes if you're going to. I think during the season is probably a good time to do it just because you have so much access to time on the ice. But once again, I don't think that really any goalie or goalie coach should be trying to make sweeping changes at all during during the year or otherwise because I think if you're at a reasonably high level, that goalie has done something a certain way and had had success. So why change a bunch of stuff? Like, you can clean up some stuff, and that's really what Clark and I have been working on.

Like, tailoring my game, trimming some fat, and making everything a little bit more efficient as opposed to, no, you're gonna be in reverse all the time. You're gonna be, you know, doing something. Or no more flow. Right. Right.

You're gonna be static all the time. Like, my game isn't changing. I I don't think. I think it's just hopefully getting better with every ice session and, you know, every goalie skate we have. I hope that my movement and my positioning gets just a little bit better so that when I get in game scenarios, I can have a little bit more success.

You know? The margin for error in this league is just tiny. Like, every little bit helps. And the difference between, you know, an eight ninety five and a nine fifteen is, like, not that big of a difference. Right?

Maybe it's, like, four goals against over the course of years. I mean, it's a really small small margin for error, especially given how good everybody is nowadays, and every little bit helps.

The other part, like, last night, hadn't played in eleven days. Everybody struggles with this as a goaltender. How are you sharp when you haven't played? How do you find game rhythm? So if you could pass along advice to young goalies who maybe find themselves in the same spot, What do you like to do to make sure when that puck drops, you're...

You feel good about your game? You got favorite drills, or is it a mindset?

I think it's a mindset. It's a lot of it's like, you know, I hadn't had a lot of success in the previous two games. I was really unhappy with my game in Calgary. I thought I let the team down and let myself down. San Jose wasn't horrible, but it wasn't good.

I didn't make any big saves and and lost. You know? I... So I'd lost two in a row. And so I had a lot of fire, you know, for those

Some... But some people might take that as, like, as you described that, I'm like, man, you you... It sounds like you're putting pressure on yourself, but you approach it differently. Fire as opposed to pressure.

Yeah. Just work harder. For me, that was my mindset. For those eleven days, I clearly wasn't performing up to my standards or, you know, or Clarkey standards or or the standards that need to... That I need to have for this team, you know, for...

To pick up wins and and deliver. So I just think that my mindset was, okay. How hard can we work until the next time I play? You know, how good can my practices be? How much better can my post play be by the next time that I play?

And I didn't know when that was gonna be. You know, I didn't know I was playing the wild until the day before. So... And, obviously, it wasn't a back to back, so I didn't know. So I didn't know if it was gonna be eleven days.

I didn't know if it if it was gonna be seventeen days. You know? It could have been our next back to back, which was Chicago, you know, in a week or whatever it is.

So It's like almost like taking a test. Just make sure you do the work every day so you're prepared when the test comes.

Exactly. I love it.

I feel like we could keep going, but I I really appreciate the time you mentioned how much you like gear earlier. We'll save that for another day. Thanks, Casey, for doing this.

Yeah. No problem. Thanks.

Outro

Casey DeSmith in his first year in Canadian market, a little different. Like, he's... There's a lot of changes for Casey DeSmith, but I didn't know the 29 tie in. That's cool.

Yeah. No. He wore... I mean, wore in university because of of sort of a... And his dad's love for Ken Dryden and sort of how that inspired some of his starts in the game and passion for the game.

And so it's, it was it was pretty cool. And, obviously, in Vancouver... Now this is another weekend. We... We're gonna save this one for next week after it's already happened because coming up this week, they're gonna put Roberto Luongo not into the rafters, but along the edge in the Wall of fame, the Ring of Honour, they call it here in Vancouver, not retire his jersey.

Smart of Casey, however, because he was wearing number one in Pittsburgh to come over here and sort of recognize that, yeah, it's not retired, but maybe it should be, and I'm not gonna be the one wearing it when Roberto's inducted into the Ring of Honour. And I would argue and probably will passionately on our next podcast that it should be a jersey retirement ceremony.

Makes no sense that it's not, really.

No. No. And you know what? Like, oh, see, we're gonna get get me going here. You said that's be two separate.

I knew knew as as

she said we'll deal this next week.

Reel me in next week. This is what we call the tease. Plus Kevin's gotta go to work.

I really don't understand why they haven't, retired his number.

Daren, you're so bad. You're so bad.

Let's get Let's meet.

Fun stuff.

I loved in the Montreal connection. Sorry to slow you down, Woody, but that Carey Price left a note in the stall for Casey DeSmith. What a cool and classy thing. And I don't know if it was specifically for Casey or just the next guy who sat in that stall, but what a what a great tradition that he could have started there, and what a classy move by Carey Price.

Hey. And these are starting to come out more and more. Like, I think there's a recognition by Carey of the impact he's had on other goaltenders. Whether it's conscious or subconscious, we all know what a great guy he is, but we've since heard the story about Devon Levi, and the conversation he had with Carey Price. Not to...

I guess I'm just about to give it away, but I didn't at the beginning, Daren. But where the inspiration for the new curve came from, even though I never saw Carey use it, evidently, gave Flower a stick with this cutout in it, and that's what inspired Marc Andre to try it. So, like, Price's

Carter Hart and and Carey.

Yeah. There's... Like, Price's impact, he may not be in the game anymore, but his impact continues. And it's it's really nice when we start to hear these stories because it remakes you remember, as Casey did in the interview, just how how many guys, even ones that weren't super young when he was playing. Like, they're not that much younger than him.

How many guys wanted to be like him, modeled their games, admired the way he played, looked up to it? It's pretty cool.

And then in a similar way, how cool that Casey went and got a Canadiens jersey, his Canadiens jersey that he never got to wear in a game for his father because he was such a lifelong fan. I thought that was so cool.

Credit to the Habs too because that was them... Not him asking. That was them doing.

Yeah. And we've heard of lots of teams that don't do that for guys, so very classy.

Yes. The only jersey Colby Armstrong doesn't have is one of his game used Montreal jerseys. He's tried and tried and tried. Buddy Colby, Pittsburgh Penguin analyst. So that's all kinds of great information.

Look forward to Woody going bazooka crazy explosion mad next week on InGoal Radio, the podcast. You really can't understand why this number's not... Okay.

Just go back InGoal Podcast next week.

InGoal Radio Podcast presented by The Hockey Shop Source for Sports Langley to hockeyshop.com. Be safe.