InGoal Radio Episode 254 with Pavel Francouz

Intro

Up and running, ready to go. We are ready to get into a series of topics today that will fascinate you, educate you, and entertain you. It's InGoal Radio, the podcast, The Hockey Shop Source for Sports Langley, thehockeyshop.com, making this possible. Looking forward to the Gear Segment with the Warrior G7 line. We're gonna deal with the pads and the gloves.

Stop It Goaltending U. The app brings you the parent segment discussing whether or not kids should be playing other sports. No. Not. Just dial into

that a little bit.

Your kids should be playing other sports.

It's not a bad some credit, buddy.

David Hutchison is gonna stop by and really take us through that. The NHL Sense Arena feature interview is Pavel Francouz all the way from Europe, and it was a really cool goaltending conversation with Kevin Woodley as we welcome in the cofounders of InGoal Magazine.

Daren, I hate to do this to you.

Yes.

But when I asked Pavel how you say his last name and I asked if asked if Francouz was correct, he was very impressed with my pronunciation and said it was the closest anyone got it. So we're gonna have to go with Francouz because it's one of the

Francouz, not Francouz.

One of the few things I get right in this podcast when it comes to pronunciations. I'm sort of the Don Cherry of the group, but I'm I'm told told I got this one right. So we're going Francouz.

So if Francouz is as close as he's heard, what is the actual pronunciation?

Ask. He just let me slide with Francouz because he because he's as you are about to find out in our feature interview later on in this episode, he's just a really good guy. And he's a was a really is was a really good goaltender who has a really good approach to the game, and there's lots of great stuff in this interview. So make sure you stick around for it, folks.

A lot to to get to, and, we will, peel it back, piece by piece. Really excited to, talk about all the multiple goaltenders that are appearing in the Stanley Cup playoffs as well. You talked about, being ready to play and just not going through the motions. You have to be working on your game throughout. Seven of 16 goaltenders have now our teams have now played multiple goaltenders in the Stanley Cup playoffs, Woody.

Yeah. And, here in Vancouver, we've already had three and an unlikely goalie lead them through to the second round in Arturs Silovs. Like, it's listen. Some of this is performance. Some of this is injury.

Some of this is just switching it up. But, clearly, it's never been more clear that you need to. And I don't care. The team that wins the Stanley Cup, if it's the Florida Panthers, they may go coast to coast with Sergei Bobrovsky. If it's the New York rangers, they may go coast to coast with Igor Shesterkin.

But it doesn't change the fact you need more than one goaltender in the playoffs now. You need guys you trust to play. And in the case of the Vancouver canucks, you need a three.

Three in the first round. Three in the first four games.

The last time it happened was twenty years ago with the Vancouver Canucks. The difference was they never got through that series. So that was the Dan Cloutier, Johan Hedberg, Alex Auld. I think it was against Calgary. My daughter was born during that series.

The only playoff game I've ever missed as a reporter covering this league for twenty four years now, but I remember that one well. The only other team to get through a round playing three goalies in the same series was the 72 Chicago Blackhawks. So a little bit of history here in Vancouver, and it's made by a goaltender who's 23 years old, spent most of the year in the American League, and some lessons here, folks, on perseverance and sticking with it. I know those are kinda cliched terms. Arturs Silovs lost his starting job for a stretch in the American League this year to a first year North American pro in Nikita Tolopilo.

During that during that stretch, Arturs Silovs gave up a goal from center ice. Like, things were not going well for Arturs in the minor leagues this year. Not to the standards that he expected after winning the world championships. Not winning. Sorry.

Winning top goalie at the world championships last year and backstopping Latvia to a bronze medal, which is a huge pressure packed situation that helped him prepare for the playoffs this year. But this this was not a linear path for him. There were a lot of downs this year. And for him to come into Vancouver, focus on his game with Ian Clark, and grind it out and be ready to go when called upon and have a performance like this, there's a lot of lessons in perseverance there.

It's all about a foundation. If everything is going wrong, you've got that to build off of and and be able to rely on. And that's where NHL Sense Arena comes in. It it if you're working on your game, if you're adding to it, if you're just being able to, give yourself something to, lean on in times of of challenge, it's a good thing, and that's what NHL Sense Arena does.

Sure does. And listen, guys, we know they've got great drills. We know they've got great skills. We know you can learn how to read shots in Sense Arena. But did you know that there's now a competitive aspect?

And let's face it, competition is fun. So right now, they have an NHL Sense Arena playoff mode. You can get your headset on, go and compete against 16 NHL teams in a playoff bracket for a chance to raise the virtual Stanley Cup. I think that's pretty cool that they've added in all this. We're actually gonna talk about it in the parent segment later today, guys, balancing training and having fun.

And in that sense, our friends at NHL Sense Arena are hitting on all cylinders. They give you one of the best off ice training tools along with an InGoal Magazine subscription, of course, where you can focus on skills even without ice, but you can have a lot of fun as well because they've added in that competitive aspect, and we all love to play games. So grab your headset, head over to the Meta Quest store, grab yourself NHL Sense Arena, give it a go this summer wherever you're going to be because you don't need ice.

Just throw on the headset and have some fun. And after you've done your competition, you look up and you see where you rate. That that is the first thing that don't don't lie to me, people. That's the first thing you do. I know it.

Daren, where are you in the competition? Oh, I'm I'm way down. I'm way, way, way, way down. But I still check. I still look And and to see if I improve, then I'll do that drill again. I usually do it a couple of times to see if I can improve and see if I can climb up a little bit.

It's pretty fun. It's also fun when you see those rankings of the drills and you actually see the names of professional goaltenders in the same rankings along with you. It's pretty wild.

Well, we've heard from Devin Cooley last week in our feature interview how much he uses Sense Arena, NHL Sense Arena. As I was walking past the Nashville Predators locker room, I think was between game one and two here in Vancouver, I saw one of their training staff out with the headset on clearly making saves, and both of the goalies, it wasn't Saros. It was Kevin Lankinen in, and they had a young goaltender up, Grigals. I I I think it might be Gustaf Grigals. I apologize if I just screwed that up without having a chance to double check, but, they were out watching him.

And I don't know if they put the heads on after because we were headed into the Canucks room at the time as we walked by. But they were asking me about it later about how good it was. And clearly, you know, with a member, I think it was the training staff or or one of the equipment staff doing it with them watching, they were having some fun too. So a chance to sort of get some reps in, but also, Luuk, keep it loose a little bit.

That's the other good part is it allows, the people in your social universe or family universe to experience what you go through. And maybe it is hard. May maybe there is some respect coming towards us after dealing with all this over the years. The NHL Sense Arena is fun. Imagine putting that with one of our favorite activities, the yearly TendiFest.

Like, that would be awesome. Just the way that those two things go together. Tendy Fest is is coming up brought to you by, The Hockey Shop Source for Sports Langley, thehockeyshop.com.

I feel like you just planted a really good seed there, Daren.

01:00, Fleetwood, June 15. Be there or be square as they used to say back I don't even know when. I'm so old. I think that I think you just planted a seed there. We we're gonna have to we're gonna to roll out roll out the the Sense Arena headsets at TendyFest.

We'll work on that with Cam. I gotta tell you, he's got a ton of other stuff planned in the works. You'll see announcements. Make sure you check out their social media posts at The Hockey Shop, THS Goal on x, Twitter, whatever they're calling it now, Instagram, all the socials. You're seeing some of the stuff roll out now, but they've got lots more announcements coming.

I'm not allowed to give them away yet. We're still a month and a week away from this. But June 15, if you can be anywhere near the Lower Mainland, whether you're driving, we've seen from Seattle, we've seen from as far away from Calgary up in the interior, down in The States, driving to TendyFest, there is no better chance for you to try out the latest gear, take it on the ice. They're gonna have a custom radius station, Daren. So if you've always wondered about the different custom skate blade radiuses for goaltenders, you've heard us talk about it in the past, but you don't wanna get your blades changed up.

You don't wanna mess with things. You because how do you experiment? Right? Like, I I go into a game and I don't like it. How do I switch it back?

You're actually gonna be able to go out on the ice. They'll have a staff on hand that can switch up your radius, switch up your blades, and get you on the ice in the different profiles so you can try it out. Just one of many things that will be going on at Tendy Fest this year brought to by the Hockey Shop. And, of course, we'll be there at InGoal. We'll have some special guests tagging along with us as well.

It's gonna be a great day.

So the custom radius thing, are they putting blades into your skates? Is is that what they're they're doing?

That's my understanding. Don't hold me to it, but my understanding is they'll have different blades for different holders and, of course, pretty much every brand now has a removable holder. Obviously, if you don't, you might be a little up the creek here. They would have to change it out a little more dramatically. But if you've got, like, a quick release, whether it's Bauer or CCM or True, one of those trigger mechanisms, they're gonna have blades with different profiles that you can pop in and out of your skates, go on the ice, and see how it feels different.

And and to me, that's just another example of the hockey shop going above and beyond to allow goal that tenders to sort of test the different things before they have to buy it.

Awesome stuff. That that is really cool. By the way, Joseph Woll, Toronto Maple Leafs, so one of those goaltenders that came on mid series this year in the first round. And the Toronto Maple Leafs goaltending was fluid this year, but there was a lot of talk that he was the best of the bunch last year when he when he came in. And, boy, did he make an impact.

Yeah. And I I'm I'm gonna avoid going on a rant here about why he wasn't in there earlier or why he why he didn't start the playoffs. We know about the ankle injury that cost him a chunk of the season. He was trending towards Vezina Trophy candidacy when that ankle injury occurred. Things didn't go as well when he got back from the ankle injury, and that's understandable because a high ankle sprain is tough for a goaltender.

But when I looked at under the hood and checked the underlying metrics, it really felt like and maybe on the inside, maybe the team just didn't play as well in front of him for reasons that would cause the Leafs not to start him in game one, but his expected save percentage after the injury. So and part of this is he's getting second half of back to backs. Like, he was getting tough starts. Eight seventy. That was his expected.

That is a tough defensive environment. So, yeah, you're coming off an injury. I feel like he didn't really have a chance to post good numbers when you're behind an environment with an eight seventy, and it sort of set him up to not be the playoff starter. But here's the thing. Relative to that, his adjusted save percentage was still better than Ilya Samsonov over the same period of time.

So to me, Joseph Woll's always been their number one. And maybe this is just me because I said that coming off the injury on a number of different outlets, and so I'm supporting my own take. But I'm a little surprised it took him this long to get to him, and he's showing what he can do now that they did.

Tough situation too. Both years going in in elimination games.

Yeah. And but, like, he's been on the podcast before. You've all watched the ProReads. You've seen him play the like, this you know, Joseph Woll just has a really good mentality for this. And so am I shocked?

Would it hey. I'm not pretending it's easy. Would if it had gone the other way and nobody would have held it against him. But his ability to handle big moments, you know, we can never see between the ears. We can see between the pipes, technical, tactical, all those different elements, but you can tough to see between the ears.

Every time he's challenged, he's giving you a glimpse that he's really solid there too.

Gear

Well, we will go inside the mind of Pavel Francouz in our, feature interview this week brought to you by NHL Sense Arena. But right now, it's the Gear Segment presented by The Hockey Shop Source for Sports Langley, thehockeyshop.com, and we're excited to get our hands on the Warrior G7 line.

Yeah. And as we're gonna have Cam explain here, there is a bunch of changes to the line. Some different things you can do at custom. There are some carryovers from the old line that were really popular, like the slide plate removable if you want it, but also a bunch of new features. And I gotta say, like like, Hutch was there filming with me, Probably the thinnest thigh rise profile of any pad on the market, Hutch.

Well, you'll have to check out the YouTube video to find out.

Well done. Make sure you check out the video on Instagram and on YouTube that accompanies this segment to really get a sense. You'll hear us talk about sort of like almost like a twist face, their edge control design where if you look down the face of the pad, it's actually angled so the top of it when you're in the butterfly actually presses forward and cuts off some vertical angle. A lot of elements that you're about to hear us talk about will be even better if you check out the YouTube video. But for now, let's go to Cam at the Hockey Shop and hear what he has to say.

Welcome back to The Hockey Shop Source for Sports. I'm here with Cam who is almost vibrating in his chair because he's so excited. Bit of a Warrior guy, bit of a Warrior geek. Excited about the Warrior G7. Now I'm a little disappointed that we can't do the like a G6 like a G6 baby anymore, but hey, onwards and upwards, Kevin.

Onwards and upwards, my friend. Onwards and upwards.

What do where do want to start?

G 7 RTL. That's where we'll start. RTL. Stands for?

Ritual. Ritual. And? Oh, like that's abbreviation. I thought it was ritual PNL stood for something else.

Thomas Lima.

Not that bright. Keep going. So, that's now their top end. So whether as you're looking at their normal clash between the line, RTL now becomes your top end price point, your elite level. And then you'll see G7 Pro Senior, which is now the mid price point.

So following in the footsteps of some of the other companies that are now calling their mid range level gear pro. So a little

bit confusion. Why do y'all do that to us? I mean, hey. Call it pro when it's not the top end, but I digress because Warrior is not the only one. No.

They weren't first. I don't love it, but y'all do what y'all gotta do. We're here now. But so let's

talk about the pad first and the differences between that and now a G6. So starting off with visuals right off the bat, you will notice that there is a break below the knee now. So one of the things with the g six is the pad is extremely, extremely stiff. This actually still follows in that footsteps, but there is a little bit more bend to it inherently. So this can help

out Mine's not bending, Cam. Well, I mean, you know

It's still pretty stiff. Yes. Exactly. So you're still gonna have that stiff point. So a lot of that stiffness is coming because this is all one foam core insert.

I'm also weak. Yes. I'll own it. It's one foam core insert, Hyper Comp all the way throughout the pad, especially up into the lateral thigh rise. That's gonna maintain that rigidity.

As thin as it is, it's extremely rigid. That's gonna help with that long term longevity of the pad. Also gonna stop that trapdoor effect from happening. Yeah. The when I look down the face of the pad, Cam,

it's kinda like a twisty face. A little twisty to it. Explain that to me.

Are you talking about coverage edge? Coverage edge. Yes. Advancing the front face of the pad to

help cover that angle. It just continues. Yes. Exactly.

I need that. Hey, guys. He knows. Look at him paying attention. He's the only one that watches the videos.

Right? Goat. Back. Back. So we have some refinements and some changes from G6.

Actually, some quite nice refinements and changes from g six. We'll start off with that massive calf pillow.

Removable, I'm assuming.

Absolutely. So if you want to have that more open leg channel, can take that out. When we do, we also notice the more adjustable features of the pad too as well. So we can take that one central calf strap now. I can pop that through the next slit, make it a little bit tighter.

Same thing with their version of a control strap before on the G6 that used to mount on the inside of the actual leg channel. Now it goes all the way around to the outside and those thinkers at Warrior added a Velcro pants. Let's say you take your knee strap and bring it down behind your calf, you can actually just strap it

right on top. And you can actually inset that as well.

There's two different straps. Absolutely. Listen. Pete Smith's always coming up with new straps.

He's a thinker.

Watch out. He is absolutely a thinker. Love that. So

couple returning features. Yep. Look down. We have an integrated actual now tow bridge in terms of the Warrior pads. So if you're not a fan of their elastic clip straps, which have continued forward since g two, you can take those out and now you can add your own laces, pro laces.

Opportunity to go traditional if you'd like. Exactly. Exactly. Their hinge boot is another quick feature that we'll quickly go over. So that is allowing that extra flexibility to the pad, especially down low, really being able to deflect those pucks where you need them to go.

Wow. There's a lot of flex there.

Yes. Exactly. So a lot of nice things that we're seeing in the pad itself. You were touching their massive, massive boot pad.

So this would be like this like, it it's a pad in the middle Yes. But it eliminates sort of an inset channel much like a lot of brands have gone to that flat design. Tabletop. Yep. So was this already on I'm gonna apologize, Cam.

I remember the g six review. I don't remember if it was on there having not used the pad myself. Was it already on the

G6? Well, you know what? The best part about having a producer with us today, I think he can toss us this G6 pad so we can quickly compare. So what you do see, similar style of boot pad, not as pronounced. This one feels like it's It is a little bit more pronounced.

That's So that's gonna potentially affect fit. Important to come in and

make sure. Exactly. So G6 versus G7. You can see that a little bit more pronounced. So what we have so far been finding actually even with the G6 as well was that the pad was already inherently fitting a little bit bigger because it's stiffer and straighter.

So this is coming into factor a little bit into play. We need to see it some more on some legs. We need to get a little bit more feedback before we would a 100% call it, okay, this is an inch bigger or not an inch bigger sort of thing. So stand by a little bit more. Remember, you can always call me if you have questions.

Don't worry. But that said at this time, this pad already isn't hearing any fitting bigger. So if you had a G5 and you're moving into a G6, G7 sort of thing, let's keep that in mind. This is gonna fit bigger, taller, it's straighter, it's different. Okay.

We continue. With the slide plate, ladies and gentlemen.

Removable, of course, if

you don't want to be faster. But I mean, you can see it. There's tons of videos. There's tons of things showing this off. I mean, if, you know, sliding is not your biggest thing, you're having some issues and stuff like this, this might be a pad for you right at the bat.

You're really sharp on your edges. You can really harness the power of this. You can really do some amazing things with it for sure.

Okay. I noticed that the little grooves are missing in the seven that were in the six.

That's correct. With the speed that this is already providing, this is becoming an unneeded feature anymore. It's too fast. Yeah. We'll go with that.

Slide too fast. Warrior G7. Now you have more control. Exactly. Fast.

Yes. Okay. So gloves. Moving on.

I was so excited about just I know the pad's nice. I know I wanna keep going, but we're gonna run out of time. Thin that diarizes is. Isn't it amazing? To the rigidity.

Like, what do rebounds come off these cam? Haven't used a pair myself. How do they come off? Spicy. Hot like cam.

Alright. Get down the gloves before he gets carried away.

Alright. So you've given me G7blocker, 20 degree board angle, designed to increase that rebound speed. Hypercomp Does it have to go

when it comes off?

Hypercomp makes its return to the blocker as well. Spicy rebounds off the blocker. So they have two blockers.

Let's go.

Hand position. Neutral, enter. So now I am holding So both their what I have here is G7, G7.1. So quick differences will be our blocking board angle between the two. These are both rich RTLs,

so the highest price point.

[crosstalk] So these are two different versions of the highest price point. Don't get confused. 35 degree angle on the blocker board here. What this can give you is a little bit more control in terms of where you're popping that rebound.

So it's got a little more curve at the top.

Correct. Correct.

A little easier. If you if you're a guy that has a tendency to pull up, have pucks skip off your blocker and go up high, even if it's over the net or in behind you, but this is the point. To go to this.

So what I do find with this is that in terms of for the center like that, Cam. Damn. Look at that. See, there's the difference, folks. So in terms of the center of blocker board feel in terms of how that blocker punches, I do find me personally, I like the 7.1 a little bit more.

I find a little bit more balanced. This one I feel is bottom heavy, which is good. That's getting your forward advancement towards that puck, but also you get in theory more coverage with that as well.

Okay. Two glove offerings. Mitts. Yes.

Mitts. 7.0, 75 degree closure, removable palm. 75 degree closure, 7.1, non removable palm, stitched in. She's permanent. Single t, double t, wide catching surface, long catching surface, similar feeling 580 ish, similar feeling 590 ish.

Overall closure, quite good right out of the box. Both these are nice and fresh. Still needs a quick bake, and then it can set it all up. Nice thing about Warrior gloves has always been their fact that they can open up and dry out nice and easily, especially if you have the 7.0 in terms of having that removable palm. You get to wash it, clean it, things like that.

Replace it if it wears out. Exactly. Also different options. You can put their 60 and or 90 degree palm inside. You're still closing on a 75 degree angle.

But changes your hand position. Look at that.

Pete Smith, Warrior. Smart guys.

So you want to change some stuff up? RTL available custom. Start to mix and match a few things. Single T, double T, what have you. You have the ability to make this padding stiffer if you really wanted to, but that's crazy.

You can go a little bit softer, which I've done personally myself.

That might be I think that would probably be the trend most would go to.

Thicker practice palm glove available now too as well. So again, two sets of gloves. Those are all things that are available. Intermediate custom. That's a nice highlight available as well.

Obviously check that out on Warrior's Customizer and as always, I saw a G6 pad come my way wherever it did go. We threw it at you.

I know. It's right there. Oh, is right there. Hey, found it.

Donkey.

But you know what that means? That also there's more sale products. So I've got G 6 left over from last year.

Oh, like the G6.

I've got the blocker.

G6, baby.

You just wanted to say it. You can check those out at the hockeyshop.com. Any questions about the G7 myself right now.

Any questions about the G seven gear, you give me a call. (604) 589-8299 or 1-800-567-7790. Check us out at thehockeyshop.com. Like, subscribe. Kevin, did you wanna add anything else?

Not only does he have G six on sale, but as we told you on the podcast last week, he has fresh. Like, he actually had the opportunity to buy more and he has like, this isn't just leftovers. He's got a bunch and it's a really great price. So if you're a fan of the product, don't wanna buck up for the new stuff, you can get yourself a deal.

So the connection there with Pete Smith. Right? With Warrior continues to be involved. So there's little bits of the Warrior line that that will always be not pushing the envelope, that's the wrong terminology, but just accelerating the advancement of of the goaltending equipment line. Hutch.

Yeah. I mean, Pete is, been a designer in the game for as long as you can be really, and he's been great to us since the day InGoal began and we got to spend some time with him. And I've always been impressed by his relentless desire to innovate. He is always looking for a new angle, always looking for a way to make his product better, Not necessarily always just trying to tweak what's already done, but to find a completely different way of doing things. And so, yeah, I'm a big fan of Pete's and I'm a big fan of what he's doing.

At the risk of opening up a can of worms here, goaltenders everywhere should be grateful to Pete Smith. As I understand it, he pretty much invented the knee stack.

Really?

Yes. Now there are different versions out there, but that's the one I understand to be true.

I love it when Woody starts something with at the risk of opening a can of worms because I really legitimately don't know where he's going when he says that. It could be like, left field where Hutch is gonna be doing some editing. It could be right field where it's really cool and interesting like what we just heard.

I just wanted to see the look on Hutch's face because I think he thought I was going in an entirely different direction Left field. Would have required some significant editing.

And and both those are fun. I know that the the listener will not get all of left field, but but, yeah, you you kinda get an idea of of the unpredictability and the fascination that we have with Woody when it comes with at the risk of opening a can of worms. Let's get into the parent segment brought to by Stop It Goaltending U, the app. They're doing a marvelous job and love having these two people companies together InGoal. Obviously, we're familiar with being with this podcast and David and Kevin, but also Brian Daccord and Stop It Goaltending U, the app offering multiple different, abilities to dive into your craft.

Yeah. No. The world's most comprehensive app for goalies, goalie parents, and goalie coaches pretty much says it all. But now it comes with a bonus. When you subscribe to Stop It Goaltending U, the app, you get a free subscription to InGoal Magazine.

I would call that a win win the best of both worlds. Obviously, you've heard what we do at ingoalmag.com and all the content we produce. Well, they do the same thing over at the Stop It Goaltending U app. Their slogans, the goal isn't just to stop the puck, it's to become unstoppable. No coach, scout, parent, or person is gonna stop you from following your dreams and maximizing your potential as a goalie.

They give you the tools to do that in just thirty minutes a week. Five one minute primers Monday through Friday, one five minute quick video on Saturday, and a full twenty minute video on Sunday. Just make that a part of your habit. We talk a lot about the ProReads at InGoal Magazine. Make that a part of your weekly habit, and you will become a better goaltender.

You will learn to read the game. Stop It Goaltending U has all these different things that they package together. They don't ask you to spend all day on it. Just spend a few minutes a day at various points during the week, and they promise you're gonna get better as a goaltender. The best of both worlds are combined, the Stop It Goaltending U app and InGoal Magazine, ingoalmag.com.

You get that subscription to our product when you buy theirs, so make sure you check it out. It's available on the App Store for Apple products and wherever the heck you buy your Android apps as well. I think they got something called Google Play. I'm I'm not familiar, Daren. I'm an Apple guy, but Google Play for those of you on Androids.

And there's no offense to you. They're actually quite good.

Parent Playbook

Bring us the parent segment with David Hutchison.

Today, boys, we're gonna talk a little bit about playing other sports. And as you know, I'm probably gonna take a slightly different tact or look at things a little bit differently. But look, we've seen it all online all the time. We've got a group of people who talk about playing hockey all the time and how important it is to do everything and miss nothing. And then you've got that other group of people who talk about the importance of taking six months off every year.

Put your gear away. They talk, of course, about Wayne Gretzky playing baseball every spring and every summer. The problem with a polarized debate, as we know all too well these days, is that it often trenches both sides. We've got a group that think that their kid has to play more, and they just keep talking about how everything is different today than it was in Gretzky's day. And then we've got that group that feels we have to let kids be kids, and they will always be unconvinced of what the other side is feeling.

And they keep finding more examples of older players and other athletes doing other things. As usual, guys, you know who I am. I'm gonna take the middle ground. You're gonna accuse me of sitting on the fence, Daren, but here it goes. I think you need to play other sports.

I think you need to be a kid as long as you can, and I think it's okay to train for hockey most of the year. But you need to listen to your body and you need to listen to your child, and it is okay to take time off because hockey's a grind. Even if a change is as good as a break, when you get to junior and college guys, being on the ice six days a week, 60 plus games a year, game day skates, video review, off ice training, It's a long season, and we gotta remember that we play for the love of the game. So the mental break of doing other things is invaluable, and I don't think many people would disagree on that. But what other sports if you're gonna do it?

We talk about my son, Maddie, a lot on this show. He is playing baseball, house baseball. He's finished a season in the Canadian Hockey League, and he's playing house ball with a bunch of guys, many of whom have never even played ball before this season. I actually congratulate any 17 year old kid who takes up a new sport for the first time, including a couple of goaltenders out there. We had Adam Francillia on the podcast.

You may remember guys couple of years ago, and he spoke of the value of playing recreational sports. Not everything has to be triple a so that you can have fun, you can focus on your athleticism without that relentless pursuit of wins and some kind of pressure filled environment. So I love what he's doing in this case this year. Being a pitcher in baseball, of course, has a mental approach much like goaltending guys. It's a solo sport really in a team environment.

An infielder in baseball has to have these incredible hands and agility, lateral movement. By the way, I've seen it as a coach, guys, and Bill Ranford told us on the podcast, kids today can't catch. I'm amazed how many actually have never even worn a baseball glove, which is less forgiving and smaller than a goalie glove, so it's incredible training. Our friend Marco Marciano with the Laval Rocket in the Canadian system trains his American League goalies as Kasimir Kaskisuo reminded us recently with a baseball glove and a tennis ball machine. And he's very particular, boys, about the technique there.

Other sports, how about golf? Because the mental approach in golf is unbelievable, and you don't need anybody else. You don't have to be programmed into a team sport with more things on the calendar. You can just head to the course, head to the driving range as far from a rink as you can possibly be. It's no wonder so many NHL goalies we know work hard in the morning in the summer and then head to the course in the afternoon.

How about tennis? I bet you Woody's gonna wanna talk a little bit about tennis, hand eye coordination, fitness, footwork, lateral movement. A ball is moving at you with pretty high velocity rising from the ground. I think there's some guy named Henrik Lundqvist in the Hall of Fame that liked to play tennis every summer. Woody, you can tell us more about that one in a second, I bet.

But I also wanna say, guys, it's okay to keep up hockey training. The fact that there's more great goalies today than ever, maybe the area of the elite number one playing 70 games is over, but the bottom of the depth chart today, how would that compare to a goalie in the seventies or the eighties or even later? The skill on the ice is remarkable at all levels today. Hockey's more skilled than ever, and it is a result of focused pretty much year round training. If you can reach a high level, only skating six months a year, more power to you and good for you.

Keep it up. I'm sure it'll be good for you. But there's no shame in training hard and loving a sport too, guys. Give yourself a break as we've discussed. Put the gear away for a while, but you can keep training too.

Just mix in some other sports primarily because they're fun, because they help with your athleticism, and if it makes you feel better, you can know that they help your goaltending two boys.

And can you take a break on ice but keep training? Like, is that does that satisfy the the difference between people that think that you could should take a step away from the game and and not be on the ice twelve months a year?

Yeah. Well, look, everybody's different. And I think you have to listen to to yourself, your body, your child. Also, it's okay to not listen to your child because some of them will insist they want to keep doing the same thing all the time because it's so fun and it's okay to force them to take a bit of a break. But, yeah, you can do different things on the ice.

Look, goalie camps. I know in the Western Hockey League, Matty is always bumping into guys that he has been on the ice within the summer, whether it's a shooter or maybe another goaltender from the Eli Wilson camps in Edmonton in the summer. Maybe it's just here in Nanaimo with some of his training as well. Those things that you do in the summer that are quite different from the grind of practice and games in your league actually can enhance your experience. I have no doubt that the friendships that he's developed over the years make all those meetings in the regular season for his league, so much more fun.

Because let's face it, who would you rather beat in any sport? Some guy that you've never met before or your best buddy? If I shoot three strokes better on the golf course than a guy I've never met before, that's like, okay, whatever. But if I can beat Woody by three strokes, I'm gonna take that one to the bank all day long.

What happens if And I can't by

the way. I can't by the way.

Would that happen? Would he go snapzilla?

Oh. Oh. If I beat him, he would go snap because it would mean he's having a terrible round.

Snap tastic, maybe in the past. I've modified my approach to golf. My expectations are as low as they've ever been and that's part speaks to sort of Hutch's approach about just it doesn't have to always be about performance. Right? It can be about the joy of playing other sports with other people while also tapping into a little physical literacy.

Right? Like, we talk about all the different things. Jeremy Swayman's having a hell of a playoffs for the Boston Bruins. We're recording this ahead of game seven. Been fantastic.

No matter how this goes, he's been fantastic. We've done the story. Other people have picked up on it in recent years about him, you know, starting to do barre ballet. His mom teaches it. He did it at the University of Maine.

It unlocked his

Oh, thank you.

Yes. His ankles and allowed him to sort of have better access to his edges. He noticed it immediately. He's continued it in his training. It's part of why you see those pregame skate videos where he looks like he's practically dancing out there.

It's part of what makes him great. Doesn't have to mean you do these other activities just to train, but it can be good to switch it up. Right? So go out there, have fun, be a kid, especially if you're still a kid. You know, you mentioned tennis.

Lundqvist, for sure, I had that checked off. Charlie Lindgren is another guy that I know has played tennis in the offseasons. There are others. We had one somebody on the podcast recently, and I'm brain cramping on who it was that also played some tennis in the offseason. Baseball, you mentioned Sudarshan Maharaj.

Sudsy with the Anaheim Ducks. And by the way, so good to see him back with the organization as he comes back from his, like, battle with pancreatic cancer. I've caught up to him a little bit behind the scenes, but Sudsy would have his guys learn to play catch. Europeans, as you said, Hutch, some of them never had a baseball on, but he would break the glove out. Lukas Dostal.

Oh, not just Europeans, Woody, but I know what you're saying.

Lukas Dostal was one of those goalies. Look at the year he had, and as he rises up the charts, he's one of those guys that he threw a baseball, made it on and made him, I think I think 500 up. Remember the old game 500 up? They go play 500 up in the field That's right. During the summers at development camp.

So, absolutely, Do you do these things in order to become a better goaltender? Not necessarily, but go do them because you enjoy them. And guess what? Sometimes it helps you with the position too.

I didn't hear pickleball mentioned. Oh. That'd be

awesome. Senior men's league for sure, Daren. We should use pickleball in the off season.

Hey, there's a pro league now. Don't don't just turn that into men's league.

Yep. Pickleball is getting a bad rap for just being for old You

keep telling

I think it really is. I'd love to pick it up.

Yeah. I'd I'd

Pick a lid.

I'd I'd pick it up and then somebody would be picking up my Achilles tendon after I tear it.

It it has caused a a a few trips to the er among the elder people in our

I'll give you another sport. I'll give you another sport that probably gets mocked a little bit that shouldn't, and that's badminton. I worked in a lab at the University of Toronto that tested multiple national team athletes like across multiple different sports. The fittest athlete of all the different sports tested in that lab were the badminton players. Really?

Because it was extreme high velocity all the time. You're going from zero to a 100 all the time and that thing is flying.

Okay. Okay. So here's one that's not a sport for you. If you are so inclined, if this is something you enjoy or if you enjoy the challenge of it mentally, grab an instrument, learn an instrument. We talked about Joseph Woll.

He talks about how playing the piano helps him.

Oh, here you guys are creating new parent segments early all the time. I'm gonna write this one down too.

We've talked to we've done the guitars. Right? We know the the guitars. Hey, it's cool. Let's be honest.

If you're a young young goaltender and you can play the guitar, you put your cool factor goes up. Just ask Sean Burke. Also, there is an actual tangible benefit to helping your glove hand. So there are different activities you can do that will help you. We've talked about the Russians as as young athletes, the physical literacy when they go to their goalie gymnasium schools or their their sports gymnasium schools.

Ballet is absolutely a part of that. Dance is absolutely a part of that. Physical literacy, anything that enhances it is is a positive. But like I said, go have fun.

The InGoal Radio Podcast official sport is lawn bowling, and that's followed up by bocce ball. Those those are the two that that we really slide into.

K. I spent I spent a little time one summer. We invented extreme cross country bocce ball.

Really?

Yeah. I lived on a campus at a boarding school. All the kids were gone. The early part of the summer there, we would start you know how bocce, typically, you're sort of throwing that ball Yeah. A distance you play it, and then you turn around, you come back.

Well, what we would do is go all around the campus. So wherever you played to, you had to go to the next spot, but then it got kind of extreme because we would throw that little white ball you're chasing into a barbecue onto an island, into a pond so that you were throwing across the pond. Like all sorts of wild things. I don't know if that's related to goaltending at all, it was a lot of fun.

I feel like that's a there there's a day drinking element to some of these.

I. Don't drink.

Don't did there's no cooler brought along with that? Once.

I I I was cooler than others. Yeah.

Well done. Let's slide over to our NHL Sense Arena feature interview. Chatting with a guy whose career unfortunately cut short and ability to push and innovate and was fun to watch and just a really cool guy, Woodley.

Feature Interview - Pavel Francouz

Yeah. No. I mean, I was a big fan. You've heard me talk about it in the past of of him as a goaltender, and I know others were too. Like, when I talk about these guys, it's not I don't pretend to be an evaluator myself.

It's based largely on conversations with other goalie coaches around the league. So when I talked the other week when when we were hoping to get Pavel on, about how good he was and how, you know, the strengths of his game, you know, some of that is watching and some of that is other goalie coaches around the league hoping, as I said to him in the interview, that he would pry free that maybe the Avs wouldn't extend his contract after he came over as kind of a late bloomer, late starter from Europe. Just the way he held his edges, the way he skated, the way he moved, there was so much to love. And, unfortunately, the knee injuries kinda limited that in the latter seasons. It was a short run, but it was a great run for him.

Played a role in winning the Stanley Cup with the Colorado Avalanche, which we talk about. Like, his name's on there forever. So, it kinda sucks that the conversation has to start with him walking us through why the career has ended. But as you'll hear by the end of it, beyond sort of getting to know him and appreciate his passion for the position, there are still some great things ahead in the world of goaltending for Pavel Francouz. So I really enjoyed this conversation.

Really appreciated him getting up early to make our time zones work, and I think everybody else is gonna enjoy this too.

The feature interview brought to you by NHL Sense Arena on InGoal Radio, the podcast.

We're really excited to welcome to the InGoal Radio Podcast. I wish it was under different circumstances. Pavel Francouz, who recently announced his retirement from the NHL from the Colorado Avalanche. We've had a chance to chat briefly in a press box, and it was a real pleasure. Loved watching you play.

I'm sorry it's under these circumstances, but it's good to catch up with you, and thank you so much for making the time to join us here.

Yeah. Thank you, Kevin, for having me. It's it's a pleasure to be part of the podcast finally. And, even if it's not under the best circumstances, it's, it's fun to talk about goaltending and everything. So I'm happy to be here with you.

Well, I'm looking forward to getting into the position that we both love, but I just for for our audience, the announcement, most of what I saw was translated. So Mhmm. If you could just just bring us up to speed, what led to it, how tough I'm obviously how tough a decision it was and ultimately why you had to make it.

Yeah. I mean, you know, I think we all you all seen the the health struggles I had last couple of years, and it it got to the point where I wasn't able to get ready for the season. And my my knee was an issue for me lately. And, I mean, it wasn't lately, actually. I I had my first surgery when I was, like, 14, 15, and I was born with the, you know, oddly or weirdly modulated kneecap.

So it was something I was dealing with the whole whole career, but I was able to function. But I can't me and my doctor back here, and we kinda knew that it's gonna pop up some someday. And so, you know, before before COVID no. After COVID bubble, I had a surgery on my both knees. It was just a scope cleanup, but then I I felt, you know, some pain in my knee, and I wasn't I from what I'm thinking, I wasn't moving properly.

So that's how my hips started bothering me and my my groin and everything was kind of falling apart. So I feel like the the knee was the the main reason I was kind of struggling lately with my health. So yeah. In the summer, I kind of realized I can get ready because the knee was keep getting swollen and I was in a lot of pain. And so we were trying to figure it out with Colorado to make it work.

And unfortunately, we weren't able to get it under control. So I knew I knew I'm not gonna play this year, and I was hoping it we will find some solution. But, unfortunately, we weren't able to do that. So that's how I realized, it's a game over for me.

Well, I'm so I'm obviously so really sorry to hear that, but I'm guessing, like, quality of life decision too. I mean, if you were going through all that on a daily basis to try and play, I'm guessing continuing to do so would have just meant later on in life you would have struggled from a day to day perspective with with your knees and with your health.

Yeah. Exactly. I mean, I spoke with the doctor who who knows me since I was really young, and he just told me, if I have my son here on the chair asking for advice, I would tell him, you're risking more and more. So just taking in consideration. And I kinda felt like it, you know, inside myself that, you know, I feel like we all love the position and the game we play, but also it should be fun too.

You know, it's that's the main reason we do it. So if you're constantly in pain and have to eat pills and stuff, so it's it's less and less fun. So, that's how I realized it's it's not possible to do it anymore.

Okay. Well, let's put that behind us. Let's get to the fun memories, the fun stuff

Mhmm.

The things you grew up loving. When you look back at your time with the Avalanche, I mean, I think it's pretty obvious, I'm guessing, what the most fun time was. What jumps out at you first and foremost?

Yeah. For sure, the Stanley Cup, championship, you know, it was, you know, already being in Colorado, you know, playing NHL was a ultimate dream, but stand winning Stanley Cup wasn't even on the list. So it was out of out of this world experience, and, it's something you will never forget.

And your name's on that thing forever, and you contributed. Right? Like, lot of like, winning it doesn't matter. Like Mhmm. Even even if even backups that don't play, they contribute.

We know that. But to get into games and to and to make your mark on the Stanley Cup playoffs on top of that.

Yeah. It was kind of wild playoffs, but, you see it happening, lately again and again that teams have to, you know, use second or third goalie. So I feel like, you know, it's getting it's getting different now. So it was it was great to be part of it. And, me and Darcy, we were really close, and, we supported each other.

And I will never forget that friendship too.

When you talk about your lower body and all the struggles you went through, like, it must be especially hard because I from the outside, and you can tell me if I if I'm wrong, but your skating, your precision, getting to spots, patience on your edges, like, those were such strengths when I watched you play. It's what I loved about watching you play. Did that make it more frustrating when the injury started to come in too just because I'm guessing it would make it hard to just skate as powerfully and efficiently as you used to do?

Yeah. I was always you know, I'm not as big, so I had to, you know, skate more and be fast, aggressive, and that was kind of my game. So it was it was getting harder and harder. I feel like I didn't change my style very much even through the injuries, but I feel like it's gonna it's gonna show up somewhere. Maybe you're gonna be a little bit slower or, you know, hesitating in the movement or something.

So, definitely, I didn't wanna I didn't wanna just try it and play through the pain and see what's gonna happen. I just I just feel like you have to be able to give it your 100% to be able to even, like, play this league. So that's how how much I respect this position, and that's why I didn't even try to kinda survive.

K. So walk me through the evolution of your game. Like, how did you get to that guy that was such a good skater? Where did where did it all start for you?

I feel like I was always, you know, that when I was young, I was always, like, quick and fast. So I feel like that was my strength, that that explosiveness. I had to I had to explore and kinda learn how to put it under control because when I was when I was 18, I started playing pro here in Czech Republic. And sometimes I a lot of times, I was overplaying the situations, and I was just flying around the crease and sliding. And it was maybe fun to watch, but it wasn't that effective, you know, especially facing older and more experienced shooters.

I feel like I was always, you know, that when I was young, I was always, like, quick and fast. So I feel like that was my strength, that that explosiveness. I had to I had to explore and kinda learn how to put it under control because when I was when I was 18, I started playing pro here in Czech Republic. And sometimes I a lot of times, I was overplaying the situations, and I was just flying around the crease and sliding. And it was maybe fun to watch, but it wasn't that effective, you know, especially facing older and more experienced shooters.

So, yeah, that was the main work to be done for me to be able to be successful, to kind of take it under control and just use it for my strength and in the in the right moments. So I was, yeah, I was that, you know, always fast, quick, and flexible, and that was kind of my game. I think I was a decent skater, so I was trying to, you know, play on top of the crease. But my my style has actually evolved to, you know, when I played in Russia, and I'm I'm seeing the footage now. I'm a different goalie.

And then when I played in Czech league, I was a different goalie too. So it's kinda funny if you look back and you see those images, and you don't even see yourself as your yourself. So

what changed? And when you talk about being a different goalie, is that an evolution getting better, or is that just adjusting to different leagues and what was required, in different you know, I talked to guys who played in the KHL. I mean, just pass, pass, pass, pass again, dust it off, wide open, pass one more time. Right? Like, just a lot of east, west.

So when you see those differences, is that you adjusting, or is that is that you evolving and getting better or maybe both?

I think it's both. You know? I I feel like I was taking smaller steps, but always challenging myself to be my like, the best possible myself because I went from a, you know, the second highest Czech league to the Czech extra league and then to KHL, then to NA AHL, and then NHL. So I was, you know, always adjusting, and I feel like you always have to get better to be able to adjust to the better players. So, yeah, I think that was kinda my involvement.

And the transition from Czech league to KHL was hard to you know, as you mentioned, the hockey there is is a little different. There's a lot of passing. You have to be smart. You have to read well, and that's the key to be successful there. And then I I felt like I have a lot of experience already.

When I signed with Avalanche, I was 28, and I played, you know, in Olympics and a couple of world championships, a lot of national team games. But I remember I arrived to the camp and already the pre camp, you know, just just normal practice without coaches and everything. And I was kinda I was kinda shocked how fast it is on, you know, on the smaller ice. And the the guys were, like, mostly AHL players. They were, you know, earlier in the camp, and they were they were great.

So I was I was just surprised how how much better the the North American hockey is. And, yeah, it was quite quite a challenge to adjust to the game overseas, but it was fun too. You know? It's fun to explore what you're able to do and what you're not. And I feel like that's how that's how I have so much fun in my career that I I didn't stay in one place, and I just I just tried to move forward all the time.

Now you you posted some incredible numbers overseas. Was the was the goal always to come over to come over to the NHL to make the NHL? And at what point like, I I know I look at some of the numbers in the Czech league and, you know, nine thirty save percentages year after year, nine fifty one year in the KHL. At what point did it become something where you know, what point did it go from being a goal to a reality for you? When did you start thinking about coming overseas?

I mean, you know, when I was young, you're you're hoping you're you're gonna get drafted and you're gonna go. And, you know, I was always thinking about, you know, going to the junior hockey in Canada or something or play USHL, but it wasn't that common back then, you know, to come just I see the the players today from Czech Republic, they're just leaving everywhere, but it wasn't that easy back then. So I decided to stay here and, you know, I had a chance to play for the senior team in my hometown. So, it was it was good for my development, but it kinda shut the door for me on the on North American side. We also my my year, we didn't we didn't play the top u eighteen tournament.

We because the year before, the team, they fell to the second tier, so we had to play we didn't play the main tournament, and that hurt us too for the for the draft. So, yeah, it wasn't I just didn't get drafted, and then I was just trying to make it over here in Czech. That was my ultimate goal. I didn't even think about NHL back then. So well, when I I had some success in Czech Republic, I was leaning to work towards KHL.

And I remember there was one interview, you know, I finished with the championship here in Czech as an MVP of the playoffs, and they asked me, what about NHL? And I was like, this is this is not something for me, and it's I didn't I don't even think about that dream anymore. So I I that's how I felt back then. You know? I was like, that's not possible.

But when I transitioned to KHL and I played more games for the national team and stuff, I start thinking about it. And I remember when David, he signed with Calgary, and that was gonna it kinda opened my eyes, and I was like, maybe I can do it too. So we started thinking and talking about with my agent and I had a three year deal in Russia, so it wasn't easy to just leave. So we were like, let's let's finish it here and we'll see what what can happen. And it wasn't easy because I think back then, there was a trend of bigger goalies.

So I remember, you know, playing against Kochetkov, he played for SKA Saint Petersburg. And I feel like I had better results than him, maybe better numbers. And he played for the top team, obviously, but he signed with the Edmonton right away, one way one way deal, and he was one of the two goalies. But when I finished the last season with in KHL, I was a a best goalie of the league and the all star team, and I didn't I didn't really get any, like, you know, any big chance to I I remember I was talking with Nashville. They offered me two way, and I had an offer from Saint Petersburg, is the biggest team in KHL, the richest team, and they they basically told my agent just tell us how much and how long.

That's gonna be tempting.

Yeah. So it was it was really tough because I was like I I wanted to go over overseas, but also I didn't really have any options. I mean I had one option and I was just you know put it in on the weights against this heavy offer from KHL and yeah, it was a it was kinda challenging time because I really wanted to come over and I was hoping it's gonna be possible to make it work. But I remember that I I had a deadline from Nashville and they just told me, you have to tell us today. And it was kinda same kind of pressure from St Petersburg because those people, they're not used to hear no or maybe or something like that.

So I had my last day of that deadline and Colorado called my agent and they they offered me one way, even though they told me you're gonna be our AHL goalie. They they had Varlomov and Grubauer and they just bring over Ritter. So I knew what's gonna happen, but I was also happy that I have at least something in my hand. And I I didn't I didn't waste any minute, and I just signed it.

You mentioned Ritter, sort of starting you to think along those lines. Are there other guys that you saw come over? Was who was your guy growing up? Did you watch NHL guys and model your game when you were younger after them, or was it guys that played in in in The Czech Republic? Who is sort of your inspiration?

I guess there's probably one answer for every or there's supposed to be one answer for every young goalie from The Czech Republic, but I'm curious.

Yeah. For sure. Dominic Hasek is the reason I start playing Goalie. You know, when we won the Olympics in '98, he was like a he was more than hero for us here. So, that's obvious, but I I love Tomas Vokoun because he was a righty, and I like his style.

You know, he was aggressive, and he was moving well. And I like Jose Theodore because he was a righty. Kinda same reason. He was smaller, and and, obviously, when I see the picture the jersey behind you, Carey Price, I I just loved him. You know?

He he played the U18's in my hometown. I think I was 14, and I just I I was in the ring all the time watching all the games. And when I watch him, I you could you could tell that he's gonna be something already when he was, I don't know, 17. Tuukka was in the tournament too, so it was kinda funny to to see those goalies that early. And, yeah, I just loved, you know, watch every goalie and kinda kinda understand their approach and maybe get something out of them.

So, it's always fun to see the differences in their approach and, yeah, it's, that's the cool thing about the the position.

Now have you ever had a chance like you you like you said, you mentioned Ritter. Were there guys you played with growing up that like, was he a guy that I was trying to think of the ages. And, did you ever get a chance to meet a Hockey or a Vokoun or guys like that throughout your as your career got got moving?

No. I didn't I never met the Dominic Hasek personally, but I met with Vokoun, like, three years ago, I think. And, we had a good couple of minutes of discussion. And I just told him I would like to meet him when we're in Florida or something, and we never made it work because he was always, like, in Czech when we played in Florida or something. So that that didn't work out well, but, we're still in touch.

And even now when I retired, he just sent me a really nice warming text, and that means just so much for me, you in that time. So that's that's unreal.

That's cool. He's one of the most I think he might be one of the most underrated goalies in NHL history. I don't think he got enough credit for how good he was.

Yeah. I agree.

You mentioned going to the a so you said you signed the deal, decide to come over, you got a one way contract, but you know it's gonna start in the AHL. You you arrive that first, like you said, before before everyone's out, summer skate, I guess, basically, captain skates, and the pace is fast. How'd you adjust? Who helped you adjust? What was that process like?

Any advice that you can think came out of that? Maybe another young goalie that's maybe moving up the levels and the pace is faster, something they can do to sorta maybe take out onto the ice with them this summer if they're playing against better players to you know, how do you how do you take that next step when it can be almost intimidating, I would imagine, at first?

Mhmm. Yeah. As I mentioned, I was really surprised, and, I feel like some people didn't understand back here in my, you know, in my country why did I go to play to AHL. And, I just feel like I wouldn't be able to adjust when I would sign right away and play NHL. It would be just hit or miss, I feel like.

For me, I wasn't quite ready for that speed or smaller ring. You know, hockey is different. There's a lot of players in front of you trying to deflect the puck or screen you. So I just feel like the the one year in a in AHL with the Eagles was just perfect for me, and I had plenty of time to adjust. So I feel like don't if you're young, just don't put all the pressure on you right away.

Just take your time. It's no shame that you you wanna you wanna adjust. And if you if you're just forcing yourself and pushing yourself on the edge, you can it doesn't have to work out for you, you know? And I feel like especially in NHL, you only have you only have one chance. I see it now with, like, Stezka.

You know, he's a Czech goalie. He had so much success here last year in the Czech league, and he went straight to the Seattle. And he I mean, he he had a decent year in AHL, but still there's maybe three goalies in front of him in the organization, and I think he's coming back to Czech league now. So, you know, it's just I I have a goalie here, and I'm talking to him, and I I told him just don't don't rush it. You know?

I told him maybe go from Czech league to Finland. You will see how does it feel to be in a different country, learn the language, you know, be ready, just take care of yourself, and it's it's gonna give you new tools for the for that big challenge, maybe next year, you know. So that's as I mentioned, my career was something like this, taking smaller steps. I don't know. It's not I know it's not that sexy, you know, for today's kids that

they're They want it they want it right now. Right?

Yeah. They're they're used to having it instantly, but I feel like the time you put in and the work, it's important.

What as you had to make adjustments in the American League, what were the biggest ones? Like, was it technical, or was it more just tactical? Like, where to be at certain times? Because it's like you said, the puck's on top of you out of the corners. There's all that traffic.

It's just a different style of game than what you would have been used to in the KHL and even the Czech Republic.

Yeah. That was kinda funny too because when I see, as I said, I when I see the pictures, I had really wide stance in KHL, like, super wide.

Real? And I never would have guessed that after watching you play in Colorado.

And that's great you're saying this because I was really wide. I remember I went to the development camp when I signed with them. So yeah, I was 28, know, the kids were 18. So that was kind of funny, but I was like, I just want to, you know, meet the people of the organization, see the ring and see the see the city. So I didn't I didn't care that much.

And Jussi was there. Jussi Parkkila, the goaltending coach in in Colorado Avalanche. So we were on the ice and just told me, show me some show me how you're moving. So I was just, you know, skidding in the crease, pushing so hard, and I was like, he's gonna be so happy. And then he he looked at me and he goes, I I watched you in KHL, and I know you were successful, but this is not gonna work for you here.

And I'm yeah. I was like this. I was just saying, I was like, what, like, what do you mean? What's he's like, you can't be that low. Like, you can't be that wide.

You have to be more narrow. Because players here, they're they see a little bit of space upstairs, and they just put it there. They don't they don't ask. I was like, okay. So what are we gonna do?

He's like, you have to, you know, put your legs more closer together and be narrow. And and I was like, that's gonna be tough. You know? When you're 28, you have to change this. It's a very significant part of your game.

So It's it's I mean, it's the basis. It's the foundation of everything your stance.

Yeah. So I was I was working on it the whole year in AHL, and I had a great goalie coach there. I loved my time with the Eagles. And when when they gave me a chance to be a backup of Grubauer the year after, Jussi would just he was just on me every day. He would stand he would stand next to the net, and every time I would get wide, he would just tell me, you're wide.

You're wide. So and he, yeah, he he changed my game a lot. It was a it was painful and but also I feel like it was important for me to be able to play in this league. So it was kind of funny times, but it wasn't easy when you're already thinking, okay. I'm I'm a goalie.

I I played in higher levels, and someone tells you, no. That's not how you're gonna play. And so that was a that was a kinda challenging time.

Well, I mean, especially like you told me, you turned down a big offer from the KHL. You know, you come to the American Hockey League, got people back home asking why are you doing this? And the first thing you do when you get there is they say this how you play has gotta change. Like, how you handled that was probably really important. Like, a lot of guys might have just said, no.

This works for me. And, you know, with as much experience as you had, there's probably a really good lesson there.

Yeah. I I really trusted the coaching. I I would you know, I I knew he's he was there for a longer time than I was, so he knows. And it also helps if you have Nathan MacKinnon shooting on you a couple of times and ripping it to the top corners, and you you see the you see the proof that it's not gonna work.

Was it all like, I mean, was it all about just sort of present presentation and making yourself bigger, or was it also a mobility factor in terms of being narrower and a little easier to move and a little less work rather than getting locked in low and wide? Like, or was it a little bit of both by the sounds of

it? Yeah. I think it was both. He he also forced me to be on the top of the crease all the time, and every time I wasn't, he he would just let me know, or he wanted me to more wait for the game to come from to me, don't back up. Because I was used to get, you know, get that the flow, kinda take the game and go go with it.

And now he just told me, just wait for it. Don't move anywhere. You don't have to. You're fast enough to make it over. And I I kinda had more and more proofs that I'm able to move that fast because, you know, at first, you're kinda hesitating.

You're like, that's not possible. I'm not gonna do it. But then he would show me specific videos from the games, and he's like, see, you didn't back up, then you turn and move, and you were you were there. So I I was just getting confidence that I'm able to use this style for my advantage.

So the flow for you wasn't it was more about having a little momentum for the lateral moves? Yes. Exactly. So that's a that's another massive adjustment. Like, hey.

Here's the best shooters in the world coming down on you, and I want you to just stand there and wait. And like I said, I was learning now in this conversation that that was all new to you makes it even more impressive to me because I I know you've you've probably heard me talk on the podcast about how how impressed I used to say it on you know, I I heard this from other NHL goalie coaches that would have liked you to not resign with the Colorado Avalanche and and hit free agency at least one of those summers. They were so impressed with your patience. And that ability and that willingness to stay and hold there at the edge of the crease as these attacks came, that's a massive change. How like, how did you get what kind of drills what'd you do to get comfortable with that?

Jussi was kind of pain in the ass. I'm not gonna lie. He would literally just stand next to me and yell to me, don't back up. Don't back up. He told me, if you ever back up once, I'll take you to your car and back up from the cliff and just just you know, he was just playing with my mind, but he's he was a it was kinda funny because kinda with with his relationship, it was specific because we were, like, best friends out of the ring.

And when we stepped on the ice, he was he was my best friend, but he would he would be super honest, and he would be really demanding. Kinda like typical Finn, you know, some like, big professional, but small details. He would just tell me over and over and over, and he was playing, you know, with your with your mind a little bit when you did when you didn't do it and you get scored, you would just cheer the players and something like that. So those were challenging times, and, but when we get off the ice, we could talk about every everything, and I knew why is he doing it. That's why it worked out.

You know, if you're if you would get yourself in the position when you're like, he's against me. He doesn't want me to play myself. He doesn't know a thing. I know better. That's how it wouldn't work out.

But I I just trusted him, and I knew why is he doing. I I understand. He would always explain me. So that's how I took it, and I was trying to do whatever he thinks is the best for me.

I was just gonna ask, did he explain why? It sounded like with the video, like, he showed you examples.

Yeah.

It's one thing when a when a coach tells you because I say so. It's another thing when they help you understand the reason for it.

Yeah. He always explained me, but, also, I could I could feel the change in my game, how much it works. You know? Because the the shooters in NHL are so so great that every time there's a little bit of space, they're able to hit it and especially coming with speed. I feel like if you're if you get like, for myself, if you get to flow and make two steps back, there's much more space in the net.

So that's how that was the main reason he told me you don't have to do it. Just wait for it. And there was many situations where there would be a guy going through the shooting through the d, and I didn't even see the puck. But I was just on the top of the crease and didn't move anywhere, and then the puck would just hit me. So the more I the more I was using it, I I knew it worked.

So it was easy easier and easier for me to to believe it.

Jussi's guys, typically very efficient in the post play as well. I know some I know other guys who went there as older goalies. I think a Jonathan Bernier, organizing his post play was something that didn't happen in to the level until he got to Colorado. It was sort of a little erratic in the in terms of how he managed it before he got there and UC dialed it in. Was that something that also evolved with you with him, or is that something you already had in your bag?

I think I was I was kinda, like, early adopter of the the the reverse position. I know I as I mentioned, I love to watch highlights and everything from NHL. And I know Bob was kind of first goalie to use it, and that was something I was trying early. So that kind of gave me advantage here in Europe, and we we kept working on it, overseas. We had plenty of time in AHL to practice because we only played Friday, Saturday.

So we had every other day, we had practice, and we had, like, twenty, twenty five minutes goalie skate before our regular skates. So there was a lot of time to focus on these details, and that was that was a huge part of it too.

You mentioned watching games and and watching highlights and stuff. Was that was that a part of, you know, sort of growing up and and learning the game for you too when you were younger? Is that something you continue? Like, we know some guys that when they were kids, they used to keep notebooks. Like, I remember Thatcher Demko telling me he used to make notes and watch NHL games, and it's actually some something I hear a lot of goalie coaches complain about now.

They say kids don't watch hockey anymore, and they don't learn the patterns.

Yeah. We couldn't I I wasn't able to watch NHL until I was, like, 15 or 16 maybe because of the time change and everything. And there weren't highlights everywhere on social media or on YouTube, something like that. So it got easier and easier to watch highlights, and I always love to watch it just how different every goalie is and how the game is exciting in in North America. So that was something I did even in in Russia.

I would just eat breakfast in the ring and watch the highlights of my favorite teams and favorite goalies.

We needed to we needed to have InGoal Magazine premium work. We needed to we didn't have it back then. We needed it back then so we could have set you up with this, and then you could have watched all them talk about all their highlight.

Yeah. It's easier and easier, as you mentioned, for the kids nowadays, but also there's a lot of interesting stuff everywhere popping. So it kinda goes hand in hand. We didn't have much, but we were happy for something. But now it's different.

But it's not anyone's fault. That's how the world evolves.

So you get you make all these adjustments. You're working on your game. You're making all these changes. You're playing in the American League. You get two games in twenty eighteen, nineteen with the Avs, and Mhmm.

And you kill it in those two games. How do you like, first of memories of your first game and how so two part of that one. And then how important was it to get that taste for the following season to know that you had been up there and and were more than fine?

Mhmm. Yeah. My first my first game, I I didn't get to start any of those games. But yeah, my my first game, was right before Christmas. My first year with the HL.

Right? So I I was supposed to

My bad. I miss I misread a stat, but you're right. Yeah. You just played two games in relief that year, but you still got a taste.

Yeah. It was the decent part of both games, but, the first time I've ever get the chance to back up was, I I was supposed to play for the Eagles in Colorado, and I drove to the rink and they called me. You you have to come to Arizona because they had the second night of the back to back, and Wiley got sick or something. So he couldn't he couldn't be back up. So I just drove to the rink, grabbed my stuff.

I drove back home, get my suit. But you can you can imagine the traveler, like, three days before Christmas. Right? So I remember I was just walking through the packed airport in Denver with my suit on, my hockey gear on one shoulder, my sticks, and the backpack, and it was painful travel. I barely made it on the plane.

I was stressed out. I didn't eat the whole day, and I I just started having the worst headache, you know, from the stress and everything.

And it was eating probably doesn't help.

Yeah. It was a earlier game too. It was 5PM in Arizona. So I I think I arrived to the rink, like, twenty minutes before warm ups. So no time to warm up.

Nothing. Just went straight from that suit to the gear. And I was still excited. You know? It was I was just I couldn't believe it.

It was, like, the best, Christmas present, and I was like, man, I can be on the bench with these players and watch the game from so close. But, you you know, it was I think we it was, like, three one for them after the first period, and you kinda sense you kinda you can sense the game in as you as a backup, you can sense that something bad is happening. You know? You you you see the bleeding. And so we started the second, and I was just hoping I'm not gonna go in in this in this shape.

And we got scored early, and I I could see the coach coming for me, and he's like, hey. You go to the net. And I was I just skated there, and I I was just smiling, just living my dream. Just was like I told my wife if I I know it's strong to say, but I was like, if I die today by accident, I would die happy. You know?

I was leading this this to this moment my whole career. So we we ended up losing. I went to the net. It was four one for them. We made it back to four four, but we we got scored late, and we lost five-four.

So I ended up having a loss in my stats even though I I think I had, like, 25 shots and one goal. So it was it was good game. It was fun, and I just I just loved it.

Was it any easier to get your first taste that way as opposed to the anxiety of the night before knowing? Do you think it

I feel

like yeah?

Yeah. I feel like yes. It's I couldn't I couldn't picture worse circumstances to have my first start, and that's that's the beauty of it. You know? You didn't have any time to think about it, and all of a sudden, you you wake up thinking you're gonna play in in AHL, and you ended up playing in NHL your first game.

And the guys were cheering me up, and it was it was a great experience.

And so the next year, you're the backup for the Colorado Avalanche, you had And you played a lot too for first year and first full year in the league, 34 games, nine twenty three. That's a heck of a debut.

Yeah. Grube had some issues with his groin or something. So he was hurt twice, and I had some spans in the season where I was the only goalie, basically, and the coach would just trust me and play me all the time. And it was it was great. Those were great times.

And, unfortunately, COVID kinda stopped everything. And after COVID, I I started having those issues. So I was just upset that I wasn't able to, you know, continue, and that that year was maybe the the best I felt, you know, the health wise in NHL.

What was the like, the big like, getting to play all those games? Did you have to learn how to manage different things as well? Rest versus Mhmm. You know, working on your game? Jussi couldn't ride you too hard because he needed he needed you to actually have some energy left the next night.

Yeah. Yeah. I remember there was a the span of maybe 10 or 12 games in really short period of time. I think I played all of them maybe except one, and then you realize how impressive it is if you're a goalie as a starter in NHL and you play 60 games. Yeah.

It's it's tough, you know, with the travel, with this lack of sleep, and tough games, and it's it's not an easy game to play. NHL is different, and I tell it everyone now that you can imagine how hard it is to be just to be just part of it.

I feel like it's getting harder too. Like, I feel like every year, goalies are telling me, and they're not complaining, but they're just like, this is the hardest it's ever been to do this job.

Yeah. Yeah. I remember we had that that that strip, one year, and we only took a short trip. You know? We played at home, and we flew to Chicago.

And we landed at 3AM in the airport in Denver and my dad just looked at me like, I would never do this job. It's tough, but it's yeah. When I when I told you I played that span of a lot of games in a short period of time, I remember we played, in Vancouver. So you might you might have

I I was gonna say, I'm I'm pretty sure I remember writing about the streak of, you know, how many you'd started in a row.

Yeah. But, that game, I there was one of those games when I felt like the, you know, everything kinda got me, and I wasn't able to play, you know, the game I wanted. And I actually I went I got hit, like, couple nights before by a player in my head. And I remember after this game, went to our doctor and I was like, man, I feel like I have concussion or something. I couldn't I don't couldn't focus.

I couldn't I couldn't read. I I couldn't see the puck sometimes. And he goes, just just rest. Like, you're gonna see tomorrow how you feel, and we can do the evaluation and stuff. So I slept.

You know, we had a day off. I slept all day and stuff, and I felt much better. So it was like, it wasn't a concussion. I was just that tired.

Yeah. I I feel like I feel like physically, it's never been harder. Like you said, you've got all the travel and all the things, but also mentally. There's no such thing anymore as a b game. They're the generation before you, you know, the guys like Luongo they learned how to win with their b game.

I I have coaches tell me all the time now, the b game is when you they score six or seven on you. Like, it's just the margins are so thin now, the pressure and the mental focus required is just never been higher.

Yeah. I agree.

Which is tough. That's not easy. Mhmm.

Yeah. I mean, it's it's it's a fun position to play, but also if you consider all this stuff and the pressure nowadays with social media and everything, there's a lot of on the plate. So that's I'm just saying it just to express my respect for the players.

Yeah. I mean, it's it's it's a fun position to play, but also if you consider all this stuff and the pressure nowadays with social media and everything, there's a lot of on the plate. So that's I'm just saying it just to express my respect for the players. Like, if you see Georgie now in Colorado, he played so many games last two seasons and so many wins. So I feel like people should just respect it.

Yep. Absolutely. Absolutely. The gear. Were you always a gear guy?

Because you came up with some really sick sets.

Thank you.

Was that was that something where you always a guy a big gear guy growing up, or was that just was it somebody else's idea of those sets, or were you you know, are you you're an artist, a hidden talent, or how'd

that work? I think I I I was always a gear guy for sure. I I've enjoyed every single second of being in NHL and be able to have as much gear as you want.

It's the best, isn't it?

That was the best best part of the, you know, job in NHL. And, you know, my friend from Vaughn, Adam, he's he always helped me, you know, figure out how much gear I need, and I told him we're gonna do this, we're gonna do that. So they had good options for me, and I loved it. It was great.

Favorite set?

I love the dark sets with with our third jerseys in Colorado. And maybe the outdoor game set was sick too, I feel like. And, yeah, the the the worst thing about myself and the gear is that I didn't I didn't like the puckmarks on my gear. So I I spent a lot of time just cleaning my gear and get, laughed on a lot or, you know, you see those looks from the players or the staff that but I just couldn't help myself. I didn't I was like, I hate it that I hate that I hate it, but I I can't stand it.

I just I just can't.

Were you the one that taught Spencer Martin to put Vaseline on his path?

Yeah. It was me.

I I I had forgotten all about that till you mentioned that.

Uh-huh.

There's not well, he's the same way, and I and there are other guys that don't want to admit it, but I caught them that played with Spencer. And they used to look at him the same way when he put the Vaseline on his pads, and I see them cleaning puck marks off now too. So

That's the thing. It's it's really addictive because I remember Spencer, he looked at me. He's like, you weird or what what's going on? I was like, man, I just hate the puckmarks. And then he saw me clean and he he tried it.

I remember that day he tried it once. He's like, man, that's kinda cool. And then he started doing it more and more, but the worst thing is that you start doing it once and then you can't stop, and it's it's just getting worse. Like, I I would do it, like, once a month when I played in Czech, but then if you have a brand new set in NHL and you have you see all those pictures and, you know, videos, and I would do it, like, almost every week.

I love it. Well, you know, you just did the option is to just be like me and suck and the puck never hits you, so there's no puck marks. It's tough to get puck marks when they're all going by you. I had for totally totally forgotten that story. You had some good masks too.

I think of the outdoor game one is one that jumps out as a as a memory for me with the I'm trying to think of the, like, outdoor out outdoor rink on it. And Yeah. Yeah. Some beauties.

Yeah. Thank you. I mean, it's gonna I feel the coolest part of it is that I've always worked with my guy from back home. Okay. And he's so for him, it was a real pleasure to, you know, have his mask in NHL.

It was kind of my dream to play in NHL and his dream to have his mask here. So we were both enjoying it. And even though Dave already reached out to me a couple of times, I just told him, man, I I love you. I respect you. And I as a kid, that would be

A dream.

Yes. For me anytime. But I have my guy, and we are working together, and I love his work. So we always spend a lot of time, you know, preparing the designs and everything. So that was something I enjoyed too.

I love it. I love it. And do you and I love that you stuck with him. Like, again, same thing. I know, like, for a lot of people, it's like, man, like, once I have a Dave Art mask, I made it.

But I also have a ton of respect for, you know, sticking with the guy that was there through the whole time and helping him live his dream. Do you have a spot picked out, or they're already on display somewhere, or is that all in the works for later?

No. I I've actually, I have all my masks at home, and I have it in my basement just so, you know, I can look at them once in a while. And it's kinda cool if you see them, you know, put them in the one line and you see your first mask and the last mask. So there's plenty of time between.

What's next for you? I I read that you had been doing a little bit of European scouting for the Avs, and that might be something. Are you doing some things with the world championship? Do you think about coaching? You've had great coaches.

You've got all these great influences from different parts of the world, different styles of games. There are there are so many options for you right now. Are you are you just taking your time to figure out what's next, or have you got some plans?

Yeah. I think I'm I don't wanna put all the pressure on me right away. I just wanna, you know, look around and see see what's would be the best thing to do. It was really cool from Colorado that even though, you know, under these circumstances, they gave me a chance to try the scouting. It was kinda I would say kinda like a hybrid scouting because we have our scouts here, and they're they would send us the goalies for evaluation.

So we're me, Peter Budaj, Craig Billington, we're we call it goalie department, and it's fun. Just like me and you now, that's what we do. We talk about goalies, and it's a it's a positive job because you're seeing the best players. So you only see the great guys, and you're picking the best one. So that's an easy job to do.

Not easy that you would put the list together, but it's easy that you're just dealing with the best, and, that's what I love about it. And if you see the talent nowadays when the guys are 18 and I compare myself to when I was 18, it's it's different world. So that's really exciting. So I I'm just hoping I I I could do this for the future. It's we do it I do it mostly from my computer.

I travel a couple of times for some tournaments or games or just maybe see the player live. But I do it mostly from home, that's an easy thing to do. Spend a lot of time traveling around, not seeing my family, so I would rather be home now and be able to spend some time with them. I'm going to work as a TV expert in the world championship in two weeks in So that's that's gonna be exciting. It's kind of something which gave me an anxiety I didn't have in last couple months.

And I was always interested in that mental aspect of the game. So I'm looking into that part two. I would like to maybe be possibly, like, a mental coach or something like that.

Did you ever did you ever work with one? I was gonna ask you because you seem to have everything sorta the way you process things and all these challenges seem so I I won't say easy because I'm sure it wasn't, but you made it sound easy. Did you have somebody that helped you through those over the years or that you learned from?

Yeah. I had a I had a guy. I actually met him really young, and we kept working together my whole career. But I also had some really good mentors. I had one older goalie at the age I was 18.

He was 40. So we were, like, goalie partners, but he was more like a goalie coach for me. And the way he talked to me, he he teach me a lot. But, yeah, this is something I would like to I feel like with the experience I have with the ups and downs, with the injuries, that's something I could be able to, you know, pass forward and help maybe some other players or, I don't know, from maybe from guys from different sports too. I don't know.

I love it. Lot so you've got lots of options, and you're in no rush to make any decisions. That's a good thing. It sounds like you're excited for the world championships. I was I could hear the excitement in your voice.

Although, obviously, I won't be able to tune into your broadcast or understand what the heck you're saying. I I know how I know how much you love the position and you're gonna get to do it at that level. It's great.

Yeah. That's you know, I'm gonna be there mostly for the goalie part, obviously, but I always love the atmosphere of world championships. You know, it's the last thing you do in the season. The weather is beautiful outside. Something like a play playoffs in NHL.

So it was always the best time, and even though I would I would wish I I would play here in Prague in front of a home crowd, That's not possible now. So even like that, enjoy the atmosphere like this from different position with less of stress maybe. It's gonna be it's gonna be fun.

Awesome. Excellent stuff. Well, thank you so much amidst all the stuff you've got going on for spending some time with us. I know our audience is gonna love this interview, far too long before we got to catch up. Like I said, I wish it was under different circumstances, but, man, I enjoyed this conversation, Pavel.

Thank you so much.

Thank you very much. Thank you.

Outro

Watching him and I I I just like this style. There's there's something about South Paws that that always sort of draw my attention in being able to watch him. It's because I I try to imagine myself doing that, but but he always seemed to be more in control and and and patient. And I I I just I'd loved watching, Pavel.

Yeah. I those are the those are two perfect words for it, Daren. He just there was a calmness to it. And yet, as he talked about at his size, like, his skating to get there, there was a Saros element. Maybe a a little more in control, like a Saros like a similar style and and needs to be in certain positions.

Maybe a little less sort of athletic scrambling out of those positions. But just yeah. I loved watching him play. And and and we talked about the gear too. Had some sick style with the gear for some of the special events. Vaughn did a really nice job with some of his custom sets over the years. And so, yeah, it was just fun to catch up with him. And like I said, hopefully, the first conversations of many because he's gonna stick around in the position by the sounds of it, whether it's continuing as a scout, whether there's coaching, or whether it's announcing as he'll start at the upcoming world championships. The goalie world's better with Pablo Francois in it.

So glad to hear he's gonna be a part of it and hope to continue to make him part of our podcast in the future.

We got to see a little bit of Thatcher Demko at the end of the season, for the Vancouver Canucks. So will we witness him as this March continues into the second round?

Well, speaking of knee injuries, he was on the ice by the end of the first round with Nashville after sustaining another one in game one. So I don't know, Daren. It might depend on how long this series lasts. I know there are a lot of people and odds makers, are speculating it will be done and dirty, and maybe Demko doesn't get a chance, but it sure seems like there's a possibility we could see him by the end of this round. If you do the math on the timeline, I was always sort of under the understanding that four weeks would be optimal.

Four weeks would put it around game six of the schedule I've seen tentatively. He's on the ice in Canucks return to play protocol is typically two weeks. The fact he's on the ice as the Nashville series winds down means it could be even sooner. So who knows? If anybody's going to do it, it will be Thatcher Demko.

His determination and work ethic, we've heard a lot about the amount of time he's spending off the ice to come back from both the earlier injury and now this one. If anyone can pull it off, it will be him. Let's just hope it's a wise decision all around because of the guy we just interviewed and and what, you know, continually doing damage to your joints could do long term.

And a heads up, next week's parent segment brought to you by Stop It Goaltending U app, is going to involve one of our good friends.

One of our good friends, Maria Mountain, the goalie training pro, is, stopping by the InGoal offices here in about half an hour. Looking forward to sitting down and, just renewing our friendship and chatting a little bit about goaltending as we always do. So we're gonna ask some questions of Maria or at least one question that I know our parent community will all look forward to hearing about.

She's got no energy. You're gonna have to really, like, get her going.

Oh, it's remarkable, isn't it?

Fire up the coffee. Right?

Yeah. She's she's a little dull

out of the gate. Daren is being extremely sarcastic, everybody.

She's awesome. She's amazing. She's like There you Just like it's it's just always positive and energetic and inspiring.

And generous. And generous. You know? Like, we I I I can say it without hesitation. InGoal wouldn't be here without Maria's generosity in the early days.

Yep. She's a big massive part of our start. She's the Devin Cooley of goalie training.

That's a good way to put it.

The energy.

And yeah. I thought you

were gonna say Devin Cooley got us started at InGoal, and I'm thinking he's not old enough.

Can you imagine those two in a room together training together?

Oh, Deep energy level would be off the charts. 100%. It's awesome.

In in a room with no windows, there'd be sunshine somehow getting through and just there'd be beautiful sound effects that that Hutch puts in. Thanks, guys. This has been a lot of fun. Awesome stuff with Pavel and and the parent segment talking about other sports. We'll we'll deal with it every year.

And and if that argument or conversation is probably a better word for it, we'll evolve every year as as we go through, but it's important to to really just bring it up and and give people options as we go through it. Enjoy the Stanley Cup playoffs as we continue, and we'll talk to you next week on InGoal Radio, the podcast.