InGoal Radio Episode 331 Kasimir Kaskisuo

Intro

InGoal Radio, the podcast is a weekly format. And when you offer this type of podcast, Christmas can sneak up on you. We are inching ever closer. InGoal Radio, the podcast presented by The Hockey Shop Source for Sports Langley at hockeyshop.com. Daren Millard along with the cofounders of InGoal.

There is Kevin Woodley and David Hutchison. It it's not very long. We we don't have too many episodes before the big day. It's amazing, isn't it?

I was just counting it out yesterday. When is it time for us to rehash Christmas memories and talk about great gifts and things like that?

Today might be the day or should we push it back and take our chances of getting distracted next week? That would never happen to us. Right, Woody?

No. No. Not at all. Although, I will say, like, in the Christmas spirit and preparing for it, come for our hockey shop gift guide in the Gear Segment this week. Stay, which is basically me saying, please don't leave for Woody singing.

Oh, it was good this week.

The Gift Guide is one of my favorite favorite Gear segments of the year.

We and we we Cam Cam was in good form. Cam was in really good form at the Hockey Shop. There's a lot going on there. There's been new launches in the last month. There's sales on clearance items that try and make room for the spring inventory.

At the end of the day, add it all up. There is something for everyone, including in this gift guide, things that you can stuff into a stocking as we try to do, things that will occupy giant boxes. No matter what you need for the goalie in your life, they've got it at the hockey shop and the hockeyshop.com. Shipping dates, though, in terms of making sure it's under the tree by Christmas, December 14 cut off. And as we tell you in the in the gift guide that's coming up here, if you miss the Hockey Shop cutoff, Hutch, we've cut a gift for every goalie here at InGoal.

We've got a fantastic gift. I think every goalie should have a subscription to InGoal Magazine. Imagine for only 50 Canadian dollars, that's like 35 of your American dollars, Daren. Sitting down with an NHL goaltender every single week to have them tell you about how they made a save, what they saw, what they chose to do as a result, different options they had, all sorts of things that we would never consider straight from an NHL pro. And increasingly this year, we expect to see lots of PWHL goaltenders as well.

So the best way to learn about goaltending, we've been told that by NHL goalie coaches, coaches, by NHL goaltenders. The best way to read the game to learn to read the game is through InGoal's ProReads, and there is so much more there. Over a thousand articles and videos. Sit down with NHL goalies and coaches through InGoal Magazine this Christmas and every day all year long.

And I will say we've got some, like, fresh voices in ProReads coming up. I got a new tool that allows me to take an iPad into the locker room, show them video, and record them talking about it while they use their finger to scroll through it. It's been fantastic. We hit up Filip Gustavsson of the Minnesota Wild yesterday. You know, as good as they they come in terms of managing plays behind the net, pop passes, post plays, and and Gus was awesome.

So we'll have that coming up. We we we've had our our guys that have been returning guests that we love, but we're starting to make our way around the league. Quick hits with different guys. Casey DeSmith was awesome. Just a ton of content coming at InGoal.

And like Hutch said, you get all the archives as well. So there's, like, literally 400 of them sitting waiting for you to watch and a new one every week.

And I was at coffee yesterday after my regular weekend skate with with the boys, and the the guy that stands at the other end leaned over and goes, hey. How are the boys over at InGoal? I I didn't even know Hector was a follower, but shout out to Hector. And and he he's listened to the podcast and follows InGoal. So we we are in places I didn't even realize we were.

So the conversation continues, about goaltending and the depth around the National Hockey League being tested, both in Toronto, and Vancouver.

Yeah. Everywhere. Right? Like, it's this condensed schedule is not doing groins any favors so far this year, lower bodies any favors. They're they they we had Dennis Hildeby in in net last night for Toronto.

They're number four on the bench here in Vancouver. We'd had we've had games played by Jiri Patera, former friend former friend of the show and and from your neck neck of the woods, Daren. And now Nikita Tolopilo, two and one in his three starts for the Vancouver Canucks after, congratulations, welcoming his first daughter into the world last week. So exciting times on and off the ice for Nikita Tolopilo. I really like his game, what I saw last night as he defeated the Minnesota wild, and that's rare.

First time Jesper Wallstedt's lost all season. He's been a remarkable story. So more opportunities for young rookie goaltenders as the veterans struggle to stay healthy amid the demands of a condensed schedule.

I have a question though, Woody. Yeah. We say that it's about the Olympic condensed schedule, But is it really? Or is it just deployment that people are choosing? There are fewer practices you've mentioned.

You speculated that there'd be a lot more of the load shared around amongst goaltenders. Is that happening? Or are the injuries happening because coaches are just playing on as if there is no condensed schedule?

No. I've seen a lot of efforts to minimize impact on goaltending. We have seen teams traveling practice goalies ahead of next year's mandate to each of them have their e bugs on the road. Utah the other day and it's funny because this is a conversation we had with, Kasimir Kaskisuo, our featured guest this week about his experience in the ECHL. He was on a team, I think it was last season, where the power play you want unit wanted to be first out on fresh ice.

And that means that as a goalie, your first touches are against the power play unit as they zip it around five on o. Not ideal. So fast forward to this week, I watched Utah come into town. They're traveling a practice goalie, and massive apologies to him because I did not ask Corey Schwab for the name of their practice goalie. I will track that down.

But they started their morning skate with power play drills on fresh ice at one end and the practice goalie managing it, well, both Karel Vejmelka and Vitek Vanecek got to go through their goalie friendly warm ups at the other. So there's an example. And I asked Andre Tourigny, who we've done stuff with here through Hockey Canada at InGoal Magazine in the past. He talked about managing their penalty kill in Colorado differently depending on whether Jaguer or Vaughn was in net and sort of setting it up to their relative strength. So a head coach that understands goaltending, and he talked about how they're using that practice goalie for load management.

So certainly not all of them, Hutch, but a lot of teams are looking at ways to get their goalies reps because that's the other thing. With no no practices, some goalies are are sort of missing the reps they feel they need to stay sharp, but don't leave them out there facing hundreds and hundreds of shots in team practice environments that aren't any good. So we're seeing more of those trends. The capitals, Parker Milner. What a great story.

Gets in as the backup. He was traveling with the team as a practice goalie on that road trip so that when there was an injury, he also was able to get into the game and do his his rookie lap, which is another cool story this week in the goalie world.

But now practice goalie depth is going to be tested tested as the guy goes in to face the power play at the start of practice.

Oh, yeah. I say my like, I my legs are burning just watching him, but he handled it really well. So clearly played at a at a pretty good level. This isn't, no, this isn't pulling guys off the Zamboni to to do warm ups. There's there was clearly a skill level there.

Much like they have in Vegas

when Daren Millard hits the edge to to help help help lessen the load of the starters.

Helps boost something.

Shooting percentage? That's what it would boost. That's what would get boosted if I was in there. How do

you measure confidence? Me. That that's the way you you're working in. Joel Hofer, how about going for the empty netter? Almost putting it in, and it's been a a nice rally by the Saint Louis Blues goaltender this year.

Yeah. And and really, I mean, hey. You just gotta love the swagger, and we're not surprised at all that that that Joel goes for that with a one goal lead last night. Actually, I'm just surprised he missed. He's so good with the puck.

It has been a tough season for goaltending in, you know, in in Saint Louis so far this year for for both guys, really. And so, you know, nice to see him and that them sort of starting to pick things up a

little bit. It's just been a tough year for the Blues overall. So he's gotten some really tough in environments this year, Hockey Shop has. And, you know, it's kinda one of those things where that's the job. Like, that's the backup role, but sort of finding moments to try and sort of dig in and and have some success. It's it's coming a little more lately.

So nice to see for him because we know he's a good goaltender. We know they both are. Right? I don't can't really figure out what the deal is there. The environment, you know, hasn't been terrible for both of them at all times, and yet it just seems like when there's open looks, there's time and space for the opponent, the kind of things that make it really tough to have success in that.

Hutch, the first thing you noticed when Hofer went for the empty net was?

That it was a full ice attempt. It's one of the ones that you really get credit for because you do it from behind the goal line. Wondering why a team with the net empty, by the way, chooses to dump it in on a goaltender like Joel Hofer. But, yeah, I noticed that this was gonna be a totally legit goal if he nailed it. But sadly, he didn't, but we were definitely cheering for him.

I think you're hoping you can get on the forecheck and and and stop it.

But with a guy who loves to play the puck like that, it doesn't seem like the best move. But

Hey. Listen. It's and I'm

on the coach.

There's the trend too. Right? We've seen empty net goals by goalies go up over the years, but the trend is we've talked about this. What what do they all have in common? Pretty much everyone, I think.

Of the right right back to Pekka Rinne, they were all on dumping attempts that were picked off before it got to the goal line, not having to go behind the net and retrieve it. Your odds go up significantly if you can track that down in front of the in front of the net.

I love that it was a one goal game and he still went for it.

As Woody said, not surprised at all knowing him. Yeah.

Just And I just hit sorry. Sorry, Daren. I was just gonna say sort of I I was updating the numbers as we were talking about that. You know, for all the attention in Saint Louis this year, Joel Hofer with a an expected, say, percentage of eight eighty three, which is well below the league average, is outperforming that by a slight margin. Like, you know, out of 80 goalies in the league, he's mid pack, so it hasn't been all bad for him despite some tough environment.

And if the team comes back so so it's a one goal game. You score the insurance goal. The team still keeps the net empty for the extra attacker. They end up scoring. It's a win win because then you get the game goal.

Yeah. You almost gotta let one in.

Yeah. It's it it really does. The stats. It writes itself going for it with only a one goal lead as as a net minder.

There you go. Like, it requires a certain amount of confidence, and Joel Hofer does not lack for that with the puck on his stick. I love that.

Hey. You know what I learned this week? Why it might be tougher in the American Hockey League than the NHL? The, you know, the shoveling during the course of the period, in the American Hockey League, they only go around the boards. They don't do the middle of the ice with the with the shoveling at any of the rinks.

So it's a little bit more difficult to navigate the buildup of of snow or not just like, guys can get it like the ice, but just being knocked off course or not on a smooth of a surface.

Well, you gotta be full Linus Ullmark.

Yes.

That thing land at the far hash marks for crying out loud. That was just a rocket launch.

Still one of the greatest of all time. You were in the building for that.

Right? I was there for that. Yeah. And and having known Linus for years, it was kinda cool to get to sorta not celebrate it as as a member of the media, but just sorta see the his reaction one on one afterwards and get to talk to him and ask questions about it. I've I've been in the building for a few in the back half.

So it's, yeah, it's kinda cool. It's kinda cool.

Should we expect more goal scoring from goaltenders at the Olympics this year?

Oh, because of the shorter ice?

The shorter ice. That's right.

196 feet?

That's right. Long as they keep the Right. Long as they keep the goal line at

the same distance out from the

boards, it's a full advantage. Let's go.

We talked to Pete Tabor on 100% hockey, and he's still not sure or Hockey Canada isn't totally aware yet as to where they're taking the four feet from. Is it the neutral ice? Is it a a mix all along? I I would be shocked if they took it from the goal line, like, the boards. They're they're messing with that.

But but they're still not fully transparent, the IOC, as to where that four feet is coming from.

The IOC is not fully transparent. Color me shocked.

I I wanna know when they figured out that they were short on the distance. Like, when when they're building it in, they're hammering something in and going, Fred.

I wanna know who Fred. Like, I wanna

Can you imagine?

But like, who spotted it? Like like, if you've been around hockey forever, would you just know as soon as you walked into a building? Like, I I'm kinda curious. Would I know? Would I walk in and be like, oh, that looks short?

You think you would?

Yeah. I think you would. Okay. There's You'd have an inkling anyway.

Well, as a coach told me, he thinks an NHL player could glide around the rink and be fairly like, with their eyes closed and be fairly in tune with where everything is.

You know what that that know what that reminds me of? Dominik Hasek in NHL Sense Arena for the first time because it's it's from his native Czech Republic and or Czechia, and and he went in and checked it out. And he he had the headset on and liked it, and then he was like, that post is a quarter of an inch off. And sure enough, they went in and checked, and it was a quarter of an inch off. Really?

Yeah. That's the story.

Amazing. We have a a great feature interview this week. Let's give a a little bit of a heads up on the conversation and maybe some breaking news, an InGoal bump for Kasimir?

Can it be an InGoal bump if we haven't published the podcast? We'll we'll take credit anyways. I know he was we talked about this. We met up with him in Montreal. We were there with Warrior hockey.

Some really exciting things if you haven't checked out their social media. We've teased a few of them on ours. Big things coming early in the New Year for Warrior hockey, and Kasimir Kaskisuo was there to check it out. He's become a real fan of the gear. We started talking.

He there was a chance for him that he might not have even made this trip. Like, down to the last minute, thought he was gonna sign somewhere, didn't happen, hopped on a plane, came to Montreal, got to watch his buddy from Laval play together, Jakub Dobes, play. The first night we were there, sat down with us, and then as we're getting ready to produce this and launch it, signs a contract with Utah and the ECHL. So congratulations to him. Even though we haven't published the podcast before, he put pen to paper.

We're gonna call it an InGoal bump regardless. We'll take credit for everything.

Gear

It's another gift under the tree, a little ahead of, Christmas, which works, well into our Gear Segment brought to us by The Hockey Shop Source for Sports Langley, thehockeyshop.com.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas. Look. I left you alone. Hey. In this shot, Evan's got gifts for Cam, and you've got a bin full of stuff.

[crosstalk] We're wearing socks on our head. Stockings. Stockings. So you can stuff them. Welcome back to The Hockey Shop Source for Sports, where we wanted to come up with a few easy, quick gift ideas.

Yes. Obviously, if you wanna put a full set of pads, head to toe glove blocker, everything under my tree, I'd be grateful. But sometimes you just want a quick hit item, so we wanted to get that for you. And you're holding a goalie mystery mini, like, right off the bat. Well, actually, you know, I'm gonna be honest with you.

I'm gonna go a little selfish here. Okay. Do you know what the best Christmas gift you can get any goaltender is?

What's that?

A subscription to InGoal Magazine premium. We got the gift guide folks. And you actually will get an email for your young goaltendees who are welcoming them into the world. It's awesome. Right here.

Give the gift of goaltending. Just go to ingoalmag.com. Click a button. $50 Canadian and the goaltender in your life will have an entire year, an entire year of goaltending excellence. Thanks to me and Hutch and the team at InGoal.

So I totally stole your show, but you can also get the Mabauer mini mini Mini Mini Mini stick. Try to keep up, Sam. I'm in the holiday spirit here. Back to things that we can actually fit inside the stocking too as well. So k.

You forgot your phone inside the stock.

Oh, we'll put the place. Yeah.

Let's not drop it. The stocking's open and Alright. He doesn't have a protector on his. So what else can we get? Your young goalie or Psycho pass though.

[crosstalk] Beer league goalie. Beer league goalie. Yes. We're gonna get So many options. Okay.

But what else you got in there? That'll fit in the stocking. What is that? So that Lizard skin. Newer lizard skin glove.

They're two point o glove. Little grip.

Little padding, little grip. If you wanna just play a little Michael Jackson, you know, you're in a festive mood. You're moonwalk. It's white. You should put the you should put

the glove in stock. Okay. Yes. But don't worry. There's another option for the glove.

Oh. Trinity glove. And Cam even got me a full right just in case I decided to switch because I'm inspired by Jaroslavas Gera. Exactly. So you've got Or you need a little protection in your blocker hand because you're making too many stick saves.

[crosstalk] So Not something I know about. No fingers to this glove. A little bit easier to get a little

bit more control around the glove itself. Oh, you still get the padding. Hey. I like the grip. I like the padding.

I feel like there's some type of pop culture reference I could make to the finger in this glove, but I don't have it. No. I don't have a Michael Jackson. Sweat. Oh, ho ho.

Wow. Sweatbands. Wow. Sweatbands. Hey.

Jokes aside, I use these. I love these. I use them as well. You you know what's actually better? Like, the fact that they soak up so much sweat?

Yes. Walking into the locker room afterwards and wringing it out for, like, five minutes and it's going it's just pouring out, and people are like, oh, especially if your team sucks and doesn't defense, you then they know how hard you've been working. Cam wants sweatbands. Sweatbands.

That's right.

Okay. What do we got? Oh, anchor pegs. Do you know what this is for? Beer me hero.

Stars in his eyes. You show up to beer league with your own set of pegs, the referees will love you. The net won't come off. They don't have to bug you all game. Like, stop knocking the net off, goalie.

I won't because I've got my own anchor pegs. Or This is good. You're really focused on your training, and you know something to help anchor. Big hero. It's not just for beer leaguers, lambs and gentlemen.

For the young goalie that's training, another great option, we'll add that to the stocking. Well, I don't wear suspenders, but what a shock. Mister Suspender Cam worked in a set of suspenders into our Christmas gift guide. These ones from Warrior. Go r

x five. Suspenders. Yes. Feather trace option. In the bag.

[crosstalk] He'd some suspenders. Lace click. Yeah. Get the puck out of here. Got them.

So if you like clean pads and you don't like to show off your puck marks, hey, we got an option for you.

Wipe some right off, folks. You gotta be a little

bit careful lately. Feel like this has to, like, have, like, an warning. Do not rub over certain elements of the pads. You might take the color out. Screen print logos.

Yeah. I think we've got a whole segment that you can go check out where we went through the whole thing of what you can and can't do in this. So make

sure you go check that out. But, again,

fixing camps. We got quite stocking going here.

This is a hell of a stocking. Yeah. What else you

know what else is great for Christmas? No. Here we go. Here's your Jerseys. Wow.

Jerseys. You're a hockey fan and we got we got PWHL coverage here. Little Montreal, little Vancouver golden eyes, some really great colors. You've got them in stock and ready to go. You could have names on the back.

You can add names. They've got to complete their team. Salespeople will put names on all the jerseys here. Getting a little tight for deadlines on that, but you can at least get the jersey and then get it done later. They've got all that.

What else we got? Oh, speaking of PWHL, all kinds of accessories, toque, hats, sweaters, sweatshirts, t shirts, everything. They got it here. I don't

[crosstalk] know why we still got more goalie things. Oh, paddle wedge. Oh, oh, paddle wedge.

I I

didn't know you put that in there. It fits in your hat or your stocking. Another nice, quick, easy stocking stuffer gift for your goalie. Save your fingers. Goes on a gunner stick, little ramp up there, jumping up your fingers.

Session in practice? Awesome. Keep going, Kent. Keep going. Oh.

Jerseys. You got NHL. World juniors. Olympics. Is this Olympics or world juniors?

Oh, the black. Like, yes. This is a controversial jersey. Not everybody likes the black flag here in Canada. So, you know, Bauer, Hockey Canada mixing it up a little bit.

I think it's a pretty good look. Cheer on your team. If you're American, hey, do you got American jerseys for the American people? No. Oh, is it there's some patriotism here at The Hockey Shop Source for Sports.

Okay. We got that one. And last but not least, a reminder that they do have some pre made. So as much as you can get any name put on any jersey that might be not fast enough for Christmas. If you wanna get a three time Vizner winner, heart trophy winner, Connor Hellebuyck.

They got that in stock as well as some other ones. So Cam, like all these great ideas and I could roll this up and stuff that in a stocking. Absolutely, I could, but I'm gonna be honest, if somebody got me a Hellebuyck jersey, I kinda want it, like, wrapped specially in its own, I don't know, like Well, yeah, probably got

nice. Gold plating. I mean, this is the gold standard. Plating. Goodness. Alright.

So if you wanna get those Christmas gifts in, Frankenstein. Year? No. Gold, Frank, is that smooth? December 14 is probably gonna be one of your last days to get those orders in to make sure that it gets there before Christmas.

Yeah. You gotta keep in

[crosstalk] mind little bit tight. Deadlines are coming up. So That's correct. We've got all kinds of Christmas options. Honestly, because I know that Cam's barely working these days.

No. Barely.

If you just need advice on what to get your young goalie, what to put under the tree before December 14, call him. Call his staff. They'd be happy to talk to you. Not both. These are our whole entire staff of the store ready to help you out with your best Christmas ideas.

You can reach us at (604) 589-8299 or 1-800-567-7790. If you tell them what he sent you, Cam will sing Christmas carols for you. I will not do that.

Just a a question for you guys, and this is something that's not related to this episode, but but while I've got you here, wrapping presents can be difficult. Like, how do you disguise a stick? Is it's it's it's a challenge. Maybe grab a a bigger box or try to disguise it or throw the youngster off the path. What about a what about dangler?

Like, how do you guys wrap a dangler? Just I'm asking for a friend.

I wouldn't know, Daren. I just plain wouldn't know. I would you know what I might do? I'd probably buy one of the Warrior RF 2's because it comes with a dangler in the bag, which is why I know you like it so much.

Yes. Yes. Yes. Thank you. I know it's Hutch for something something happened to his microphone.

I'm not not sure. Hopefully, he can get that restarted.

Do you need me to comment on how I'd hide it?

Yes.

Okay. I would disguise it as a boomerang.

Oh, well done. I don't know.

He he just wants to chuck it.

I have always I have always enjoyed the creative wrapping side of Christmas as much as anybody. I remember we're not even in goaltending here, but I remember getting a gift from a young student who lived with my family, gave me a gift and I would play with it to try and figure out what it was and you could just hear this ball rolling inside it and a ball rolling inside it. And I was convinced it was some sort of game. And when I opened it up, it was a metal toolbox with a ball bearing in it.

No way.

Yeah. That was brilliant.

Love it.

Hardest part about that would be finding the ball bearing, I would think. Like Yeah.

Yeah. I'm so old. Were probably more common back then or something. I don't know.

You could yeah. Just because you just went to the local corner store and they sold

ball That's right.

Which aisle do you find that on? Vizual Edge ProReads this week brought to us by Vizual Edge.

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Then there are the nights where you're a half step late. I know those ones. You see it, but you don't really see it. You're reaching, you're guessing, you're fighting it. That's not that technique.

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It's what's NHL goalies use to make the game slow down when it matters most. And if you're an InGoal subscriber, you can get a discount code by going to our latest ProReads this week featuring Eric Comrie. If you're not a subscriber, just use the discount code InGoal, all one word, I n g o a l, and you'll get a discount, bigger discount if you go to ProReads. This week, it features Eric Comrie talking about how to manage screens and avoiding violent, his words, quote, unquote, head movement when doing so. So he talks about the importance of finding calmness behind traffic and not panicking.

And we've got a great video where you can kinda see he doesn't see the puck. Clearly, he can't the the video was great. It was right from behind the shooter perspective, and you can see as Eric comes out and there's a moving screen. If he panics and starts to look around that screen, he's gonna get lost, but he just waits for the screen to pass as he moves into the middle and boom, gets eyes on a release. So he walks us through some of the details specific to that play with an emphasis on the importance of not panicking behind traffic and what are some of the reads that will allow you to do that to sort of wait for those sight lines to open up and trust that they will rather than moving all over the place, as he said, with those violent head movements and never ever get getting your eyes back on it.

So the kind of insights that will help you make more saves, Vizual Edge gives you the kind of eye and cognitive training that will help you stay calmer in those moments just like Eric Comrie.

And when you say panic, that would be, like, defaulting to to going down when you you lose sight for what seems like an eternity?

Well, some sometimes going into blocking mode is necessary, but panic is more moving around. Like, okay. Yeah. Just like, I can't find it, so I gotta go to the other side. Oh, I better go to the other it's like it kinda reminds me of behind the net, like and we'll talk about this next week with Filip Gustavsson's first ProReads.

But sort of picking a side and and holding it confidently rather than we see guys get their head on a swivel back and forth and they can't find the puck, you can do the same thing behind the net as you do when there's screens. So being calm and sort of not panicking. You still have to fight for your sight line, but there are moments, as Eric outlines in this video breakdown, where you're better to just sort of hold and trust that in that lane, a sight line will open because of the way traffic's moving around you.

I don't know how people are are that patient to be able to do it, didn't it? I've watched you guys both as we've been talking about this, moving your head back and forth, like simulating, trying to find a lane through a traffic and and Hutch has got some violent head movement going on right now.

I was just doing my best to what what if I was Millard at a Vegas practice

I couldn't see one of

those big bodies?

Yeah. I was

[crosstalk] I was actually I I was Professional boxer? I was I was actually just bopping along because I had Beer League Hero in my head still. Beer League Hero.

Were were you out on the ice at all when you were in Montreal?

No. No. No. They know they know better than to do that. There's probably liability with with allowing me to be on the ice, but they did have a great I I watched a skate with a bunch of the that's the one thing that was really cool.

Went to a three by the way, a three on three rink owned by the Saputo family that might be the nicest facility I've ever seen. Like, just unreal. If you play there in your beer league, like, when you walk into your room, which is like it's like not quite an NHL room, but it's not far from it. There's, like, TVs at either end with sports on, the TVs. There is towels, fresh towels waiting for you.

There if you play in the league, they actually wash your jerseys. After the game. You throw them in a in your jerseys and your socks in a in in a sort of team bag. They wash them, and when you come back for your next game, they're hanging in your stall. Like, it's the nice nicest place I've ever been, and the Warrior crew goes out for a skate weekly and so to to meet the goalies that are actually developing your equipment and see them out there skating and testing some of the newest things that are coming and then seeing their feedback and talking to them about how sorta playing the game influences their thought process on it was a pretty cool experience.

But, no, they did not let me on the ice, Daren, because they wanted to actually mix in some saves.

A majority of our listeners are like, what? Given some of the dingy facilities that that we skate in. We're we're all happy for ice time, but it there's not that kind of attention to detail.

Oh, and, like, it's it's a double like, there's two rinks. It's it's three on three rings, but not quite tie as tiniest some are. Like, it feel it felt they felt a little bigger. There's stands on both sides. There's what I understand, the restaurant wasn't open because we're in there early, but a really good, like, quality food restaurant overlooking both ice surfaces.

When you walk in, the trophies for the winning teams of the past season in each level and each league are on display with a photo of the team holding the trophy and the names of each participant listed. So you you basically go on display. They're they had a they had a in one trophy case, they had a full Jordan Binnington setup, and the other, they had a full Carey Price setup, like like, clearly either pro return or game used, like masks, gloves, pads. It was just, like, chef's kiss. I I was blown away.

It was pretty darn cool.

There's the challenge, everybody, to other facilities. Just just up your game to to that type of level. The challenge for parents is enormous as you try to support your child through this journey of athletics and goaltending. Here is the parent segment brought to us by Stop It Goaltending U, the app.

Stop It Goaltending U, the app, is a partner also within InGoal Magazine, and the best part of that partnership is not all the excellence and advice you get from Stop It Goaltending U or not just all that advice from Stop It Goaltending U and their twenty five years of experience in the game led by Brian Daccord. It's the fact you also get an InGoal Magazine membership. So it's the best of both worlds brought to you each week at the Stop It Goaltending U app. This week, they've got their daily primers on being assertive. I think we can probably tie that into the parent segment, that fine line between assertiveness and maybe going over being assertive.

They got a quarter season recap on the NHL. They got a one timer game in drill of the week that sounds like it would be fun for players and goalies alike, and a Scott Wedgewood playbook where they break down film on the things that he does well, allowing them him to have the success he's having this season, including being added to the shortlist for Canada at the upcoming Olympics. It's all in this week's updated segment over at the Stop It Goaltending U app. And like we said, each week, you not only get access to their content when you buy a membership to Stop It Goaltending U app, you also get a membership to InGoal Premium and all the great things that we bring. It's the best of both worlds in goaltending.

Parent Playbook

Hutch. Daren, last week, I really enjoyed getting into a little bit of science again. I don't know if you remember, but my academic background is a graduate degree in sports science. And last week, I was responding to a question from an individual goalie parent about, people talking to their goalie before the game. And I dug a little deeper and got into what happens when you're cheering, for your goalie, whether it's positively or negatively during a game.

And, enjoyed so much of that digging into science that this one popped into my head for this week, which is, talking a little bit about emotion and anger specifically with with young goaltenders. Few people shape a young goalie's mindset more than their parents, especially in minor hockey. And, today, I wanted to talk about one of our emotional responses and how it affects our young goalies. I wanna talk about anger and what it does to athletic performance with some research back points for you to consider. First, anger hurts decision making.

It tends to make you decide faster but less accurately, which, is not very good for a position built on split second reads. Anger narrows our focus. It, creates a a threat tunnel that shrinks peripheral awareness, and goalies rely on that a lot to scan and track for multiple threats. Anger creates muscle tension. Your heart rate goes up, your muscles tighten, and your fine motor control drops.

Fluid movement and timing are going to suffer. Anger drains your working memory. Your attention shifts to the trigger point instead of the play. Pattern recognition and adaptation are shown to have declined. Anger disrupts your anticipation.

Goaltending thrives on controlled intensity, not anger. Precision sports constantly break down when your arousal gets too high, like when you're angry. Anger also increases risk taking, so it'll lead to overcommitting, chasing plays, abandoning structure. In short, anger almost never helps a goaltender.

It leads to impulsive reactions instead of patient reading, exactly what a goalie can't afford. Goal tending thrives on controlled intensity, not anger. Precision sports constantly break down when your arousal gets too high, like when you're angry. Anger also increases risk taking, so it'll lead to overcommitting, chasing plays, abandoning structure. In short, anger almost never helps a goaltender.

Might help somewhere like a weight room for one immediate rep of something, but not in the crease. So what does this mean for us as parents? Well, too often we carry anger around the rink about tryout results, ice time, referees, screens, other teams poking at covered pucks, shots to the head, you name it. And most of the time, we express that anger right in front of our young goalie. It's well intentioned, of course, because we want them to be happy.

We want them to be safe. We want them to be successful, but we're setting an example. We're modeling for them. And in the short term, we teach them to blame, to react and to get worked up. Over time, we teach them that anger is the default response to adversity.

Then we send them onto the ice with that mindset. And that mindset makes performance worse. The exact opposite of what we'd hoped for. The truth is these frustrations happen to every goaltender and every goalie parent. We can't control most of it, but we can control our example.

We need to learn to let go. We need to learn to accept the things that we can't change as goalie parents. A calmer goalie parent will build a calmer goalie, and a calmer goalie will perform better, will feel better, and will enjoy the game more.

It's hard because you wanna support your child. You wanna show them that you're supporting your child.

Yeah. No. Absolutely. They're completely normal ways to be, but, they're also counterproductive. And I I think we need to work on our mindset as parents as much as we, you know, parents invest a lot into mental skills, mental training for the young goaltenders.

I would argue that some of that money invested in our own mental preparation might help our kids just as much.

Did any of the things that were listed on the impacts of anger resonate with you, Woody?

Yeah. I knew this was coming at me. Right? I I have that I have that line from Bruce Banner, the Hulk, and the Marvel movies in mind, you know. That's my secret.

I'm always angry. In this I

think when I'm angry.

Yeah. Honestly though, Woody, if when it does happen and and I we joke because it does not happen that much to Woody, but he's told us the odd story. On those nights, do you play better or play worse?

No. Honestly, like I like, there's a recent experience and I'm like, it's funny because sometimes you you might let out a certain word loudly after things have happened and you think you're trying to, like, release it, but, really, you're probably just allowing it to creep in even more. Like, just let it out with a big yell, and you're like, hope there's no kids in the rink. And then but it's probably not how it works. Right?

You've allowed that. You've given into that anger, and next thing you know, you're a big green monster. You can't stop a puck. So that would be something I relate to very much. So and from a parent perspective, this is, not to turn this into a counseling session, but your kids see that and they absolutely pick up on it.

And there are times in my life where I've realized that my kids see how I react to Yeah. Challenges and adverse situations, and then I see them and they react the same way. And I'm like, oh, I know exactly where that came from. Yeah. So my kids that are now 21 and 18, and so if you're a parent of a young child, it's hard in the moment sometimes because let's be honest, like, the anger can be real away from the ring too.

How you react to your own adversity in other challenges, whether it's Christmas shopping and somebody screws you out of a parking spot in a not very like, all the way you react to all those little things, a 100%, and I say this is somebody who's lived this and felt bad about it later. So hear me now if your kids are young. The way you react in those moments absolutely become the reactions of your kids, and that will translate to sports. So, yeah, not my proudest moments, but probably feels even worse when you see them react the same way later and understand exactly where it came from.

It is humbling, isn't it? When when you see your kids do what you do and you're like, don't do that. I can't really say don't do that. I know exactly where that's coming from.

And and you and you want a do over. Right? And so so if you're a parent now with young kids, listen to us now because you'll want that do over later on and it's too late.

And and I I focused on the parents' reaction and and parents' emotional control and so on, but there's another piece that maybe it's not as big a deal in the game today. But when I grew up, people celebrated the Billy Smiths and the Ron Hextall's of the day. And hacking and whacking at guys in front of you was encouraged and often by the parents that were probably joking around. I don't mean my parents specifically, but just the other parents for the team, the coaches. And and we sort of saw that as a way to behave.

And I certainly remember my son when he was quite young having a coach who thought that Matty played better when he was angry and he got excited when he was angry and chopping at guys. And I think that's very counterproductive. I don't know about you guys, but I remember a lot of times where I was battling with a guy in front and getting too focused on him and all of the sudden the puck was behind me. Maybe it's a little fun to do that, but I don't think it's productive. And and it's nice to see that it's not really a part of the game anymore.

Well, we hey. Jeremy Swayman, was it his first playoff run against the Florida Panthers where he got I mean, then, boy, can they get under your skin and distract you? Couple of whacks. Next thing you know, puck in the net, and I think an admission afterwards that that focus got distracted.

Here's one. It's got nothing to do with goaltending. But you mentioned the Florida Panthers. I was watching the game between the two time defending Stanley Cup champions and the Columbus Blue Jackets this weekend. And that was a challenge for both guys.

It was

That put it on. I was watching I I was in the fetal position on the couch.

Yeah. Yeah. And and I was so impressed by Bob in particular. It was six six, and you couldn't tell whether it was six six or it was one one or zero zero. His body language was the same through throughout the game.

So credit to him. But Brad Marchand, during a overtime timeout for Columbus, You're showing the huddle for the Blue Jackets around the bench and Mike Haviland and they all start poking up and they're blocking the the whiteboard because Brad Marchand is circling in the neutral zone around their their team huddle on the bench. I thought, that is a troll, man. That is just a great troll. And and all of sudden, Columbus is distracted.

They lose time in their in their preparation, and and they're thinking about Brad Marchand instead of a play that they're trying to run. There was nothing illegal about what Brad was doing. It was just being Brad.

Pest. That's right. And those are the kind of things that if you allow them to distract you, you're no longer focusing on what you should be. So it's a great lesson.

And I don't know whether you you could possibly not be distracted by that.

That's fair.

It was I I have a I have such respect for that style of play or approach to athletics. You may not agree with me, but there's it's it's not the same realm of Hockey or Billy Smith, but it's still equal admirable.

I would argue there is something you can do to not be distracted by that or a guy slashing at your glove or whatever it might be that gets so many guys angry. And and let's just enjoy the battle. Like, laugh it off. If a guy takes a whack at your glove, why do you by default get angry? I understand perhaps if you're six years old because you're not used to that and the gloves aren't as beefy as ours, but it's pretty rare you get hurt by a guy digging at your glove.

And yet so many people go all snap tastic about it. So just enjoy it. You're so mature. No. I'm not.

I'm I'm really

giving advice. Hutch also hasn't had this finger broken by a slash to the glove still.

Yeah, Hutch.

Yeah. It can happen, but it it is pretty rare. I've I've only it happened once to me.

And that's why we love papa Hutch because he is more mature than all

of us. He is he is definitely more mature.

I mean, by that logic, Woody, you should get angry if you get hit by any puck because people get hurt by when they get hit by pucks.

Well, I mean, let's be honest. Be honest, it doesn't happen that often that I get hit by the puck, so I maybe that's why I'm always angry.

They're shooting at me.

Yes. Damn it.

I did a thing this week with some of the band members from Red Clay Strays as CMA winning band, and we did a shootout. And the idea was the puck's gonna go in. Right? I I actually had a hard time. I thought to myself, I may start trying to get out of the way because I was really good at getting in the way.

Do the opposite of what you

plan to do. Doing the opposite of it. Great group. Great guys. It was awesome to to meet them and their their crew this week.

They'll boot some social media stuff out as we go through this. Let's get into our Sense Arena feature interview with Kasimir Kaskisuo.

Well, before we do that, we need to talk a little bit about our friends over at NHL Sense Arena. As you know, I've talked about this before. One of the great things about the NHL Sense Arena model is that they are always updating it and they'll push out upgrades all the time and then every year they come out with one big new upgrade. And this one of course came just in time for the holidays, just in time for their holiday sale. That's NHL Sense Arena '20 six.

You get to compete with or against NHL pros and the graphics are spot on NHL uniforms. You sort of feel like you've stepped into a video game and not an elite virtual reality training system that helps you become a better goaltender. So good, of course, that as we know, more and more goaltenders are using it, before and even during games. And and we're gonna hear a lot about that, in today's feature interview, I believe, Kevin. It's got this new enhanced three on three mode with full teams.

It's got a full season. It's got new face offs. You can build and manage a team. The game flow module is just fantastic and we're going to hear a little bit about that as well coming up soon. The new NHL 26 has NHL Sense Arena 26 has faster reads, smarter AI, louder chirps, real NHL energy.

And right now you can get it for their holiday season pricing. 50% off free shipping. You get a green biscuit and a Franklin ball to help with your stick handling in their new dangle mode. It is just fantastic. And if you head over to sensearena.com, don't forget to use the code I g m 50, and you will save even more on top of the amazing 50% off holiday bundle.

I I love Kas. I love what he's doing online socially, and I I've always had this soft spot in in my heart form from the first time that we ever talked to him on InGoal.

Yeah. One of our early guests, and this is, you know, Hutch talked about NHL Sense Arena. He shares how he uses it. Obviously, it's been a challenge the past couple of years, not having jobs right at right at a camp, having to find ice, having to stay sharp. There's some great lessons in there on how to sort of structure those practices if you're in that situation or even summer skates.

Like, there's advice that would resonate, you know, for goalies in different situations at different times, including his use of NHL Sense Arena. But we get into everything else. We get into gear. We get into the sort of finish hands. He has a great YouTube segment that he did recently on how he's I think they call it priming, sort of like as the before the releases come, as you're getting ready for shots, start your hand moving early so it's not locked and rigid.

And he talked about the influences of that and how he uses it, and it's a little tougher in an audio format to sort of picture it, but we do our best to explain it. And I think maybe we should throw a a link to the YouTube in there as well, Hutch, in the show notes so people can sort of see his demonstration of it. And what better way what better way to try it? Because, hey, like, changing your glove hand motion at practice or in a game, you might give up some goals, and coaches don't always like that even in practice. NHL Sense Arena, Put those two worlds together.

I never I when we're doing the interview, never even thought of it. Great way to try Kaz's sorta glove hand motion while getting fired at in virtual reality. So tons of great insights, tons of takeaways. We would expect nothing less from this week's featured guest, Kaskisuo, now of the ECHL Utah Grizzlies. Enjoy.

Feature Interview - Kasimir Kaskisuo

Really excited to welcome back to the InGoal Radio Podcast, but first time in person, Kasimir Kaskisuo in Montreal. How are you?

I'm great. It's a it's a treat to be here in person and do this. And around all the circumstances of the strip, it's good to catch up with you too.

So catch us up with the circumstances. Right? Like you said, you're you're you don't have a contract right now, but you're still looking, still staying active, still staying on the ice, still wanna play.

Yes. A long time. Yeah. Just trying to skate a couple times a week as a free agent, keep the rust off, and negotiating with teams that nothing's really gone through yet and

looking some close calls, though.

Close calls. Yeah. So, hopefully, once again, hopefully, at the end of this week, there is some light at the end of the tunnel. But, like, multiple times these last couple of years, it's not done until it's done. So been hard getting hopeful with some of these teams in negotiations, and then it would fall through and doesn't work out.

It's taken two steps back. So, yeah, just trying to just trying to be ready and hopeful and positive.

That's a challenge mentally, especially with a with a young family at home. What like, goaltending is a challenge, man. It's not is it? Like, is there anything you can take from that one shot at a time in it mentality that helps you get through this, or is it so different managing the anguish or stress that comes with with this?

I think it should be easier since since this is the third year in a row. It's gone till December, which is not ideal, obviously. But trying to use that as a as a tool of, you know, I did this last two years. I was able to hop in and play well right away. And it's also the fact of, yeah, maybe if I've been home couple months now, but I can hop right into can do it.

They can happen in a couple days where I have to play and perform and that'll be my stats and that'll be my career. So it's it's pro sports. You have to take care of yourself and and be ready and, yeah, just be ready for that opportunity.

What lessons have you learned about how to stay ready? Are there things that, you know, you can translate to like, say a goalie is listening to this and he hasn't played because of different circumstances, like, hey. He's not playing every day or, like, every game. He's going two weeks between starts. Like, how you keep yourself ready during this process. What have you learned about that that you think might resonate with others?

nobody's gonna feel sorry for you and nobody's gonna do the work for you. And, yeah, at times, it can feel unfair and at at times, it you're gonna get opportunities that you probably shouldn't get. So it's always about being ready and making sure you do your work. You have to love the game to put in the hours and and get better and trying to develop. And when that opportunity does come, you need to make sure you're ready.

I think it's nobody's gonna feel sorry for you and nobody's gonna do the work for you. And, yeah, at times, it can feel unfair and at at times, it you're gonna get opportunities that you probably shouldn't get. So it's always about being ready and making sure you do your work. You have to love the game to put in the hours and and get better and trying to develop. And when that opportunity does come, you need to make sure you're ready.

Or it might pass you by, you're not ready, and then you're gonna miss out on all the rest of the opportunities.

So what do your skates look like? What do how do you stay like, what is the focus to sort of maintain without playing games that readiness, that edge as much as you can sort of running your own skates really in Minnesota?

Yeah. We've had usually just a couple guys still looking for teams and it's a lot of skill work for them, which leads to a lot of goal scoring drills. And then, obviously, if it's just us, I can come up with themes and parts of those drills. If there's things I wanna work on, whether it's trying to have a theme for each skate. Like last week, I was trying to play a little bit more out than I normally would and just play around with that and try to always have some kind of theme, something you wanna work on that keeps your focus on on that day has been helpful.

But, yeah, I mean, kinda nice that I get to build the drills that we do on the ice and see the shots that I that I see, but obviously, nothing nothing's gonna mimic that that game situation.

Well, when we have one thing that does, actually.

I was supposed put

[crosstalk] it out. I should say you transitioned that very well and I wasn't even thinking of it,

to be honest, till you it came like, you use Sense Arena pretty actively.

Yeah. Almost daily.

And you so and you also took it on the ice recently. So tell me what that was one of those days where just walk me through that story and how you ended up using it on the ice for the first time and what it was like.

Yeah. Just two days ago, actually, there was a couple teams that I was in my mind, I thought I was gonna get an offer and I thought I might have to leave right away. And obviously things got pushed back, but I was like, I haven't skated since for a week with the Thanksgiving weekend and Right. If I have to leave, I wanna make sure I'm getting a skating. None of the shooters were able able to come.

So it's just me on the ice and I figured I'll bring the Sense Arena and did probably forty minutes shots in the Sense Arena and dropping into butterflies, working on slides, even being able to go into the post and coming out and yeah. It was it was like I was playing a real real real shots and, yeah, it blew me away. It was first time I got to bring it on the ice and, yeah, it was a it was a great tool. I walked walked out of the rink feeling like I had just had a normal skate and I was able to pick literally the drills I wanted to do and work on the the movements I wanted to do.

Did you do any of the game flow the new game flow stuff or you're strictly doing drills that day?

Yeah. I did game flow a little bit and, yeah, that was great. Just, you know, battling for screens and maybe sliding into some shots and just trying to it was as realistic as it gets.

That's it's I mean, we've obviously sort of grown up with it at InGoal, and we know how good it is. But to hear that from a guy who's got, like, twelve years pro and takes it on the ice and feels like it, it kinda it reaffirms it, but it almost feels a

little surreal. Like, I guess it is a little surreal. It's virtual reality, but it just felt like that's unreal. What kind of drills do you do when you're not on the ice? What how do you use it as a tool? Because we have a lot of kids that are using it, and sometimes as they get into it new, I don't know which way to go with it. There's so many options in there.

How do you how do you use it?

Yeah. I have a set of set of favorite drills. Obviously, probably the biggest one I use the most is just the NHL shots from the slot. Just seeing those fast releases, getting my tracking dialed in, that's usually the drill that I finish with on before I jump into a real game for my pregame routine. And then it's just there's some drills, with just guys coming down from from skating and then shooting and little adjustments of an angle and curling up from the corner and shooting.

So basically, not not a whole

lot of releases?

Yeah. Just seeing a lot of releases with little adjustments of how they would skate and come towards the net in a real game. I've obviously, those passing drills are great too, but that's a lot of, like, hopping on your on your shoes.

Not necessarily how you would move in on the ice.

Yeah. So for me, especially keeping keeping the rust off, preparing for games is just seeing those releases, high level releases and whether it's stationary or changing the angle a little bit, I feel like that's the most helpful.

You talked about traffic too, when you were on the ice there. We've talked to a bunch of guys about that because it's even in practice at the NHL level, like, nobody wants to actually shoot as hard when their teammates are in front of the net. Nobody wants to be in front of the net like they normally would when guys are shooting. Is there benefit to the way they've added those the screen drills and some of those elements to the game that, you know, might be applicable even at the highest levels?

Yeah, for sure. I mean, whenever the puck's in the zone, you rarely get to be in your normal stance, head in the perfect spot. You're always trying to find the lane and lean over. And if you're leaning over, you might have to make a safe from there, make a make a read and being able to move, not having your balance perfectly in the middle. So that's that's been a huge addition to even though simple drills having adding a flash screen or the game flow does an amazing job with that.

There might be three guys in your lane at a time and you might have to see if they're shooting and make the save or if they're making a pass across and just kinda adds to reading the play and working on those situations that you might see in a game.

You're a guy who likes to think the game, whether it's gear and we can get to that in a minute or you were showing me and you had it you had it on your social channels and I think YouTube about like the glove motion and how sort of you've evolved that over over the years. Since we last caught up with you last couple of like, who's some of the influences? Where does that come from? Is it just you experimenting or do you where where does the inspiration, I guess, for some of these these evolutions in your game come from?

I think the most important part is just to find what works for you. I think that's the everybody is different and everybody's bodies and styles and comfort levels are different. So for me, you know, whether it's how how my depth is or how I'm pushing, how I'm dropping into shots, how I'm tracking pucks down, or how my hands are moving or positioned, everything is different. And even that goes into how you wear your gear, what size gear you have, what glove breaks you have, how you strap your blocker. Everything comes down to what works best for your game.

So, yeah, it's just watching guys. It's like you said, YouTube has been a great tool and whether it's watching NHL goalies warm ups before games and even growing up, like, you pick up different things and you see what works for other guys and you kinda create your own Frankenstein style. You pick what you see, what you might like, and what actually works in a game or on the ice. So, yeah, you gotta you can't play like someone specifically. You can't just decide that I'm gonna play like Carey Price or

We don't like to, but

Yeah. Carey, like, you kinda have to find what works for you, what brings you the most confidence, and what your body and your your reads are able to do.

Okay. So I'd highly recommend everybody go check out the YouTube on the glove, but this is tough because we're not in a visual format on a podcast. But explain to me a little bit where the origins of it, and as much as you can, sort of walk us through it without the demonstration portion. Because that that was a fascinating conversation.

it just kinda loading up your your glove hand, whether it's pretty close to your shoulder and kinda not square to the shooter, what other goal coaches might tell you, but it's just kinda having that blow to your hand and then you track up and shoot your hand up. Or if it's a low shot, you just kinda snap your glove down and with your glove already in in motion, it's kinda has that momentum.

I think it comes from those older Finnish goalies like Kiprusoff and Backstrom and that era of Finnish goaltending with active hands and it's kinda just having some pre shot motion with your with your hand. I think, while I was in Nashville, Rinne did that as well. But it just kinda loading up your your glove hand, whether it's pretty close to your shoulder and kinda not square to the shooter, what other goal coaches might tell you, but it's just kinda having that blow to your hand and then you track up and shoot your hand up. Or if it's a low shot, you just kinda snap your glove down and with your glove already in in motion, it's kinda has that momentum. And like I said, for some guys, they might wanna keep their hand out stationary.

Perfect if it works for them. But

And that motion for you, it's almost like if I were to picture it like a clock, it's almost like a little clockwise turning of the hand.

[crosstalk] Yeah. It's almost Start it. Starts from your middle of your chest Sorta If you overdo it Yeah. To your towards your shoulder.

Clock up till noon and then Yeah.

And then you just continue if it's a a top shelf shot, you just continue up top or then you just let your hand hit that momentum and Like, little down.

Bring a little bit of flow into your into your glove hand. Yeah. I I love that. Because because, like, we we talked about, like, if you're just holding it out there, projecting it, it might look a certain way, but, like, we're adding tension and the body doesn't move naturally that way. I love the way you think about these.

Yeah. It's you gotta like, if your hand is out just presenting towards the shooter stationary and then it's a low shot, you gotta kinda think about what muscles are you gonna fire up and what your hand movement is gonna look like. It's not just about what the goalie looks like or what position he's in before the shot comes. It's like how are you gonna be able to move and make the save.

Do notice the biggest difference? Like, I think a lot of people might think of that motion as being sort of protecting the top, but do you notice the biggest difference again, that low save, like being able to just snap down to that low just over the pad, which is where more and more shooters are looking.

Yeah. I've that's been the biggest help for me is just having that motion and then just continue, like if it's a low shot, just not really trying to be accurate with it. You kind of just snap your glove down.

You know where it's headed based on the read, the sort of instincts and just bang.

So you're just snapping it down there. So that's that's been a big help for that.

Last year, like you said, you went through this too, and then you go to Bloomington and post some great numbers there. That's a tough thing to do. The style of play as well in the ECHL. I got no goalie coach. Like, it's been the adjustment there over the years as you play at different levels.

What differences do you notice? How much more do you have to be a manager of your own game? I mean, some teams are starting. We're starting to see NHL teams have goalie coaches down to that level, but not all the time. A lot of kids have to manage their own game.

What have you learned about managing your own game in a season? Yeah. I feel like I'm at the

point in my career where I know what works for me and what I need to do to play at my best, and I can look at the clips after the game by myself and I can I know if it was good or bad?

So what do you mean, curious then. Like, what kind of clips do you look at? Like, you pull up, like, say, have a program like InStat. I don't even know if that exists anymore. I think they've been bought, but you you can what clips are are you looking for scoring chances? You look at goals? What do you self evaluate on?

Basically, if it's if it's a goal against, I can I can see what I did wrong? And

Is the answer sometimes nothing? Sometimes.

Yeah. Like, is that more part of, like,

recognizing that we play a crazy game where it's

Bounces happen and

yeah. It's a frozen sheet with an odd shaped object?

Yeah. I like to think that every goal you can save, but then there are those times when shots go in wide and bounce off your defenseman and just goes in or somebody is literally blocking your vision right in front of you. But, yeah, it's usually comes down to a couple simple things that I learned in Toronto a long time ago from Pierre O'Greco. It was broken down to five things, which was basically line, squareness, depth and so on. If we'd look at a goal against, I one of those things I wasn't doing.

It often is that, right? Yeah. Those basics.

Yeah. So I think a lot of goalies are saying that too. It's just get to your spot and It's getting harder

to get to your spots, by the way.

Yeah. Which is the skill.

Make it sound.

Yeah. So it's a read positioning depth, and then you get to your spot, and then how you tracking down, are you lifting or is tracking down and but in a way, you're just trying to once you're playing in a game, you're just trying to keep it as simple as you can.

So you look at the goals, but you're again, so you analyze it, recognize it, but don't dwell on it.

Yeah. Yeah. And especially I hadn't played in the East Coast League for eight years and I kinda had to adjust a little bit how I played.

You made mistakes down there a little bit more?

Yeah. I feel like you could were I was watching some of the goalies who played against us and played well. It was more of like, let them shoot into your shoulders kinda.

Okay.

As long as you're in the right spot, you could play a little deeper. No holes that usually covered things up a little easier than maybe in the American League. So, yeah, it was an it was a little bit of an adjustment, but, also once I got the rust off from not playing for nine months.

That's not easy to do. And and so once this I gotta ask, once the season starts, you're still using Sense Arena in in season and and how? Like, mentioned, like, you use it as a game day thing? We've we've heard some

Yeah. Before games, part of my one of the last things I do before I go and get geared up.

So So it is yeah. Like, instead of bouncing balls off a wall, this is this is just where we're at.

You're gonna see puck.

Reading releases, which is the big one. So when I do that and then we go on for warm upskate, I just feels like I've seen 100 shots. Love it. So I don't start from from zero. So and even in game, pregame warm ups, you don't always get that many shots.

So it's something that I can pick what I wanna see and feel confident that, okay, all my hand eye and my eyes are everything is firing firing up the right way.

Do you want you've done a little coaching too. How do you enjoy that? Is there any value to you? Like, we some guys some guys like to do coaching, they feel it connects them having to explain something. For you, you under you don't do things just to do them.

You understand why. So I'm not sure. But for some guys, having to explain it to somebody else helps them understand it a little bit more. Probably less for you, but, like, how you enjoy it?

Yeah. For sure. I think the my favorite thing to tell to a goalie is like, why why are you doing that? And then they're like, well, I don't know. Like, why are you that far out?

Why are you deeper? Why are you in a repost like that? It's just like everything should have a purpose and why you do that. And yeah, coaching has been has been great. It just trying to come up with ways how to help others.

And like you said, trying to explain something. And for me, in a way, it lights up that bulb when it's okay, like there's a purpose of that, why we do that? And then especially if a 10 year old kid asked me a question, why do you do that? It's like, I have to come up with an answer and I have to, you know, make it make it purposeful. And so yeah, it's been it's been fun obviously.

You get to be on the ice too and, you know, love goaltending everything about it. So it's been it's been fun to kind of fill up that extra time, doing that.

And something you like, I mean, again, still playing, still wanna play, but, like, in a team environment, you might consider down the road. Once eventually you hang them up, you see that as as an an option. You've had some great goalie coaches over the years following in those footsteps.

Yeah. I think, obviously, I'm gonna focus on playing as long as I can. Right. And then I think I would love to be part of that team environment and be part of goaltending and be a goalie coach. And I guess that's the only thing I wanna do and the only thing I'm basically good at. So

Well, you're also you could probably take in a job in with an equipment company because I I got to witness this today. Now we can't say exactly. We can say that we're here in Montreal to visit Warrior, and you've been wearing their gear and tried their gear much like me recently and been kind of eyes open to it a little bit. But first time I've seen it in while, I know some guys do this, had the tape measure out today. Walk me through how you approach equipment.

Yeah. I just had to make sure that the gloves are up to my standard standards and the models are are different. And, yeah, this summer has been great. I was able to work with some some gear companies and gear stores and test out for the first time, basically, all the newest models and kind of see what I like from different stuff and nail down my sizing was the biggest thing to going to a smaller pad and then just finding all the answers that I was looking for in the Warrior G7 line.

Why'd you go to a smaller pad?

once I put the 33 plus one and a half Warriors on, I've never moved better. I still close my five hole.

I just I just thought I had to be bigger pad before and I was in a Bauer large. The four or five years I was in a Bauer and then realized I probably should have been in a Bauer small just to yeah. Be Just how my my shin length is and how my legs are the length of my legs and how I play maybe knees more close together. And, yeah, once I put the 33 plus one and a half Warriors on, I've never moved better. I still close my five hole.

Everything just felt easier. So it was kind of one of those light bulb moments too. It's like, hey, this works way better for my game. And now looking back, I feel like I've pinched my ability to skate for the last eight years, my whole pro Yeah.

Because the pad almost gets in the way a little bit? Yeah. Because you move really well, but the pad was limiting or inhibiting it.

Yeah. Just too much overlap maybe on the thigh rise and then dropping into butterfly or doing a butterfly slide, the thigh rise on the overlap pad might nick the knee block. And it just kinda like going in reverse, trying to come out of there. It's just like the thigh rise under the knee block was just a little bit too too big to get in the way. And

Okay. That's

interesting. Yeah. And then the Warriors was, like, perfect sizing and then able to move so much better.

Okay. So I think when we hear movement, because there's a couple things that mean, I there's some we're we're new back. InGoal's back with Warrior, like, in terms of trying their gear and experimenting. So we'd been away from it for a while, so there's a lot of learning curve. So I'm gonna put you on the spot with you tried the slide plate, pluses, negatives for you probably don't need it, but the speed in it's undeniable.

Do you see a lot of kids that you work with too trying it?

Couple kids have it. Yeah. I've tried it at first. I loved it because we were doing summer skates and a lot of two on o's, a lot of two on ones, lot of backdoor passes.

Beauty the beauty league. Right?

And this this was just like the pro skates

Okay.

Pro in Minnesota. And I felt like I was getting to those rebounds and those backdoor passes a lot quicker and with a lot more ease. But then once you start getting into the basic saves that you would get in a game, I still felt like

A little too slippery?

A little too slippery. Yeah. I think it's great for someone who likes it and the option to have it. For me, I just had to find that balance of what the normal material in the Warrior is kind of worked great. Dropping into a normal butterfly, having more of that friction and more control Yeah.

Still works better for me.

Okay. The gloves, last one. Because I think people are surprised by the gloves. You weren't because you noticed some things with kids.

Yeah. I mean, every time I've seen a Warrior glove, which has usually been younger kids wearing it, the pocket just looks huge, and they're just making pocket saves so easily and but always kinda, for some reason, discarded that since nobody in the NHL wears it. Right. And obviously, being able to test Warrior late this summer, the glove was something that I fell in love with that just made so much more sense than what the other companies are putting out with the sizing and the shape of it.

So what worked for you in the sizing and shape? Like, what did you notice?

The cuff is smaller on the Warrior glove and they put that sizing into the pocket. So without saying anything else, the Warrior catching surface and the pocket is inch by inch bigger than what I was using before. And you feel that on the ice.

The cuff is smaller on the Warrior glove and they put that sizing into the pocket. Right. So without saying anything else, the Warrior catching surface and the pocket is inch by inch bigger than the What you were using? What I was using before. And you feel that on the ice.

There's a lot of breakaway saves where I was like, okay, I didn't maybe reach that one, but somehow the glove still scooped it in. And I don't see the reason why there would be a bigger cuff on a glove. I haven't noticed any difference in that. No protection or no coverages issues. And I just rather have to put my inches where it really matters, which is catching and how my my hand sits on the bottom of the glove, if that makes sense, and everything is up towards between my index finger and thumb.

Yep. In terms of where

the pocket at. Once we we don't have videos, I

have to explain it. But no. But that's fine because I think people, like and we're trying to do a video on sort of because there's some new things coming out, folks, that we can't talk about, but there's differences in terms of different models and how they fit rel like, same break angle, but where the pocket is relative to that hand and that break is different depending on which model you like.

Yeah. There's guys who like the five ninety glove and that balance and how there may be more finger in that. And then there's obviously guys who like five eighty and then Bauer is six hundred and Yep. It's just preference. Like I said, you gotta find even in gear what works best for you.

And it's just how I like to catch boxes above my hand if that Yeah.

Makes sense.

Above my hand. Yeah. And that's where Warriors put all their material and their pocket sizing. So it just made catching made huge improvements for me in my after my ninth year of pro hockey.

See, and here's the like, this is good for us to hear this. It's positive reinforcement because we felt the same, and we had like, we had Pekka O'Brien who recently retired, who played played some in the KHL, played in the Olympics. He tested it for a week, and he comes back to us. This is the best glove I've ever used. And we're like we're like even we were surprised by the degree to which he loved it.

And like you said, like, I just don't think it gets tried at the highest levels, and we've had a lot of guys sorta get their eyes opened by it, including us at InGoal. So it's good to have pro validation from someone like yourself on that too.

Yeah. I mean, it's just it's different gear, and everybody's product is different and how their shape, their weight, their balance, and it just you have to mix and match your gear and do it. Whatever makes you play the best is the the biggest thing. And I found that with Warrior and it's kinda even with the pads and the gloves, they've kinda filled checked all the boxes that I was looking for in gear. And it's sort of frustrating that I hadn't discovered this before.

Same with Sense Arena, same with just the gear and, you know, it's like, oh, I should have had this six years ago. So Now we know.

Now we know. Now we're telling others. Speaking of which, we gotta get to some some more events here. I'll let you go. Great to catch up with you in person.

I'm hoping by the time this podcast launches, one of those calls you've been waiting on comes through. It'd be great to watch you playing again.

Best of luck.

That's the plan.

And can't wait to catch up next time.

Thank you.

Outro

I can't stop thinking about priming the with with the glove hand. And I I wish I was going on the ice right now.

Is that is that the word, Hutch? I don't even know if I'm using the right word. If it some reason when he explained it to me, that word popped into my head. I used that, I think, in the interview. I used use it again in the intro.

I I'm not 100% sure I'm right.

I don't I don't remember what the right word is, but that's a perfect word.

Well, thank you very much. I'm out. Between my singing and having the perfect word, this is the greatest episode of my life.

Yeah. I can't

Best thing you can say to a writer. Right? You've got the perfect words.

I don't it doesn't happen very often. Trust me.

And once you open that dangler and put it on your mask, you will be set. You will be almost almost unbeatable.

I did love the piece on priming though. We had a series, on the science of goaltending that we ran on the site a couple years ago, I think it is now, Woody. And one of those articles got me deep into the references that were provided with it. And I I believe it was looking at cricket. And, some of the research showed that the reactions I'm gonna get the exact details wrong here, but your reaction was quicker and more accurate when you started a primed motion basically in advance rather than waiting completely still.

And I remember reading that thinking to myself, we focus so much on getting goaltenders in this set position where they are not moving, and then suddenly they have to react to something when other sports have shown that a little bit of motion is is helpful. And I wondered if that might work with a glove. I wasn't really sure how I would teach it or how I would use it. Really cool to see this sort of come full circle now and and I have to go and watch that YouTube video myself.

Think tennis. Like, when you're receiving a serve, you're you're you're bouncing, you're bouncing, and and as the ball is being tossed at the other end, you're you're in motion coming up into what will be a return position.

Well, I think being a shortstop in baseball where you sort of sort of took a couple steps into your ready position, there was a flow. And also, baseball, we think Aaron Judge hitting. By the way, Aaron Judge, visual edge user. You know, you think of how they they drop that bat, like, sorta straight back, and it changes their launch angle, but it's also a priming movement. Think about I was just thinking about this.

Like, what about another goaltending reference? Right? We had Linus Ullmark in the Boston Bruins with their recoil. The LA Kings and their goalie coach calls it motion. Others call it drift.

The Nashville Predators call it teeter. You know? And, that idea of a little bit of backwards flow even off an open release, just a little bit of motion, not only does it sort of set you in the right direction if it hits something, but maybe there's an element of priming in that as well.

Can we use it on the podcast? Prime our minds? Get our You always do. Always do.

Three, two, one. Or if Woody's doing an interview, 321. Hi. I'm Kevin Woodley here.

There's no space. I used to do that all the time and and

tell I don't do that anymore. Hutch told me it sucks for him.

And Woody never says 321. He says, a little 321. Sort of his singing recording voice going.

Yeah. Yeah. Some people go three, two, and they do the silent one, and then there's a natural space there.

Good idea. Kevin.

Well, I might have to I might have to try that because I have to do ad reads for my Hyundai sponsor, and I I do that in the studio now at home and send it in. So I'm not only do I mess up Hutch with some of my three two ones, but I mess up the good folks over at Sportnet 650

fifty two. Always gets in the read for them, doesn't he? The complimentary read.

Yeah. Yeah. A little bit of flex there.

I think you and I should each get to borrow the car for a couple days

a month, don't you? Yeah. Yeah. Like, seems fair. You don't have to drive it down.

Hang out.

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

I'm fine with that. If you're a goaltender and you're would love more access to training tools and help on this journey, tell your parents. Subscription to InGoalmag would be a perfect Christmas gift, and let them know now so they can plan and add it to the list leading up to the to the big day. Have a great week, you guys. You too, Daren.

You too. Enjoy. And thanks for listening to InGoal Radio, the podcast presented by The Hockey Shop Source for Sports Langley, thehockeyshop.com.