Devils Insider Summer Series - Episode 2 - Important re-signings

On this episode of Devils Insider Summer Series... 

Jimmy: Jimmy Oligny sat down with Dan to chat about signing up for another two seasons, and how he's loving life in Cardiff (00:00)

Daddy day care with Evan Mosey: The trio chat about how great it is to have the biggest pastry eater around back for another year, and we hear from the man himself (21:40) 

MVP: Ahead of his 4th season in Cardiff, Ryan Barrow joins the show to talk about life as the MVP and how his recovery is getting on (43:00) 

Coast to coast: Gleason Fournier is back in Cardiff again, a decade on from when he first arrived, we hear from him and the guys chat about how great it is to have a modern Devils legend back in red (1:04:55) 

GB Debrief: As the IIHF World Championships draw to a close for GB, the trio discuss some of the positives to come out of a tough few weeks in Switzerland (1:24:30) 

All Stars: Ahead of their All Star game on June 6th, Franny gives some roster updates and some more details on how to get involved (1:36:15) 

Transcript

SPEAKER_06 0:00

Today's podcast is brought to you by Minerva Hearing. Hear the cheers, protect your ears. Shemai Paul Ba Kroiso. Hello, everybody, and welcome back to another episode of the summer series of Devils Insider Dam Ruther, alongside Gareth Hewish and Neil Francis. It's good to have you back. Boys, the sun is shining, it's incredibly hot, but we've endeavoured to come down and do some work through the pain and the suffering of it, guys.

SPEAKER_02 0:23

Yeah, we certainly have. You know, I'm always happy to be back in the uh rink, but today especially so it is a cooling environment. So I uh think I'm gonna come down and book a couple of skates in the next few days to help me uh with the weather.

SPEAKER_06 0:35

Fanny, a few ice lollies, ice creams. Well, what's what's your pick when you're going for that?

SPEAKER_01 0:39

I am a big ice cream fan. Yeah. Any flavour? Um mint chock chip is probably my my ultimate go-to. Yeah, yep, love it. Guys, what about you?

SPEAKER_02 0:48

Good question. Um, I um I'm a big fan of the Raspberry Ripple C. Big classic fan.

SPEAKER_06 0:54

Yep, good choice, good choice. I'm a coffee guy myself or or a mint chock chip. Exotic. Yeah, you know. Or if you get a really good chocolate, a dark proper with little chocolate bits in it. Can't beat it, can't beat it. I'm I'm getting hungry talking about this. Anyway, right, we'll move on. We've got a pack show ahead of us. Four interviews, because we've got one from last week and three from the announcements we've had over the last little while. Lots to talk about. We're gonna start with Jimmy Alini. We did speak about him on the show last week, and obviously he's re-signing, but we have had the chance recently to sit down with him, so you're gonna hear that. And we're just gonna chat a little bit once again about Jimmy Alini, him being back. It's great to see. And and and guys, uh, you've had a chance to listen to the interview ahead of the guys, and and this is a very motivated, this is very happy Jimmy Alini to be back for another year.

SPEAKER_02 1:34

Yeah, it is. He seems really content, I think, is uh is the sort of feeling I got from uh his interview. We know he's quite a laid-back character when he's off the ice. Um, but uh yeah, you can see why he sort of touched upon being a bit of a you know, being in contact with Tomo a lot and kind of being engaged in that. And I I find that quite interesting. I think that speaks to his leadership as well, that he wants to keep on top of what's going on and keep a hand in some guys. Just want to go on holiday and think about it when they get back, and that's fine too. But yeah, I I really enjoyed how just happy he seemed about about how uh everything ended, and uh just again, just delighted to have a guy of his calibre back in the room.

SPEAKER_06 2:14

Franny, just before we do listen to the interview, two years. That's the big headline from it. And and tell me about the process of getting him signed. I mean, it didn't seem like a particularly difficult one for either him or you to make that decision.

SPEAKER_01 2:23

Yeah, it's uh like he's he's got that present presence, that leadership on the back end. Um, you know, he was immense, I thought, for the whole year. And uh it was a priority of ours to to get him done, um, along with you know a number of other players. And I I think he he doesn't really need to prove anything because he's got that character. Sometimes you worry about dishing out two-year deals because are they going to be motivated or not? But motivation's not a problem with Jimmy Alini. You know, this is a guy that's captained his American League team, um, that's come over to Europe and had a bit of an unsettled start and has found it sounds like he's found a home, doesn't it? And you know, as you'll hear in the interview very shortly, he's fully embracing Cardiff life and Cardiff living for the whole summer. And um, yeah, I think we just whetted the appetite a bit more for trophies.

SPEAKER_06 3:19

Oh, we absolutely did. We'll waste no more time. Here is what Jimmy had to say when I sat down with him earlier this week. A big welcome on Devils Insiders, the newest devils re-signing, Jimmy Alini back for another year upcoming. Jimmy, congratulations. It's uh it's great to have you as a devil again. How do you feel?

SPEAKER_04 3:34

Uh very excited. Uh obviously, when uh we first came in, we were very impressed on how things were being done here. And uh I was really hoping that I could re-sign here and stuff like that. So uh so when when Todd started talking with me and stuff, I was pretty excited about you know staying here for another season. Uh so uh yeah, very, very excited. Uh family's excited, everybody's liking it. So yeah.

SPEAKER_06 4:00

Of course, the big news is you you re-signed for two years as well, which which devils fans will be very glad to hear. It was good, it's great to see on the ice this year. Well, what's convinced you to stay for for those two years, not just one?

SPEAKER_04 4:09

Yeah, so like I wasn't sure, like I said, uh you re signed for one year, but yeah, it's a it's a two-year and uh just uh just the stability for you know my my my family, my kids are in school here, they like it, they're they're making friends and stuff like that. And um that side of things when it's taken care of, you know, like there's not much that you're looking, you know, that's not there's not much else you're looking at. So um very happy. And then on my side of things, hockey and stuff, like there were like we have a nice rink, we have nice fans, uh, nice you know, ownership, we're not missing anything. You know, we have everything we want. So like there was nothing there was like not they didn't need to convince me. It was I needed to convince them that I could stay, and uh, I'm happy everything worked out.

SPEAKER_06 5:00

And of course, in signing and sticking around, obviously your family are here and and your kids are in school. You've had a little bit of downtime now. Now the season is finished. Have you managed to relax a little bit?

SPEAKER_04 5:08

Yeah, we're we're finally starting to to relax now. There was like the obviously like the whole celebrations after we won. And um we also had to move uh house. So uh there was a lot of things going on, and then trying to get the routine back in the new place and all that. And but uh yeah, we're finally taking time a little bit to breathe and um starting, you know, enjoy uh Cardiff a little more, you know, do it do a little more uh stuff and um uh just you know discovering new places and stuff like that. So it's been pretty pretty cool. Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 5:45

Are there any particular spots you you've found, you've discovered, have you managed to track out much?

SPEAKER_04 5:49

Uh so like not outside the city yet, but uh uh yesterday we looked at uh you want to go to Ten Tenbi, Tenbi, Tenbi. Yeah, it's a lovely spot. Yeah, a lot of a lot of people talk to us about that place. So we're we were looking at uh you know, arranging to get out there and bring the kids with us, obviously. But with with school sometimes, it's a little but uh yeah, that that would be a place that we're looking forward to go soon, yeah.

SPEAKER_06 6:15

Yeah, of course the the weather is gonna get better eventually, so it'll be good to get it.

SPEAKER_04 6:19

I'm not worried about you know uh I don't hate the the rain or whatever, so like I I I've been I've been fine with that here. People will people have been asking me like how do you find the weather and stuff like that, but um it doesn't really phase me really, you know. Like I it's not something that I'm like oh it's raining again, like but uh no, it's uh yeah, I'm looking forward to the summer. It's gonna be pretty cool.

SPEAKER_06 6:45

Yeah, it's a good job you don't mind the rain because we get a lot of it in Canada. Um yeah, let's chat a little bit hockey and and and I'm good. It's good to see you in in fine spirits because it was uh you were a bit banged up at the end of last season, a couple of injuries. It was it was a bit of a rough end to the year. And uh, how are you recovering? You feeling okay?

SPEAKER_04 6:59

Yeah, yeah, okay. Yeah, it was like a bunch of like little little things that kept happening, and then you know, like when when they pile up uh at the end, it's just like you're just trying to get to the the finish line. I almost made it, but it missed a period there, but uh uh no, everything's doing good. It's just like it just needed time, and we didn't have time until you know the season was over. So uh everything's everything's fine and you know, according to the plan and like the recovery or whatever, everything everything's doing fine.

SPEAKER_06 7:30

So you mentioned missing that period, of course. It was the very last period of the season, it was the playoff final. The devils win the playoffs. What kind of experience was that for you?

SPEAKER_04 7:38

So like at first, like I you know, I I I run into the wall there and like I'm trying, I'm you know, I I've been in like I've had some presterious injuries before, and you know, like as soon as I hit the wall, I'm like, oh my god, like I'm I'm trying, you know, in my brain to be like, is everything fine, you know, like right away. And then uh and then I was like, oh man, like what what other chance that it's you know in this game, you know, all year like never ran into a wall, but that the last game just something like an accident happens like this, but um it was just like I was just I I looked as soon as I like I was in the penalty box there for a while, I looked at the board, I was like, okay, like you know, we're we got we got the lead, we should be fine. Like the boys are just gonna they're just gonna get the job done, you know, we'll be fine. And then I go back in the room. And then I think Seti comes in and he's like, uh, yeah, it's 3-2 now. I'm like, oh yeah, yeah. Please get through this, boys. Like, I can't I like it would have been the worst feeling ever, you know. Like you get injured, you're up by a few goals, and then like they they come back and win, and you're in the room, and there's nothing you can do about it. So um, no, I like as soon as I went back on the bench, I think we got uh just before I got back on the bench, I think it was was it J Mac that got the MT netter? Yeah, so like I go back and then and then uh Helgi found uh Oli on the back uh back door there, and they put it in also. But uh no, it was uh just an incredible feeling.

SPEAKER_06 9:17

It was your first pro championship as well, so it must have been wonderful to celebrate that.

SPEAKER_04 9:21

Yeah, like even like the last time I won like a tournament, I think I was it was in Autumn and back home it's uh I think you're like 10 or 11 years old. And I like that was like a tournament, like not even like winning the playoffs or like regional thing. It was like a tournament that you know you pay to get in and then you play and then hopefully you win, right? Like you get you get a banner and you bring it back to but that was like such a long time ago, and like since then never like not at like I think I won what like two rounds of playoffs, like in in the whole during the whole thing. So now winning winning this one was like I I I really wanted it, but like winning it now now that you win once, you like you wanna it's just like a weird thing. It's like okay, like now I won, but like I wanna do it again next year, you know.

SPEAKER_05 10:21

Like so exactly, yeah. I think devils fans will be very happy to hear that as well. Yeah, yeah. And then it was just like it's not like now that I finally won, experience that again.

SPEAKER_04 10:32

Cindy Pivia, yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, no, it was uh it was it was cool, just like with the group we had too, like it was it was awesome.

SPEAKER_06 10:40

Yeah, a lot of guys talk about the group last year and say that it it was very together, the guys really got on and and it was a really close-knit group. And it do you think that's maybe a big reason why they got that championship done?

SPEAKER_04 10:50

I I think so because uh with like everything we've been through through the year, you know, like how like we started really hot and then we did that Scotland trip there that that was a nightmare, and then um uh we never seemed to you know get on a run. Like it was always like a few games here, and we're we're destroying teams, and then we go we and then we play like teams that we should probably win aga win against and then lose a few of those. And then we could never like get a any separation in the the standings and all that. So uh, but I think like the the character we had and like we the way we played for each other, I like towards the end we were just like now that we haven't like we didn't get a chance to win the two first like championship, like now this is the last chance we have. And you know, how in hockey you never have the same same group year after year. So you're like like we wanted to win with this group of guys, and uh I think it showed, yeah.

SPEAKER_06 11:53

And that you know, it's it's a good lesson now into next year as well. We we do we don't know exactly who's gonna be back next season, but but it'll be a very similar group, we think, and uh and it's a good lesson to learn now going into trying to compete next year as well.

SPEAKER_04 12:04

Yeah, no, it's uh you always want to obviously like when you finish a season the way we we did, you always want to see the guys you know coming back and trying to keep that going. So uh we'll see what happens, but uh it'd be nice if we get a few of the points back for sure, yeah.

SPEAKER_06 12:21

Yeah, we hope so. Let's chat a little bit about uh the defensive group for the Devils this year because it was a very talented one. You know, you played a Brandon Estes and it was great pairing, played a lot of minutes together. What was it like playing with him and what worked so well?

SPEAKER_04 12:33

Uh so like I came in, I talked with Paul before coming in here, and um he was like, Yeah, I think uh I'm gonna put you with uh S T. I think it's gonna be a good match and all that. And I didn't think much of it because like back, you know, back in the the the other teams, uh it would switch a lot. So like I was like, okay, yeah, maybe we'll play two games together, we'll play a few games there with another guy. But uh right from the get-go, um like the first practices and stuff like that, we we would do like five-on-five drills and stuff, and we would just like find each other, like communicate very good, like right from the first practice. So uh, so I was like excited, you know. I was like, oh man, like it like I just got here, but it feels like we've been playing for with each other for a while. So um no, the the chemistry was just so good from the first practice that we I I guess they just the the coaches just saw that as well and just kept it the same the whole year.

SPEAKER_06 13:33

A lot of that chemistry and stuff comes from Nicholas as well, the assistant coach, and and he he ran the D this year. And what was it like working with him? He was new to Cardiff this year, same same as you.

SPEAKER_04 13:42

Yeah, he's uh he's he's funny. Like me, me and ST we always like laugh because he he when we first like the that time I was telling me, like when we first came in and like we had those little like meetings and stuff, uh what what we expect from you guys, what what we want from you guys and stuff. And uh he was like, I want you guys to be like a a married couple, yeah.

SPEAKER_05 14:05

We said, Yeah, you like the way he talks, too. So like it's so he's so funny.

SPEAKER_04 14:10

He's like, and then uh yeah, Nicholas is just uh like you he's a very smart, like hockey guy, and I'm sure he's smart in real life too, because he speaks, I don't know, any language, but more than me, yeah, yeah, more than me as well. And uh and he uh he he makes us laugh all the time, like you know, like when I would get like thrown out games uh out of the games and stuff, he'd be like, come come see me in the lounge and be like bad boy Jimmy. Hey, you can keep doing it, it's okay.

SPEAKER_06 14:42

We don't we don't mind, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 14:44

But he's uh yeah, I really like Nicholas. He's uh like um he's not too like aggressive on the guys, like he he he has a lot of trust in us to know when we're doing the the good thing, or you know, he know he he knows we know when we you know we do something like a mistake or something. So he comes over and he's just like, yeah, next time maybe and then like nothing comes up, like nothing comes out of it, you know, it doesn't escalate into something crazy. So like I like that side of him too, where he's like very very composed behind the bench and um keeps us level headed, you know, like not too high, not too low, but it's a smooth ride, you know. And I think it I think it showed again this year.

SPEAKER_06 15:27

Yeah, it did absolutely. And he presented you, you you won Defenseman of the Year at the Devil's Awards, and I that was a great celebration of an evening as well as in the middle of of all that chaos. But uh, you must be very proud to have won that, and also, yeah, like receiving the award from him as well.

SPEAKER_04 15:39

Yeah, yeah, no, it was it was uh I I didn't expect it. I I honestly thought it was gonna be ST, but uh uh no, I was uh honored and very happy to receive uh that. But I like I said when I was on the on the stage, I think it was like mostly like a group effort, you know, like we didn't have any like obviously me and the ST played more minutes when you look at the sheet at the end, but um like every pairing at add is had its own you know job to do. And uh if one of these pairings would have would have failed, like everybody will have failed, failed, you know, back back in the D C D zone. So um now it was a strong core, and I'm sure like I'm sure like we we saw it this year, we got so many like it's the goalies as well, but we got so many like shutouts and you know our goal goal against average was really low as well. Uh so I think you know it really, really showed how strong our decor was.

SPEAKER_06 16:46

Yeah, and we saw that you know when you did leave the game and the playoff final, you know, Helgi and and Fawns then jumping up, it it shows the depth of the Devils as well, doesn't it?

SPEAKER_04 16:54

Yeah, yeah, because like yeah, anytime anybody was, you know, if anybody goes down in the back end, like we're not afraid to bring the guys up because we know they're just gonna do the job.

SPEAKER_00 17:03

So yeah.

SPEAKER_06 17:05

And now as we look ahead to next season, you know, there's a there's a lot of summer to enjoy before before we get to next season, but uh, but uh the the the devils are gonna look to develop now and build on what they did at the end of last season as well.

SPEAKER_04 17:15

Yeah, no, uh for sure. Like we the way we finish a season, like I said earlier, like the way we finish this season, we wanna get and I think I'm sure Paul is on the same uh um mindset as you know as the players. Like he's I know I know he's already like looking into next season. Like we've been texting and stuff, and he's like already on the like he's already doing homeworks and stuff, so like he's uh and I I'm sure like they want to keep it going like we had at the end of the year. And um and but this time right, you know, right from the beginning of the season. I think I think it's gonna help that also uh you know last year was a new coach, new like Paul's coming back next year. So like I think this is gonna make it like a better transition. I think that's gonna help us a lot. Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 18:11

Are you excited for the fact that because you're staying around this summer, you get that that extra input and you get to be involved kind of as as building the team kind of from from over the summer as well?

SPEAKER_04 18:20

Yeah, no, it's it's really exciting and uh to actually like be around. You know, like last year I was rushed like coming here. Uh and then like it takes a while to settles settle to things, but like now it's like I can really focus on uh like the season ahead. Like, you know, you don't have the the the summer to think, oh where am I gonna play next year and all that. Now it's like very focused on you know what's ahead. I know where I'm gonna be and build towards towards that.

SPEAKER_06 18:52

Well, Jimmy, uh there's a lot of work, but enjoy some downtime as well. Thank you so much for coming down. I really appreciate it. And again, congratulations for for two more years here in Cardiff. Thank you so much. I'm very excited. Thank you. Big thank you to Jimmy Alini for coming down and chatting with me. Gaz, I think one of the things I really like about it, and Franny kind of hinted at it before we heard that, is the fact that you can feel the motivation, you can feel the energy that the first trophy's given him. And it's crazy to think a guy into his 30s winning his first trophy is all of a sudden reinvigorated, really.

SPEAKER_02 19:20

Yes, Chris, such a surprise to me that he he hasn't won other things given the the player he is. But uh yeah, you're absolutely right. He he seems really dialed in now to get more. He's he's had a taste of it, he wants more. You hear it as well him talking about parts of the season where he thought it went awry in the league as well, so that's another important factor. He's coming in with you know experience eyes on the elite league and the things you have to do to win the big one, you know, the big league title as well. So that's gonna be a big advantage of Jimmy Alini uh 2.0 coming uh this September. So very, very excited and uh yeah, it's great to hear from him.

SPEAKER_06 19:57

Franny, as Gaz mentioned before, and as we heard from Jimmy, he he seems very involved with Tomo and like he said, he's messaged him a few times, spoken about the season coming, and and not only is he reinvigorated, this the way he speaks screams as a guy who is gonna make a very good front office executive one day in in an NHL or an AHL kind of team. He this is something that kind of seems to motivate him a lot and he seems very interested in.

SPEAKER_01 20:19

Yeah, uh, and as experienced Tomo is, Tomo's also very good at using the people around him to better his own knowledge and to find the the best output for the team. So when you have a guy with Jimmy's experience who you know thinks the game very well, I know Tomo does like to bounce things off him, and I know Jimmy really enjoys that side of things, you know, having uh the ability to to input in that. So I know they've been bouncing um some ideas around uh on how we can you know take this great team that finished so well and then kick it on to the next level. And you know, it's yeah, it was really good, wasn't it, to hear how hungry he is. And you know, I loved that bit that I referenced before to say that you know he hadn't won a trophy and it wasn't a case of oh, I've won that now, you know, now I can relax. It's it's it's like an addiction. It you know, it you just get so hungry for success after you've won a bit of silverware, you just want the next piece. And you know, he he referenced that um, as have others, about how it's kind of driven them on to uh to hunt, especially for you know the league title, which is one I feel the guys in the room felt that we had the ability to win, but felt short. And it's how do we kind of push on that extra step now?

SPEAKER_06 21:35

It is indeed, and it's always good to hear from Jimmy back for another couple of years. And Ryan, you talked about other guys who are motivated to be back. Well, the next guy is is motivated to do everything, it seems, in life, and that is Evan Mosey. He's also re signed back in Cardiff. It's good to see Mose back here again, sixth season as a devil, fourth in this current stint, of course, of the two he played pre COVID as well. And Gaz, it's always great whenever Mosey plays for your your hockey team.

SPEAKER_02 21:57

Yeah, he's uh he's just becoming a bit of a A stallwalk now you're becoming part of the furniture, and uh you know, six seasons, uh, it it feels like he's been around for a lot longer in a good way, like he it feels like he never really went away for those couple of seasons. He's always felt right for him to be in a devil's jersey. And you know, when you think uh of players, you know, uh going up in age through their career, and you feel like sometimes speed is the first thing to go. I feel like it's going in reverse. He's sort of a Benjamin Button in his speed, and he he seems quicker uh than he ever uh has been. And uh, you know, huge plus-minus stats last year, which uh just shows that uh how dependable he is uh in in any role you put him in, but particularly you know that partnership with him and and Fawn's last year, it was uh something that that just seemed to gel very quickly. Of course, they've uh played together for a number of years, that obviously helps. Uh but just it would feel a sadder place in Cardiff without Evan Mosey around, wouldn't it? Because when you look at his the smile he has on his face when he when he plays, I I always think that uh shows exactly how much people love hockey when they play that way. It's uh a sort of Bryce Reddick feeling, you know. Just people who just love the game, want to be in the game as long as possible, and to keep playing at such a high level at the time he has speaks volumes through his professionalism.

SPEAKER_06 23:18

Franny Tomo spoke uh when we had him on the podcast, and and one of the one of the areas that maybe the devil struggled with a little bit was last last year was when everybody was fit and people had to sit. That kind of upset the apicot a little bit and people were were a little bit not put out by it, but um the devils obviously are going to look to to streamline recruitment a little bit this year, and having a guy like Evan Mosey who can play D and forward, that is that's a big benefit, isn't it, to having that asset available to you. So you don't then have loads of guys sat up in the stands and worrying and that being an issue.

SPEAKER_01 23:46

Yeah, I mean I I've called Evan Mosey before our Swiss Army knife because he's just got all the tools for all the jobs, hasn't he? And um yeah, you mentioned Gaz that plus minus that he led the league in plus minus. So when you get a defenceman that's such a good skater like like Moose, you you just think of them as an offensive guy, but he uses that both ends, you know, his reliability in his own zone, and that's why he leads the league in plus minus because he can contribute and get the offence going, but he can also you know play very well in his own uh D zone, you know, partnerships with Fournier and before that he play with Crawford as well at some point, you know, offensive defenseman, but he still found a way to dovetail with them really nicely and reads very well when to jump in and when to hang back and get that kind of thing. And then you know, the other string to his bow that you mentioned is he's equally as accomplished as a forward, so when you put him on the forward lines, he brings full of energy and uh the four check in there, and he always seems to put up points as a forward as well. So when you are recruiting a roster, you have to have you know an eye on versatility, and he is probably the most versatile player in the league, and you know it's amazing when you watch him out there sometimes um you know playing a shift on D, and the next shift he'll be up front and then he'll be on the penalty kill, either as a forward or a D, you can do both. Um, so over the course of the season, that is you know a massive um tool to have.

SPEAKER_06 25:17

And as we look at the the evolution of the Devils now into the second year of Tomo, and you look at maybe Nick Welsh as an addition, there's more of an emphasis on transitional pace and getting up the ice quickly. And if you have Mo's as an option and as an asset for that, that's another really great thing to have.

SPEAKER_01 25:31

Yeah, that you know, it is all about that transition. How can you get from your own end into the opposition end? And you know, when you've got great skaters like Mosey, like Welsh, like some other guys that we've got, and some other guys will bring in, then you know, it makes you difficult to play against because as an opposition, you've always got to have one mind that if you take one gamble too much, then you know the devils are down the other end and uh an offensive chance is there. So yeah, it's uh you know, it's part of the game plan there. And you know, Mosey is a great locker room guy as well, always bringing the energy and the fun, and you know, a very popular guy in the locker room and you know with the fans, and rightly so.

SPEAKER_06 26:11

Guys, yeah, that that locker room being so tightly knit last year and the guys getting on so well, you need people like Evan Mosey on your roster to to not facilitate probably the wrong word, but you know, grease the wheels a little bit when it comes to that stuff.

SPEAKER_02 26:22

Yeah, yeah, absolutely. When you you are when you are around Evan Mosey, you can't help but feel good. You know, he's just always you call him the radio because he's always on. He's just it it does give you a lift, just you know, if we're just doing an interview, you know, just one you look forward to, isn't it? Who's good next week, Evan Mosey? Oh great, that'll be a laugh, like that'll be really good. Then, you know, I'm sure there's you know, he knows when to be serious. I'm sure, you know, if you're sat in the long room and you're 3-0 down after the end of the first, you know, uh a Joe probably isn't suitable and he he will you know step up and say what what needs to be said. But yeah, I I just think that you need uh very different intertangibles, don't you, to make uh a team and you need very different looks across those personality bases. And you know, we've waxed lyrical about he how good he is on the ice, but I've yet to find anyone who has a bad word to say about Ever Mosey the man, so uh ecstatic.

SPEAKER_06 27:14

I mean you say that. I I do have one thing I would like to say, and that is you're gonna hear an interview now, guys, from from Mose and I when we sat down a little while ago, and uh just before I was about to press record, he hit a button on my mixing desk which turned his microphone into a robot's voice, and then sat back and went, Well, that's your problem. Now you have to fix that. And I thought, thanks so much for that. So 20 minutes later we finally managed to switch it off, and this is what Mose had to say in a human voice. Ladies and gents, our latest guest on Devil's Insider is another re-signing for the Devils, and I'm surprised you couldn't hear him coming in the distance. But Ever Mosey is back in Cardiff. Mose, thank you so much for coming down. Congratulations. It's another year here. How are you feeling?

SPEAKER_08 27:50

Yeah, good. Thanks for uh well, I should say thanks for the team for re-signing me, and yeah, thanks for having me on the podcast.

SPEAKER_06 27:57

It's uh it's another year in Cardiff. It's your sixth one coming this season, 11 in the elite league in total. You're uh you're enjoying hockey as much as ever.

SPEAKER_08 28:04

Yeah, I think um yeah, I love I love hockey still and I love you know playing, and it's one of those things where I I've I want to play as long as I can and and enjoy the game. And if you know I stop enjoying it and stop loving the game of ice hockey, I'll probably end up walking away. But I don't know if the team would let me walk away that easy. I hopefully they wouldn't, but no, I enjoy you know being in Cardiff. I enjoy obviously being able to win the playoffs last year was uh was a nice way to end the season and go into the summer.

SPEAKER_06 28:36

Cardiff has become home for you, like we say, you know, it's two different chunks of your time you spent in Cardiff. This is this being the second one. And then uh what keeps you coming back here?

SPEAKER_08 28:44

Well, you know, it's obviously like we live in the bay, and it's beautiful being able to be right on the water and then you know just go to Penarth and and be on the the sea and travel around. You got the beacons. It's just you know, Cardiff is a little like slice of home for for me and my wife, and she enjoys it down here. And you know, it's just it's nice to explore, you know, a city and and and find places that you like and find things that you like to do, and it's just uh it's just a nice area to to to be able to raise our daughter and and walk around and everybody's pretty friendly, and it's just a very, very uh good spot. And you know, all the pastry places that I found that you know I don't want to give those up as fast as possible.

SPEAKER_06 29:26

Have you got any favorite spots? I mean, I know T Madden's uh one of your top ones, yeah.

SPEAKER_08 29:30

T Mellon's right on the top that one. Oh man, they they sponsored me, obviously. So it's uh it is a little bit of a plug, but I was going there before they were sponsoring me, and then they were like, We'll give you a discount. I'm like, Yeah, please, yeah, I'm like, please. Well, they were like, Yeah, they were like, if you score a goal, you get a free pastry. I was like, I only scored once last season. I was like, I did not take advantage of that deal. I like I did not use that to my full potential.

SPEAKER_06 29:55

Yeah, I can I can I can agree on the T Mail in uh plug. The one down the bay, and then there's one down on uh Wellfield Road near me, and both of them very, very good. So uh yeah, I I second that one. But um you mentioned the playoffs. Let's chat a little bit about the end of last season. The Devils, of course, go to Nottingham, win the playoffs. Tell me a little bit about how you feel about how that how that went.

SPEAKER_08 30:14

Uh good, because obviously last, you know, we've made it I don't know how many times we made it to the finals. Last year we did, obviously. Um, but then yeah, I made it a couple years to the finals and not winning. So it was one of those things where you know it's huge for the guys just to get over that hurdle who have been here and and obviously win something besides the kind of a cup, you know, domestically. But I think, you know, we we played the last two months of that season, the way we played and and how we went into that weekend, we were feeling I wouldn't say overly confident, but you know, we were feeling pretty confident the way you know that the team was going in the right direction for the two months, you know, leading up to the playoffs. It was one of those where it was kind of ours to lose. It felt like we're guys were confident. If we came and played the way that we could, we had a good chance of winning. And obviously we played pretty solid that will leave even leading up to it, we were playing solid. So it was one of those where we that was kind of what we expected, and that was kind of the mindset we went in with, which you know it's it's if you play like that as a team, you know, you you got a very, very good chance of winning something.

SPEAKER_06 31:26

I mean, you you talk about that that that lead up to it. You you said, you know, I scored one goal this season. Well, you scored two because you got one of course in the playoffs. Yeah, we double up. Um and that I remember the the the goal in Coventry kind of set the tone really for the playoffs because it was the first one in the postseason that the devil scored. It got them back level in that game. But there was very much a feeling when that goal went in of they were the devils were on the right track, and and that must have felt you must have felt that in the room and then when you scored.

SPEAKER_08 31:53

Uh yeah, I was just for me, I was just like, thank God finally something went in because it's like I've tried so hard all year, one went in. But no, it was I think you know, yeah, I think for the guys, once you know, it I you could see it was like a little bit of nerves at the start of that game where it's like you know, you're going into Coventry, like anything can happen. You can have a bad five minutes in that building and be down two, three goals, like it's happened to us before, but no, I think for the guys, you know, to get to get the nerves out to know that we were like you said, right on track and to get that one back, you know, was huge. And I think after that the guys kind of took over and they were they were like, all right, it's back to work as it is, and yeah, you got the win, you got the win there, and then the win at home. So and you got a good good photo of that celly as well. I think so, yeah. Well, it wasn't my best celly, but I'll take it.

SPEAKER_06 32:42

Next season. Next season to get some more. You played a lot of this season it within the kind of deco, and the seven guys that were on that this year. You played with Fawns, obviously, for pretty much the entirety of the season. And uh, and Devil's assistant coach Nicholas Hovivori always describes you guys as the D pairs as of married couples. And and how did you get on with your with your partner this year?

SPEAKER_08 33:01

Forns is my work wife. Yeah, Forns is my work wife. Um, no, me and Forns obviously, you know, it's a weird it was a lot of people wouldn't think we'd work good together because we're two kind of offensive defensemen and we both like to join the rush, which like sometimes I will admit I will pass the puck on a rush to Forns where we're both going, and I'm like, we should not be doing this. This is or like I'll like wheel the net in the offensive zone and pass it to like Forns in front of their net. And I'm like, we are way out of position right now. We're like, we will get told off when we go back to the bench. But no, I like I love playing with forns. Um me and him, I think have a really good chemistry together, and I think you know, he we bounce pretty well off each other, you know, kind of just getting the best out of you know each other and and how we can play. And I think you know, forne's you know, credit to him when he left uh to go play in the other leagues, and like I think he went to Ferrar or he went, he went somewhere. Balzano, yeah. He went, yeah, he went Balzano and then Ferrovar, where I think you know, credit to him is he um definitely picked up his defensive skills as a demon. Like he was known as an offensive goal scoring, where like now he can be a shut like a good shutdown penalty kill. Like where I think he overall like grew as a defenseman when he was gone, and he still has that off, like you'll never lose that. But you know, it's easy to play with for me. Like, I I don't like I don't I'll tell anybody who wants to hear, like, it's a pretty easy system for me, where it's like I get the puck and you just give it to Forns because he'll just skate it through everybody, like it's a pretty easy system. Like, and like I did it when I played with Crawford here. It's like get the puck, give it to Crawford, like get the puck, give it to Forns, like give it to the more skilled people. Like, it's a pretty easy system where like you know, I enjoy like I love playing with forns, you know. I hope you know, next year it's the same. I don't really know what the team you know more about the team shaping up as me. I'm just in the dark here. Um, but yeah, like it's I enjoy playing with forns, and he's like I said, he's my work wife, and yeah, it's just he's just he's just a good guy, good sense of humor. He's a he's a good guy to to show up to the rink and and practice with and play games with.

SPEAKER_06 35:18

Yeah, not only is your relationship with foreign's great, it seemed like the devil's entirety is a roster this year. There was a very good feeling around the room, and and I don't I think that was probably exemplified by the parties after the playoffs.

SPEAKER_08 35:30

What party is it? It's just one long one. Um yeah, the group of guys that we had were extremely tight-knit, and you if I don't know if the fans they could probably notice, well, if they ever ran into the group of guys who kept the party going for about a month, like three weeks after the season ended. Um, yeah, the guys enjoyed it, and they it was just a very tight-knit, you know, group of guys, because we have a really weird like age demographic. Like some are older, some you know are younger, and then it was just a good group of guys, and everybody enjoyed hanging out with each other and and and celebrating and having beers with, and then you know, you got the older group of guys with kids and stuff who kind of they hang out and do their thing. So it's just a there's just a good group of guys that you know it's just you'll never be able to, I think, recreate what we had last year.

SPEAKER_06 36:22

Well, one of you clearly taught Connor Capone how to party because my word didn't I don't I think Connor taught himself how to party.

SPEAKER_08 36:30

Connor is old enough to party, so he he learned on his own in university probably, but yeah, he fully celebrated that trophy.

SPEAKER_06 36:38

He really did, and and fair play to him. You know, you got you got to enjoy that you can never under celebrate a championship. I think Jimmy Alini was running that that tagline all summer.

SPEAKER_08 36:47

I think Todd said that in the end of the year. He's like, You can't under celebrate or you can't over-celebrate a trophy or something. I think they the boys took that and fully ran with it. Like they they that was their motto.

SPEAKER_06 36:59

You're back uh middle of this summer to play in Ben Bounce's testimonial as well, and that's gonna be a great, a great kind of occasion as well, celebrating uh Bouncy's uh 10 years in Cardiff now.

SPEAKER_08 37:08

Yeah, so that's uh yeah, I'm excited about that. And I've played in a lot of testimonials lately, like the last three years. I think it was like Batchy's Marty's. I don't know if I did I didn't do diesels, I think I was gone for that, and then now Bounsey's. So yeah, I've been in a lot of testimonials, so but yeah, it'll be exciting. And you know, credit to Bounsey for 10 years and trying to stop a puck. Why would you ever want to do that for 10 years? But yeah, he's good at it, and yeah. Hopefully the fans come out and support him. So it'll be a good, I'm guessing it'll be a good time. He's got a good cast of characters coming back. So oh yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_06 37:42

Some of some of the names on that list are great, and uh, and and we know that Steve King will be playing in it as well as his son. So see a chance to lay one on him as well while he's out there.

SPEAKER_08 37:50

Yeah, maybe, yeah, maybe shoot a puck at him or something. No, it'll be fun. It'll be good to see Kanger out there and it'll be yeah, it'll be yeah. I saw Bouncy. Bouncy didn't even tell me he was gonna announce me, and then I just saw that he chirped me on Twitter, but didn't even at me, so I can't even fight a so I can't even fight back with it. But yeah, no, it'll be a good um it'll be a good day. So I'm excited about it.

SPEAKER_06 38:12

That it well and then of course then it's the rest of the summer. What what what does the the off season look like for you? Like you say, you you you've got a daughter now as well, so that kind of changes. Daddy daycare. That's what that's what yeah. What is that like?

SPEAKER_08 38:22

It's just wake up, uh, my wife pretty much just hands me the baby, and then we do some stuff together, but then it's more just giving her, you know, some space to go do the stuff that she couldn't really do during the season. So um daddy daycare is yeah, I just take care of the baby, and she gets to go either go to the gym or go for a run or go to a spa. It's just kind of take the stress off because during the season, she's pretty much mom all the time when I'm on road trips. So daddy daycare in the summer. Hopefully, Marty or somebody the other boys with babies are around, and then we can daddy daycare together and go to a pub or go sit outside where it's you know that's super stressful. But no, daddy daycare is uh me taking her on the golf course and just going golfing and spending as much time with my daughter and giving my wife a little bit of a break.

SPEAKER_06 39:12

So I love it, love it. And and you know, we'll be back here in August before we know it and gearing up for another season. How excited are you for that? I I know you maybe want to enjoy some town time first.

SPEAKER_08 39:23

No, I'm excited. Like, as much as it is bittersweet that the season's done, like it's like hockey's a big part of my life where like it's like a week or two goes by and I'm like, all right, I'm ready to go back to the rink, like practice or like get back to it. So no, I as much as you know the off season's fun and relaxing, like yeah, I'm ready to get back and get back playing. So, but no, August will August, September will roll around and we'll be geared up for that.

SPEAKER_06 39:52

So, yeah, it's exciting. And just finally, uh my message to the fans ahead of that. I know like like we say, enjoy the off season, but it we'll be here before we know it.

SPEAKER_08 39:59

Yeah, that's uh pretty much the message. So, you fans get ready too, because we're gonna need to pack the building again.

SPEAKER_06 40:08

Mose, thank you so much for coming down. Congratulations, another year in Cardiff, and uh and we will look forward to seeing you in that back building. Thank you very much. Massive thanks to Chatterbox Ever Mosey once again for joining the podcast. It's always great when he comes down and chats to us. And guys, I mean, I I come away from those situations with a smile on my face, nothing more.

SPEAKER_02 40:26

Yeah, I I kind of think if we had put it out in the robot voice, everyone would have accepted it because it was a mose. You know, I mean, I think we probably should have seen it how we went with that. Uh, one thing I will say is the great thing about signing Ever Mosey as well, is you don't just sign Ever Mosey, you sign the entire Mosey family. And whenever they come to visit, which is quite frequently, uh, it's always great to sit and chat hockey with them on the gantry. So another big plus there.

SPEAKER_06 40:50

Franny, one thing actually that Mo said in that interview, which I I I disagree with him, to be honest with you, in what he said, he he he kind of said that he he has to do an easy job and he doesn't really, you know, he gives he always gives gives the puck to the better player. Give it to Fournier, give it to Crawford, whoever, give it to Hotham or whatever that that would have been. And and I actually think he puts himself down sometimes into how good he has been over his time here.

SPEAKER_01 41:10

Yeah, I mean, and that is a quality in itself, is to move the puck and then you know, where he is putting himself down, he then gets open to you know, either to draw some coverage away or to you know get a uh a return pass. And you know, he's got a good hockey IQ, he really has. And the fact that you can partner him with anybody and he will seamlessly slot in um just shows that he's got that ability, and he's playing it down by saying, I just give the good player the puck kind of thing. But I'm sure those good players that he re refers to are equally happy playing with him because they know how reliable he is, and uh, you know, he's got the speed to get us out of trouble, uh, he's got the speed to join into the attack, but also he's very responsible in how he plays. He's happy if he watches Fournier go coast to coast, and he's happy to sit back, or whether it was Crawford or or whoever. So, you know, he is very unselfish, and as much as we talk about you know how light he is around the room, he's very competitive and he wants to to win, and he'll do whatever it can he can for the team to win. And you know, he you often don't see out loud that competitive side of him, but you can just know by the way he plays and you know the success he's had that he is a big competitor.

SPEAKER_06 42:26

Yeah, and I think you know, he he he did joke around in the interview about only having one goal in the league last year and one in the playoffs. And again, I think he's putting himself down. All right, you only get a couple of goals, but you can tell it kind of it ground away at him a little bit, and he was just frustrated by the fact he only got on two on the year. And you know, we know how good of a shot he has. We saw that goal in Coventry at the start of the playoffs, and and I've spoken a lot about how I thought that actually did a really good job of setting the tone for the devils and settling them down for for that playoff run. So uh yeah, it's always good to have have Mose back on the Devils. Guys, any final thoughts on on having the Mo's back here?

SPEAKER_02 42:56

Well, I just really disappointed for him again getting more croissants.

SPEAKER_06 42:59

Oh, yeah, team Eddie. If you haven't been before, get down there. It's unbelievable. Yeah, and and and that that's not a an ad. That is me saying it from an honest opinion. But uh, we're gonna move on now and we're gonna chat about another re-signing that came over the last week or so, and that is the return of the MVP. Ryan Barrow wheels this backing Cardiff. Guys, this is one of the ones that were top of my list before we came into the offseason, and uh big relief to get him over the line again.

SPEAKER_02 43:25

Yes, it is uh probably one of the most indispensable members of last year's team. Uh, when I think back and and review Barrow's season last year, I think if you go back and look, I think what was remarkable is I feel like he left an imprint on his line mates of whatever line he was on throughout the year. And I think you saw the the sort of culmination of that was our rudd at the end, where people were going at the same effort pace and the same work rate as Ryan Barrow. And when you do that, there's nothing you can have. But success because he is uh one of the most consistent players I've seen in a devil's jersey. 60 minutes every single week, goals, uh hits, uh fights, assists, uh everything. Um and so yeah, it it was an absolute no-brainer because I'm sure he was you know not short of offers uh this summer. But fourth season in Devil's Colours and he sounds angry for more as well.

SPEAKER_06 44:24

He really does. Franny Tomo uh more than once, and we've spoken about it a lot on the podcast this year, called him a line fixer. And and as Gaz said, you know, he he leaves that imprint on his linemates and teammates. And you actually, yeah, like like Gaz says, you feel that when he went down injured, just you know, just before the playoffs started, there was a feeling, and uh definitely you could see it on the ice. The guys were playing in that mould and playing it in the kind of style and the effort and the energy that you would expect from Wales.

SPEAKER_01 44:48

Yeah, um, you know, when when fans or part of the organization, wherever you are, they talk about their club's DNA. And you know, what is the DNA of the Cardiff Devils? I think the DNA of the Cardiff Devils is a team and players that will go out and leave it all on the ice every game. And I think that's was instilled with John Lawless, you know, right the way through the great teams that we had in the in the 90s. And um, and Ryan Barrow's just got that DNA, hasn't he? You know, he is a true Cardiff Devils player because every time he goes on the ice, it's all for the team and not for his personal sort of glory. You see some of the ways he goes in on his four checks and you know puts himself in dangerous situations, but he does it because he wants to win the puck for his linemates. So it's not to get himself a goal or whatever, it's to get the puck for the linemates because you know he wants to give them opportunities. And yeah, I mean, he I just loved watching every second that he was on the ice this year, and um you know the fact that he got MVP without being on the ice in the championship win at the end, it just shows what a big influence he had on the whole of the of the roster. Uh, like you said, it all it rubbed off on them. You know, they they saw a guy sitting in the stands that would give anything to be out on that ice, and it was almost like they were saying, Well, you know, wheels can't be here, we better not let him down. And you know, they didn't.

SPEAKER_06 46:13

They really didn't. And am I right in saying that you've got a story about uh 10 minutes or so before the end of the playoff final, you were sat with Ryan Barrow and and and he was not as nervous as you were hoping, maybe.

SPEAKER_01 46:24

Yeah, he um and and that's the other great thing about him. From having such a great season, getting injured right at the wrong point. Um, you know, he could easily have just kind of gone into a shadow, but he was so positive around the guys, always upbeat, always excited. He loved the way that the guys were playing, moving down the stretch. Uh, and in that final, he was just like a bottle of pop, you know, he was running back and forth between the box that he was in and the box that I was in with the owners. Um, bear in mind, I say running back and forth, and this is with a knee injury as well. And he he was running back and forth, and he was so excitable and so pumped for every guy on the ice, whether it was Capone's um goal opening goal in that uh semi-final or whatever. And uh yeah, with about 10 minutes to go in the game, he's like, Right, I'm going down there because they they brought their gear to put on and join in the celebrations. I was like, Wheels, it's it's it's still a long way to go. He goes, No, we're doing this, we're doing this. He goes, I got no doubt. I'm he goes, I'm not even worried that I'm gonna jinx it or anything. The boys have got this, and so off, you know, they went down there and you know with Wheels leading the way, and he was right. He just knew that the guys had the mindset that nothing was gonna stop them.

SPEAKER_02 47:36

You showed great restraint not tying him to the chair like I would have done.

SPEAKER_06 47:40

I mean, yeah, what what an ultimate teammate. And and you know that if if you've got Ryan Barrow just waiting in the wings and you're you're gonna be diving in front of Pucks to make sure you get that one over the line. So uh yeah, great to have Barrow back. And uh I was lucky enough to chat with him. He has gone home back to Canada, but I was lucky enough to chat with him a little bit just before the show. Ladies and gents, our most recent guest on Devils Insider is another re-signing to the Devils for another year. His teammates know him as Wheels, we know him as the MVP. Ryan Barrow is back in Cardiff. Ryan, congratulations. How does it feel for a fourth season in Cardiff?

SPEAKER_07 48:12

Yeah, I mean, uh already four years, that's pretty uh pretty amazing. I um I think just very grateful to be back in Cardiff. I think uh it was a pretty easy decision with me and my fiance when um the opportunity came up kind of throughout the year. Uh we knew we wanted to be back and uh with Tomo coaching, I think um it's just a great leader for us to to do some pretty special things, I think.

SPEAKER_06 48:36

Tell me a little bit about your offseason. You you've been away about a month now. How how are you getting on? Are you enjoying a bit of downtime?

SPEAKER_07 48:42

Yeah, well, it was pretty hectic when after we won, I celebrated for like two or three days. Then I ended up going to my uh one of my best buddies from Banff. His master trip was in Greece. So kind of a lot of a lot of drinking, a lot of having fun there for like eight eight days straight. Um, but then it was yeah, it's nice to just get back to Banff, kind of have a routine here. Um started um training, obviously, rehabbing my my knee, kind of working with Cast through that, and then just hopefully lots of golf and hopefully some low scores.

SPEAKER_06 49:17

Oh, we hope so. We hope so. How is recovery going? Of course, you you missed the end of the season, so we were we were all looking forward to hoping you having you back on the ice come come August, but how's the recovery going so far?

SPEAKER_07 49:26

Yeah, it's good. It's just kind of one of those weirder kind of injuries where I think my strength's really good at this point, but it's just kind of those awkward, awkward movements. But I think I'm pretty close to 100%. I think um obviously if I would have been working with Kath for another few weeks there instead of celebrating, I think um I think I would have been able to come back uh if the season was whatever, two or three weeks longer. But no, I think I'm I'm happy with where I'm at and obviously working with Kath. Um I know I'm in the right hands.

SPEAKER_06 49:56

Yeah, I mean, uh I I don't begrudge you celebrating the the championship. You can never over celebrate it as as they say. So uh yeah, but um let's let's talk a little bit about the end of the season, of course. Um we'll we'll start with with awards night. You were you were awarded the MVP for the Devils this season. It was richly deserved. And uh how proud were you to win that award that night?

SPEAKER_07 50:14

Yeah, obviously, just knowing how many great um people and players we have on this team, it was um pretty humbling. I think it could have gone to uh a lot of guys. Um but yeah, just very honored and um yeah, I was really happy with my season. So um to be recognized that that was um I'm just r really grateful that um yeah, I was able to win that award.

SPEAKER_06 50:37

What worked so well this year, you know, you you're you uh we spoke last summer about how you felt that you'd had a bit of a a quiet year in terms of production. Last uh this is going back not last season, just finished the one before. You you got those numbers back up and you were on pace to to to have your your best season in card if by the numbers if you hadn't got injured. So what works so well for you?

SPEAKER_07 50:55

I think just my mindset going into the year was just all about just having fun and and being grateful for just to be able to play a sport you love, you know, just try and I think I put a lot of pressure and on myself to to do certain things for the team or to perform certain ways to help the team win. And I think just kind of lightening that um kind of expectation of myself and just really digging into just having as much fun at the rink, whether it's like playing sewer ball with the guys before games or playing rebound on the ice after practice like for 30 minutes or whatever. I think that just went a long way for my mental health, and I think that just kind of helped me kind of perform on the ice to the best of my ability, I think.

SPEAKER_06 51:42

You know, th that that's made all the easier by by your teammates, I'm sure. And uh and we've heard a lot this year about the devil's the devil's group, and like you say, it it's it's a huge help mentally to not just your performance but the team's performance when when you guys do get on so well.

SPEAKER_07 51:55

Yeah, I think like I've kind of realized like uh throughout pro hockey and hockey in general, you're always gonna say you have such an awesome group, but then I think at the end of the day, what separates like having an awesome group and then having a group that's gonna win is I think everyone wanted to do it for one another, and I think um everyone's pretty selfless in that regard. I think you saw it from probably the opening weekend, everyone was sticking up for each other, and then sometimes we probably took that a little too far, but I I don't even almost think you can take that too far because I think it just speaks volumes about what we're willing to do for one another to to win trophies, and I think that's kind of what you need to do at the end of the day.

SPEAKER_06 52:37

Yeah, you uh we we we speak a little bit about your your season. I think probably the best hockey we've seen from you since you've been in Cardiff. And then if there was kind of a uh a little area that we we saw that really well exemplified was was early on in the season when the devils were struggling, you were playing some absolutely incredible hockey, and and was there a sense of and a feeling in the room that you know if if some guys are struggling a little bit or if some guys isn't going for them, then it can be picked up and the slack can be picked up by the other guys, and and then vice versa when things maybe aren't going as easily for you.

SPEAKER_07 53:06

Yeah, I think um I think you kind of know with the recruiting that the staff's gonna do, you're gonna have a lot of good players, and then it's kind of at the end of the day finding where all those good players fit, and sometimes that takes some time, right? Um I think we saw some people really shine throughout the year when put in different spots. So I think that's obviously we all like to play perfect for the whole season, but that's just that's obviously just not realistic. Um yeah, I think it was just more of everyone kind of stepped up when needed, and I think ultimately you saw kind of the whole team gel together there at the end, um, which was awesome. It sucked watching, but man, it was it was it was awesome to see. Um I think that was like one of like the cooler things about not playing was just seeing how um happy everyone was and how much it meant to everyone from like a different kind of point of view. So yeah, it was ended up being pretty good.

SPEAKER_06 54:07

Yeah, that that that end was interesting because of course you you go down injured, you missed those last sort of four to six games of of of the year, and then and obviously that's uh that must be incredibly tough. But also, yeah, like you say, bittersweet, you get to see it from a different side, and and of course, when you win a championship at the end, it makes it a little bit easier, I'm sure.

SPEAKER_07 54:24

Yeah, exactly. It was kind of I mean, everything happens for a reason. Um, obviously, I kind of go down. You have Remer who's just been like an unbelievable teammate, um, went through so much this year, and just for him to kind of like be almost perfectly ready when I go down, and he can kind of jump in my spot so interchangeably, kind of like what we talked, recruiting such good people and players to the Cardiff Devils. Um yeah, like the team really took off there. So it was just it was it was great.

SPEAKER_06 54:55

Yeah, and you guys of course got the chance to really enjoy, like you say, that that uh that championship. And I'm sure there was plenty of beerside, but also you know, some some good moments to to share that that experience together.

SPEAKER_07 55:05

Yeah, I mean, I think obviously you saw Cap and Ferg kind of leading the charge. I don't think they let the trophy trophy leave them, but um no, I knew it was gonna be a good celebration. Um, you know, I've played with Cap and just having a young guy who's won he's won two national championships pretty re recently. I knew uh I knew he he he was gonna know how to celebrate and kind of we just kind of all felt followed his lead, so it was awesome.

SPEAKER_06 55:31

Todd Kalman told an interesting story at awards night about how you know you you once said to him, you know, all you want to do really is is win championships and win. And and and you got that chance to do that and and get your your pro championship. Obviously, you won Continental Cup as well uh last year. But uh, you know, is has that given you the motivation now as we look at the the re-signing now, being back in Cardiff. Has that motivated you to be back for another year and try and get more? I think for sure.

SPEAKER_07 55:54

And I think um I'm a pretty competitive person. I know um the big trophy is the regular season, so obviously that's that's the one I want, and that's the one I think um we're obviously aiming towards next year. Um but yeah, to get the first one, I mean, other than the Continental Cup is is great. I think um at the end of the day, I think that's why if you're a competitive person, you you really do anything in life is to try and try and be the best and um obviously compete against the best. Um yeah, so that's just kind of my personality and and life in general, I think.

SPEAKER_06 56:31

Yeah, it's good to hear. And uh and and then you know, we'll continue on the path of China about you being in back in Cardiff. And uh how how do you how does your game now evolve? How do the devils now evolve and build off of this this championship at the end of the season on Yeah, hopefully I don't I don't think it's changed too much.

SPEAKER_07 56:47

Just hopefully um just be a good teammate and um a good a good person, I think first and foremost, and I think just a as a team, I think just probably just be a bit more consistent. I know it's tough, like this this league trophy. I don't think I know that the fans are used to it with the football, but from a hockey perspective, I think it's probably one of the hardest trophies to win that I've ever I've ever seen. Um, you know, every game's a game seven. You could you could have an unbelievable weekend and have one one slip up the next weekend, and it's it's like doomsday. So I think um I think mentally you just have to be pretty mentally strong throughout the course of the year. Um you know, there's gonna be there's gonna be highs, there's gonna be lows, but I think whatever team can kind of stay even keel and just kind of be consistent, like I talked about. I think we kind of had a stretch there. I think it was through December December, and I think that kind of lost us to the league per se. Um so yeah, it's just it's very unique, and um obviously that's that's the trophy I think we all want to win next year.

SPEAKER_06 57:56

Yeah, for sure. And and and you know that that is, I guess, the the the motivation to come back and and and you know, year four. What what else is it that keeps you coming back for more here in Gardiff?

SPEAKER_07 58:06

Um I think just we my fiance feel really really at home there. We feel we feel um comfortable now. Um, you know what you're kind of getting into, and then obviously we come back, I come back just because of the the expectations um to win. You know, sometimes it's a lot, but I think I wouldn't rather any other way if I was thinking about where I was to be playing.

SPEAKER_06 58:31

Well, Ryan, it's good to hear and uh we're glad to have you back. It's glad to have the team's MVP back every time you can do that, you can resign someone like that. It's good to see. But uh yeah, congratulations on another year in Cardiff. And uh, thank you so much for coming and chatting to me.

SPEAKER_07 58:44

Yeah, thank you. Appreciate it.

SPEAKER_06 58:46

Big thanks to Ryan Barrow for taking time out of his day. It's his offseason. I appreciate him coming and chatting with me. It was great to hear from him. And guys, I think the thing that stood out most to me during that interview, and it's and it's kind of a theme that's we've heard a couple of times, not only from Barrow, but also from Todd Kelman at awards night. Tomo touched on it a little bit as well, is the mental game for him is really important. And and he's a guy who puts a lot of effort and energy into making sure he's in the right headspace to play hockey.

SPEAKER_02 59:12

Yeah, and uh it's just uh really warming to hear him talk about how much he's enjoyed that this past season. You can see it in the way that that he was playing, but to hear him talk about it is just so genuine and and raw to me how important it is for him. It's uh I'm I'm so pleased for my on that on that account because uh you know uh a motivated Ryan Barrow who's in love with the game is something special to watch. Last year you could tell there was like a different type of expectation in the crowd when Barrow's line went out. You feel like he was gonna do something, feel like he was going to influence uh the game, and you could see that he believed it as well out there. So uh yeah, it that that to me is huge, and and I'm just like I say, I'm just so pleased for him.

SPEAKER_06 1:00:00

Franny, I'm sure you've had a lot of guys through your door in the past who have come to you and said, I'm I'm struggling mentally with the game, I've maybe either fallen out of love with it or I'm struggling with confidence and stuff. And and it's a challenge, isn't it, when a guy comes to you like that? Because some guys they never find the love for the game again, but we're really glad to see that that Barrow has.

SPEAKER_01 1:00:16

Yeah, uh, and you know, he he alluded to this in the awards night about you know, he had a moment last year where he didn't even know if he wanted to play hockey anymore. And I think you know, there was frustration in that because as hard as he was playing and he was giving his heart and soul, he wasn't getting uh the end rewards, and the team wouldn't get the end rewards of that uh of that hard work. And you know, it all got frustrated, it got very frustrating for him. He was picking up some injuries, and you know, he he had that moment where he knocked on the door and he said, You know, I you know I'm struggling here, which you know it takes a man to do that. Um, but thankfully he you know he is that strong character that you know he used that then to to grow as a person and you know to grow stronger mentally. And um, it's been amazing to see him bounce back this year. I think he's thrived under a coach like Paul Thompson. Um, you know, when I was speaking to him early in the season, you know, how's it going and everything? He's like, I love it. This is it's like being at Denver. So at Denver University, and you know, we we get players, if we can, that have played in the Denver program for a reason. What Denver do really well and differently than all the other NCAA teams, is they always look for rough diamonds. So they don't recruit through the from the pool that everyone else is looking to recruit from. They go out and find these guys that may not have put huge numbers up at junior, but they got that something. And then when they bring them into their program and they got, you know, the the most successful coach in NCAA um right now, and they they are the most successful program at the moment in in NCAA. Um, he gets like-minded characters in together that give you that little bit extra that go the extra mile, and he molds them into hockey players that will go through a wall for that team. And, you know, um Barrow's done it in Denver, as have Capone and Olafchevsky. Uh, and then he's brought that mentality here. And a coach like Paul Thompson loves that kind of player as well. You know, that's right in his mentality, and I think it was a perfect match between player and coach. And you just saw that uh that Wheels thrived in his role, and you saw the trust that Tomo had in with him that, like, like you say, you know, the fixer, there's a line, a couple of players are are struggling a little bit. I'm gonna put them with Barrow because I know he's gonna make them better players.

SPEAKER_06 1:02:35

Exactly. Yeah, and actually, I I I think the thing that I really liked about that interview, and one of the answers that he gave that I really appreciated was he spoke about how excited he was for your emco. And it's very easy, I think, when you go out injured and a guy basically takes your spot who comes back having not played, gets the two goals in the final, is the the the big hero on the day. It could be very easy to not get jealous, but you you can kind of get where I'm coming from and think, oh, that could have been me, and I could be in that position if I didn't have this injury. But there's none of that with him. He's he's he's buzzing for your remko, he's buzzing for the devils, and the the selflessness, I think, of Barrow is what stands out to me.

SPEAKER_01 1:03:08

Yeah, for definite. And you know, like you said earlier, when Barrow went down injured, my fears were right, this is our the guy that brings our identity, and we're you know, we're just getting on a roll now, and you've just taken the biggest cog out of the machine. Um, what are we gonna do here? Well, upstep Nolan Yuremko, and you know, that speaks volumes for Yuremko and the type of player that he is and the character that he is, that he could just go in there and you know, it made the uh the injury to to Barrow, it's it it lessened it so much by having Yuremko do that role. But the fact that Barrow name checks him in the interview that how delighted he was for him, and he was in the box, he was absolutely buzzing for Yuremko, and um that you know Yuremko wouldn't have been in the lineup if it wasn't for Barrow because at that time he was unproven on his return from injury, and you know, wheels, you're not gonna take out the lineup. So um it's an amazing end to the season for Yuremko, but a total uh show of the huge character of Ryan Barrow that you know he was you know, he embraced that uh that justice that Yuremko got in a tough season by ending on a high.

SPEAKER_02 1:04:19

And uh, I don't think we have to worry about uh Barrow's stamina being injured as well. Did he say he went on an eight-day stag do?

SPEAKER_06 1:04:25

Yeah, crazy, isn't it? Like, or I think he said eight days of drinking, which was maybe three days of post-playoff party, which would have been enough for most people anyway, and then a stag deal.

SPEAKER_02 1:04:34

My word, because that was about a week's worth of drinking in three days that they those boys did. But yeah, it's an eight days we were out there. Well, you know, uh a boy's got an engine.

SPEAKER_06 1:04:43

He really does. What an absolute trooper. And and I mean, we us three can't wait to see him back here. I absolutely love Barrow and can't wait for the fans to be able to see him on the ice again. And and great to have him back for the fourth year. So uh yeah, that is three down. We have one more signing to chat about, and that is Mr. Coast to Coast himself. Glees and Fournier is back in Cardiff once again. And uh Gaz, uh, as a it's it's a guy who's encapsulated pretty much this in the entirety of this modern devil's era, it's a modern devils legend.

SPEAKER_02 1:05:10

He certainly is, and uh, I remember during his time away, we would often see him on the gantry for the last couple of games of the season where he'd uh pop in and visit, and every year I'd take Phones you're breaking my heart, you've got to come back. Oh, maybe next year. No, phones are breaking my heart, you gotta come back. And then he's come back. And how great has it been this year to see phones, I guess, without the shackles on, without the handbrake on. Just putting really the the choice in his hands. How do you want to express yourself uh on on the ice? And I think that's the way you get the best out of Gleason Fawn Yeah. You let him make those choices, you let him decide how to make those rushes up ice, find that uh sort of open ice, make those plays, and yeah, and I felt he got better and better, much like the team as the season went on.

SPEAKER_06 1:05:58

He really did, Franny, and and and as Gaza. Alludes to uh took the handbrake off at over this year, and you felt that there was a level to the game that we saw that we maybe didn't in his first year back, and that he's warmed to being back in Cardiff. And and yeah, like we say, at the end of that, the this second season just gone, was back to playing kind of the hockey that we we've seen previously from him.

SPEAKER_01 1:06:15

Yeah, he looked a confident Gleason Fournier. You know, we were used to that before. You know, if you think of the evolution of Gleason Fournier first time around, first time he came in, he was sort of in the shadows of Andrew Hotham, you know, playing on the second deep air and letting Hotham take all the limelight. And he was just playing responsibly and you know, doing things very well. And as soon as Hotham retired, where there was a massive hole to fill, he kind of stepped in, didn't he? And just took it to another level. And then when he was in Europe, I know the coaches over there were they wanted more of a two-way or or even a shutdown demon out of him because he skated so well. And I remember actually speaking to a guy um that we were talking to about signing here, who didn't end up coming here, but he'd been playing in the same league. And I said, Oh, you'd have played against Fournier. And he said, He's the hardest guy to beat one-on-one because he's such an excellent skater. So when I'm going full tilt forward, he's matching my speed going backwards, and I and he's just he said I found him the most difficult to play against. So he's got that defensively in his game now, even more than ever. Um, and then this year it feels like he got his confidence back, you know, with the puck going forward. And um, you know, he went through a tough spell where he wasn't on the power play. Um, and then he kind of worked his way back onto it, and he was part of that power play that you know was ninth or ninth or whatever in the league, that then ran at nearly 40% for the last 10-12 games of the season. An incredible turnaround, and he was a big part of that, uh, and a big part of um that success at the end.

SPEAKER_06 1:07:49

I think it's important to say as well that that time in Europe, you know, he his and Mo's actually said this in his interview that Fawns' defensive game strengthened, it got better, and he was forced to play that way probably by the coaches and the systems that he was in. And actually, he's come back to Cardiff, and it feels weird to say a more rounded defenseman than when he left.

SPEAKER_01 1:08:07

Yeah, and I think he struggled that initially because he probably felt the expectations were for him to pick up the puck and go coast to coast, and he was three years out of the habit of doing that. So I think he put a lot of pressure on himself. I could see he wasn't happy in himself and the game that he was playing, and um, you know, it did take a while for him to get back to that game and that and and regain that confidence. And again, you know, he referenced it about the relationship he's got with Tomo and Nicholas, that they gave him the freedom to play his game because they trusted him defensively. So if he did spot an opportunity to jump in the play and make something happen, that was encouraged because they had the trust that he was going to make the right decisions. And you know, he doesn't often get caught out because he does make good decisions, he just doesn't go recklessly like you do see some offensive defense when they're just all guns are blazing. He'll only go when he knows that there's a gap you can get through.

SPEAKER_06 1:09:00

Guys, we spoke a lot on the streams this year about and it's it's stylistically what the devil's opted for, where there was very often a defenseman pretty much up with the forwards. There's almost an F4. And and and if you're gonna pick a guy and need a guy to do that, you know, Gleason Fournier is pretty good. And and there were times where he was the furthest player forward for the devils.

SPEAKER_02 1:09:18

Yeah, but he he just reads the game so well, doesn't he? I I think he can always he's always very aware of what's around him and and vice versa as well. I think guys who he was playing with as forwards knew that's what you you're gonna get with with Paul's. He's got to do my job uh at times and uh get advice. You know, Franny touched about him going back on the power play, and it it was a bit of an underrated thing for me, just how he managed to turn that around in not the most stylistic way. It wasn't him going coast to coast on power play chances, but running that point and and just sort of orchestrating things, quarterback in that, I I thought showed just how clever he is as a hockey player. It's not just that he's got speed, it's not just that you know he's got finesse. He is a really, really clever guy, and I think we hear that a lot as well in in our interviews with him this year.

SPEAKER_01 1:10:09

Yeah, he actually plays quite a simple game for a guy that's got such high-end skill. And the power play, he just came in and played it very simple. It was on his stick, it was off his stick. He was moving into space, you know, outmaneuvering the opposition until the point was right where you could um, you know, you could mount an attack, and whether that was just playing a little bit of kind of cat and mouse and then dishing the puck to Contos, for example, um, to make that final play. He did that very well, very controlled. And also in the the final where he makes that little slip pass. Um, it was very kind of subtle, wasn't it? But you know, everybody is used to seeing Fournier go coast to coast, and instead he knew he had one of his own on his shoulder and he makes that little slip pass in. And I think that was at Uremko, yeah, uh on his first goal. Uh, and I thought that was just an absolute brilliant, cute bit of play. Yeah, I loved that pass.

SPEAKER_02 1:11:02

It it because I think it took a lot of the uh opposition out of the game because they they didn't expect they all stopped and sort of watched, and it was the perfect weight for your remko not to break his stride as well, which is just well, that's the type of skill you have, isn't it?

SPEAKER_06 1:11:17

It really is. Franny, one thing before we do hear from Fawns, and I think you you mentioned the power play. I think actually, if you looked at where the devil's power play was struggling a lot early season, there was overcomplicating, overplaying of the power play, maybe. And actually, Fawn's character is very he's calm, he's relaxed. He's not not blase, that's probably the wrong word, but he's he's very much a what you see is what you get. And I think that might be the reason why it works so well, because he does do things simply really, really well, because he did come on and go, Well, I'm gonna give you the butt. We don't need to complicate this, I'm gonna give it to you, you're gonna give it back to them. I'm gonna pass it around. And and that's kind of where the I think the work came from.

SPEAKER_01 1:11:50

Yeah, and I think it was a it was good timing as well, with his, you know, he'd built up his confidence over the season, and you know, maybe when he was on that power play at the start of the year, he didn't have that confidence to be laid back and to play to his strengths and keeping it simple, keeping the puck moving well and being patient. Probably was just being a little bit too anxious to get something going on. And I felt that was probably the story of the whole power play. Everybody was so aware that the power play wasn't working, they were all determined to do something about it. And sometimes, you know, less is more, isn't it? And you know, w when Fawns went on that the back end, the the tail end of the year, and it was less is more, it was just make simple plays, simple plays, and then wait for the opportunity to open up. And you know, he he did that really well, and uh yeah, the power play was electric at the end.

SPEAKER_06 1:12:37

Well, he's been here skating in the offseason so far, and uh I popped down to the rink to have a little bit of a chat with him last week. A huge welcome on Devil's Insider to a re-signing that everybody wanted to hear about over the offseason. Gleason Fournier is back for another year. Fawns, thank you so much for coming down. How are you? Congratulations on being back for another year.

SPEAKER_03 1:12:55

Thank you. Yeah, I'm uh very happy to be back and uh yeah uh um excited for the next season.

SPEAKER_06 1:13:02

Do you believe that this is now going to be your eighth season in Cardiff and you signed, it was just over ten years ago now. Time goes so quickly. Do you ever think you'd be here for this long when you signed for the very very first time?

SPEAKER_03 1:13:12

Uh no, uh the very first time, no, I I had different plans, but I guess uh you know I I love it here, and then I love uh the fans and the town, and um people's uh people are very nice, the organization and all that, so uh it's a no-brainer.

SPEAKER_06 1:13:28

Let's talk a little bit about the last time we saw you on the ice for the Devils, and of course that was the end of the season, big great moment for the club winning the playoffs. How was that?

SPEAKER_03 1:13:36

Yeah, it was great. Uh always, always like like this is always so much fun winning uh a trophy, and like the playoff one is is the most fun, I think people all the players would say would agree with me because it's the last one of the season, you want to finish on the high notes and all that. So um, yeah, it was uh it was a lot of fun. It was I like I like the way we we end all our last you know couple games of the season. Also after the playoff, we really stepped up and we finished on a finish on the high.

SPEAKER_06 1:14:07

Was it because you of course you won the playoffs back in twenty nineteen, which is a fair old time ago now. How different was it winning it this time around compared to back then?

SPEAKER_03 1:14:17

Uh I mean like with a different group group of guys, so you know it's it's just celebrating with a different group of guys, I guess. Uh I mean um I I love both times. Um obviously this one is recent, so I guess you know it it feels right now it feels it feels great. And uh uh yeah, like I I have good memories of the first one.

SPEAKER_06 1:14:42

And then uh this one's gonna be in the thank you very much once again to our sponsor, Minerva Hearing, for today's podcast. Remember Minerva Hearing. Was there a confidence in the room that you guys could get it done at the end of the season?

SPEAKER_03 1:14:57

Yeah, yeah, I think that was that was something that really clicked. Uh everyone like kind of like brought like the next level, and I mean I I could feel in the room that we had we were more confident and uh we knew we had like a good chance to win, and then uh it translated onto the ice the way everyone played, everyone stepped up, and uh yeah, you could say that everyone was a lot more confident.

SPEAKER_06 1:15:23

What was working in particular for for the team in those in those last few weeks?

SPEAKER_03 1:15:27

Well, you know, like you you bring a team together, you're gonna have all sorts of things happening during the season, and then maybe you're gonna find that chemistry along the way, and then I don't know, at the end I think we just understood the message, and um everyone work in the same direction. Not that we didn't before, but you know, like you you play with some guys and then you understand you do some things with the coaches and all that, and then at some point you just begin to understand a bit better.

SPEAKER_06 1:15:58

I remember when we spoke earlier or last season now it is, uh, and you came on the podcast, you talked about how you you look back at the the COVID shortened season, and and obviously that's a that's a special year for the club because they they were so good and the group really got on very well, and and you didn't get a trophy then. So was it good to get one this time around and a little bit of kind of you you got something back maybe for the for what you missed out on in the previous go?

SPEAKER_03 1:16:22

Yeah, uh yeah. Um that season was uh the win ended with uh frustrating, but yeah, obviously uh winning a trophy now like in for the league. Um uh we obviously we want to come all cup, but like winning the playoff I think was very uh Yeah, it was nice. Like it it brought a little bit of uh like you said uh a closed chapter. Yeah, exactly.

SPEAKER_06 1:16:49

Let's let's chat about you you re-signing now and and of course like I say it's it's ten years on near enough from from when you you you originally signed for the devils. What what keeps you coming back to Cardiff every year?

SPEAKER_03 1:17:00

I mean like I said, uh you know, I I love it here. Um I love I love the people, I love the uh the way we're treated here. Um like my wife's from here too, so it's a big part of it. She's Welsh. So um Yeah, and uh I like winning and this is a winning organization, so uh we you know of all my season here we we won I think we won a lot of trophies and it's nice to get back on that on that track now.

SPEAKER_06 1:17:28

I want to tie in as well that that that playoff final we we look back and it does tie in with kind of the the the bigger discussion about re-signing. Jimmy Alini got injured in that playoff final, so so on that left side of D yourself and and and Tyson Helgerson had to step up and play more minutes and stuff. And uh did you feel that that that was something you embraced, obviously, having been a guy who has been the the 30 minutes a night guy, you got that chance in the final then to to even when Jimmy went down, step in and take his minutes as well.

SPEAKER_03 1:17:53

Yeah, I mean obviously like we don't want to see a guy like Jimmy going down, and yeah, that was pretty brutal. And uh, you know, I like like I said, like all the guys felt confident, so I felt confident playing more minutes, and LG, I'm sure, the same. So uh, you know, uh I like it's not nice seeing a guy going down like that. So we have to make the both the most of it, and then uh I try to enjoy that role.

SPEAKER_06 1:18:21

And then of course that ties into then now re-signing for this season, and uh and you still feel that you can you can play those 25 minutes a night games either even you know, like I say, 10 years on from from when you re-signed.

SPEAKER_03 1:18:31

Yeah. Yeah, I mean like especially when you're at the end of the season like that, you're you're more into your game, so you're like you're more in shape and all that. So I re you know I didn't have a problem with it.

SPEAKER_06 1:18:42

Was there any temptation to to move on to find something else, or was it always Cardiff you wanted to come back to for this season? No, I thought it was always Cardiff. Last season, of course, Tomo came in as well, and and and it was a change for the club and obviously ends in in the team winning the the the playoffs and and it felt like they'd been building towards that all year. What was it like playing for for Tomo last year?

SPEAKER_03 1:19:03

Yeah, uh it was great. Uh I think uh like I said, like before he's pretty uh simple coach on to understand, like he keeps it simple, I think. And then uh everyone can get on board pretty quickly. I think that's what we did. And uh we liked it. Like he he he lets me play my game and like he lets everyone play their own game. He understands that you know we have different different players with a different and attitude and all that, so we tried to like manage that, and I think he did a pretty good job and excited uh gonna play for him again.

SPEAKER_06 1:19:40

Yeah, where where do where do you think your game is gonna be next year? Is it a continuation on what you've done over the past couple of seasons back in Cardiff or is there something you're gonna want to evolve into? We saw that you you jump back on the power play towards the end of the season as well, and obviously that j that kind of coincided with a big upturn in in how the power play went. So what what does your game look like now going forward?

SPEAKER_03 1:19:58

I mean it's gonna be the coaches who decide that. I'm gonna try to, you know, I've I'm gonna try to play my best, obviously, and then uh you know, I like I like the way that I finish, so like for me I would like to keep that, but you know, whatever is good for the team, whatever is best for the team, I'll do it.

SPEAKER_06 1:20:16

Finally, you know, it it's early in the summer right now, and and and and you know that there's a long way to go until the start of the season. But has there been much discussion about what the team looks like next year? Have you have you chatted with with Tomo, with with Joey, with the guys maybe who who are gonna be involved next year?

SPEAKER_03 1:20:32

Um, you know, we we finished on a high and then we had lots of good like celebration you know. So we uh we had conversations, obviously had conversation with some of the guys, and like I'm gonna I can't we don't want uh I don't want to spoil anything, but um yeah, I know like some guys that want to come back and all that. So um I'm I mean I'm pretty excited about it. I don't know about all the guys, but I know that I think we're gonna keep, you know, probably a good good core of it.

SPEAKER_06 1:21:03

Well, phones, thank you so much for coming down. We're uh looking forward to seeing you back on the ice come August time and uh yeah, congratulations on being back as a devil again. Thank you. Big thank you to Gleason Fournier for coming down and chatting to me. Really appreciate him taking the time. Gaz, he he's a man of few words, but what he does say is important and you listen.

SPEAKER_02 1:21:20

Oh, it is. He's uh he's got an efficient style in uh his interviews, hasn't he? I uh he says exactly you know, see he says a lot of interesting things, but he doesn't waffle uh around those. So I think I could probably take some tips off of him uh for that. But uh yeah, I I think it is the most complete version of Gleason Fournier we've seen in a devil's jersey last season. He knows how to win the big trophies, he knows what it takes to win league trophies, he's got playoff trophies, he's a big game player, scores in finals. Uh just yeah, how can you not be happy that you got Gleason Fournier back at your lineup?

SPEAKER_06 1:21:54

Franny, just one final note on him, and I'm gonna ask you both this question as well. Like if you were to pick a Fournier moment, you know, and he's got a lot from over the years, but if you were to pick a Fournier moment, what which would it be?

SPEAKER_01 1:22:05

So I'm rubbish at remembering specific moments and calling them out, but I know in my head when I picture Gleason Fournier, picture him going coast to coast against Guilford, because I think it happened like about four or five times, didn't it? Where he just made the perfect coast to coast, just gliding through players, you know, knife through butter kind of thing, and then finishing top corner. And there was though those moments there as well. As I think he had um, he didn't he get the comeback going in the Nottingham game last in the playoff final last year as well. And yeah, and he hadn't had a particularly productive year last year, but then stepped up big time in that final when the Devils were three goals down.

SPEAKER_06 1:22:42

Yeah, it was a I think it was a bit of a slapshot from the point with the that had a lot of venom behind it, and you could kind of feel that that there'd been uh some aggression in that one and some frustration. Guys, what about you?

SPEAKER_02 1:22:51

Oh, it's got to be his playoff winning goal against Belfast. Little give and go with Matt Pope and uh puts it five hole finish as well. Yeah, just that's Beska Rowani, who was one of the best. Well, I mean he was probably that yeah the best keeper in the league. He is in really tight by the time he gets that shot off.

SPEAKER_01 1:23:07

And it's so subtle, isn't it, that he's just stick handling and just kind of leaves it to trail through Besco's five-hole, and uh yeah. I mean that that it probably is the ultimate moment, isn't it? Just because of the magnitude of it and what it meant, and it was just a brilliant way to you know to win that trophy.

SPEAKER_06 1:23:23

Yeah, I think I agree with you both on that one. Actually, the the the third one or my one from my point of view is is is another coast to coast one, but it's not actually the goal itself, which was fantastic. It's actually a story, guys, that that you have from Fawns, where he saw the goal after and wasn't, you know, wasn't overly keen on it going online.

SPEAKER_02 1:23:39

He wasn't no, he uh uh Fee was uh the the social media manager at the time, and uh she caught him. We were by the benches doing uh interviews after the game, and she went, Oh Fawns, we've got another one for your highlight reel. And he went, No, no, he said it was too easy, it was far too easy. He said, I don't want us that to go there. He said, I won't look good.

SPEAKER_06 1:23:58

And that was against Sheffield, that was a lot of Sheffield, you know, and that's no testament to the man. And and and yeah, we're really glad to have him back in Cardi for another year. And uh let's hope that that trajectory over the past couple continues on and we get some more vintage Fournier.

SPEAKER_01 1:24:11

Yeah, and he just sounds so happy, doesn't he? I mean, he's another one that's mentioned how he's almost made this his home. You know, he's married to a Welsh girl now, and uh just he just sounds very, very happy and content with his life on and off the ice. And you know, that normally projects uh really good things in hockey. It does indeed. Right.

SPEAKER_06 1:24:30

There are two more things I'd like to hit on tonight's show before we leave. The first of which is uh, as we speak, the GB campaign has come to an end. The guys are going to be coming home today and tomorrow, making their way back to the Cardiff boys, we're making it back to Cardiff. Not the best result, and not the result that we would have wanted to see from GB's time in the top division, but there are positives to take from this. And there's a couple of things I do want to talk about with it. The first of which, Franny, Richie hits 125 GB caps. That is absolutely insane.

SPEAKER_01 1:24:58

Yeah, it's it's insane. And the way that he went about hitting the 125 GB caps was playing on the top pairing as a 39-year-old after a long season where you know he played the entire season and didn't miss any games, and then he's gone in and he he probably didn't lead the ice time, he was probably second behind Halbert. Um, so as a 39-year-old, to break the well, he's already broken the GB caps record, but to set that you know 125 cap mark by being you know one of the time on ice leaders after a long season in poolé against some of the best players in the world, that just sums up Richie and how superhuman he is.

SPEAKER_02 1:25:38

And when you've got to think of it in terms of GB don't play as many games as some other nations, uh, you know, in other games who go to the Olympics and and whatnot, and you know, 120 people don't play that for club teams uh sometimes, and you know, not a single one of those caps were given out of sentiment either. It has been uh a huge career, and he's been a huge part of GB Jeff from the start. He's always been one of those go-to uh vital players, and he's just collecting records and uh you know adding to his legacy, isn't he? Seemingly on a on a game by game basis.

SPEAKER_01 1:26:12

And as we used to see in Cardi, I mean I I can't remember him putting a foot wrong, despite the score lines, and it wasn't GB's best tournament by a long stretch. I mean, you know, we'll talk a bit about that. But you know, Richie as an individual, like he didn't make any mistakes. He you know, he looks so assured out there playing at that level, and uh again, you know, it just shows the the great professional that he is.

SPEAKER_06 1:26:36

Yeah, before we move on to to the the the two other guys I want to mention, the GB's campaign as a whole, it it is a disappointing result, but it felt very transitional. It felt we're at a point now where you know you you see the guys retiring, obviously Richie himself is is is getting on as well. And and so despite the result, I think there are still some positives in and in it just you you've got to dig away for them a little bit.

SPEAKER_01 1:26:57

Yeah, the frustrating thing for me is that the positives were in the wrong games. I think the the most positive game was probably the USA game. I thought GB were exceptional, and at one point at 2-1, I think Team USA were genuinely worried they might be on the the end of a you know a giant killing. And you know, for uh you know, another back because there was a couple of chances, you know, for another finish on a day getting to 2-2, who knows what could happen. It could have been one of those you know historic moments, but it didn't work out that way. The biggest frustration for me was then how they came out against Hungary because it was totally different. So you play that well against USA, uh, and then against Hungary, who are the one team that you've got the realistic chance of beating, um, and to stay up, you need to beat them. And I just didn't think they were at the races that night at all. I thought it was very uh perimeter. I I thought they didn't manage the puck very well. Um, it was just quite lackluster, you know, it didn't have the same energy as that USA game. So You know, the positives in the USA game, but you know, that they're almost the pointless games because you're very rarely gonna beat them, if at all. You kind of gotta show up for the the ones that you can win. And I felt that GB didn't show up for that hungry game.

SPEAKER_06 1:28:15

And the the the challenge now, Gaz, is of course that because GB have yo-yoed a little bit over the past three or four seasons. They've had their time in the top and then they've jumped down to 1A as well. And you've now got to try and do that again and yo-yo yourself back up while also seeing this this change of the guard.

SPEAKER_02 1:28:29

Yeah, it's really tough. I I've I think I I've got probably a lot of strong views about the the the GB programme that maybe we need a bigger episode on, but I see it very much as the any time spent in pool a has been in spite of the sort of structure around the guys. You know, I don't think there are many other groups of players over these past 10-15 years who could have achieved what these guys have achieved, considering that we don't have the funding, we don't have the structure, you know, we don't have these plans that that other nations have. So even talking about yo-yoing between Poolé and you know Division I think is uh astounding to me because they've they got no right to do it really. It has been pure pride, it has been pure hard work, it has been just pure desire on the part of that group. And you know, there will be a lot of big personalities leaving that changing room now next year, and I don't think we should be going into next year necessarily banking on promotion. I think it's important that consolidation happens, and it's important that a lot of guys get a good taste of a good level of hockey in a GP shirt next year because there are good players coming through, but they need time to foster the same kind of atmosphere in the room that this current group has.

SPEAKER_01 1:29:51

Yeah, and it's a good point that you make, guys. You know, I I was quite critical about GB, about not showing up or whatever. You could we have to keep reminding ourselves about it, it is one of the biggest overachievements in getting up into the top pool of the world championship against all these great nations that do have this better infrastructure. So, you know, just being up there and and playing these games is it it is literally team spirit has dragged them up there, and when they have stayed up, you know, they were the they were miracle on ISIS, weren't they? And it was just those group of boys that come together at the end of a long season, and you know, the whole bombs away that they play in practice and all the the stupid stuff like that, you know, that it's team spirit that's got them there, and team spirit that has kept them there, but when they did it, you know, it doesn't always work out your way. And sometimes, you know, there are great level levelers out there, and um, you know, Great Britain probably aren't a pool A nation, um, they are a good 1A nation or whatever the next league is down. Um, you know, it's gonna be hard to get back up again, but you wouldn't discount them even with the retirees because you know there does seem to be that unity. But yeah, for for as much as we can be frustrated and say it was a bad campaign, I think we have to kind of add in that you know they are there against all odds.

SPEAKER_06 1:31:15

Yeah, and and you you mentioned overachieving and you mentioned retirees. One guy who is a big proponent of that is Ben Bounce, obviously retiring from GB Duty. But his the his whole, you know, what he's been saying over the past little while is how proud he is of the fact that GB have overachieved and they shouldn't be in this situation. And yeah, guys, I think I think we probably should have a probably a more detailed sit-down about about the GB setup and and how we think can think it can kind of develop over the years. But we'll we'll we'll end on two positives, and the first of which is Ben Bounce, he retires from GB Duty, probably as the best GB netminder of all time, and you know, as as careers go in in an international uniform, it's as good as it gets. Yeah, it it is.

SPEAKER_02 1:31:52

And uh to be uh to put the performances in poolet that Bouncy has done over the years, you know, you you think of the the Jack Hughes save uh uh a couple of years ago, and you know, you you can't get to pool a and you can't sustain yourself in poolé without having uh a really good pool a standard netminder. And you know, you think when Bounce came to Cardiff and there was that question mark, can he be a league winning goalie? Yes he can. And then the next question, can he be a pool-lee backstop at GB? Yes he can. So you're leaving. I I can't think there's any regrets on the part of Ben Bounds in the GP jersey.

SPEAKER_06 1:32:32

Friendly, my favourite time of year always is when Bouncy does go away for GB duty and there's TSN commentators and and SportsNet commentators all going, who's this guy making all these incredible saves and stuff? And he he kind of pushes himself onto onto that level and kind of announces himself as an international net run. It's testament to how good he's been in that jersey.

SPEAKER_01 1:32:50

Yeah, I mean, time after time, Ben Bounds has shown himself to be a big game goalie, and every tournament that he's been to, everyone seems to talk about Ben Bounds and you know what a save for Ben Bounds. And even in his very last game, you know, in the Germany game, in the first period, I wasn't watching the game, I was following it. I was out, and I I was seeing some you know tweets and saying, like, what a huge save Ben Bounds, another save bounds. So, you know, he has made big stops time after time, and yeah, a massive part of the reason that GB have been able to get into poolet, that they've stayed in there, you know, a couple of times, that they've got themselves back up there. You know, he'll be a big loss of the programme. And yeah, I mean, undoubtedly for me, the the best British goalie that we've had.

SPEAKER_06 1:33:37

Yeah, uh the the the other positive I want to touch on from this is is Bailey Hayward got his call up. He gets his first caps, and uh I thought looked pretty pretty good damn good at that level.

SPEAKER_01 1:33:47

Yeah, I I thought Bailey um probably led by example uh uh ahead of some more exper well more experienced players and looked more creative and dangerous than most of the GB team. Uh I saw that the GB Supporters Club they voted him second in their um player of the tournament for GB, uh which is unbelievable. I mean he wasn't on the roster to begin with, and then you know, got that late call up and uh I don't think he iced the first game and then got got called in and kept his place and he came in on the fourth line, moved his way to the second line, and by the end of the tournament, sorry, moved his way to the third line, by the end of the tournament, he's on the second line. Um, so yeah, that was uh a bright point for GB. And I mean, one thing that GB do struggle with is because a lot of the players, the British players that are in the team, tend to play as role players for their team, is you know, where do you get your offense from? You obviously got Liam Kirk who's doing it in the DEL. It's a lot for Kirky just to take it all on his shoulders, and you need somebody else that's got that little X factor. And we've heard Tomo talk about X factor with Bailey before. And I thought, you know, for Bailey's first tournament at such a high level to do the things he was doing out there showed his confidence and showed what we all know is he's got great natural ability.

SPEAKER_02 1:35:04

I I think what I really like about Bailey Hewards, and I think it was you know shown in abundance in uh a world championships, he has no fear, he he hasn't and he hasn't got respect for reputation in a good way. You know, when he goes on the ice, he I get the sense he feels that he thinks he's as good as everyone else, which is what you should, because he he is in terms of ability. He can be, he does have that potential, and I think that's gonna serve him uh really well to have that. I don't I won't say it's arrogant, I don't because that sounds negative, but I I think he is very aware of his own ability and he's happy to try and show it and express himself. That's what I'm like, he's looking to express himself, and I think that's really fun.

SPEAKER_06 1:35:46

Yeah, there's a there's a swagger and there's a flair to his game that I think suits him really well. And like you say, it it's something GB need, you know. When you do get a lot of guys who play the checking game, who play the third and fourth line roles that uh that you need guys to do that, of course. It's it's no disparage on them, but you also then need yeah, your flair guys and your guys who can you know weave in a bit of magic. And so, Franny, we're gonna try and drag it out of you eventually. I'm I'm praying that we're gonna get Bailey and Cardiff next year. And there's not even a smile on your face as I say that. So I'll I'll leave it. I'm not I'm not even gonna ask. I'm not even gonna ask. There is one more thing I would like to talk about tonight, and actually, Fran, I'm gonna leave it to you because before we sit down next, you've got a big Kidney Wales fundraiser game, or the All-Stars game, sorry, that is uh coming up. Tell us a little bit about that.

SPEAKER_01 1:36:28

Yeah, so it's on the 6th of June. I think it's a two o'clock or 2:30 start. Um there's uh multiple teams all coming into Cardiff, um, all raising money for their individual charities and lots of brilliant, brilliant charities, all really worthwhile. Um, I'm on the Kidney Wales team and we had the uh the interview with Kidney Wales and and Ross that was here, and we talked about the amazing work that they they do. Um, you know, this team's headed up by Gareth Shaw, who lost his wife Miffy, who had uh you know chronic kidney disease. Um, so we're kind of doing it in her memory, looking to raise as much money as we can. Um we have put together uh a pretty decent all-star lineup. Um, there's Phil Hill, who Devils fans will know. Um, a certain Todd Kelman is jumping on that. So you'll see Todd. We we wanted to see him on the ice for a long time, so he'll be out there. Uh, I'm I'm out there. And also for Devils fans, you know, in the absolute heyday of the 90s, you know, one of the biggest reasons behind that, Steven Cooper, who is back on the ice and and taken to the ice uh for kidney whales to uh to help us raise money on that. So um, and I'm sure I've forgot some others as well. But uh yeah, it's gonna be a really fun day. Um, I'm sure lots of you are missing your hockey fix. Uh, so it'd be great to see people down there um to come and support all the great charities by by showing up on the night. And you know, that there'll be lots of just giving pages out there for for donations. Uh and you know, every penny counts uh towards these amazing charities.

SPEAKER_02 1:38:04

You've seen a deep hearing of uh Todd Cameron's team Cooperism worth your uh donation. I don't know what is.

SPEAKER_06 1:38:09

That sounds like some sort of fever dream. Hey, look, I I know you guys uh you know retired now, but that this seems a pretty all-star lineup for an all-star game. If you don't win this, I think there's there's this concerns. Yeah, it's not just the taking part that counts.

SPEAKER_01 1:38:22

It is about the winning. And uh yeah, we are going all out for the win.

SPEAKER_06 1:38:25

Oh, we love to hear it. We love to hear it. Well, like you say, 6th of June, two o'clock, down here at the rink. If you get if you are around, come down. If you're not and you're able to, please donate to the Just Giving pages that will go up. It's a hugely important cause to all of us. And Franny, best of luck. Wash those knees. Make sure you come back in one piece. We need you back on the pod. But uh yeah, good luck with all of that. And yeah, that's everything for tonight's show. So we really appreciate everybody who's spoken with us. Jimmy Alini, Ryan Barrow, Eva Mosey, and Gleason Fourne, all four returnees once again. It's good to hear from those guys. Guys, it's great to hear from you two as well. I always look forward to our meetings down here at the rink, especially on such a hot day. And yeah, that is all for Devil's Insider Summer Series episode two. Thank you so much for listening in, and we will catch you very soon. Good night. Thank you very much once again to our sponsor, Minerva Hearing, for today's podcast. And remember, Minerva Hearing, hear the cheers, protect your ears.