Eric Llewellyn (Gold)
1. Back on the court last night. How did you feel after the game was over? Yeah it was good to get back out there... even a little earlier than I expected but I wanted to get some shifts in before the Randy. I felt fine when the game was over. Little sore today but nothing to be worried about. Im back. 2. The team controlled the game most of the way. How did you think the team looked overall? Yeah we managed for 2 and a half periods then they realized what they needed to do and got the job done. Penalty in OT was the dagger for sure but in my opinion the game shoulda never saw OT so.... it is what it is. Overall i thought we looked good enough to win but in the future were gonna have to get some traffic in front and get more secondary scoring. 3. Yourself, Dave Jewell and Cody will be the main guys on this team. Do you think the other guys and Jim Dennison can do enough to help you guys make a run? We have some work to do but were not too far off. Everyone on the team seems solid on their skates... thats always a good start. Positioning and stuff like that will come. That was my first game so I just tried to step in and help the team win a game. Id really like to see some shifts with that core playing together but unfortunately its still gonna be a few weeks and its gonna be a rare sighting with Codys schedule... so we’ll see 4. Have you ever played alongside Dave Jewell before and what kind of game does he bring that can benefit yourself and the team? I was actually having this conversation last night over a beverage with Larry after the game. I couldnt come up with very many teams that i ever played on with Dave. When you hear our names in the same sentence its probably because we were battling with each other LoL! The game started and it was like we were long lost teammates... finding each other early and often and assisting each other on multiple occasions. His solid positioning and responsible play will free me up a bit and I like that. Its something the whole team can benefit from. 5. Randy Carlson tournament has 18 teams this year. What kind of tournament are you expecting?
Should be a good time as always! Its gonna be a full house. A lot of good teams on the sheet. Its an event i look forward to every year and im glad I could make it back just in time to play some hockey for a good cause
Steve Pompeii (Black)
1. Nice 6-5 shootout win last night. What can you say about the overall team effort? We are starting to figure out everyone’s role on the team. I think a lot of the guys put their stamp on it last night. But overall good win. 2. Whats been your impression of the winter league computer based draft so far and did you like the idea of trying this over the human draft? Yeah it’s something different. Everyone likes a change every now and then. But it seems to fair across the board. We will see how it plays out. 3. You were denied in the shootout. Have you had much shootout experience in the past and what goes thru your head at those times? I’m no TJ Oshie. I’m not a dangler at all. I actually asked Freddy if he wanted to take my place. I just look for an opening and try to put it there. Nothing fancy. 4. You think team chemistry looks good so far? It’s starting to build. Once we get a balance of lines going we can deploy them more effectively. Right now it’s just next man up. But we will get there with time 5. 18 teams this year in the Randy Carlson tournament. Do you like your teams chances to make a good run? Yeah a lot of teams this year which is amazing. It’s shows you the support the XHL has on this great fundraiser. I’m just happy to be able to play in this knowing win or lose its for a great cause. This is an incredible benefit the XHL puts on with a lot of help from local businesses and many others. Hope to see everyone there!
Peach Caltagarone (Blue)
1. You scored the game winner in overtime last night. What was going thru your head before you had the ball in your hands? We were on the powerplay, we needed to seize the opportunity and get some shots. Dave did a good job of playing keep-away, and they almost killed it. When I did get the ball, I knew exactly what I needed to do. Rooster was wide open on the back post, but Llew did a good job taking the pass away. I knew I had to get it on net down low and hopefully find Rooster's stick. I didn't anticipate the deflection I got, but I guess those things happen when you just shoot at the net. 2. The team looked a little out of sync the first couple of periods. What do you think the team did better in the 3rd period? Our positioning for the most part was just awful. At one point we had 3 guys below their goal line in the 2nd. That's completely unacceptable. We're still not cycling and getting guys back when someone carries it in from the point. Its basic fundamentals that we're not exercising. If you continuously give up odd-man breaks, you'll continuously have to dig out of a hole. 3. Another 3 goal come from behind win. How did you think Derrian looked in net last night and do you think team chemistry is still lacking a bit? I like to think I majored in the Art of the Comeback in the Fall. Unfortunately I'm currently working on my Master's. Derrian did great and gave us every opportunity to stay in the game. We have to play better in front of our goalie if we're to remain competitive. As far as chemistry, we all need to carve out a role on the team and communicate a little better. Unfortunately our best defensive players are also our best offensive players. We need to utilize eachother properly and do a better job of getting open. We can find a happy median, but we can't spend half the season looking for it 4. Steve Kalgren got hurt in the 3rd period last night. You know anything about his status for next week? Right now Steve is day-to-day with an upper body injury. Hopefully its nothing serious. I won't have an update until after Saturday. 5. Team Anderson is next and 3-0 on the season. What do you think your team needs to improve on if it wants any chance to beat them? All of the above. Better defense, better decision-making, better passes, better positioning, more fluid offense, and most importanly, more shots on goal. One thing Bob is always good at, regardless of who he plays with, is exploiting weaknesses. We need to start strong and find consistency. We can't beat them with one good period, we need all 3. Anybody can be beaten. I witnessed a 13-0 team drop 2 in a row not all that long ago. Unfortunately it was from a first-person perspective
Brett Trithart (Grey)
1. The team is 3-0 on the season following last nights win. How did you think the team looked in the 5-1 win? I think the longer the game went on, the better we got. Missing Phil was key, but I think we were able to sub and stay fresh for the most part 2. Defense appears to be playing very well. How do you think the offense has looked? Defense has been key for our group, along with great goaltending and timely saves but we’ve also scored 20 goals in 3 games so I think the offense has been very good also 3. You have been on some weaker teams in the past but you find yourself surrounded by some good talent in this league. How do you like playing on this team and how do you think you have fit in so far? It’s awesome playing with this group. Winning makes it a lot more fun to play and learning from the “vets” in the league. I’m still trying to find my stride since it’s been awhile since I’ve played but I feel like I’m slowly fitting in better with these guys than I have in years past 4. You have been limited in past leagues from working a lot. Do you think you will be able to play more this winter and maybe this summer? With our winter schedule I’ll be able to make every game which is fantastic for me. I’m hoping I can get some of that luck again & be able to join a summer team as well to keep playing 5. This draft was done based on a computer instead of the human element. Based on what you have seen, whats been your impression of it so far? I like it, a lot of the teams seem to be pretty even. Last night for example, there were two over time games I believe? Our game was even the whole time & we were just able to pull away in the third. It’s been really fun seeing how these teams have shaped out