Up My Hockey with Jason Podollan
Up My Hockey with Jason Podollan
EP.160 - Andrew Cristall - Proving Doubters Wrong
Andrew Cristall shares his remarkable journey from an undersized prospect to WHL scoring leader and Washington Capitals draftee, revealing how criticism and doubt have fueled his ascent in hockey.
• Weighing just over 100 pounds in his WHL draft year yet still selected eighth overall by Kelowna
• Used exceptional hockey IQ and skill to overcome size limitations and perceived skating deficiencies
• Played in the WHL bubble as a 15-year-old during COVID, skipping the traditional U18 level entirely
• Recorded 69 points as a 16-year-old and 95 points in his NHL draft year
• Selected 40th overall by Washington after hoping to go in the first round
• Led the WHL in scoring with 132 points and earned first-team CHL All-Star honors
• Tied the Spokane Chiefs playoff record with 21 goals in 19 games (second most in WHL history)
• Cut from Team Canada's World Junior team despite leading the WHL in scoring
• Focused on improving skating through specific technical training while maintaining his offensive production
• Aiming to make Washington's NHL roster but prepared to develop in Hershey if necessary
• Recognizes that being overlooked has consistently provided motivation throughout his career
Work on your weaknesses until they become strengths, and don't let others define your potential. Hockey IQ and determination can overcome physical limitations.
It's just, yeah, motivation, fuel to the fire. It's. You know, something I feel like I've been doing my whole life is proving people wrong. And you know people make assumptions or judgments and they don't really know. You know the background of it maybe or not. But yeah, I mean, if someone says, you know I can't skate well enough to you know, play in this league or play in that league, I'm going to go and work on my skating and become faster and prove them wrong. It's something that I don't really think about too much, but obviously in the back of my mind it's something that gives me a little chip on my shoulder.
Speaker 2:That was the 24-25 WHL scoring leader and first team CHL All-Star, andrew Crystal, and you are listening to the Up my Hockey podcast with Jason Padolan. Welcome to Up my Hockey with Jason Padolan, where we deconstruct the NHL journey, discuss what it takes to make it and have a few laughs along the way. The NHL journey, discuss what it takes to make it and have a few laughs along the way. I'm your host, jason Padolan, a 31st overall draft pick, who played 41 NHL games but thought he was destined for a thousand. Learn from my story and those of my guests. This is a hockey podcast about reaching your potential. Hey there, welcome back to, or welcome to the show for the first time. This is the Up my Hockey podcast with Jason Panolin, and I am your host, jason Panolin, and you are here for episode 160, and we have Andrew Crystal on today.
Speaker 2:Andrew Crystal is a name that you will recognize if you are following the WHL in any capacity, in any way, shape or form, and maybe even the CHL in any capacity, in any way, shape or form, and maybe even the CHL in any capacity, way, shape or form, or if you are a Washington Capitals fan, because Andrew Christel has been tearing apart the WHL for the better part of four seasons. He was an eighth overall selection by the Kelowna Rockets in his WHL draft year and he's been kicking butt ever since. I actually looked him up prior to the interview and I mentioned it in our conversation, but he's 21st all-time in the WHL for career points, so he has been racking it up since day one. He got to play some games as a 15-year-old in the bubble. He had an extraordinary 16-year-old year with the Rockets. I think he had. What does he have here? 28 goals, 41 assists for 69 points in 61 games. Anytime you throw up a point, a game average as a 16-year-old, and get close to that 30-goal mark, you are doing something right. And then he followed that up with a 95-point season, his draft year, uh, which gave him a 40th overall selection to the Washington Capitals. Uh, we discussed that.
Speaker 2:That, uh, that draft day was a bit of a disappointment as, as Andrew was was hoping and expecting to be a first rounder. That didn't pan out. But he ended up going to Washington where, where he was super excited, where he was super excited and, yeah, went on to have 111 points the following year and then last year I think he had 132 points. He got traded to Spokane at the halfway point. He led all WHL scores and won first-team All-Star recognition in the entire Canadian Hockey League, so tore the league absolutely wide open. And he continued on doing that in the playoffs. We talk about that in this podcast. He I don't have it in front of me right now his points in the playoffs, but he broke well. Him and Berkeley Catton both broke my points record Spokane Chief points playoff record in one playoff season and Andrew tied my goal record, so now it's our goal record. He scored 21 goals in, I believe, 19 games. I did an 18, crystal I forgot to, or Andrew, I forgot to rub that in on you a little bit but yeah, 21 goals as a Spokane Chief in the playoffs and we looked that up and that is second most all time in WHL history. So one player has scored 22 goals in a playoff run and there's three or four others that have scored 21. And Andrew and I are those players. So he had a fantastic finish to his WHL career. Now his sights are set on becoming a pro. That will happen either in Hershey with the Bears or it will happen with Washington with the Capitals for the 25-26 season. And, yeah, we talk about all things Crist uh, all things Cristal, all things Cristal uh on this podcast.
Speaker 2:He, he was somebody that played uh U15 prep uh out here in in Western Canada. For those of you who aren't familiar uh with the CSSHL, uh, that is predominantly recognized as the top league available uh for for U15 players, the U15 prep circuit. So that is on par with AAA out here. They're there. If you go to a tournament uh like the John Reed, john Reed will also have top AAA teams there. But as far as uh the league as a whole the, the CSSHL and the U15 prep league is considered to be the top league available uh to young athletes out here. And Andrew was able to play in that league as a first year, which is not uh usual that you know. There is obviously a handful of pocket of guys that will play every year um, probably wouldn't be more than a dozen though an entire season and all across western Canada and he threw up over a well over a point a game, almost two points a game actually as a first year in that league, which is absolutely incredible. He had 25 goals, 27 assists in 30 games and then followed that up. Coming back to St George's again as the captain and led the entire CSSHL in goals with 43. He had 80 points in 27 games. So he was a phenomenal young player in the amateur route there and earned him an eighth overall selection. He mentions that he didn't get to play a midget year really at all because of the bubble and he was able to play as a 15-year-old with Kelowna. So he jumped from Bantam Hockey to Kelowna and really has never looked back.
Speaker 2:There was a bit of a snub by Hockey Canada. Lots of people were saying that Andrew was somebody that should have made that team. We cover that in this conversation. Canada did not go on to fare very well in that tournament. So, as whatever happens with Canada and the World Junior Championships, when they don't win gold, there's a lot of second guessing and a lot of finger pointing. And last season, with them not winning gold, there was a lot of big names that were left off that roster and Andrew was one of those names that was left off. Kind of rare to see somebody who's drafted as high as he did someone who was leading the WHL in scoring at the time ended up finishing the season as the scoring leader get left off that team. It's kind of an obvious one that would raise some question marks and raise some eyebrows, but we do talk about that. Spokane ended up getting knocked out by who?
Speaker 1:was it now.
Speaker 2:Brandon, I think in the no Medicine Hat my apologies, medicine Hat in the WHL finals they almost punched their ticket to the Memorial Cup. Unfortunately they couldn't get there, but again, a great run. Once he went back to my old stomping grounds there in Spokane, so this is a great run. Uh, once he went back to my old stomping grounds there in spokane, so this is a great conversation. Just wanted to give you a rundown of andrew and his story prior to getting into the conversation, but without further ado, let's jump in to, uh, episode 160 with andrew crystal. All right, here we are live with andrew cristel. Uh, randall crystal. Oh my gosh, I just asked you how to pronounce the damn thing and I got it wrong off the bat. Anyways, welcome to the show, andrew. Happy to have you. Yeah, thanks for having me on.
Speaker 2:Fellow BC boy. I love it. So I was born and grew up in Vernon, bc, and so that's where I played all my minor, and now I have three boys that are trying to follow in your footsteps and also going through the process, so we have BC in common. What? Maybe we'll start there Like what was your, what was your introduction to hockey? How'd you get involved in it?
Speaker 1:Yeah, I think well for me and my my brother, who's older than me, he got into it first but my parents just kind of threw both of us into a bunch of different sports and whether that was just kind of getting on the ice and doing some skating lessons and I think I just kind of fell in love with the skating and the hockey over some of the other sports I tried. So I think it's just kind of from there I fell in love with it.
Speaker 2:Awesome, it helps. It looks to me like just looking at your stats, from where Elite Prospects picks up, that you are always good, so I assume did you take, did you find an aptitude for it right away.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I'd say I kind of found it right away. I think I just kind of, yeah, like I said, I loved hockey, so I'd always be watching it and trying to learn. So I think from a young age, like getting my you know hockey IQ higher and kind of developing that way, first helped me a lot to, you know, obviously put up good numbers offensively, I guess, and then be a pretty good player. So, um, yeah, I think just right away I just I just loved everything about it that's fun.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I mean success. Success builds enjoyment a lot of the time, right, so you're having success and it feels good. Uh, my mom tells me the story where I mean I don't think anyone can skate the first time they're on the ice but like I guess I was quite not very good at it and so I would drag myself along the boards and I wanted to be a goalie for like the first month, because I just didn't have to skate anywhere if that was the case.
Speaker 2:So yeah, yeah, yeah did you ever, do you ever have any goalie moments?
Speaker 1:oh, yeah, um, I think I was. I want to say like eight, eight, nine ish, maybe I really just wanted to play goalie. So I think I got my brother's um old teammates like equipment, um that I tried it for a little bit and I think by the second game we might have been down like three goals or two goals, and then I started to just like play as a forward as, but when I put goalie pads on, so from then I I knew I wasn't gonna be a goalie. Come on, are you sure?
Speaker 2:you were out. You're ripping around with goalie pads on, so from then I knew I wasn't going to be a goalie. Come on, are you sure you were out? You were ripping around with goalie pads on trying to tie it up.
Speaker 1:I think my parents were telling me I was trying to like kind of score or make a pass and get out of my crease a bit. So I think I knew from then it was oh man, that's awesome.
Speaker 2:I love that Cool. So, as far as goes, did you ever you know you're an eighth overall pick? I want to get to that. You played in the CSSHL for St George's, so we can talk about that, but up to that point, did you ever like jump a level in minor? Did you ever play as an underage uh, anywhere?
Speaker 1:um, well, I think well, for me it was kind of a first year Adam, first year Peewee, first year Bantam. It's a mixed group, so 04s and 05s. So, um, when I was younger I was, you know, lucky enough to make the top team A1 at BWC and so I'd play up with, uh, mostly 04s there, but other than that it was pretty much just with my age group and um a year older, sometimes, gotcha yeah, because it seems like now, I don't know, there's such a race and and so many parents want to, and then maybe players too, right like, want to get ahead of the system or ahead of the game and play up.
Speaker 2:It's interesting that you didn't. I mean that first year jump is always quite a big jump in and of its own right To move from the U13 up to U15 or whatever the case may be, and you're playing with bigger, stronger guys and a lot of times it's a big enough accomplishment to be able to play with those older guys.
Speaker 1:Yeah, exactly, guys, yeah, exactly, I think, uh, that is uh in itself. It's uh a big accomplishment. Also from switching to uh adam peewee or when you're, whenever you switch to hitting peewee to banham, it's, uh, you know, a big jump, especially when you're playing with older players who have already, you know, done it for a year. So, um, yeah, I think some people maybe think it's a sprint and whatnot, but it's kind of more of a marathon and um, everybody goes at their own pace and um kind of develops at own speed. So it's different for everyone, I think.
Speaker 2:If you look back on it now and I know you've kind of made two jumps and you've dipped your toe in the water at the pro level, you know with camps and you know I think you were at Hershey we can talk about that in a little bit. But what, looking back now, has been the biggest jump. Was it the jump to the WHL? Was it like U13 to U15, when you first got had to experience contact, or what for you would have been the biggest difference?
Speaker 1:yeah, I think for me it would be um, like the COVID year. I was supposed to play um U18 but um, all the first rounders, I think, in that WHL draft were able to go to the bubble and play in the WHL as a 15 year old. So I think that for me was probably the biggest jump. Basically going from Bantam to junior hockey was, uh, you know, a big jump jump and you know I thought I handled it pretty well, but I think that was the biggest jump I've had.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I guess. Oh, I'm glad you mentioned that because I wouldn't have known that. So you went to a really strange year with the COVID year in the bubble as a 15-year-old. Yeah, give me the time warp of what that must have felt like.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it was just kind of crazy. It was, you know, I got drafted while it was kind of happening and it was a different time of year for the draft, and then everything was pretty much shut down and you know, not knowing what was going on with where we were going to play throughout the year and whatnot, and then kind of just got, you know, let know that I could play with Kelowna for the 24 game bubble season that they were going to have, and I was pretty pumped up so I was like, yeah, sweet, let's do it. And uh, kind of just head down there to the bubble and kind of figure it out from there.
Speaker 2:And what was that like experience? Like were you in a hotel? Where were you guys?
Speaker 1:So the bubbles for us were in Kelowna and Kamloops. So lucky for me, I was able to have a built house and live with a couple of the players and that stuff was was kind of normal. I know some guys I think there was a bubble in Regina or yeah around there and they had to stay in dorm rooms at the university. So for me I got pretty lucky to be put in a great spot and a build house.
Speaker 2:Yeah, okay, so you had somewhat of a normal existence. It was just a small whatever circle of teams, but it wasn't. It wasn't not being able to go out and see anyone. Yeah, that was it's so. I mean, that was my wife and I were just talking about that, like god. It seems like like it almost didn't happen, kind of right, because it's like you're back to normal. It was so strange at that time, everything that was going on. I have to forget half of it. Um, what were, what were your minutes like that year? Uh, as far as being in the bubble, and how did the older guys treat you? What was that experience all about?
Speaker 1:Yeah, it was awesome I think, yeah, it was great, like everyone was super nice to me, all the older guys were really welcoming and our team. Actually it was pretty unfortunate. We got like a COVID outbreak, I guess you could call it, so we had eight games cut from our original 24 games, so we only played 16 and I got on 14 of them and, you know, played a good amount, played some power play and um that stuff. So I think it was huge for me to then go from there to, you know, being super confident and, you know, having a good 16 year old year. So, um, you know I was pretty fortunate to get put in that spot and kind of jump start me a bit cool, you remember the first goal.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it was uh pretty. It wasn't anything special. I think it was just kind of a play where the puck rimmed around up to the d-man. They went d to d and I was just kind of parked in front and got a good tip on it and ha, yeah, decent sally. So uh, I was pretty pumped up.
Speaker 2:Yeah, awesome sweet so I see you played St George there coming up. Was there any decision at all of like staying at BWC, staying minor? How was that decision for you guys as a family or as yourself, as far as where to play?
Speaker 1:Yeah, it was, I mean, definitely a tough decision. But you know, while I was actually playing at BWC, I was still going to school at St George's before that and they got the academy, I think a year before I would have played there, so it was pretty new and, um, I just saw kind of how it developed and how it grew in that one year and just something kind of want to be a part of. I think it's also you know good that I have a bunch of non-hockey friends that went to the school and, um, it was just a really good community for me and I thought, you know that'd be the the best place for me to play and, um, I could, you know, kind of be, you know, a leader on that team. One of the best, uh players obviously playing and down in prep in my first year as well, was, uh, you know, a good thing for me to do for my development. So I just thought it worked out either way.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, I was just. I just noticed that you played prep as a first year and threw up 25, just a smooth 25 goals in 30 games and 52 points no big deal. Hey, well, how was that? I mean that's, um, that's a huge year. I mean it's a huge year even in a draft year as a second year. So, uh, that transition there obviously didn't seem like it was too big of a deal for you yeah, I think, um, I mean it was definitely a jump for sure.
Speaker 1:It's, uh, you know, a lot different going from PUA to Bantam and Bantam Prep in a really good league like it was. And you know I was lucky enough to, you know, have a really good team around me and you know some really good players and friends to kind of bounce off of, lean off of and, you know, create with. So you know I really enjoyed at Saints there. But yeah, it was definitely a smooth transition but definitely not easy right off the bat.
Speaker 2:What was the draw to the CSSHL for you guys, or how do you think that supported your development?
Speaker 1:Yeah, I just thought for me I just kind of wanted to play against the best players in my age group and I just thought that was the league that I wanted to do it. And everybody I knew that I played against growing up was kind of going to CSHL and then going that route To be the best. I thought I had to play with the best and compete with them. That's just kind of the path I chose, Gotcha.
Speaker 2:How many times a week were you on the ice, sir? Do you remember?
Speaker 1:as far as your practice schedule is concerned, I think it would be um probably three practices a week and then we'd have two games on the weekend or something like that. So we were getting a lot of ice. Um, it was always kind of there for us. We'd um usually go after school, sometimes before school, but we'd have the full day to kind of get our work done and our education in. So that was really nice and, um, we do a workout and get on the ice.
Speaker 2:So it worked out really well, right, you guys in the in the lower mainland I find, especially like the top players seem to be, let's use the word recruited. Um, it can be recruited, right, like you're, you get pretty popular, uh, or it can be what. Was that the same for you? What? Was there more of the schools interested than just bwc and and st george's?
Speaker 1:um, honestly, like I'm not too sure, I didn't really like I don't think I was too involved with like going anywhere else. I think I knew a bunch of my friends that I played spring hockey with were going to west van academy, so that was also an option, I think, but it was just kind of the distance was too far for me and, uh, you know, I lived super close to st george's there's, you know, maybe a five, seven minute drive, and I just thought the convenience of it all and going somewhere unfamiliar would just kind of help me, you know, be comfortable and, you know, become a better player and a person as well. So I just thought it was kind of a no brainer, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2:Perfect. What was your spring? Hockey seasons like this is something that my boys well, they spring kind of dies a little bit, you know at that age. But when you were in that U11, u13, were you running around? I saw you played in the brick and there's a big commitment to play in the brick because you have to play in the tournaments before the brick and all that kind of stuff. Was that what your spring looked like? Were you running around all the top tournaments all the time?
Speaker 1:Yeah, I'd say so, yeah. Growing up all the time, uh, yeah, I'd say so. Yeah, growing up with spring hockey, I'd usually play, uh, some like field lacrosse as well and then try to get that and just to kind of play a couple different sports. But yeah, our spring hockey team was, uh was, a pretty good team and we'd be traveling all over the place uh, you know, toronto, nashville, montreal. It was uh pretty cool to kind of go around and see some of that stuff and play some good hockey against some good players. So for me, I loved it. It wasn't really a thing where it's like, oh, I have to go here and play these games. It was just so much fun and I got to do it with your close buddies, I had a blast, so it was awesome.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's super cool and I know this isn't really a decision that I'm going to ask you about because the parents are involved in it. But I find, just with what I do now, that some parents feel like they like, if you can, you have to, almost like there's an obligation there. You know, if you're good enough to go or get invited to these things, that that you have to. Maybe you get left behind, kind of like a keep up with the Joneses type of things. Now you've already said, yes, hey, you liked it and you enjoyed it, and I'm sure you did, it was awesome. But do you think could you have not done it and still be in the chair you are today, do you think?
Speaker 1:Yeah, I think totally. I think if I maybe didn't do that and did something else, it would maybe turn out the same way. I'm not too sure, but it's definitely not a necessity. I would say. I think it's something that you know. If you or your kid, you know, loves to do it and loves to play, like by all means, like you know, get out there and go play and have fun. But you know, if you aren't enjoying it or you want to do something else, that's totally you know. Fine too. But for me it was just kind of always hockey, like no matter what I wanted to be doing. That pretty easy for me. But you know, everybody has a different path and there's tons of different people who you know didn't play hockey at all in the spring and summer and they're still, you know, in the same spot. So yeah, fair enough.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's more of a message I mean I try and get across to parents to not feel like they need to, you know, put a second mortgage on the house in order to chase you know, so many big tournaments, right, you know like, yeah, sure, train, like I'm all about training, playing, playing other sports, get on the ice, you know, but like don't feel like you have to do that type of stuff. You know, it's kind of like my, my message, um cause, like you said, it's a long road and you know, whether you played on the brick when you were eight years old or not doesn't doesn't mean where you're going to get drafted 10 years later, right?
Speaker 1:Not at all. Yeah, no, definitely not. What?
Speaker 2:um, not what um, so when it comes to the draft, like this is like kind of probably the first big stage where where you guys and it happens so young here in western canada, right like the the arenas are filled with with old, fat, bald guys with clipboards and uh, and they're watching you guys no offense to all the scouts out there, uh, but anyways. But yeah, I mean you definitely notice, right like you walk into a csshl showcase or one of the John Reed tournaments or whatever, like I mean they're everywhere. It's impossible not to to pretend that they're not there. And as a 13 year old or as a 14 year old, uh, it can have an impact or it can't have an impact.
Speaker 1:Do you remember what that season was like for you when it came to you know, now I am getting evaluated officially, yeah, it was always kind of a thing where I mean first few games of the season, maybe you see one or two and everyone's, you know, kind of excited, I guess, and you know, trying to, you know play good and impress, and then people start to get those. You know, first questionnaires and everybody's asking each other oh, did you get this one? Like, what are you filling out for this question? Blah, blah, blah. It's. Uh, it's kind of funny that way.
Speaker 1:And uh, by the end of the season at the john reed and um, you know, playoffs, the, the whole stands are packed with guys with clipboards and those black coats and uh, you can't miss them. So you know, obviously you see them. But you know, at the end of the day, I think our team or at least for me, we were, you know, super tight-knit and you know we kind of just played for each other and you know just wanted to win and you know the rest of that stuff would have just taken care of itself either way. So it wasn't too much of a mindset on, you know, playing for scouts or to get drafted or just kind of. You know playing for each other and you know playing getting a team kind of game.
Speaker 2:That's awesome. Yeah, that's a great mindset to be in, because some guys can get really stuck with that right, like especially when you're playing uh, I think you mentioned the word like trying to impress. Like trying to impress might not be the way that you play your best right, Like trying to be flashy or trying to whatever. You know what I mean Be a goal scorer when maybe you're not. Or a puck carrying defenseman that isn't generally a puck carrying defenseman, right. But now trying to carry the puck and be noticed and I find some guys get stuck in between. So you didn't feel that you came out of the gate strong. Obviously you had a good team and there wasn't really any slumps or any times you were questioning yourself that year.
Speaker 1:Yeah, no, for me, I think you know my confidence was super high, obviously, playing in that league the year before, so I think that also helped. And, yeah, I think, just throughout the whole year, with tournaments and regular season games, like I felt really good and if I did have an off game I would, uh, you know, it'd be really important to you know, next game, you know make sure you uh, you know, get back to the basics and you know kind of do what you do best. So I think for me it was, uh, you know, pretty good year all right.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that's awesome and especially uh, you might have a hard time answering this question because it didn't happen, but you know, playing at that U15 prep level as a first year, um, you had the 52 points in 30 games, so obviously you were in the right league, right. But there are guys that play in that league as first years and maybe they're not getting those top line minutes and maybe they're not getting a point and a half a game. You know, and it's a bit more of a struggle, do you feel, with the type of player that you are like, would you, if you were one of the guys that are maybe on the third line and not getting the pp minutes, would you have preferred to maybe play varsity and be a top guy there and get more touches, get more, get more looks? You know, have a higher, have a bigger role, or do you? Or do you think it'd been better just to be in that league? From an experience standpoint?
Speaker 1:yeah, I think there's. I mean, I think there's an argument for both. Um, I think, yeah, it depends. I mean, if you're, you know, not playing at all and not really touching the puck or being involved in the play, it's that's not really going to help you. You're kind of just taking space and you know you're definitely not getting better. So I mean, if you were to play in varsity and you were kind of then again, you know the top guy getting all the minutes on the power play or touching the pucks and you know feeling really good about yourself, that does block your confidence and makes you feel a lot better than you know just kind of sitting on the bench and you know maybe getting a few shifts every period. It's not really going to do too much for you but, um, yeah, I think it's. It's fully dependent on the situation and, uh, you know the player, you know kind of what kind of ice time they're seeing or what's going on. But uh, definitely benefits.
Speaker 2:That benefits to both um it's such a tough question to answer, especially as a as a you parent trying to help going through that, because you don't, obviously you don't have a crystal ball. You don't know how good there is going to be or whether the coach likes you or you know, whatever all those questions are are sort of like the, the uncertainties, and um and yeah, and then how, that how a player responds to that matters too. You know, uh, and, and maybe did you experience that at all? I mean, you had a big year there. You said you played 14 out of 16 there as a 15-year-old. Did you ever have a hard time getting in the lineup? Looks like you had a great 16-year-old year, like I said, but was there ever a time you were a healthy scratch or trying to get in there as a first year?
Speaker 1:Yeah, I think, yeah, well, in that COVID season, a couple games like obviously didn't play and uh there. And then in the 16 year old year, um, at the start of the season I think I got scratched a couple games and uh, I think fourth game, fifth game, maybe uh around then. So that was definitely uh, you know, I struggled, just being like, you know, questioning yourself a little bit and you know thinking what you're doing wrong or why you're not playing and and that sort of thing. But you know I had a really good support system and I think, yeah, once I got back in the lineup I didn't really give it back. So I was pretty, pretty happy with with how I did that. But you know, I think, like everybody else, you know there's there's ups and downs and, yeah, for me it was kind of at the start of that 16 year old years, you know, maybe not playing as much or, you know, got scratched a couple times and I think that you did really help me a lot along the way, right.
Speaker 2:Just want to take a short break from my conversation with Andrew to acknowledge the UMH 68 and the success of the UMH 68 event tournaments here that we held through May and June in Western Canada. We had a U15 or a U14, u15 actually in Manitoba. We had a U14 event in British Columbia. We had a U15 event in British Columbia. We also had a U14 event in Saskatchewan. It was awesome. We went to four events this year and it was really exciting to work with some of my old teammates and Craig Geeky and Hugh Hamilton to get to connect with them again and their families. It was fantastic to meet all the great people across the prairies there in Western Canada and also to welcome back some familiar names here to the BC events. They really couldn't have gone much better, if any better at all. The venues were great, the teams were fantastic, the competition was great and everything ran really, really smoothly. So thanks to everyone that was involved, thanks to everybody who wanted to get involved and really a special thank you to the sponsors that made the event really special, not only for the players, for for the players, uh but also for the parents involved. You know we had we had BioSteel involved as the uh as the hydration sponsor this year and they went all out with making sure the players had swag and water bottles and towels and and that they were fully stocked in the dressing rooms with uh with either personal, you know service, uh service portions or in the big jug. So we had a great time with BioSteel being a sponsor this year. They took great care of our players. We also had Elite Prospects that was involved in the events where some of the players got scouting reports written about them from Elite Prospects scouts. That's going to be on their Elite Prospects profiles. Prospects uh, scouts uh. That's going to be on their elite prospects profiles. Uh. All the stats from the events for for all the players, whether it was the U14 or U15, uh, their, their stats were tracked and recognized and it's going to be on their on their profiles Uh. So it was really exciting to to get those profiles verified and if you aren't already an EP follower, uh or subscriber, I guess I should say you should get a verified or a premium account. It's really a great thing what Elite Prospects is doing there and it was awesome that they wanted to get involved with the UMH 68 this year. And also a special, big special thanks to Iron Ghost. Construction has been supporting up my hockey in on the ground capacities here in Vernon with me and my spring programs, but also a huge contributor to the UMH 68, where their contribution helped a lot of athletes attend the event.
Speaker 2:It's not a cheap event to put on. I've talked about that in the show before. We provide a tremendous value, we feel, but there is expenses that are involved and there is registration fees involved with that and sometimes families are not able to attend due to registration costs and to travel and whatever. And we try to make this event something that you can't say no to. And when Iron Ghost stepped up and I said, hey, I'd like to put a scholarship fund together for some of these families to help with scholarships to reduce the registration fees, iron Ghost and Trevor there with Iron Ghost said, yeah, let's do it, and there was a lot of families that took advantage of that this year. So without some corporate support like that, events like the UMH 68 just don't happen, and I want to make that a real important part of the event going forward.
Speaker 2:There's a lot of people that are saying that we should be charging more for the event, for what you're getting and that's the idea I mean. The idea is I want this to be a no-brainer. I do believe we should be charging more for the event and for the workshops and for everything else that gets handled there at the UMH 68. But that's not what the idea is. The idea is to give an amazing, world-class experience to the athletes and to the parents to allow them to leave more educated, better equipped players to make their goals and dreams come true. And, uh, and if we accomplish that, then that is the main goal and that always has been the main goal. Uh, so the registration fees and making the most money possible is not what's been about at all. It's been about making hockey a better place and providing an excellent experience for those that get selected to come to the event. So thank you, iron Growth, to allowing these people to come. And if it was up to me, I would be reducing the fees as low as possible, like to, you know, to zero.
Speaker 2:Essentially, I've had that talk with my provincial directors that the goal of the UMH 68 is to get more corporate sponsorship so we can continue to reduce the fees that families have to pay and really make this thing an absolute no-brainer for people to attend. So I mean with actually, with saying that, I mean, yes, thank you to Iron Ghost for being one of those corporate sponsors. But if you are out there and if you're listening, if you have a company or a corporation or even if you're just somebody that wants to give back to the game and in your spot where you can do it, uh, and want to contribute to the scholarship fund for the UMH 68, uh, that is where the dollars go, the dollars go back to the parents who are attending and, uh, and that's where we'd like to have it. So if you're somebody that would like to get involved and wants to know more about that, by all means email me at Jasonason at upmyhockeycom and we can talk about the scholarship fund and actually come to think of it. I mean, for anyone who's been a listener of the podcast and maybe hasn't been involved in any Up my Hockey services or products and feel like, hey, this podcast has been a pretty good resource for me, I'd love to give back to something they're doing. Maybe that'd be a great way that you could do it. You know, 50 bucks or a hundred bucks and that would be going into the scholarship fund to to help a family uh attend a UMH 68 in the future. So once again, uh really appreciate everyone for being involved, appreciate the corporate sponsorship out there, uh, those that were involved and were able to to uh to share a piece, all the local sponsors, all the, all the sponsors that were uh taking care of the uh the grit and grind awards and we're responsible for the for the uh game star awards and those that we're helping uh in in in safety and and nutrition. And there are so many places where where these events, uh need and do better with uh, with local corporate businesses that want to be a part of youth sports and making this place a better place. So thank you for every one of you that was involved. We look forward to continue to growing the brand and if you are someone out there, in whatever jurisdiction it doesn't have to be Western Canada, but maybe somewhere in the States, maybe somewhere in Ontario, somewhere where we haven't been before and if you think this is an event that you'd like to see, come to your geographic area, by all means reach out. We are uh we are growing. This year we're going to be adding a female event to the four Western provinces and there's a likely to be a relatively big announcement here in the UMH 68 side as far as um new plans for next year and potentially having a UMH cup, which would be one team uh selected from each province to come in June to compete for the big prize. So more to come on that, but yes, umh 68 successful season has been completed. Thank you again to everyone who's been involved and be watching the website for the watch list that will be coming out soon with event dates for next season in 2026.
Speaker 2:Now let's get back to the conversation with andrew crystal. I meant to ask you about the whl draft. So I mean you did. You had a great season that led, I think he said. Let's said that you led the csshl and goals uh, which is obviously a huge accomplishment. It looks like you lit up the John Reed and had a great playoffs and then you ended up going eighth overall, leading up to that draft. Was there anyone that you thought like? Did you go where you thought you were going to go? Do you thought you might've go a little earlier? How did that process work for you?
Speaker 1:Yeah, I mean.
Speaker 1:I honestly, like had no idea where I was going to go. To be honest, I didn't really have any expectations. I was just hoping to get drafted at some point and, um, you know, I was super lucky to get, you know, drafted to a great spot. But I don't think I, I don't even really think I talked to Kelowna at all that much. Really. I think they might have called my, my parents one time just to kind of like check in, I guess, but I don't think I talked to them personally and, um, you know, when they ended up drafting me, I was, I was super pumped but I was, um, you know, a super small kid, like weighed probably just over 100 pounds. So I really didn't think I was going to be, um, you know, getting drafted too high and you know I'm really glad they took the pick on me and took that risk. So, um, you know I hopefully you know they were pretty happy with it you were just over 100 pounds your draft year.
Speaker 1:I'm going to say probably like a hundred and 120 pounds or so. Yeah, I was, I was a little 130. Yeah, I was, I was tiny.
Speaker 2:That's fantastic. I love hearing that. So, um, in saying that, so a smaller guy and I've read a few things on you and I want to get into that, um, but if there is a knock against you, it seems like it's been your skating. Is that fair? Yeah, okay. So again, that's not for me watching you, that's just from what I, what I've read is with for an undersized guy let's call you that right in that league, and maybe not the most fleet of foot. I love hearing that. So how did you navigate that league so successfully? Because that's a pretty big heavy league, that U15 prep league.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I think again, it's just kind of, I think the game's in the mind. For sure, I think, you know I wouldn't have said I was, you know, a bad skater at all or any of that, but definitely a smaller kid. So I'd kind of have to work my way around the ice and, you know, pick my spots to kind of get in the play and, you know, find open space and, um, then I just kind of rely on my brains and my skills to kind of, you know, feather a pass through or or make a quick read that maybe someone else is not really looking at. So, um, I think for me that was just kind of you know how I navigated through the league, you know quickly, I guess, or tried to.
Speaker 2:Yeah yeah, good for you, that's awesome and that's really inspiring for some of the other guys that maybe, you know, haven't gone through puberty yet or just on the smaller end of the spectrum. Anyways, that it's. It doesn't have to be a big man's game, you know, to be successful, that's for sure. Um, I did read a couple of things, a couple of scouting reports, that that thought that that pick, like I said, was oh, he's, it's not going to translate to WHL. Obviously you completely blew that up in, uh, in a lot of people's faces, which is fantastic. Um, just me and the skating. It's like they thought whatever you know, I mean, it's not going to be quick enough for for that league. Uh, I read a couple scouting reports. The NHL level said, oh, it's not going to translate. Is that? Is that something that one? Do you even read that? Do you care? Is that something that supplies motivation? How do you handle stuff like that?
Speaker 1:Yeah, I think you know, I mean, I see some stuff. I, you know, try not to, obviously, but you know you see it and it's just, yeah, motivation, fuel to the fire, it's. You know, something I feel like I've been doing my whole life is proving people wrong. And you know, people make assumptions or judgments and they don't really know. You know the background of it, maybe or not. But, um, yeah, I mean, if someone says, you know I can't skate well enough to, you know, play in this league or play in that league, uh, getting to go and work on my skating and you know, become faster and proven wrong, so, um, you know it's, uh, it's something that you know I don't really think about too much, but obviously in the back of my mind it's, it's something that you know gives me a little chip on my shoulder yeah, good for you, is there?
Speaker 2:uh, so, when it comes to that and you said, that's something that you work on, so, like, development is a huge thing that I love working with players on you know, like their own, their own development right, because you can. You know, as you know, you can go to any skill skate you want and there's going to be some type of a drill set up, but it might not be for andrew crystal, right, but you need to make it your own or you need to find somebody that's going to help you with what you need to get better at. If, if skating is something that you I I'm using that as an example if that's something that you think you need to get better at to be, you know, the NHL player that you, that you foresee yourself, how do you go about doing that? Now, you know, going into a camp where you're going to go into, you know, your first pro year this year, right, and obviously playing against men, is that something that you are focusing on this this, this off season?
Speaker 1:Yeah, totally.
Speaker 1:I think it's something that you know I've been focused on for the past couple and you know, when I got kind of introduced to you know the power skating kind of thing and it's helped me a, you know I've seen, you know a lot of improvements.
Speaker 1:And then when I'm not on the ice with um, with that coach and I'm doing like a skill skate or or on the ice kind of doing something else it's, it's something that you keep in mind of like little cues on the ice and you know what you need to do with your stride or for me, I think a big one this year will be. You know my acceleration and you know stop and starts. So you know, before every drill is trying to make a mental note of you know, maybe start this in a crossover start or start the space in that way and really focus on that before you kind of get into the rep with the puck and, uh, you know, make your read from there. But you know it's kind of something that I work into um, my skates, whether, if I'm not doing my actual power skating lesson right are you, uh, are you a gym rat?
Speaker 2:do you like being in the gym? Do you not like being in the gym?
Speaker 1:oh, I mean no, I, I am in the gym, I mean, five days a week and doing my stuff. So, um, yeah, it's definitely something that I think is, you know, important and something that could really help you on the ice. I think you know one thing obviously I'm working on for this year is building my strength and building my speed, so it's something that will help me uh, you know, transit that to the ice, so it's good for me did you experience that at camp last year?
Speaker 2:I mean a lot of, I think it was. Was last year your first nhl camp or the year before the.
Speaker 1:I've been at two so far, yeah so it's the year before last, okay.
Speaker 2:So a lot of times that's a pretty big eye opener for junior guys right, like going there you know whether you get in an exhibition game or not, but even like the inner squad games that okay games a little feels a little different here, you know, and that's a little bit of an eye-opener to go back and and really kind of understand like the physicality of it and the strength and speed.
Speaker 1:What did you have that experience there, just recognizing that it's a little bit different up here oh, totally, yeah, I think right, yeah, right after I got drafted, that training camp was awesome for me. They kept me around for a little bit and I was able to actually play in a preseason game. So you know, I was playing against who was it? It might have been Philly or Detroit, I think, and I got in the game and, yeah, the pace is a lot faster and it goes quick and it's physical and I think I got an assist somehow, luckily, or whatever. So I kind of got my confidence up a bit. But no, those practices and playing those games, it's a whole other level. So I think having that experience is huge. And then going into the year you know last year and camp, I felt really good and kind of knew what was to come. So, yeah, it helped a lot.
Speaker 2:But definitely eye opening after that first year. The exhibition game is no joke though, right, like putting like for real. Putting the jersey on like it's not for real, for real, but it's like for real enough that your name's on it. Like it's, it's the real thing. You're traveling with the team, you're wherever, like. I totally remember my first games and that was so fun as, like an 18 year old, 19 year old, like to get that, to get that experience yeah, it was.
Speaker 1:Uh, it was awesome. It was a home game and in dc and you know, you put the jersey on your last name and uh, you know the stands aren't packed but there's people there wearing capitals jerseys and uh, the whole show is going on and whatnot. So it was, it was pretty cool for me and, um, you know I was a pretty eye opening experience to kind of go through that for the first time that's awesome.
Speaker 2:Anyone that leave an impression with you like I don't know I mean as far as maybe veterans, like somebody that, yeah, made an impact, took you under the wing at all, or anyone that you asked some questions to, that you that you look forward to meeting and seeing.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I think there's actually a bunch of guys, um I mean in was Washington that were super, super good to me and super nice it was. Uh, I mean, this year, like I think most people saw online and stuff, they had a super tight-knit team and they're all super close to each other and you know, I was there for basically all of camp and until the final cut day. So, um, I mean guys like Stromer, um Tom Wilson, they they reached out to me, you know, when I, you know, did get let go and and that through the year they were texting me a little bit. Um, but I mean everybody when I was there was was super nice. Whether you know, it was a guy like Carlson who was talking to me, which you know definitely doesn't have to do, and then go out of his way to do that and, um, you know, legends are, you know, like maybe give me a tip on the power play or or something like that. So it's uh, it was a pretty crazy experience for me that's cool.
Speaker 2:Did you get a chance to play with him at all in any other squads or anywhere?
Speaker 1:yeah, I was uh, I played in I think two or three preseason games with him and we were on the same power play unit for a game and I think I was net front that game. So we scored on a rush play, so thankfully I didn't have to stand that front in front of his one, but it was a pretty good play. So it was cool to kind of be out there on the ice with him and kind of, when we scored, get in the huddle and give a couple fist bumps. So it was awesome.
Speaker 2:That's pretty bonkers man. That's pretty cool. Hey to be there with him. Was he a guy for you? I'm sure Ovi wouldn't take offense. For me it was like Mario Lemieux. Like when I got a chance to play against Mario Lemieux in Pittsburgh, like in an NHL regular season game, it was the coolest, freaking thing ever. I got to play against Gretzky too, but he wasn't really my guy. Like that was super cool. Like I got to play against him, but it wasn't like me playing against Mario. Like, was Ovi that for you?
Speaker 1:I mean he was definitely one of them, I think for sure, um, I had a couple, but I mean the way he could score goals and and the way he played, it was, uh, you know, I was always watching him and, um, maybe not someone I, you know, modeled my game after, but definitely a star that you know. When I got there and saw him, I was like wow, like I can't believe this, but, um, yeah, it was, it was pretty crazy and and he's, uh, you know, a special, special player that's awesome.
Speaker 2:Yeah, what a cool, what a cool experience already. Um, going back to junior, uh, one like what a freaking crazy career man. Like congrats on on crushing it like every year. I just actually looked at the points in quant hockey. You're like 20 I don't know and you probably wouldn't even know this, but yeah, like you're 20, 21st all time in the WHL for career points. That's pretty cool, right, yeah, yeah, that's pretty cool.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's nuts and um and even like when I was texting you, so I mean I'm sure I'll mention I would have mentioned in the intro, but uh, but like the, the playoffs, well, one like the, the regular season you just had read the whl in points and then in the playoffs, hooking up with berkeley and you guys just going hog wild there and and uh, and scoring 21, which tied my record as a Spokane Chief. I just brought that up. That's the second most all-time in the history of the WHL too Single-season playoff goal record. So like, what a frickin' finish. Talk about this last year, like how was it special? And why was it special? And I'll just give you the floor on that because obviously a lot of special things happened.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it was a crazy, crazy year. I you know, obviously, getting drafted to Kelowna and living there for a while. I thought I'd be playing there for a whole career and, you know, not getting traded and you know when that happened and you know I kind of had a little bit of heads up. But you know, when I out to Spokane it was, uh, I mean more than I could have imagined and better than that, other than winning the last series. It was such a cool team to be a part of and some of the guys I'll be friends forever for sure and you know it's a really great group and, um, yeah, it's just a special year on and off the ice. I think it was, you know, super fun, kind of playing with Burke and and Shea there. So, um, you know it was awesome and, um, everything from you know, staff management crowd, um, everything about playing spokane was, was so awesome yeah, that's cool, uh, and nothing.
Speaker 2:I mean colonna was having a bit of a rough year, you mean from a, from a standing side, you know, so that you know going from there to a team that was that was moving, and not that there wasn't any good players in colonna, but obviously going to play with Berkley Catton, a fellow, you know, high, high pick, I think he was a top 10 pick. And then and then the 20 year old overage there and you guys seem to click right out of the gates Like that must have been a little bit of a breath of fresh air for you too.
Speaker 1:Hey, yeah, I think it was. Yeah, it's pretty crazy. I knew Berkley only a little bit but didn't really play with him. I think we played at a tournament but never really gotten the ice on a line together and you know obviously watched him kind of play in the league and you know he was killing it already. And you know, when I got there I was, you know, hoping that the transition would be smooth and seamless and I mean, yeah, it was. I think our brains kind of clicked together and we were able to kind of see the same things on the ice and think the same way and we were always talking and kind of figuring out how to get better and, you know, keep playing well and things like that. So to play with a guy like that, it was pretty special and you know I can't say enough good things about him. He's unbelievable.
Speaker 2:Did you guys play together from game one?
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, I think we might have played two or three periods apart from each other. So, um, yeah, no, it was pretty much the whole time.
Speaker 2:So that was a no brainer for the coaching staff and you guys took it and ran with it.
Speaker 1:Yeah, we did. I think it was kind of, uh, you know, the first time we were like yeah, we're going to try you guys together and you know, see if to make it work, so we could go on and get around together.
Speaker 2:Do you see big things for Berkley?
Speaker 1:Oh yeah, I mean don't know how he couldn't. He's an unbelievable player. He skates like the wind, he battles, he works so hard and so smart and just super cerebral with the puck. It's awesome to watch. So I mean, I see huge things for the kid and he's awesome. So, yeah, I couldn't see him not being successful.
Speaker 2:He's one year younger than you, right? Yeah, so he'll have to make the NHL this year to play, or else he'll have a 19-year-old year. Yeah, so that'll be a who drafted him again Seattle, seattle, okay, so maybe an opportunity. Hey, coming off of a no playoff year, that'll be interesting to see how his camp goes. You guys have another good one there in Mathis Preston. That looks like he's going to be a pretty top-shelf player. What do you have to say about Preston's game?
Speaker 1:Yeah, he's unreal. He's. You know, I don't know if I've ever seen a player skate kind of like the way he does. He's so smooth and he can just fly and, um, his shot is unbelievable. Off of one timer, off a wrist shot or anything, he can just snap the pill. It's so well, it's, it's pretty awesome. So, um, he's gonna be, he's gonna be so good for them. Uh, then this next year and um, you know, obviously you can go really high in the draft as well but what's your guess?
Speaker 2:if you're, what's your over under? Vegas odds on preston I don't know.
Speaker 1:I think he could. He could go very high, though I'm not sure the exact number. But um, no matter where he goes, he's gonna be super, super special and and, uh, you know, real, really successful. So I'm super pumped around yeah, that's cool.
Speaker 2:I saw him play his, uh, his prep year, his g15 prep year, and, yeah, man, he could just flat out rip it, yeah, rip it um, quick release off the rush, like in stride and and could put it where he wanted to. I like that he played with an edge too, like he's pretty aggressive in his nature, seems like, and he can definitely skate um. So, yeah, it's gonna, it's gonna be interesting to to watch him grow and in his game and, yeah, I mean seems like he definitely could be a top 10 pick. You know, I mean, if he has a good year, right, depending on how the year goes for him, but there'll be fun, fun to watch. Just want to take another short break here from the podcast to talk about the 2025, 26 hockey season that is almost upon us. If you are somebody that has been thinking about mental training, mindset training, personal development, training and want to have a season like you've never had before, or if you're a team manager, a team coach, that would like to bring this type of stuff into your team environment, or if you're an association head that would like to think about running a pilot project or providing support to your competitive teams, then Up my Hockey is the place for you. The more that I've had people take the program and the more that I've talked to people that have used other programs, especially from the association capacity or team capacity, it sounds like there's nothing out there like what Up my Hockey provides the fact that we have an online program that is delivered through video in bite-sized pieces that the athletes can consume on their own. Not workshop related, not lecture related, you know, not in a team environment where there's distractions and there's also assignments that are involved in the program. It makes it attainable, it makes it consumable, it makes it digestible and it makes it tangible, like there is results from a vast majority of players who take the program in a team environment.
Speaker 2:The bandwidth that we cover is large, so a lot of times people get confused with what I call my mental fitness and mental health. They can be talked about in the same breath, but for me, mental health is more depression based, that we want to take care of our mental health. We don't want people to be depressed. We don't want people to be considering suicide or heaven forbid, commit suicide. This is something that is super important, especially, you know, in the teenage years. Uh, but that is not what up my hockey is that that is something that a lot of associations are providing mental health support to their players. But let's be honest, there isn't that many players that are experiencing that type of issue. So when you have a workshop or you have something that covers that across a broad spectrum, you are looking at a lot of blank eyes because that doesn't speak to a lot of players. So, again, I'm not downplaying the need for that. There is a need for it.
Speaker 2:But what Up my Hockey does is more mental fitness. That is, giving players the tools to not only succeed and perform and to develop, but also to have the tools that hopefully empowers them to not have mental health issues in the future, that we can deal with adversity and we can deal with, you know, put down setbacks, potential, maybe bullying, these types of things that sometimes can derail athletes. We give them tools and give them the confidence to be able to handle some of these things and move forward with strength and with their head held high. So if you're worried about your athlete, you know their mental fitness. If you're worried about your athlete, uh, you know their mental fitness. If you, if you, if you're worried about their confidence. If you want them to be able to take ownership of their development, uh, to be motivated to work out nice uh on the ice and in the weight room, uh. If you want them to understand that, uh, the value of being a teammate and a good person, and how that reflects not only on the success of the group but also the success of the individual, then Up my Hockey is where you want to be. This is a high-performance type program that deals with the mental fitness of the individual and of the group, and you will get results with this program. So if that's something that is of interest to you like I said in any capacity whether as an individual, whether as a parent, whether as a player, as a team manager, as a team coach, as a director of hockey somewhere that you would like your teams to have a team bonding experience unlike any other and give them tools that will allow them to win more hockey games, perform better, also handle adversity and have less problems within your association, then by all means, check me out. We are growing an affiliate bunch of coaches as well right now that we are empowering to help other teams in geographic areas. So there's lots happening at Up my Hockey and we can definitely support you, your player and your teams. You can reach out on the website or to me directly, j Jason, at upmyhockeycom. All right, let's have the best 25, 26 season going. Try training something that you haven't trained before and the results will surprise you.
Speaker 2:Let's get back to the conversation with Andrew Crystal. As far as you tying my record, congrats, man. We're in this, we're in a club. Man, whether you like it or not, you and me uh, did you know at the time at all that you were like that, that was happening, or that was there, or or, or even like? When he came to like the all time status not necessarily Spokane, but WHL like you scored two more, you'd be the number one scorer ever for a playoff round. Did you know any of that?
Speaker 1:No, I actually didn't really know any of that. I feel like if I did, maybe I'd shoot the puck a little more and you know, maybe I would be kind of thinking about it too much. So I'm glad I didn't. But I think it was just kind of a thing where everyone was just kind of talking about like 20 goals and how it was kind of close to there. That was more than I mean. I didn't really know anything about any records or anything like that until I saw like a post about it or whatever. So, uh, I mean I didn't really know about it and you know, kind of glad I did. It was just kind of let me play a little bit more free and, uh, just kind of do what I was doing.
Speaker 2:Yeah that's cool. Yeah, I mean you're obviously you're still in it, just like when I was in it, I don't even because, like these stats and the ability to find them wasn't even around, so I had no idea that I even really had a record until not too long ago, right, but it's so, like, how wild is that? Like I mean I can put a, give it perspective for you, because you mean, I did that 30 years ago, right, like that's a long time, man, you know. And so to do something that that took 30 years for someone else to do is is cool and who knows if someone's going to pass you or not, but obviously what you did is is not easy. So, you know, congratulations on that. And and, yeah, kind of fun to kind of fun to have our names sitting side by side there and chief history, so super cool.
Speaker 2:What's what's next for you, like when you're, when you're coming here, you're stepping into your pro season, first official pro season, it's. It's Hershey uh, most right, hershey, or the Washington Capitals, most likely. Uh, where's your mindset with all this and where, from where your summer's at? And what's what's your focus right now?
Speaker 1:yeah, I mean my focus is definitely to make a team, I think, in Washington. Um, I feel like that should kind of be every you know prospect or player's mindset and their goals. So, um, you know I'm super confident myself and trying to go in there and, um, you know, take a spot and, you know, make, uh, make a job for myself. And you know, if that doesn't happen, obviously hopefully go play in Hershey and have a great year and, um, just kind of keep developing as a player and, um, you know, hope to get there as soon as possible do you?
Speaker 2:are you a lineup watcher kind of guy, like, meaning, like, whatever your position is, do you know who's there, what contract they're on, who do you have to beat out? Like, are you just sort of a guy that goes in, goes with the flow, tries to play well, like, how do you, how does your, how's your strategy for that?
Speaker 1:I mean, yeah, I think I mean maybe a little bit of both. I think I'm also just kind of a hockey nut, so I know almost everybody else, every team's roster and things like that. So I definitely know you know the guys. I mean I guess, per se, that you're competing with and whatnot. But I think for me it's kind of also just go with the flow and go on there, play well and you know, take care of, you know what I need to take care of, and the rest is kind of out of my control. So it's not really a lineup read and whatnot. It's just kind of go in there and play my game.
Speaker 2:Yeah, cool. Did you go to Hershey for playoffs? Did they bring you up after your run there?
Speaker 1:I was only there for about a day because I mean, yeah, we obviously lost to Manhattan in the finals and they were down 2-0 in their series and I flew up and then they just had the one game kind of the next day that I got there, ended up losing and that was kind of it for the series. So I didn't really didn't get into a game, but I was there briefly gotcha.
Speaker 1:So you just essentially uh got to watch and you didn't even really skate or didn't have that much of an experience at the ahl level then yeah, uh, the year before that I was up there for three, three weeks or three and a half weeks, so I was able to kind of get a little bit of a feel. So that was during the playoffs. I didn't get into any games, but I was practicing around the guys the whole time, so that was super cool. But yeah, this past year I wasn't in there much.
Speaker 2:Right. So sights are set on Washington, as they should be, but you're also familiar with Hershey and the arena and what all is going down there. I meant to ask you when it comes to agents, because this has been a question that I've been asked a lot and it seems like it's happening younger and younger when did you secure an agent, how old were you and what was the process for you in doing that?
Speaker 1:Yeah, for me it was kind of just like I think it might've been my like the dub draft year, maybe just to kind of reach out to team or something. But it was also just through my brother. Like he's three years older than me so he was kind of navigating junior and he kind of already had one. So I just kind of slipped through the cracks a bit and I got some help that way. But it wasn't a full-on whole recruitment process or anything like that I wouldn't say. It was just kind of a seamless transition to that. But I mean, yeah, it just kind of helped me a little bit, I guess.
Speaker 2:So you used the agent that your brother had. Yeah, is that who you're still with?
Speaker 1:No, I'm with CAA now. It's a different agency, but I was there for quite a while actually. Yeah.
Speaker 2:Is that another thing? But I was there for quite a while actually. Is that another thing Like do you feel that's? Like, should players try to get an agent in their draft year? Is that something that you feel is beneficial? Do you feel it's unnecessary? Like, where are you at with that aspect as a youth player, I guess you know, entering the WHL or juniors?
Speaker 1:Yeah, I'm not sure how it is kind of now with how young people are getting them or whatnot. I don't think it's an assessed like a necessity to have it to get drafted. I mean, wherever you get drafted doesn't really matter. It's um kind of what you do after. As long as you kind of get there, so right, um, it's not a huge thing, I would say when you're young, I think it definitely, you know, maybe helps a little bit just to kind of talk to teams or see what's going on, if you're kind of a kid who gets curious about things like that and kind of not knowing where you're at a bit. But you know, definitely not not necessary Super young.
Speaker 2:Yeah, fair enough, did you the whole hockey Canada thing? So, like you, you didn't get an invite right to the camp this year. I got an invite but, yeah, I got cut at the camp. Okay, so you're one of the guys that got an invite but then got cut, and there are some also some really, really big names that didn't even get an invite. So, yeah, so you got an invite. How did that camp go for you?
Speaker 1:I mean, yeah, I thought it went pretty well. I think I played, you know, really good in the two or three games that we did. It was kind of one was just an inner squad, um, and you know, I think I had maybe a couple, I think the goal and maybe an assist or something like that. And then we played against the? U sports team, kind of did my thing and you know, put up a couple numbers and you know was playing really good I thought defensively, offensively, and kind of did what I kind of put my mind to do and set to do and you know, just didn't work out for me I guess, but I felt you really good throughout that whole camp.
Speaker 2:Oh, okay, um, cause there was another I can't remember the name now One of the defensemen. Uh, I heard on a on a different podcast that said he didn't have a good camp and kind of was. Did you hear what that was? I can't remember, I think.
Speaker 1:I saw, I think it was Zane, Uh, yeah.
Speaker 2:Zane said he couldn't turn right or something, but he kept like falling over or whatever. So he was like you know what, I probably shouldn't have made it. I wasn't I, I didn't have a great camp, but you, you felt like you had a, had a good camp. What was the? What were the? What was the exit interview like?
Speaker 1:for you not not making that yeah, it was just, um, you know, kind of unfortunate. I they just kind of said, yeah, we're probably just going to go in a different direction and um, yeah, that was kind of all I guess it wasn't. Uh didn't really tell me why exactly, so uh not too sure on that, but obviously they went one way and I mean that's completely fine, like if I didn't make the team, it is what it is, nothing I can do about it. But uh, yeah, it was just kind of brief, I think right.
Speaker 2:So god, that's gotta bug you, though hair like is it over it? Was it like, how long take you to get over that? Maybe it didn't bother you at all, I have no idea. Just for context I'm going to say for the listeners here we were talking about the guy that led the WHL in points and was the first team CHL All-Star. That is getting cut from this Team, canada team. The accolades are there and you had a good camp and now they're saying no. To me that sounds like you're probably pretty pissed off.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I mean, I was definitely not happy. It was. You know, I drew your mind to playing that tournament, obviously, and be a part of it. So it's something that, you know, I probably think about every week, still to this day, and something that fuels me. You know, prove them wrong and again, just kind of be successful in my own right. But yeah, it's obviously sucked kind of being at home watching that tournament when you know I was hoping to be playing and you know being a big part of that team honestly. So it was too bad. But you know, at the end of the day, things happen for a reason and you know, I think it's made me a better player and more mature person and, you know, better mentally as well. So I think it ended up helping me a lot good for you.
Speaker 2:I mean, there was no, but there was also no feedback as far as we would have liked more of this from you. It was just we're just not going your direction.
Speaker 1:Uh, yeah, I think we're just kind of like you made that choice difficult on us and, um, you know, unfortunately we have to. You know, let you go and, um, you know, obviously they hope the best for me throughout the year and whatnot. So, um, that was nice and then that was good, but yeah, it was just kind of, uh, you know, quick, uh kind of cut situation, I guess was that your second camp?
Speaker 2:did you get? Did you get invited the year before?
Speaker 1:no, I wasn't right here before.
Speaker 2:That was your first, your first ticket to camp there. Yeah, that's too bad. You've got to go with the holinka, though, I mean, and and it looks like you played well there too, so was that a pretty good experience playing for canada in that environment.
Speaker 1:Oh, that was awesome. Yeah, pre-draft year was a bunch of guys I already knew just kind of growing up and played U17s with them as well, so we had an unbelievable team. I think we led in maybe three goals all tournament and we just kind of ran through it. So that was pretty awesome. We did it in Red Deer, so in Canada the fans are great and stuff, so it was a blast.
Speaker 2:That's cool. Was there many members of your like from your draft class, your WHL draft class? I looked at that list, Boy, there's like some solid, solid players Like the top eight there up to you are all legit. Were they on that squad as well?
Speaker 1:Oh yeah, most of them, I think, were on that. I oh yeah, most of them, I think, were on that. I think we had a good amount of Western kids on that team and yeah, it was great. It was a good mix of, I think everybody, and everybody kind of gelled together really well and ended up good, so it was a lot of fun. That's awesome.
Speaker 2:So this time of the year we're hitting I mean, the calendar is just about turning to August, I think what camp for the NHL guys starts. What is it now like? Second, week of September 15th, I think 17th, yeah, second week of September, so you're still six, seven weeks away. Where are you at in your training right now? A lot of guys are phasing it, I find now, and doing different things. What do your days look like?
Speaker 1:Yeah, I mean kind of right in the middle of it right now, I think. I kind of right in the middle of it right now, I think, um, you know, I kind of just love the grind of it, I guess, and then doing it all and being on the ice, so yeah, it's not I am too crazy, probably just like a workout, uh, a skate, um, and then I mean after that it's kind of just enjoy summer, I guess, enjoy the outside. I think being here in Vancouver it's pretty great and I'm pretty lucky to be here. So maybe going outside or, you know, getting a golf round in or just hanging out with some of my buddies, so you know, it's pretty a great summer for me.
Speaker 2:Is there any? Was there any direction from Washington about? You know what they want to see. Is there a strength goal or a weight goal or a body fat goal, or you know anything like that that they wanted you to focus on this summer?
Speaker 1:Yeah, I don't think there's set numbers, but it's obviously just get everything better. I think one thing is obviously lower body strength and getting faster and stronger. I think it's going to be huge in the corners and in puck battles and kind of winning pucks back. Being a smaller guy, I have a low center of gravity, so hopefully that will help me a little bit more. But I think, yeah, just getting stronger and, you know, more comfortable and in battles against pro players. So yeah, is there.
Speaker 2:I remember back and back in my day, like there, the vo2 and the wind gate were generally like the cornerstones of the testing day, you know, and those were the ones that were were relatively feared and you wanted to do well in. Is that still a thing? Like, like, is that what guys are? Are those the metrics that that teams are looking at?
Speaker 1:At the combine. That's what I did and I think they're still doing, but I don't think in Washington they do a VO two or anything like that. So it's just some other stuff I think that probably most teams would do, but I don't think it's anything that you're you're super stressed about or worried about. Obviously you want to do the best that you can and you know show well, um, but it's not something that you know you're you're kind of scared or nervous to go do right how was that, uh, combine?
Speaker 2:I'm glad you brought that up, like the testing and that and that experience, uh, leading into the draft. What's your memories of that? Yeah, it was pretty fun, I thought, for me, I thought um, what's your memories of that?
Speaker 1:Yeah, it was pretty fun, I thought, for me. I thought you kind of see that when you're growing up and you know kind of people saying there's crazy questions or whatnot, For me it all went really smooth. I thought the meetings were pretty fun to kind of get to know a lot of these different you know people in the NHL and you know super important people and then with all the guys who were getting drafted going through the testing, it was uh, I mean it was hard, but it was a lot of fun and, um, I think I really enjoyed it.
Speaker 2:Yeah, did you test? Well, do you remember or like whatever?
Speaker 1:that was pretty good I not sure if I was in the top of the class, but I think I held my own for sure, so I was pretty happy with it so it all.
Speaker 2:It all is public, though, right, you know where you like, where you get, what number you get and what that means. Yeah, I think so.
Speaker 1:I think they only like post, maybe like the top 10 of each category or something, um, but I think at the end of the comment I got a sheet of what I did or not.
Speaker 2:But right that would make sense, I guess, because they kind of they wouldn't want to shame somebody who, like, finished last or whatever like you know, like the top, like you know, like the top guys, and so that's where they have their interviews. Then too, hey, at the Combine they don't do it on draft day as much anymore.
Speaker 1:Yeah, no, for me it was. Yeah, I mean they're all at the Combine. It was in Buffalo at their arena. There's kind of just the whole suite level was, you know, 32 boxes of the different teams, so of the different teams. So, um, yeah, it was kind of just hop from whatever team wanted to talk to you and you go there and you know, talk to them and do your interview and then you go to the next team, so yeah, Speed dating.
Speaker 2:Yeah, hopping over Did you? Uh, I guess I should ask you about the draft. Like, was that you went 40th? I think is that right. Uh, and you were definitely one of those guys that that I looked at that you know could have been, you know, a first rounder sounded like and ended up going in the second round. What. What was your expectation in that environment as far as where you were going to go, who you might go to, and and and what was that day like for you?
Speaker 1:Yeah, I mean it was awesome. I mean the first day wasn't great, but the second day was awesome. But yeah, I was obviously hoping to get picked in the first round and, um, you know, it didn't happen and that was fine.
Speaker 1:it was, you know, another, maybe trip on your shoulder a little bit, but there's some maybes, though, like were some teams there that you were like oh, this might be the one that, like you, had some good feelings about um, I mean, I feel like, yeah, I think I'm not sure like the exact teams, but I think at that time I was, like, you know, pretty confident that maybe one of them would uh take me and uh, just yeah, I was definitely, you know, pretty confident that maybe one of them would take me and just yeah, I was definitely hoping at the end or in the middle of it to kind of get picked.
Speaker 1:And I mean, then it didn't happen and then it was just kind of, you know, the next day getting up and you know, making a dream happen, and you know I was ended up being put in a great spot. I thought I was, you know, really, you know, hoping to go to Washington. At that point I think it's, uh, you know, super cool place to play. I think you know the their team that they had there and all the guys, and obviously I knew a lot about them.
Speaker 2:so I was, I was pretty pumped, uh, to get put in that situation that's sweet, yeah, and it's all about expectations and I've told that story a couple times in the pod. But like I thought that I was going to be a first rounder too. I actually, like Toronto told me they were going to take me with their first pick, like totally, and then that never happened. And then I waited from like 15 to 31. I went and that felt like that was like a fricking eternity, you know, like when you're, you know, as you've been in that chair, right, that's like, oh, is it going to happen? And then you, in your scenario, you had to wait today too.
Speaker 2:Like that was a. That was a rough day for me, to be perfectly honest, you know what I mean. Like it wasn't awesome and instead of being Toronto's first pick, I was Florida's third pick, right, even though I was 31. So, like talk about a difference in opportunity and a difference on the depth chart and all that stuff, right, so it does change, change things a little bit. But yeah, I mean, I guess with the next day, you had to day, you had to, you had to regroup. You just go out there fresh, start, kind of. I'm sure your agent had a few things to say to you. How was, how was that overnight?
Speaker 1:process for you. Yeah, I mean it was honestly like just, yeah, the walk back obviously was super, you know, upset and, you know, a little bit disappointed, but I mean I wasn't too sad. I think I knew the next day I was going to get drafted and, um, for me it wasn't really about, you know, I want to go to go this number I have to go here to, you know, play in the NHL. It's just kind of, you know, hoping to get picked. Um, so I think, yeah, I went to sleep fine. I woke up next day, you know, pretty excited to kind of get back there and you know, hear my name called eventually and you know, luckily it happened pretty quick there. So, um, you know, I, I couldn't wait to smile off my face once they got picked. Yeah, that's awesome.
Speaker 2:Who did they take in the first round?
Speaker 1:They took Ryan.
Speaker 2:Leonard Ryan, leonard, oh, okay, and the guy who played in the playoffs this year, then hey, yeah, exactly, well, well, well, well, man, it was great to get to know you a little bit. Celebrate your career. We wish you nothing but the best over here in Western Canada and hope to see your name there with the Capitals this year. But if not, like you've said it a few times, I mean the journey is the journey, you know, and and the AHL is not a bad place to be for a lot of guys. I think from my experience, the guys that do have a year or two in the in the AHL are usually more grounded, kind of better pros at the end of the day. Anyways, right to know what it's about, but anyways, you know, obviously have a kick-ass camp and um, and hopefully you start with the big plug. That'd be fantastic to see. So, yeah, thanks for sharing your time today, man and uh really appreciate you coming on thank you.
Speaker 1:Yeah, thanks for having me on. I appreciate it.
Speaker 2:Yeah, thank you for listening to episode 160 with andrew cristal. Thank you for listening to episode 160 with Andrew Cristal. Thank you for listening to the entire show and thanks for coming back. If you are somebody that has been I don't know, let's say, a loyal listener of the podcast, you are probably mad at me because we haven't had episodes for geez four to six weeks now. Episodes for geez four to six weeks now, which is not what a responsible podcaster should be doing.
Speaker 2:But I hope you can respect the number of balls that I have in the air with the three boys and with the UMH 68s and with the spring hockey and with my mindset clients, and it does seem like it just never ends sometimes. And during the time there with the UMH 68, where we had four events and four consecutive weekends, each event is four days long and with the setup day and then the breakdown day and then the travel day, it was like it was a lot. It was definitely a lot and something had to give, so the podcast was the thing that had to give. I do value the podcast, I do value you as listeners and I think it is an important vehicle for Up my Hockey to not only help the game of hockey but also to support the business of Up my Hockey. So please don't feel that my time away was something that I took lightly. But everyone needs some room to breathe here and there. Uh, please don't feel that my time away was, uh was, something that I took lightly, but there is. Uh, everyone needs some room to breathe here and there and that was my room to breathe.
Speaker 2:So we plan to be bringing back the podcast. You know, uh, if not biweekly, at least weekly. I don't want to make too many promises when it comes to the pod, because sometimes it's flows and sometimes it's easy to find guests and sometimes it doesn't. Um, so I'm not going to make this a point of stress in my life. I hope you can respect, uh, the releases of them and I'll get them out when I can and I definitely want to keep getting you guys good content. So the idea is from now you know this is august, uh, well, approaching august here in a couple days, 2025, uh, hopefully we'll have a solid lineup of pods ready for you here coming into the season and, uh, and get back, get back in the regular download habit of Up my Hockey. So, yes, hope you're enjoying your summer out there. Hope you enjoyed the podcast with Andrew and, yeah, we'll catch you next week or a couple weeks with our next episode. So until next time, keep playing hard and keep your head up.