Not Your Normal Hockey Podcast

I wrote a feature for EPRinkside about Jake Sanderson, captain of Team USA at the US National Team Development Program and the highest rated American player for the 2020 NHL Draft. In the feature, you’ll learn what makes him so special as a player and how he’s looking to set himself apart from his father Geoff Sanderson, who played 1104 games over 17 seasons and notched 700 points in his NHL career.

My interview with Jake was nearly 20 minutes long and we discussed everything from growing up in Montana, when he realized his dad was an NHL star - including the time he used him as the subject of a school project in fourth grade - how he feels about being captain of his team, why he chose to play college hockey at North Dakota and who his favorite NHL player is. It’s no surprise that I couldn’t fit it all into the feature, but that’s why I like these short shift episodes. You get to hear more about the player right from the player. I even have a little snippet from Seth Appert, head coach of the U18s, for you too.

Check it out!

I had a chat with Tomas Monten, head coach of Sweden's national junior team at the U20 Four Nations Cup in early November. We talked about his journey to becoming the head coach of Sweden’s national junior team, what his schedule looks like throughout the year, the challenges of navigating this full time position, the importance of their many international tournaments throughout the year, not only for player evaluation, but player development as well, the impact of more and more Swedish players going to North America to play in the junior leagues and AHL and what the expectations are for Team Sweden at this year’s world junior championship in Czech Republic. I think you're going to find this interview very insightful, so don't miss it!

At the U20 Four Nations Cup in November, I had the opportunity to chat with Patrick Elias who was just dipping his toe into the coaching waters last year, but seems ready to dive right on into those waters at this point as he is now in his second season as an assistant coach for the Czech national junior team and working as a consultant for the New Devils. In this interview, you’ll learn how he got into coaching, what he learned from last year’s WJC, what he’s doing with the New Jersey Devils, how being a student of the game as a player is helping him be a better coach, the state of hockey in Czech Republic, what hosting this year's world junior championship will mean to the national federation and what’s next for him. Don't miss it!

I had the chance to sit down with Scott Sandelin, head coach of the two-time defending national champions Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs and Team USA at the 2020 IIHF World Junior Championship. We talked about a lot of different topics including how college hockey has evolved over the years, the changing recruiting landscape, what he looks for in his players and how he builds his teams, the past two national championship runs and what it will take for UMD to go for a three-peat and some players to watch this year, how he intends to build Team USA and go after world junior gold as well as his interest in coaching in the NHL after his interview with the Anaheim Ducks this summer. He tells great stories and provides a lot of insight into what is involved with being a coach at this level. Don't miss it!

I had the chance to chat with Greg Powers, head coach of Arizona State University, about how he got the job, the challenges they've faced, their first trip to the NCAA tournament in only their third season as a Division I program, an update on their new on-campus arena what that means for a conference announcement, the potential for a PAC12 conference, their trip to China this summer, new volunteer goalie coach, and what to expect from this year's team. This interview is jam packed with information and insight, so don't miss it!

Sharing my thoughts on prospects for the New Jersey Devils, Philadelphia Flyers, New York Rangers and New York Islanders based on what I know about these players and what I saw during various preseason games. 

- Why Ty Smith didn't make the Devils and the specifics about why he can't be assigned to Binghamton

- Why I think Joel Farabee will benefit from a full year in the AHL

- What the biggest challenge will be for Adam Fox as he makes his NHL debut

- Why I think Kieffer Bellows still has work to do to earn a full time roster spot and why it likely won't be the one he wants

Plus, thoughts on a whole bunch of other prospects... Press that "Play" button!

Who are you?

How did you get interested in hockey?

What are your qualifications?

How did you get this job?

I am asked these questions - among others - all the time and in this debut episode of Not Your Normal Hockey Podcast, you'll find out the answers to these questions and learn more about me that you ever really wanted to know.

Tune in to find out what you can expect from this podcast...