A weekend of outdoor hockey, from our favorite Cane.

How long until the glow of Saturday night wore off for you?

Yeah, that's a good question. I mean it was a great night and it was nice to have the next day to reflect on it and we didn't have a game or practice so we could kind of go home and then I actually watched the game on tv like you know recorded it and just kind of took it all in and thought it was just uh it was just amazing and um yeah it was unfortunate we got to move on but it was uh it was a good night obviously a great memory. What was your favorite part of it? Oh man I'd be honest I didn't think much of it until the day before right and I said okay what's this going to be like and you know we knew it was going to be sold out and we knew all that but I was really impressed with a lot of it and the students I didn't realize we were going to have that much like a college feel yeah um and that was what actually made the game because once the game got out of hand you know the almost half the game was kind of the game itself wasn't a great you know spectacle because it was four nothing but they kept it really interesting you know the vibe and the whole whole atmosphere because of the the band and the the dance the dancers and the you know the crowd they were they kept it going and it was all the students so um thought that was that was real cool. It was a college football game with a hockey game instead it really was it really was phenomenal so it and it it did become a game early there was a little early feistiness and physicality and I think that helped it settle into a game right away. Yeah I mean early it was it was good first period was fine you know I mean we got it's nice to get that one early and then um you know I thought you know obviously the second period was really good we made some nice plays and kind of took over the game but uh you know early it was the game you know and then they made a little uh also the push but they got that one in the third and uh but you know when you have a four goal cushion and you were playing the way we were playing it's uh it was it was pretty good. Yeah the thing about the second period that was so obvious was that you allowed nothing they did not get a scoring chance according to the website that I use to track scoring chances they didn't get one till with about 90 seconds left in the period so so was the difference to me it looked like the difference was really and I you don't like to number the line so I'll just say the Kotkin-Iemi line uh with he, Neches and Taravan and seemed to absolutely dominate play all night. They had a good game uh you know that's and they we made that little switch here a couple games ago to try to just see what we would get out of it and you know hopefully it continues the way it's been because we can get production from that line and you know we're we should be able to you know get fresh going here as far as all the goals he's been playing really well um you know and then we know the Jordan line can do so yeah that's that's kind of you know it's it gives us a you know a different look and listen we we know we need if KJ's gonna be playing in that kind of role we got to produce so him and Taravan have kind of come to life here lately so that's good. What have you seen differently because I think this has probably been kind of an extended run for Kotkin-Iemi uh to play well and produce in the score sheet I mean it doesn't look they're not gaudy numbers but he's about 0.75 points a game the last 10 or so. Yeah I mean he's been listen he's getting a lot of opportunity so that's why I say he's got you got to produce in that opportunity so he he's been better I don't know that he really changed too much he's always played hard that's that's like he gives you what he can I think sometimes he gets him in trouble as he tries to do too much um with the puck and then the turnovers happen and that's the killer so it's if he can just you know make the play that he sees and if it's not there live to play another day keep doing that I think he's gonna be fine. Now about Taravanan um because he does look like he's getting back to being Tevo Taravanan again when that happens what are the ramifications how do you feel it throughout the lineup?

Well we need him to produce and you know he's he's a real smart player he does a lot for us even when he's not scoring uh but the way we're built you know we need we need everyone to contribute in that especially in that top kind of end of our lineup so um I think I mean listen he's dynamic and he has his ups and downs but he's he's pretty steady for the most part and like I said even if he's not scoring he does so much other stuff for our group killing penalties and kind of defensive play that you know you always want to have out there. All right let me ask you two more things and then we'll let you go about 24,000 for the state carolina club game after your alumni game I mean that that is a stunning scene that I saw the photos of I know you were out there for part of it anyway what did you what were your thoughts on that? Oh uh it's great you know I don't know if it'll ever happen but man I'd love to see division one hockey here you know down here uh it's just it's such a the you know number one I know I just love the sport but I just feel like we could do it and they have the support I've been to a couple of the state games over at Invisalign and they were jammed and you know good atmosphere there um anyway it was just great that they came out again and got to give it to the anti-state people I mean it's uh I mean say we want they supported and um you know I really uh I think that was really cool great for the kids that got to play in those games you know like I mean that's a once in a lifetime memory so um again all around just an incredible week weekend whatever you want to do call it and I think Raleigh was uh you know showed really well and that's that was uh that was another good takeaway. And finally uh how do you feel after your alumni game uh you going up against Justin Williams I actually don't know what the final score was did you guys win uh and how do you feel? Well first of all feeling a little stiff I gotta admit the start of the game though you didn't mention was actually Don Waddell so he came out and laced him up and played two periods and you know I mean everything's a little slower now but you could tell he has game he was he was moving the puck finding the open guy and in his last shift he actually slide block to slid block through uh to protect the two-on-one and knocked it down so I mean that that was the uh the takeaway of that game for sure.

Oh my gosh anybody that you think could help your group out like at the trade deadline? Yeah no definitely not but I mean listen I just it was pretty neat that he came out and joined the group but you know it was great we had a big crowd that was pretty cool and but just to see the guys again for me you know some of the guys came back to town and you know our alumni group's getting pretty big now so it's uh you know it was a lot of fun. I saw Eric Cole he shaved his beard he's got some kind of ridiculous mustache is that what I saw? Yeah yeah that's Eric yeah yeah but uh he was having a blast out there you know Chad LaRose came to town and he was doing his thing so it was uh it was great it was great fun. That's Rod Brindamore, head coach of the Carolina Hurricanes uh Don Waddell the star I can't wait to hopefully I'll run into him tonight at the uh the game canes host the blues tonight so we didn't even talk we did we even talk about the game we didn't need to talk about hockey. Not really but that's okay. I didn't ask who the goaltender was I think it's Freddie Anderson tonight I don't know. I know. I don't know no but it's it's it's secondary to it. I want to know how many are wearing like ice packs today or how they're feeling well sore Rod except he doesn't play he doesn't play a lot so but he's in better shape than most yes yes so he's fine he's fine yes I would imagine that a lot of others are sore in places they haven't been sore in a while yes so that's which is par for the course