It blew up on social media, so you know we're dedicating the top of our show to learning all about JT's newest tattoo, Jar Jar Binks playing hockey. Piper and Grant get to the bottom of why Jar Jar, why now, and what he has to say to the haters. Also this week, our hosts discuss the return of the Kraken captain, Jordan Eberle and how that will affect the team as the season starts to wind down. Even though we recorded before the trade deadline on March 7th, the crew also talks about what the day means for players and what to expect as deals are made around the NHL and potentially in Seattle.

Hello. Hello, everyone. We are back at it with another episode of Signals from the Deep, the official podcast of your Seattle Kraken.

And this is episode 29. 29, Piper Shaw. With you as always, joined by my co host, who doesn't like that name, JT Brown.

We'll live with it. We'll live with it.

What do you. What would you rather be called?

I don't know yet. I'm gonna have to do some brainstorming, try to figure out something. It.

co pilot? Co captain?

Yeah, okay. We're working on something. Okay. I like that. Well, maybe we can get some suggestions. You know, we'll throw it in there.

You've already heard him now, everybody. Grant, producer extraordinaire. Grant, I know you were. You were under the weather a little bit.

It's why I sound like a frog this week, so I might not be doing as much talking, so.

Okay. Well, it's great to see you.

Thank you.

It's great to see you, everyone.

Five feet away, though. I'm just, you know, keeping my distance.

Oh, yeah, absolutely. I'm not contagious. I just sound terrible.

This is a brutal time of year to get sick. Like, it's like, oh, man. Well, we had to start with probably the biggest news, you know, today, the day this episode is coming out.

You know, there's been.

There's been a lot of big, big things to talk about, but what could be more important than to talk about JT's new tattoos, one of which took the Internet by storm over nation.

Viral sensation. Viral sensation.

Yeah. Would you care to fess up?

Yeah. It's been a long time coming. It's a tattoo that, you know, I've thought about for a while.

Jar Jar Binks, favorite character in Star wars, which shocks.

Crazy take.

I know. Shocks a lot of people.

Crazy take.

So I just kind of had the idea, like, I don't have a hockey tattoo. I don't have a Jar Jar tattoo. Or I didn't at that moment. I like. But why not combine these two into one?

And since we were down in Fort Lauderdale, coming out of the Four Nations, I was closer to my artist in Tampa. Hadn't seen him since I left Tampa.

Wanted to get some other stuff done, but I was like, do you want to come up with a cool Jar Jar hockey inspired tattoo? Or we could just do, you know, some more cookie cutter stuff. And he hopped right onto it. Tattooed for quite a while.

I think I got three new ones and finished off, you know, a couple other ones that I just kind of had some extra space to go through. It was a long day, but it was quite funny to see the bar down tweet in the middle of the four nations game. USA and Canada.

Something along the lines of taking you away from your four nations to cover this. And it was looking at my tattoo, and it was just going viral everywhere. My wife put it out there, so it was definitely fun. They all hurt. Yes.

I'm sure there's some questions on that, but got it on the side of my leg, and there's no hiding it. How about that?

There you go.

Yeah, there's. Yeah, there is. There is no hiding it. You also got two other tattoos.

Yeah, I got little hearts with the ones filled in, kind of like old video game reference. Got a dagger and a flower as well.

But, yeah, then the rest was just kind of just filler stuff to finish off some work that I've already previously done and don't get that much time. The last three years, Tampa, we've played on the second half of the back to back, so didn't have time to go through there.

And obviously, with the break coming to a close over in Florida, I was like, well, why not just take the day and, you know, go put myself in pain for eight and a half hours? So will you? Why not? Yes.

Will you only use this particular artist?

No. I've had artists everywhere that I've lived, whether Minnesota, artists here in Seattle as well, and my time in Syracuse, so I've jumped around.

But to be able to have him go back and finish some of the work that we didn't end up finishing before. I had moved over to Anaheim and then gone through was kind of a fun experience.

For those who aren't aware, JT has tattooed almost every inch of his body at this point.

Yeah. I'm working on my other leg right now, and I'm running out of space.

Yeah. How many tattoos do you have?

That is a impossible question. When you get this many tattoos, you kind of just. My arm is one. My other arm is one. My back is one leg.

Like, that's kind of how I look at it, but I probably have. You measured over 100 hours plus of different tattoos, so. Yeah, I mean, I also. That's why the Jar Jar one is fun now.

And I've kind of gotten past the point of, like, the super meaningful ones, and now it's like, what is fun? What do I want?

You mean hockey? Playing Jar Jar Binks is not meaningful?

Well, it does have song, you know, to me, like, favorite character, obviously hockey. So, like, you just find meaning Versus, like, I don't want to ever just go to the shop and just be like, hey, that one on the wall. I want.

But, you know, at the same time, like, I have a leg with cartoons on it with my favorite cartoons growing up, whether it's spongebob, you got hey, Arnold, or Gerald from hey, Arnold on there, and Avatar. Like, there's. So I've gone away. I've Charizard as well. Like, Pokemon stuff.

So again, I've gone away from, like, oh, then this has, like, eight layers of meaning to, like, what is fun? What does that represent to me? And, you know, again, they're for myself, so. And if everybody can.

If they get a laugh, like the Jar Jar one, then it's good.

More than a laugh.

I have one tattoo because I'm deathly afraid of needles. Like, I don't like getting blood drawn. Bees scare the hell out of me. And somebody's like, get a tattoo. It'll help you get over your fear of needles.

No, it just made it worse. So I have one tattoo, and I'll never get another one.

So good for you.

Yeah, I tried.

I do not have any tattoos. I'm not against them. I just. I've never had an idea that I felt was, like, a good enough idea to do it permanently. Yeah, I just. I don't know.

I think I'm just. I'm kind of a transient person in general.

Like, I just feel like I'm always changing and always evolving, and so I'm just, like, so afraid to, like, commit to something that I'm like. I mean, I just don't know that I will like that forever. I like very few things for a long time. To be honest, I'm just like, I don't know.

But if I ever had something that I felt strongly about, I would definitely get one. And my husband likes tattoos, and he has. He has a. I forget what its name is, but it's a pirate from Pirates of the Caribbean. The ride. Of course.

The Disneyland version, not the Magic Kingdom version. That is like, the. He's at the helm. I think it's called the Helmsman. Actually.

It's like a skeleton pirate, but he's got, like, the whole scene of the ship, like, wrapped around his whole forearm. But he loves pirates in general, too, and skeletons.

Fun way to express yourself.

Okay, but I have to ask the question that I think a lot of people would. They're just burning to know. Why on God's green earth is Jar Jar Binks your favorite Star wars character? There's so Many great characters. Why him?

I mean, I like. I like a lot of characters, but, like, I don't know. There's something to. I think he's hilarious. He's just funny.

He's kind of, yes, stupid in a way, but also, I feel like part of me. Because everybody hates him.

Yeah, you're.

I start to like him more and more, and when I see it, it's like I just want more. I wish. I wish that, like, he has his own spin. We need to get it. Have him have his own spin off.

Wasn't he, like, really heavily featured in one of the Animated series or something?

I. Clone wars, maybe?

I think that was it. Yeah. So, because he was like, in.

There's no. I feel like there's no middle ground, though. Like, you love them or you hate him. Because I did find people that.

Which I was kind of shocked online that were. They're like, this is awesome. There are also people saying, this is the worst thing I've ever seen. But I don't listen to those people.

I listen to the ones that said, this is an awesome tattoo.

I like that your response was, I did find some people that did say, this is a great tattoo. You're like, I was able to find a couple that I had to sort.

Of through, you know, the different replies and go through and, you know, look at those ones. But, yeah, you just kind of ignore the other ones.

I think when I reposted it, most of the replies were positive.

So there we go.

Yeah. I think Cracking Nation supports you. I also think you like. I know that you like things that are unique and you are that little bit of a contrarian.

So I'm not surprised. It's very true to you. And what could be a better tattoo than something that is authentically true to you?

Yeah, of course. I mean, I love the whole series, but. Yeah, I know. I. I've been thinking about this Jar Jar tattoo for years.

So finally glad that I was able to get that.

I was going to say, I know you've been talking about it for a long time, so when I saw it, I think I just wasn't even like.

No, there was no shock to. It was just a matter of time.

Well, yeah, I guess he. I guess he finally went and did it.

But anyway, folks, now that we have the most important headline Cracking Hockey headline out of the way, obviously the day that this episode is coming out is the NHL trade deadline, but because of the nature of the Kraken's schedule, we had to record this episode before it.

So unfortunately, we're not going to be able to fully comment in great detail about what has all, you know, gone down this week across the league or otherwise.

But I would like to encourage you to please turn tune in 30 minutes before every Kraken and game into Kraken and pregame, because I promise that our broadcast crew and us, frankly, will be covering this, you know, very much in depth, whatever there is to discuss.

I also imagine that general manager Ron Francis will be on our shows in one capacity, one way or the other throughout, you know, the next week and all and all of that.

So we are going to talk a little bit about the trade deadline in general later in the episode, but just kind of as a little bit of a disclaimer because just the nature of our recording schedule and the game schedule this week and traveling this week, it was, this is just how it has to go down. But it'll be fun because then you can tune in live with us as things are unraveling, too. So, yeah.

All right, folks, that being said, now that we have trade deadline disclaimer out of the way. Important. The most important headline of the Jar Jar Tattoo out of the way.

Let's go to some really big headlines from the last two weeks, starting with the Cap is back. Jordan Eberly has been back with the team for a handful of games. Now.

He obviously came back for the three games on the Krakens road trip since returning from break. JT what, what kind of a difference has this made for the group?

Oh, I mean, just be able to have your, your captain back and, you know, the leadership that he can bring, both on the ice but also off the ice as well in the locker room, you know, different situations that arise. And, you know, missing those 40 games, you could definitely feel his presence. He was off to a great start to, you know, to the season.

And I think the bigger part too is, you know, those players got to see the journey, right? Got to see, you know, how much work that he put in. You know, even us being around the team don't get to see all that.

The fans definitely don't get to see exactly, you know, what he was going through and, you know, the process of getting back, you know, from injury, anytime you miss that much time, that many games, you know, it's definitely, it's tough, you know, from a player perspective.

But also, you know, being back with your family and, you know, just trying to work your way back to being in that locker room, being back into that setting. So I know all the guys were very excited to have him back.

You Know, whether it was just, you know, the first time skating on the ice, you know, you get into a red jersey, but then eventually making your way back on into a game situation, it definitely.

You can feel the vibes or the spirit of the team, you know, be lifted just by watching, you know, how hard of a process it was and, you know, you missed that many games. But, you know, to be able to see him go out there, especially that first game and, you know, play the way he did was. It was pretty special.

I mean, you don't see that very often from that much time away and to be able to make an impact and, you know, even maybe minutes a little bit down compared to what he would have probably played, you know, at the start of the season, and, you know, seasons passed as well, but not really much of a gap. Right. Like, there was a lot of great plays that he was making, you know, opportunities in and around the net, finding it.

And, you know, that's the hard part. That's the timing that's being out there in game speed and, you know, not being able to have that. So it's a.

It's kudos to him and all the hard work that he had to put in, even just to get back, you know, after the surgery. But to see him play the way he played was. It was special.

And then, I mean, even go into the last game versus, you know, as we're recording, it was Vancouver, you know, he ended up getting a point, and, you know, that's got to be another milestone, like getting himself back, getting into, you know, this swing of game feel, and to be able to find, you know, obviously at a point and get yourself on the score sheet, had to feel nice.

And there was.

There's so many things I want to say on this topic, just from being able to talk to Jordan, you know, what the last 40, missing the last 40 games were like for him.

But one thing that I just wanted to say was after that first game in Fort Lauderdale or Jordan's first game back in Fort Lauderdale, Coach Bylsma said, he's like, I think, what are the perfect kind of. And I'm. I'm summarizing, but he's like one of.

Just like such a good example of who Jordan is as a leader and as a player is that he's like, he had a turnover over by our net, and he was so mad. He got back on the bench, and he was so mad at himself. He hasn't played a game.

He's missed 40 games, and he's in his first game back and he's got a turnover, and he's so upset on the bench, and he's like. And everybody on the bench knew that Jordan was upset with himself. And he's like.

And there was very much this tone, this mindset that's like, when I go out there for my next shift, I'm not doing that again. And he's like, it's that.

But when you're missing that kind of thing every day, and granted, I mean, there's so many great leaders on this team, it's just everybody's a little bit different. And that is that. That accountability is so, I think, just like, representative of Jordan as a player and as a leader.

You know, it's like he's willing to call himself when he's not being his best. He's like, he was, you know, Coach Bylsma was like, he was visibly mad at himself and he's not playing in 40 games.

Like, I just think that's a nice, like, kind of example of what we were missing, too.

Well, and then, you know, let's say the on the ice side, but I even, you know, he said about off the ice as well. And you think about him talking to the media Post the St.

Louis game, where I, you know, from the coaching staff to players on down, know that that was not a good game for the team and not how they want to play, but his comments afterwards about the, you know, the couple hard days of practice and how they needed to get back to their work. And, you know, for me, just going back, it's like, doesn't matter what's going on. You know, having that pride of putting on the.

The Kraken and sweater and playing for your teammates. You know, obviously there's the trade deadline that's looming. You know, all the situations.

You know, it's about going out and just working and working hard and, you know, just having that accountability, having your captain come out and say what, know, everybody was thinking during that game or, you know, as you were going through. And, you know, those are just the little pieces that you have, you know, here and there.

Obviously, like you said, there are plenty of leaders on this team. We've heard, you know, other players speak, you know, throughout the season as well.

But when he comes back and that's your captain, it has a little bit different of a feel. Right?

Definitely. And going back a little bit to just the injury and Jordan's journey back.

We've talked about it a ton, like on the broadcast, but just in case, you know, any of you have missed some of these Stories he had a really bizarre, unprecedented injury is kind of what we've been told. And they actually. His.

You know, the medical staff was able to find a doctor who has found or who has worked with athletes with similar injuries who are rugby players. And so that helped inform a lot of kind of how they were approaching this, because they hadn't had a hockey player with this injury before.

So obviously, you want him to be back as soon as he. As, you know, he can be, but also you obviously want to make sure that you're handling this appropriately.

But Jordan was in a bed in his basement for a month. He couldn't even. He couldn't move at all for a month. He was in a bed in his basement.

And during that time, his wife was giving birth at home to their third child, and he was literally stuck in the basement while this was all happening. So that, I think, is, you know, when I was asking about coming back, he's like, it's not even just this injury that I was working through.

It's like my family was growing and I couldn't help.

Yeah.

And that was, you know, a challenge in itself.

And then plus seeing, you know, some of the struggles of the team and just being away from them in that way, too, just knowing Jordan, that's all just motivation for him, but just kind of just a whirlwind, even away from just the daily grind to get back.

You know, I would have taken on another side job, and I would have tried to become a pro video game player at that point. After a month sitting down, away from everybody, play video games, eight hours, it doesn't sound too bad, just.

But the cabin fever.

Yeah, I feel like that would be fine for the first week. And then all of a sudden, yeah. So, I mean, definitely a tough, tough journey.

And, you know, obviously making your way back, there's a lot of layers that go through it.

Yeah.

We were told that Jordan was so committed to getting back as quickly, but, you know, healthily or wisely as possible, he was working out at least, like, twice a day, almost every day. And even if that second workout was just a walk, he was doing it.

And Coach Bylsma was like, I wish you guys, all of you meaning, like, the media, everybody on the outside could have seen firsthand how hard he worked and what he was committed to doing to be here. So anyway, just such, like, kudos to him because for everybody around to be as kind of impressed and respecting, you know, that.

That journey that he's gone through. And so it's been. Yeah, just great. To have Jordan back and he even playing in, you know, less. Less minutes perhaps than normally he would be used in.

He's. His impact has already been 100%. And since our last recording as well, we also have had two Kraken goalie debuts.

Now, I don't know if we all saw it coming, exactly how these were gonna go down, but Alice Stezka got to make his NHL debut against the Tampa Bay Lightning. It was the second night of a back to back. Joey got the win in Fort Lauderdale the night before, technically sunrise the night before.

What'd you think of that game? Kind of how it went down in the moment for Stezka, I think it.

Was, you know, obviously it's gonna be something for him that he's going to remember to be, obviously have that NHL debut. And you know, obviously the play, you know, I thought he played well.

And you know, right away the first shot on goal was Nikita Kucherov going in and it was about the top of the circle. So one of the league's most elite players, you know, going in, shooting on, he's able make that save. And do I dare make the comparison.

I mean, Kucherov scored on his very first shift, very first game, very first shot against King Henrik Lundquist.

Wow.

One of the greatest goalies this game has seen. So, I mean, he, he stopped.

You were his line mate.

Yes, I was. His line made for a very short period of time. He was elevated pretty quickly from the fourth line. Yeah, exactly.

No, but I mean, obviously what a situation to be, you know, throwing get your first game against a highly offensive, skilled team. You look at some of the guys like Braden, Point Gensel had great opportunities and you just watched him read the plays. He was confident in there.

And you know, he had been up with the Kraken for a while, but Joey had been playing a lot of those games, was sent down during the break to go play as well. So he had kind of, he had been backing up for a while.

So he's been around the team and so to kind of see that and be able to be rewarded with that opportunity, you know, against Tampa. And you know, he played well, he made some really big saves in that game.

Kept it, you know, a game that was within striking distance until, you know, Tampa eventually, you know, they found a couple of looks that ended up finding the back of the net.

But you watch, you know, for your first game, obviously he's a little bit older than our second situation, but you know, at the same time, you know, he has that experience of playing and to be able to go out there and, you know, show what you have, it was. It was. It was fun to watch, obviously, making some. Some tough saves that he had to do. But again, it's all about the moment.

It's all about, you know, that opportunity and something that, you know, they'll remember forever.

And I will say, too, as somebody who had to, obviously, go into the locker room after that loss in Tampa, I think, you know, the mood is always very disappointed and. And tough after a loss. But I think the guys really wanted to win for him.

I mean, they always want to win, but I think they were disappointed that they couldn't get it done for him, and especially because he did make so many, you know, great saves. And then obviously, the, you know, there was just a struggle to be getting inside and getting that front in that game, just offensively. So.

And that game, I know, was just frustrating for the group overall because of that, because they. They had a chance to win throughout it.

So, you know, it was a little bit of a bummer because I always hope when we have, you know, a goalie debut, that it goes well so that we can go talk and, like, celebrate that moment with them, because it's, you know, it's just. It's harder on goalies, I think, just in general, like, the mental load of a win and a loss, and we hear that all the time, so.

And Stezka just has such a great. Such a great personality. He is so vibrant as. As a person and energetic and always smiling. So we were like, good job, Alex.

Like, you know, and I can only.

I'm still so grateful.

Imagine, though, for the goalie side, right, because you're saying there's so much more pressure, right, like, whether you. When you think of a lot of, like, a pitcher in baseball, right, a lot of the wins and losses put on them, whether it's their fault or not, right?

Like, it's. It just is. It goes hand in hand. And even for me, I remember.

I don't remember the exact score, but I know we were losing pretty good when I scored my first goal. And it's like, yes, it's a super celebration, but then at the same time, you're like, man, but I think we're losing 4 to 1 or so.

You know what I mean? Something like that. So it's like, it kind of has that little.

Like, you're trying to find that balance, but especially from a goaltender where you want to win every single. You want that opportunity.

And a lot of it, you know, it comes down to you make, make 10 great saves in a game, but then you let in one and that's the one. So a goaltender has so much more pressure.

So I can completely feel or feel for what they're thinking and obviously the team wanting to win that form, especially with the goaltender situation. And obviously players are a little bit different, you know, for our first goal or you know, your first game, you want to win the game as a team.

But it means a little bit more, you know, from that goaltender perspective, 100%.

And then that I think just takes us right into our next goaltender debut that we had on that road trip as well. Nikke Kokko, 20 years old. For those of you who are not familiar, he is from Finland. We gotta start though.

Incredible pads, great setup on the goalie gear front. We were admiring them at Morning skate ahead of St. Louis. I was like, that might be my favorite kit that any of our Kraken goalies ever have had.

You know, the, the tentacles. I mean it's the color scheme. There's even just a little detail of the anchor on the, I'd say like the outer heel portion right by where the skate is.

Again, blue straps. Yep. Again, ice blue. Goalies get to be a little bit more creative. Right.

Like obviously players, it's not as creative when it comes to, I mean, obviously you can change the different graphics. Sometimes the graphics on your sticks can be a little bit different, but goalies kind of have that full reign. Obviously. Look at the mass.

You look at the pads as well and I'd give it a 10. A solid 10 out of 10.

Yeah. That has nothing to do with anything else. But I was like, that is my favorite goalie gear setup that I have seen from our team.

And they always talk about look good, feel good, play good. Well, he got the first part starting right away with the looking good. The pads were fantastic.

True. Okay, so Nikke Kokko did make his debut in that St. Louis game.

Obviously, I mean, I would have to imagine nobody went into that game thinking that that was the game that he was going to make his debut. But you never know. You know, you're, you're backing up, your number may be called and it was called.

Tough situation for the 20 year old goaltender to have to come into for his first game. However, really memorable, I would think. I mean, I mean the moment's going to be memorable regardless.

But like we were talking to coach Bylsma after that game.

I mean that is going to be not only a moment that he remembers as his debut, but also like lessons to kind of be Learned, learned about what that feeling is as a team and kind of a maturing, you know, process too, to go in, in that game. Just your thoughts on how things panned out.

I mean, obviously it was, it was a tough game and not from a goaltending perspective, but just as a team weren't able to generate and, you know, the opportunities that St. Louis ended up having and they're finding the back of the net just too, too good, too good of opportunities.

You're asking your goaltender to make unbelievable saves countless times and again and, you know, I think when Joey ends up being pulled, it's less of, hey, Joey, this isn't your fault. This is, hey, team, let's get it together. Let's figure it out. Because the goaltending wasn't the problem in that game.

There was many more, you know, defensive lapses, you know, as we go through. But, you know, for him to be able to get into that game, obviously a whirlwind. You get it.

I'm sure you get a tap on the pads after the, you know, the goal goals, and he's like, hey, you're going to get ready to go. And you know, the type of emotions that would come through in that situation.

Like you said, you know, you're coming up to back up, but you probably not thinking you're going to go in. Yeah, but to be able to go and we saw him in the morning skate, you know, obviously getting to go out there with the NHL guys, getting to play.

He was confident, he looked well. Even in camp. He was looking good. He was. Numbers in the AHL were for the rookie goaltenders.

I believe he was leading the league for rookie goaltenders and wins and save percentage. So obviously he's got the skill, he's got the, the opportunity. So for him to get the call up was, you know, something special as well.

But obviously just playing like it has to be awesome from that perspective. But I also think maybe you have a little less stress because you've already come in the game was where it was true.

But for me, even for him, you know, obviously comes in, I believe it was six shot. He only ended up having six in that game. But you see him in there, he's making plays. He was confident behind the net playing the puck.

You situations, even one, you know, he bailed himself out, had this dive all the way back to make a, you know, a save where, you know, maybe the puck handle. He didn't realize the guy was right on him.

So again, you talk about lessons, you talk about learning, you know, throughout you know, on the fly in an NHL game for such a young goaltender, obviously, you know, you want to find a few saves and start to feel and get comfortable within there.

And you know, I thought he did a really good job especially, you know, you look at the age, you look at what he's been able to do in the American League and you can see that, you know, as it goes on that that's going to be, you know, he's going to be a player that is up here, that is going to be with the team and he just has to continue to keep growing. You know, he still is young right then.

As goaltenders, we always talk about, they view later, they find their stride, they get a little bit later in their careers or age wise before, you know, they really settle in.

So for him to be able to get that experience, be able to play a game, you know, up here in the National Hockey League is, is something that, you know, not everybody gets to do first off, but to be able to go out there and play well, you know, obviously given the circumstances, that game and you know, obviously was more of a team game than it was a, the goaltending game, but obviously it's one that you just will always remember.

Well, and it gives you a taste, I would imagine too of something more to like work for. You know, when you're as young as he is, there's development to be had in every win and in every loss.

And that the way that game went, I mean, and we were talking about a postgame. I mean, I think that's probably one of the toughest games that we've ever covered of this team ever. Like that's got to be a top five.

I mean, just, just not a good showing. They know that.

Obviously the leadership group has covered this and it is in the past, but for, you know, your young goaltender, 20 years old to come in that there's so much value to, in what that feeling was. But also then I would think motivation in working to get back to that place.

And so, you know, all things considered, that was probably a great moment for this team's development and for him for the future. You know, it gives you a little taste, gives you something to work for. But even though, you know, there, even though it was so negative, there is.

Value, there is causes in that.

And like I can speak, you know, only from my experiences and going through and after college, going to Tampa and playing for those five games and getting a little bit of a, like, whoa, wait a minute. First, obviously there's the excitement. The first game ever, and you're playing and then you go through. And I ended up getting to play the five.

But, like, that next summer, I was like, man, this is. This is different than college hockey. This is different than anything that I've had to do.

So, like, it was a mindset for me going into that following year. Like, what do I have to work on? All right, we gotta be faster. We gotta get stronger. Here's situations where, you know, in college, I had more time.

I don't have that much time here, you know, playing in the National Hockey League. So it was a valuable.

Even though it was only, you know, for me, it was five games for Nikkei, it was the one, you know, part portion of the game you can take from those experiences of just getting in there. And how do you, you know, now that he's in Coachella Valley again, how does he take that experience and bring it to Coachella Valley?

How does he take that experience and move it into his summer programming and what he wants to do and maybe fuel you and drive you to where you want to go? You've got a little bit of a taste. But now, you know what? He wants to be up here full time.

He wants to be a starting goaltender, and, like, you can kind of do the. These steps in the progression of, you know, your career and how you want to be, you know, as a. As a player.

And he's coming into that St. Louis game, too. Obviously, the Blues were, like, flying. They were shooting everything. They were feeling peak confidence.

They were obviously being, yes, playing with their desperate, but they were playing with a lot of confidence in that game, too.

So it's like, that's, you know, like you said, you know, when you first kind of came up, you're like, oh, I've got way less time and space and all of those things. It's like knowing that feeling alone of, like, what it's like to be facing a desperate team as a goalie who also is playing with a ton of confidence.

And it just seems like, you know, you know, they had every shred of. Of puck luck as well, going their way. All of that thing. All of that, too.

It's like, if that's your baseline of how good you would need to be, then that's a. And that is a great place to grow from.

Yeah.

100, you know, so, anyways, still awesome moments for both of those guys, so, you know, hopefully we will see more of them or just see their continued development, really. So. Yeah.

All right, let's talk about the trade deadline a little Bit like I said at the top, because of the timing of this, we can't comment exactly on this. So tune into our Kraken and pregame shows and intermissions and all of that. We'll be talking about it.

But I did want to talk about JT from a player perspective, what is this week or maybe week and a half, two weeks kind of leading up to the trade deadline? Like what is the energy kind of like in the locker room? And how do you think that maybe influences how people play too?

You know, it's a stressful time.

Never actually traded during these moments, but obviously been on teams where, you know, players have been moved, players have, you know, gone to different situations and, or the stress or even just the, the articles, right? Whether, you know, it's. It's rumored that X players go into, you know, they're thinking about this player and that.

And you know, sometimes it's years, it's almost every year that a player's name is on the trade block, but they don't get moved or they do get moved in. You know, from a player perspective, it can be hard, right?

Like you're, you're thinking about, you know, what team would it is going to be the one that trades for you or is looking for you? Are you gonna have to pick up, pack up and move? What situation are you going to be in? Do you have a family? Do you have kids?

So there's a lot of external stresses that come with this unknown, right? You as much as you can know, unless you're the one sitting there asking, but at the same time you always don't know where you're going, right?

So there is still a, A unknown that it can be scary, right? It can be a.

And in a spot where you're not used to being and especially for some of the guys, you know, your first couple years and a lot of times you don't even know. It could be the these, you know, say a player that they really want, but then you're a part of it. You're a package player.

That's where I was like, I don't ever think I was going to be traded one for one, you know, throughout my career.

But I was always like, you know, maybe that this is something that they're going to tack it on to the trade to make the trade even or more of equal value. So you just never really know. You're constantly sitting there, you're checking X now and you know, all the different social platforms to see.

And I know it's so hard to say but, you know, I think the. The one thing, though, is when you have a good group, you have a good dynamic in the locker room, you're able to try to shut that out, right?

Like, it's.

It's almost impossible when you're at home and you're surfing, you know, on your phone and you're looking at what's going on or all the moves that are being made, it's hard not to try to let you know. You try not to let it affect you. But it can be difficult, you know, in those stressful moments.

But, you know, when you have a good leadership group, you have, you know, obviously players that are saying, hey, they want to be, you know, in that with this team, they want to be where they are. Not wanting to be moved. It can be difficult. But as you go through as a team, right, like, that's where the team. You can lean on each other.

You go through and just remember all the things that you've done to get to this point, right? So even if you are moved, you try to just kind of push that to the back of your mind. Because when you go out there, that's still your team.

You're still wearing that sweater. You've still gone out there and blocked shots for each other. You fought for each other.

And until, you know, the unknown either happens or doesn't happen, this is still the group. This is who you're with. And I think that's usually a lot of the focus, right?

And trying to remember or, you know, obviously you have the same goals and pushing through and just trying to kind of block out that excess noise, but, you know, that's where you rely on teammates, your friends, your family, and to kind of push through that, right? Especially if you're a person whose name is on the block and you don't necessarily know what's going to happen.

So, you know, from a player perspective, I'm happy obviously, now moving to the media side. Don't necessarily have to deal with those stresses. I actually kind of look forward to this time. You're always like, what.

What team's gonna make a move? What's gonna happen?

And you're kind of just trying to keep track of, you know, all the movement around the league, but as a player, did not like this week, did not like it. You know, you try to turn off your phone or try to stay away as much as possible.

Try to distract yourself, you know, from just sitting there at home and thinking of the what ifs, you know, that can happen. So again, when you logo into that Locker room. You just try to block it out and just remember everything.

You know, those training camps in the beginning of the season, all the, all the drills and all the, the. The mountains you had to go through, you know, out on the ice, and you just kind of push forward from there.

How much communication amongst guys are there in the room during this time? Like, if you, like just if you are a name maybe that's out there or being sifted around or you've seen online.

Like, do you, like, do guys really talk about it in the room? Obviously they don't in front of media. But between, like in the room, is there much chatter about that?

You know, I think that's up to the. Each individual person. Obviously, like the friend just, you're gonna be close. It's just much like anything else.

You're gonna be closer with some teammates than you are with others. You're always gonna be, you know, friends with them.

But obviously there's certain ones where, you know, what, hey, you've been here for the whole time together, and you have a little bit different dynamic and you can kind of walk through it and talk through it. Obviously, it's a difficult spot to be in. It's not one that, you know, they, I would say they talk too much about.

But also at the same time, you can lean on me, like, you know, if you notice, you know, your friend's a little bit, maybe real riled up or, you know, not being themselves a little more quiet, like, hey, man, we got. You're good. You know what I mean?

You kind of give it that sort of talking and, you know, at the end of the day, you just let whatever happens, happens. And you know, again, this is your group. I think that's kind of the key focus for the players.

And, you know, from a older player perspective and talking to the rest of the team, it's, you know, we can't control what's going on outside this room or what's going to happen, what, you know, your GMs or what the decisions are going to be made. But what we can control right here is this is our group, this is our family.

This is how we're going to continue to push until, you know, either something does or doesn't happen.

Okay, that being said, and also, I know every general manager and management team is, is different. But how typically for folks who might not know, would a trade be communicated to a player?

Would it typically come from the gm, your agent, you know, and I know, like you said, you weren't in that situation, but from what you know, and from your experience now, obviously, I mean.

If you're the player who, if you're asking for a trade or to be moved at the deadline, then you already know what the situation. Obviously.

I think the bigger issue is depending on whether or not you have no move clauses and they have, the GMs are going to have to talk to your agents and say, are you willing to waive, you know, or go to the one of these teams and take it off your list. But a lot of times it's already happened, right?

You know, you're either informed by your agent or the gm, depending upon how the conversation it can be either. Or to go through and be like, hey, you've been moved to, you know, X team or hey, I guess the agent could call you and say the same thing.

So either way, a lot of it is done without your knowledge and then all of a sudden, hey, you're, you're told, or hey, guess what, we're pulling you from the game because we have a trade that's in the works or we're looking, you know, we want to save you, we want to do the asset protection. So like, if that situation happens, obviously then, you know, name is being float around or there's a deal that's trying to be worked out for you.

So I guess it's a good sign if you're in the games, right?

Because if they pull you and say, hey, you know, you're a player that plays every single game and all of a sudden you're not playing, you pretty much know that you're on the move.

Anything else that you guys want to talk about as it relates to kind of the trade deadline without going into too many specifics at this moment with our team?

Well, I think without specifics, I'm just saying I'm, I'm kind of waiting with bated breath, trying to just ignore the rumors and just see where we're going to be. I know Ron is always cooking something up. So.

Yeah, I mean, I think the only thing that I would say is like it's, I mean, a lot of times like, oh, the trade down line, there's a lot of moving parts throughout. I mean, it's hard to make trades right in this league.

Like it is not as simple as, hey, this player is on a, you know, extend or expiring deal, we're going to move them. Well, it's like it's just doesn't work that way, right?

Yeah, exactly. Who can afford a piece like that?

And then. Or if it's you know, a top guy. You look at guys that are. I mean, that just. Seth Jones just ended up being. Going to Florida.

But it's like, you need to find a piece, then they have to find something that's equal value going back to the other team. Or do we find a third party that goes through?

Like, there's salary retention with that one, too. So there's even that little wrinkle where I know you have Chicago just trying to stay at the cap floor.

So even though they're getting rid of a guy like Seth Jones, they're like, well, we still gotta have this much on the book. So.

Yeah, I just think it's.

I know we always talk, like, how exciting it is and all these moves that could happen or they happen before, and then nothing really happens on deadline day. And it's like, it's just not easy because you got to remember that each GM has a, you know, a mindset of what this player is worth to them.

And then they have to convince the other GM of what they want and how that's going to be an equal or lesser, you know, the trade to go down. And everybody has to agree on that.

A lot of times, trades can be, you know, a millimeter from going through, and then all of a sudden, you know, at that point, you're like, ah, you know what? It didn't. And it doesn't end up going through.

So I just think it's nice to talk about the trade deadline, and we see all the movement, but it's a lot of work behind the scenes, and it's not as easy to say, hey, we need to get younger. We need to get, you know, another score. We need to get whatever piece you need for that team.

It's hard at deadline because it also cost you a lot more at deadline.

Right? Yeah.

You know, it may not necessarily be out there, or the one thing that is out there, like, well, if you really want them, you got to give this up.

You got to give me an offer I. You can't refuse.

Right.

Like, it's something like that have the asset that the other team values and that the other team needs. Like, just so many things have to go right in the equation.

Now, one thing I've always wondered is you look at, like, a trade like Migo Rantin from the Avalanche. Like, obviously that was a trade that probably happened because of contract issues. You know, they couldn't resign him.

Is that trade used as kind of a catalyst for, you know, other GMs to say, oh, well, if they're moving Right. And, like, we need to start thinking about.

Oh, I'm sure it happens. Yeah, I'm sure, you know, you're in a spot where, you know, you're toward. You're in.

Know you're going into the playoffs and, you know, hey, man, we might have to run into this team and they just bolstered their offensive group or they just got another defenseman. I'm sure that that conversation is had. Whether or not, hey, do we need to make a move?

Do we need to add another piece to keep up with what's going on, you know, around the league or where your team's at? Maybe you sit there and you say, you know what? We like what we have. That's an oppor- You know, that's an opportunity as well. So. So again, there's.

We just came up right now.

We've talked about all the different things and how things can move and whether or not, you know, adding somebody else, adding a piece, does that make you want to add something else to your team? So there's so many things that kind of go into the trade deadline or trying to make a trade that it's just not a simple process.

And again, you got to give. I mean, the GMs, this is a tireless time right now as they're trying to, you know, figure out what they're going to do with their rosters.

Definitely. All right, well, stay tuned to the Kraken Hockey Network for more coverage of that.

Just on a really quick note, jt, I just feel like, because we didn't have a chance to talk about this in the last episode, obviously two episodes ago, we did our Krakenland discussion. You were gonna be on your way to Disneyland with your family. We talked about this on the bus a little bit, but just for the folks at home.

How was your trip?

Oh, it was awesome. I mean, I think I had more fun than everybody else combined, but, no, it was good. And I think we went to Disneyland.

And day one was the sun was out, which was nice. And day two, it was a. I'd explain it was like a Seattle rain, so it wasn't like, really raining. Misty stamp lines were short. I love that. I was like.

I'm like, man, I'm starting to get used to Seattle. This little rain didn't even affect me. I'm out here having a great time. And. But day three, it did rain quite a bit at Universal.

I would say that actually was rain, but again, short lines, so it made it worthwhile to go through. I mean, I even tried to find a way to spend another night there. And flights and everything else just didn't change.

But I was like, man, I could do one more day. I could. I could go again. I look at the kids, and they're just exhausted from three straight days at the parks, and JT's trying to pull.

All the levers to be able to change flights. One more day in the parks.

Yeah. No, it was good. It was. I mean, as it always is, there's no real bad time for me at Disney, so I enjoyed it.

And hopefully, you know, we'll see where the break leads us next year and where the team is playing afterwards. Maybe it's. Maybe it's Disney World next year. I don't know. We'll figure it out. But how about you? How was your break?

It was good. My best friend got married, and then they were at the. The Florida Panthers game. They live in Boca Raton, so.

And her husband is a lifelong Florida Panthers fan, so he's been riding high for the last year, but he was riding low for almost every year of his life before that. So I try not to hold it against him. And we won that game. So all things considered, you know, I was like, okay, well, did you gloat?

A little bit.

I mean, I just kind of feel like when you're talking about the rainy Stanley cup champions, it feels hard to, like, gloat much. And also, as JT knows, I try to err on the side of positivity in general. I'm not exactly one to just try to. I'm not a sore winner. I'm not a.

So not an Everett. Fitzhugh.

Yeah. I'm not a sore loser, nor am I a sore winner. I'm just somewhere in the middle in general.

So I was just like, yeah, you know, I can't wait for him to listen to that. I was happy to. I was happy to win, obviously, but I also am, like, I don't really feel like I'm gonna.

You know, we're in much of a position to be rubbing the nose of the reigning Stanley cup champions in the dirt, by any means.

I think I might have been more on the Fitzy side of things where I would have found the silver lining. Like, hey, if you guys are the reigning Stanley cup champs, it's kind of crazy that we beat you, huh?

Like, yeah, I know. But for my friend, I'm just like, you know, as a lifelong Minnesota sports fan, before I was here, I just don't really.

JT's just, like, rubbing his face now. He's like, toe right.

Yeah, I know.

You know what I mean? Like, it's like, I didn't really feel like I needed to, you know, bully the one fan of the Florida Panthers lifelong in Florida. I'm just kidding.

They've got.

Very nice. Very nice of you. It's very nice of you.

Yeah. So anyways, yeah. My friend's wedding, though, it was great. And she's got sisters all over the place.

Like, one's in Africa, one's in New York, one's in Minnesota. She lives there. And I, like, grew up with their family, so it's just really good to, like, see all of them in one place and stuff.

And then I got to see a bunch of my friends who live in Orlando over the break. And we went to Epcot. My husband and I did. We love Epcot. Made a great day there.

Went to the space bar there, Cosmic Rewind, The Guardians of the Galaxy roller coaster that is there. We finally got a different song on, which was very fun. It made the ride more enjoyable, but, yeah. Anyway, it was a good break.

You were sick?

No, no, no.

I was sick after the break. I mean, I'm so glad I wasn't sick during. No. We went to Victoria, my wife and I, for our anniversary. It was. It was a lovely time.

We actually got to watch the US Canada game from the Four Nations.

I didn't get to watch the game because it was the day of my friend's wedding, and I was so. I was just trying to watch all the highlights that I could as it was happening. But, like, we were at the reception, and I was like, who scored?

Who scored? Like, their speeches are happening. And I was.

Anyway, I mean, amazing game, obviously. Like, the first nine seconds of that game were tremendous, and being in Canada for that, I will say, was kind of special.

It was pretty cool because the funny thing is we were. We did Montreal and Toronto for our honeymoon seven years ago, and that was when U.S. Canada women's hockey were playing their gold medal games.

And so we got to watch that at the Wayne Gretzky bar in Toronto. So it's kind of weirdly become, I guess, a tradition for UUs to watch U.S. Canada hockey in Canada. So it's kind of nice.

I will say, though, adding on to the Disney thing, we had a big milestone because Lillian Booker, they wanted to go on all the fun rides, like, my fun rides this time. So that was like, all right, this is getting good. So, like, incredicoaster.

Going upside down like that and not just not stay into all the small rides. That we did last year. Last year, Booker was not tall enough.

He was devastated that he couldn't go on Incredicoaster, but this year got him on it upside down.

Maybe they didn't like that, like doing Indiana Jones as well, like some of the more fast paced, fun rides, like, and doing them again, like a second time, going through and doing those lines where last year I felt like we didn't get to do all the rides that I would have liked to have gone on. But this year there was no, no, I mean, no real hesitation from them. They were going.

So I'm like, yes, we're at a spot now where we can go and not just have to go on the little teacup ride.

You said that Booker really liked Guardians of the Galaxy, the tower, right? Yeah.

Don't know why.

Because I feel like a lot of kids, even though they can go on that one, because almost any height can go on that one. Like you can be really small and do it, but that's definitely one of the scariest, in my opinion, scariest rides that Disney has.

I mean, it's a drop tower inherently.

Yeah, we did that one twice. Yeah, no, we did. Basically, you go through, you run them all.

I mean, they still love the radiator springs and going into racing the cars and doing that sort of stuff.

But I love that Lexi recreated our picture too, on the Incredicoaster.

I saw that. That was good.

No, so it was fun. It was. It was a lot of fun for me.

Great.

The. The funny thing for me is as I've gotten older, I find that I can't do roller coasters like I used to. Like, I just. I know, right?

No, I feel bad for myself because I used to. I love them, like ones, you know, loops and fast and all that stuff. I just can't do them like I used to anymore. I can do one, maybe.

You could probably do Disney roller coasters, though, because if you are a person who loves high intensity roller coasters, you're probably. You're not finding them at Disney. Like, they. Because they make family roller coasters. Okay. On purpose.

I mean, not to say that their roller coasters can't be thrilling, but it's not. You know, if you go to. If you go to Six Flags Magic Mountain, you're going to be riding fast roller coasters with huge drops. They.

Disney, obviously they try to focus more on like the story and the theming of. Of it, and they're still great rides. But I just. I'm just saying, you may be surprised. You would probably be okay with the ones at Disney.

They make them for kids. I mean, yeah, I feel at some.

Point you guys are gonna get me to a Disney park. I've never been to one, but I think you guys are gonna drag me into one. You know, sometimes we'll have to do.

Some episode from Coachella Valley and just make a trip over to Anaheim from Palm Springs at some.

Someday I'll work it in a budget for the, for the podcast next year.

We'Re gonna need tickets. We're gonna do a live recording from Lamplight Lounge. No, I'm just kidding.

We'll just travel. That'll be the line item. It'll be good.

Hey, the worst thing they can say is no, that's true.

Yeah, that's great. Point. Yeah. Well, anyway, it was great to see you both in person again and have a nice recording here. And.

Yeah, with that, everybody, thank you for joining us for another edition of Signals from the Deep. We will, of course, be back in another two weeks. Every Friday we have new episodes.

So subscribe anywhere that you listen to podcasts and leave us a review. Please leave us a review. We see our listening ship numbers going up and up and up, but not a lot of ratings, not a lot of reviews.

And so I'm like, maybe that's on me for not, you know, maybe reminding people. But if you enjoy the show, please leave us a review and give us a five star rating. And even feel free to send us your questions. Tweet them at us.

Tweet them at Grant.

You're usually more on top of it, but we do, we do try to, you know, keep them and collect them so that we can, you know, answer them on a future episode as well. So we'd love to hear from you guys. So anyways, thanks for joining us. Any final thoughts?

It's all good. Ready for the next one?

Awesome.

See you after the trade deadline.

See you next time.

Signals from the Deep is the official podcast of your Seattle Kraken and is a proud member of the Kraken Hockey network, hosted by Piper Shaw and JT Brown. Music composed by Benny Drawbars, production by Grant Beery. Have a question for the show?