This week, hosts Piper Shaw and JT Brown join us on the road from Denver, Colorado just before the Kraken's final regular season game against the Avalanche this season. They talk about the Kaapo Kakko trade, how the road trip has progressed so far, Yanni Gourde's viral interview with Piper, and what the holiday break will bring for each of them.

From all us at Signals From the Deep, we hope you have a happy holiday season and we'll see you again in 2025!

This is Signals from The Deep, episode 24. Joining us on the road from Denver, Colorado, here's your hosts, Piper Shaw and J.T. brown.

Hello, everyone, and welcome. Welcome to Signals from the Deep. Let's just dive right in.

That sound that you just heard was the sound that we heard for about two hours on Thursday night on the tarmac after the Krakens game in Chicago. J.T. i will be hearing that sound in my nightmares.

Yeah, that was an interesting one. I mean, not the favorite, obviously. There's not a whole lot that you can do, you know, in those situations.

Sitting on the tarmac waiting for the plane to get fixed, obviously that sounds a little annoying, but, you know, at the end of the day, everything worked out and not a situation you have to deal with that often. So we're thankful for that.

So what happened, folks, we were told is that the plane after the Chicago game had some kind of a technical issue with like the computer system or something like that. So they were troubleshooting it for quite a while when we were ready to leave and try to head off to Vegas for a practice day on Friday and all that.

But we ended up having to get off of the plane, back onto buses and to a different hotel. It was kind of a scramble because we didn't know exactly what was going on, but. Shout out Backsy.

We've been talking about baxie on the pod quite a bit lately because not an ideal situation and everything. You know, everybody obviously was a little bit irritated by the sound, but also after that game and just tired.

About two in the morning, we got off the plane, got onto buses and into another hotel. So. So, you know, I think he handled it as good as you can when something like that goes awry.

Yeah, it can't be easy to find enough hotels for everyone also to get the buses back to, you know, the FBO as well. So that was another issue that you'd have to deal with. But you know, and even then scheduling the next flight to get it for the next day.

So there's a lot of things obviously that he had to do there. And you know, obviously things are great when you don't notice anything. Right.

And then he has to come in and, you know, save the day on a time like that. So you got to give your shout outs to back actually for that too.

Even getting food on the plane for the next day because the flight attendants were telling me that they like, they booked the catering like months in advance, which totally makes sense. But all things considered, I felt like that sound is still going to be haunting me. It was just playing nonstop, but it all worked out pretty well.

Yeah. I think the other hard part is you just don't know what's going on. Right.

Like, they give you a little bit of updates as we're going, and then as the time keeps going, going by and you're looking at your.

I'll say watch, but it was more just looking at your phone and seeing what time it started to be at, and you're like, eventually, like, are we just gonna get off the plane and go to a hotel? Like, this is going to be even a later arrival into Vegas. And that's eventually what happened.

Obviously, they have to take their time to figure out, obviously, what was wrong and then backsy figuring out the hotels and just a weird situation, one that I don't think I've ever been in a situation exactly like that. Never having to get off the plane. I think weather is something that you always have to deal with with flying.

There's been times where flights have been delayed or they've been pushed back or just right away you just can't fly. And you just know you're going to stay an extra night. So it's kind of ahead of time.

But you know, when you're getting to the plane and you have the expectation to take off and you don't, obviously that's things people deal with all the time going to the airport, but, you know, at those late hours, it's just a little bit different.

Yeah, they said it was like some kind of computer issue or something with the plane, and they were troubleshooting it. But I thought it was funny. Like, Brandon Montour was pacing the aisles. He's like, dud, do we want to take off?

If there's a questionable issue, like, should we just get off the plane? Valid point.

No, it's definitely fair. And I mean, obviously did the right thing there.

And I think also at the end, the pilots ended up timing out or would have timed out during the flight as well. So I think that kind of came into an issue as well. So, again, something we don't have to do daily or weekly or every trip.

You know, that's something that doesn't happen. But I think that makes it a little bit easier to put up with it when.

When it does happen, because it's not something that you're doing every single trip or every single road trip.

And, you know, thankfully we have a good flight crew and obviously backseat one more shout out for, you know, getting the hotels, getting everything situated and, you know, Making sure everybody was taken care of.

So I do fear we may have buried the lead a little bit here when it comes to Kraken news in the last week because there was a big trade which we found out as we were just sitting down to eat some pizza at Paisano's in Chicago. Good pizza, Good pizza.

I mean, people have been saying that might be one of the biggest trades that like our organ ever made, potentially. Just what were your thoughts on this maybe initially and now that you've sat with it for a couple of days?

Yeah, I mean, I think the, the first thing is obviously, I mean, you know, Will, I've got to know well as well. So you only you would wish him the best in New York, right?

You want to see his career keep going off, especially being an original Kraken and, you know, what he's done for the organization, how he's played and even just moving up in his role and how it's his career started here in Seattle to, you know, getting all the ice time, being a part of the good run that Seattle had.

So you obviously want nothing but the best for him and you hope that, you know, his career flourishes out in New York and can get, you know, everything out of this that, you know, he needs in, in his career. And it is a business. Right. We did talk about that in the last podcast that things do happen, business decisions end up being made.

Where are you going to sign Will? Was Will, where did he fit with the long term?

Having Larson long term on the right side, having Montour signed, long term on the right side, Vince getting signed, you know, long term. So when you look at that, it kind of pushes what role can we be? And so I think the business side it did make, ended up making sense.

And you know, unfortunately happened birthday, right, for Will as well.

The day before his birthday was on Thursday.

It's right there. Weird news, right?

But at the other side, when you look at the Kraken and you know, what they're able to get, you know, from the deal as, you know, a player that, you know, has all the, the skills and the tools just based on, you know, watching him, it's more about, you Know, putting it all together and, you know, he's played a lot of games in the National Hockey League. I think at the time it was 300 and or 330 and he had 131 points at the time of the trade. And so he's played. He can understand that.

He's got a lot of skill, he's got some size. And it's just putting it all together, right? And sometimes you just need that new start. Things weren't going the greatest in New York for him.

He did have a, you know, a very good year with the kid line out there and kind of things kind of went slowly, went down in comparison to what it was this year. But I think the tools are all there. I think you understand why the Kraken wanted to go out and get a player like Capo.

And again, it's all about putting it together, right? How can he develop? Can he develop better out in Seattle than he was in New York?

And I think the other side of it is you don't have Everly right, so you're missing a top six winger. And that was something that Cabo can bring. He can be that top six guy. He can play on your power play. He has the skills to do that.

And, you know, how do you get the best version of this player?

And I think, you know, that's what, you know, Ron Francis is, you know, asking of the coaching staff, right, how can we pull the best out of this guy? We've seen in flashes in New York how good of a player he can be. How do we get him to play like that on a consistent basis?

So for the trade, I don't know if you do grades, you know, a, B, whatever, but I think those things are tough to do in the moment, right? You got to see how everything plays out.

But I think in the mindset of was Will going to be here long term, was it going to be a situation that he was happy with, you know, being. Being in the five, six slotted role, you know, just with where he plays and who's signed ahead of him.

And then, you know, needing a, a skilled top six winger that can, you know, pick up some of, you know, the goal scoring droughts that the Kraken are having right now. So for me, I think it's a good trade. It is a, you know, a big trade, one we haven't really seen during the year.

Obviously we've seen some at the trade deadline and, you know, moving guys out, especially in the, the first year. But to make that kind of A trade while the season's still going on. And, you know, the Kraken are still trying to make their push.

Definitely. I just want to go back and echo what you said at the beginning of that too, with just giving Will Borgen some love as an original Kraken.

Everybody knows that I was a big Will Borgen fan because we went to college together and he's got such a great family, like, I know his mom and so wish him nothing but the best, and I think he will just continue to flourish.

And to your point too, about trying to pull what they can out of players that come to this team, you know, that's something that has been somewhat of a trend for the Kraken that they've been able to do, particularly with Ellie Tolvin.

And that's something that, you know, Tolby was telling me before that Chicago game, the day that Capo joined the team, that he was like, it kind of reminds me of what happened to me. He was a first round pick at the Nashville Predators. There was a lot of pressure and expectation on him to be a certain kind of player.

And these guys are getting drafted when they're 18 years old.

By the time they're 25 years old, they evolve as people, but also, you know, their skills and there's different, different systems and conversations all throughout their career.

Obviously that's not new information to you, but he said that this situation kind of reminded him of, you know, what happened to him and the fresh start that he got with Seattle when the Kraken picked him up on waivers.

And on a personal note, he also said that when he first got to the Kraken, it was Jonas Donskoy who was not playing, obviously, but he was a fellow Finnish guy.

And Jonas really made an effort to make sure that Ellie felt welcomed on the team and like he was part of the family and kind of had that shared cultural connection and always inviting him to lunch and stuff.

So Ellie said that that was going to be really important to him to make sure that he did that for Capo Kako as well, because I don't think we mentioned, but Kako is also finished. So we now have two fins on the team. The Kraken also have a representative now in the four nations Face Off. So that is exciting.

They won a gold medal for Team Finland and Capo had the game winning goal in the gold medal game.

So for what it's worth, we have a good track record with world juniors championship stars on our team, most notably Jordan Everly, but very true, but others as well. So, yeah, it's a little early to tell.

I feel like of what, you know, capo cock was really going to bring to the team and through these first couple games, obviously the Kraken have not been playing their best hockey as a team. But what is it that of his skill set in particular that makes him kind of like a unique ad? Theoretically?

Yeah, I think you're right on. It's hard, especially when you're flying across country.

It's a whirlwind of emotions from being, you know, in New York, they're flying to Dallas and then hopping on a flight, getting to Chicago. You're playing in a game, it all just happens so fast.

So I think it takes a minute for you to fully get, I guess, used to, whether it's system wise, you know, who you're playing with. It takes time. But, you know, we have seen flashes even in the games where that hasn't gone their way.

I mean, in the Chicago game, he did a nice little toe drag, pulled the shot and rang one off the crossbar. And so you can see he's got a good shot, he's got a good release. His size is also something that, I mean, you can't teach size.

I mean, I wish I could have been taught size and somehow just grown and, you know, being able to be a, you know, bigger presence.

He's not afraid to use that as well as some big hits in the, in the last game as well, where even in the Chicago game where, you know, he's out there finishing guys off on the boards, making sure that, you know, you're separating the man from the puck. And I think it's also a skill set to be out in front of the net.

He's got good hands where he can be in tight, and that's an area where the Kraken have not been great at. You know, when they're not playing their best, it's usually to the perimeter, they stay to the outside.

So if you can get somebody to get inside, whether that's to screen the goalie, get a tip, but loose pucks around the net and, you know, he definitely has the finishing ability to be able to put the puck in the back of the net. It's more just how do you find that on a consistent basis and, you know, who can you put on a line with them to drag that out every single night?

Right and to get it more consistently. And I think as a team, that's what they're working on as well. So, you know, finding the right combinations.

But I think definitely when you look at his ability to play a skill game, his ability to not shy away from a physical game just based on size as well, obviously you don't need him running guys through the boards or, you know, take himself out of the player. The real thing for him is he has that skill. He can be that top six type of guy.

And, you know, when you get out there, especially on a power play, to go out there and make plays. And I think that should be the message, obviously from the coaching staff, which we have heard. It's just go play. Right, right.

He's not going to understand every part of the systems, you know, that they're trying to run in one day or one game or a couple of practices. It's going to take time. It's going to take time to build that chemistry and to not worry about making a mistake. Right.

I feel like at times, especially when things aren't going well, you start to overanalyze. You start to over, you know, think the game and over. You want to do your best, right.

Then you're trying so hard that it actually ends up taking away from you.

So at the end of the day, especially coming to a new team, you want to impress, you want to be, you know, everything that people are talking about, right. And to just go out and make sure you just play the game. You're obviously a skilled hockey player, a smart hockey player.

You've made it this far and to just rely on what's got you here.

So I figure on this note, we got a question from a listener and I feel like it kind of fits around this conversation, so I figure we can jump to that. So this comes from Nikki Arn or at crackin Hockey guy on Blue Sky. Nikki says, hi, Piper. I'm excited JT is on.

I'd love to hear his insights on player development. The young guys seem to have so much pressure on them, as mentioned by John and J.T. during the Chicago game Hero yesterday.

But doubt seems to hover around guys that aren't performing immediately. How can guys like Shane and Maddie stay realistic?

I think there's two ways. First way is obviously just the coaching staff, right?

You know, being in constant communication of, you know, what's expected and what are they, what do they want to see versus having the player guess right and thinking, well, I, I should be scoring or I need to do this. What is that player's role.

And if you can get a defined role of what the coach wants out of you, you're going to be a lot better as a player and it's going to be less on your mind about trying to find that identity.

Yeah, I mean, one of the things for me, I always remember, obviously was not in the same situation as, say, a Maddie or a Shane as well, but, you know, playing on the fourth line, you know, talking to the coaches, and I'm like, hey, we don't, you don't need to go score. But what we do need from you is we want you to go shut down this line. We want you to not get scored on.

And once you have productive shifts, you know, get the puck in where their other team lines down. And if you didn't, if we score, great. But if we didn't, it was still a win for us. Like, we knew that our goal was not necessary.

Obviously, we want to score. Everybody wants to go out and score.

But it was defined just so we weren't stressing about the fact that we didn't score a goal in a couple games or we hadn't been on the score sheet, but we were doing our job in other areas, whether it was on the.

Managing the momentum.

Correct. And be able to do that.

So, you know, as a guy like Matty or Shane, it's, you know, getting in there and talking to him about what's exactly expected of them, and it makes playing the game a lot easier. And, you know, I would say also, you know, look at the line mates, look at your.

The veterans in the room, to just talk to them and understand that there is going to be a little bit of a roller coaster when it comes to production at the National Hockey League level. And you're not going to score every game. Right.

And it's, it's tough when you come from either juniors or you come from the American Hockey League or the ncaa and you can start playing in the National Hockey League where you were the best player on your team or you were scoring on a nightly basis. And that's not to say that you can't, or people don't come into the National Hockey League and do that right away because they. Obviously we do.

We see it all the time with the, you know, the young superstars in the league and. But that's not the normal case. Right.

There's going to be times where, you know, hey, you go 10 games without a goal or you go, you know, same thing, 10 games without a point at all. And it can be difficult when you've been so used to. I don't know whether it's being the guy or being on the score sheet.

So I think between the coaching staff and between, you know, having good leadership and good veterans to kind of walk, you know, young players through that process is. It's important. Right. And I think they've done a good job, especially even looking back to Shane Wright being scratched. Right.

And obviously there was conversations with the coaching staff, you know, what they exactly were, I don't know.

Oh, but at the same time, you know, when you get scratched, especially when you've played every game, usually, you know, a coach will bring you aside, they're going to tell you why, they're going to tell you what they want out of you. And then you look at how Shane reacted to that afterwards.

Obviously the points are great, but I think even just from a standpoint of how he's played, whether it's been defensively in the face off circle, just making the right reads, the smarter plays and, you know, just was playing a little bit more free on the back half of coming back into the lineup after being scratched. So, you know, there's little things like that.

It's, I think it's all about communication and again, at the end of the day, I think there's got to be a little self reflection as a player. But at the same time, if you have a good, I mean, it's a support system, right? You guys are a team, you're a family.

And whether it's the players or the coaches as well, just making sure that you, you help those younger players, you know, kind of go through something different that maybe they haven't gone through, you know, so far in their career.

So I want to go back to something that you just said. How much do you think kind of like a schedule shift makes a difference too?

When you look at a player like Matty Benir, who came straight from college hockey, where you're playing two games a week, you are playing two games a week, you Are now playing 82 games in the regular season alone. Obviously junior hockey and American League hockey, different kinds of, you know, workload and schedules and all that.

But how much do you think that can factor into just the sheer amount of time you are on the ice and balancing like your workouts and all those things with it too?

I mean, I think, yeah, I definitely can, especially the first year.

Obviously it is a big difference when you talk about it, but also at the same time, when you're in college, you have to go to Classes, there's other things that you're doing even though you're not just playing the game.

So maybe mentally, maybe it's a little more taxing at times, you know, to be in the classroom and worrying about this test or worrying about, you know, what's going on in school wise. So there are. There's balances. I mean, both are hard in their own right. Obviously. I think the travel schedule is crazy.

When you come to the NHL when you're not used to.

You don't say, we didn't start this podcast with a disturbing plane sound and.

Back to backs and missed practice on.

Friday or back to back.

It's. It's different. Right? Like. And again, you're moving time zones a lot and it can be a factor. You try not to. I mean, that's what the training's for.

That's where you're getting yourself ready for. Obviously, you have to take care of yourself. That comes to. How do you get the fluids afterwards? Are you eating right?

Are you getting enough sleep, which sometimes you can't control? We've seen that as we had. I can't even do that, so I.

Can'T even do that.

It can be. It can be difficult. Right?

But I think at the end of the day, when you look at the differences between, say, juniors and the ncaa, obviously the biggest one for the NCAA is just the number of games. Right. In juniors, you play a larger schedule than the college hockey. I think 32 games or something around there.

Jumping just the sheer volume can be a difference maker, but then also just getting used to that. So again, that goes into.

That's why the teams have, you know, the strength and conditioning staff, you have nutritionist, you have all of these people surrounding these players especially so when they're coming from different situations that they get the information and the knowledge they need. You can't force somebody to eat correctly, as I know, because I don't.

You've never eaten vegetable in your life?

Not one time? A couple times. One time I had one salad.

You had one salad one time in your entire life?

Correct.

What kind of salad was it?

My 13. Dude, I'll never have 13.

What are you, 34 now?

Yes.

Yeah. You just never. You're unwilling to.

Unwilling. No. Yeah.

How bad was that Caesar salad that you've never had another one?

No, I'm sure it was good. Everybody else ate it. It was. It just is not for me. I do not need. Okay.

You should have like a steak, web salad, bacon on it or something to.

Go at me now.

Well, you opened yourself up to it.

The whole point is you can put all these things in front of them, it still is up to the player to make their decisions. And you just put the information the same way with. When you talk about coaching, right?

You can give them the X's and O's, you can give them the tendencies, but it ends up being on the players to go out and do what they need to do when the time comes.

All right, I want to switch gears a little bit. Last episode, jt, we were literally just chirping about intermission interviews and how.

How it would be so refreshing for someone to jump on with some honesty. Well, in Chicago, in the first intermission, Yanni Gord gave a Gatorade shower of an interview that has been all over the place. After that happened.

I immediately.

Because sometimes on the road, depending on how everything is, like, routed to you guys, you can't necessarily always hear the intermission interview. So this second, he walked away from me. I grabbed my credential and. And talked to our utility.

I'm like, I need the fastest way to get up to the broadcast booth and, like, booked it upstairs. Because I was like, John and JT have to hear this interview before we go back on air.

But just after you did hear it, you know, your thoughts on Yanni being willing to be critical and honest on, you know, a setting like that. I know it's hard when you're also getting a camera shoved in your face. And the interview is not for me, Piper, or for you, J.T.

it's for the fans that are watching, you know. So what did you think about. About that?

I mean, the first word that came to my mind was refreshing. Right. We did talk about how it's usually about North. North getting pucks in deep. And I mean, they're all true.

Like, all these things are necessary to win a game, but you rarely see players have that kind of. Whether it's, you know, motion and being truly honest about the team's play. And, you know, I thought it was a refreshing interview.

I thought that it was spot on. Right. Like, I think just didn't want to sugarcoat how the team was playing in that period. Didn't come out and play their. Their best.

And when you have a guy, I mean, for me, that's. Those are the leaders, right? Those are the ones you're going into the Rock Room.

He's going to go in there and talk, you know, the same way he talked in that interview.

Probably harsher. I would.

Yeah, yeah, I think probably more emotion. But when you have a person that's willing to say those things. Obviously, it's not on an everyday basis. You don't want to just bash your team.

But I think given how this last week or so. Yeah, week or so of games have gone. I mean, you throw in the.

The big win versus Boston, but I think you can look at the rest of the home stand, even the Florida game where you sneak out a point. It was that it was a sneaking out of a point. They didn't play their best, so haven't been playing their best hockey.

So that's something that I think probably had been building to that point. And it was different. It was something that I think a lot of the fans have seen as what we've seen on social media. The reaction was all positive.

Right. Like, why don't we have somebody on our team like that that would say, you know, how Yanni did, or.

Yeah, it was kind of funny to see all the Rangers fans being like, we should have got Yanni in the trade.

Exactly. And, you know, I just think that it was good. I think it's. It's honest.

I think the fans, I mean, obviously you can see what's going on in the game as well. So I think it's refreshing to hear, you know, from a player that they're not happy with how they're playing or that this period wasn't good enough.

They need to go out and play better in the second period and to kind of talk about, you know, different areas. And I think the one thing too, you came up right away and we're talking about. He made a great save of the, the puck.

It was Joey Anderson, one of my other good friends. Had an empty. Oh, really had a good empty net. And Yanni comes flying out of nowhere, makes a huge save. Right.

And you try to give him credit for that and talk about. But he didn't even. Didn't really want to give himself credit. And I want to talk about why are we in that position anyways?

We're too much of scrambling. We got to get that out of our game. And I thought that was another cool moment because, like he's. That was a great save.

Like, he came in, it was a great play, saved a sure goal that was going in, but it didn't even matter. Didn't want any of the. The positive side. He really wanted to focus on what needed to be out of the team's game and how the team was playing as a who.

And, you know, I thought it was focused on team. I like that there was no, it wasn't an individual player. Right. He was talking about the group as a collective, because that's really what it is.

And it was a great, great interview. And the response was fantastic. I thought his wife's response was probably the best one that I saw on. I think it was Instagram. That one was good.

I believe it said, what was it, Yanni? When he sees the credit card statement this month?

And then, so in case you missed the interview, we thought we would just play you the first question here. You can find the rest of the interview online.

But to be honest, the first question, I think kind of, or his first answers really sums up the energy of it that he kind of carried through the rest of it. Well, Yanni, it's great to see you back out there with the team. How would you assess your team's work through that first 20?

Unacceptable. Awful. We need better. Too many turnovers. We're lacking reload. We're diving in. They get way too many opportunities. This has to stop.

We need to find a better way.

We have to find a better way. I love going back to what you said. Yeah. So Marie Gord put on her story. It was like, when Yanni sees the credit card bill.

When Yanni sees the credit card bill, he goes, unacceptable, Awful. Which is hilarious. What are you doing, JT? JT's looking at.

I was looking it up. I was making sure it said, yeah, Yanni. When he looks at this month's credit card statement. Yeah, that was good.

Unacceptable. Awful. When you were texting me, you were like, when somebody has their Christmas decorations up before Thanksgiving.

Yeah, exactly. That is awful. Unacceptable.

I do that, though, because, no, I am not home enough during the holiday season until I get to actually enjoy it. And because my husband travels too.

It's like we, like, we had to celebrate Christmas on December 15th because that is when we were gonna have the opportunity because we're both just jumping around all the time.

So when do you take them down for December?

I take them down whenever I have the bandwidth to do. So.

You just need to get ones that stay up all the time then.

Okay, like what?

Like LED ones. You can change them orange for Halloween or something. Like.

Oh, well, lights.

Yeah, I guess.

Yeah. Well, anyway, I don't have that many Christmas decorations to begin with anyway, so it's really not. It's. It's not that big of a deal.

But that being said, just going back to, you know, the Yanni interview and kind of that conversation, I was wondering, like, from your perspective, obviously, when they answer these Questions. Normally it's a little bit more of like an X's and O's and it's this and it's a that. But you know, we always say hockey is a game of emotion.

How does being able to have that kind of emotion kind of factor into how you can execute the X's and O's? Does that make sense?

No. Relay that to me again, makes sense.

Well, okay. We always talk about how hockey is this game of emotion but rarely do from our team. Do I feel like we see that when they kind of come and talk to us.

And is that at all like concerning to you when they're talking about not being able to execute the X's and O's and getting pucks deep because you need that kind of fire, I assume, to push it.

I mean, I think everybody shows in different ways though too. I think like I would say even just go to the Chicago game, maybe you might not get that same answer out of events done if he did the interview.

But when you see the emotion of him jumping into help out Stevenson when Murphy was trying to go after him to fight and Vince Dunn said enough's enough and, and there's emotion, that way of jumping into the fight literally in that sense. So I think when you. Each player is different, right? I think that Yanni was. Ended up being the perfect storm as far as the interview is concerned.

I don't think that every player is going to show their emotion the same way. We know that Yanni plays the game with his heart on his sleeve. So I think that definitely plays into him being able to give that type of interview.

And I do think though, at a point where, especially when things aren't going well, use that.

I don't say emotion, but also at the same time, like you just, it's pride, right, like of how you know how to play and how the team should be playing and using that to, like you said, when you talk about the axes and else just go out and do what you're supposed to do, right? Get the, you know, stay connected, be on the forecheck. You know, Yanni brought that part up there not reloading proper properly.

They weren't getting enough, I mean tactically, they weren't getting enough of pressure onto the defense in Chicago. So there's little things like that.

But I also think it just comes from, you know, inside at a certain point where you may not necessarily show it as far as words or may not show it as a hit, but I think you just kind of end up taking it upon Yourself and having that self pride to buckle up and basically go out there and do it. Your. Your job is right, like, and that is the X's and those part and to be a team and to go play. So it's definitely hard.

I think there's definitely interesting spots throughout a season where, you know, the ups and downs can definitely change the emotion of the game and how you go into each game. But you know, I think at this point when things aren't going your way, it's.

It's about the leadership group and, you know, getting everybody to come in and follow and play the right game.

Yeah, I, that definitely answers my question. But I didn't even mean like the emotion in the interview.

I just mean like the emotion like on the ice and in the room, you know, because it's just like if you don't, if you don't hate to lose, if you don't care, then you're probably, I would imagine, less compelled to go out there and execute, you know?

Yeah. I mean, I would say the biggest thing is I don't.

You can't speak for every player on what their, you know, driving motivation is in the game, but I would say that every player. I know losing is not fun, right. Like, we know what happens. You have to accept that you're going to lose. Right?

There's gonna, you're not gonna go 82 0. You can hope for it, but at the end of the day, there's going to be times where you do lose. So.

And every locker room that I've been in, losing is not fun. Especially when you lose multiple games in a row or, you know, things just aren't going your way. Obviously that's how it is right now.

And got to hear a little bit of that in Montour's interview as well about the team and, you know, quiet and you need to get back to having fun. And you know what is fun is winning. Right.

So I think to get to that point, obviously you got to come together as a team and you know, whether that's a players only meeting is that the coaches coming in and talking and having more meetings that way there's definitely ways to get things back on track. And you know, I just think that everybody has that sense where again, it is not fun to lose.

So as much as, you know, it may not look like it at times, right. Or you may say like, oh, are they trying?

Yeah, obviously everybody wants to go out and win every single game, but at the end the day, it just doesn't happen that way. So it's just finding, you know, what that room, how do we come together as a room? And it's different from year to year, right?

Even if you have a lot of the same players, guys coming back in, there's going to be a new dynamic. You bring in, you know, new players into the offseason.

So it may change how the group looks or how, you know, what they did last year may not work this year, and it may just take a little bit of time to figure that out.

The Montour interview that JT is referencing was a pre game availability ahead of the game against Vegas. And it was a really great conversation. But yeah, he made the point of. He's just like, I just feel like we've been silent. Like, we've been quiet.

Like the bench is quiet whether things are going well or not going well. And he's like, we just need to be having fun. Like, he's like, we play hockey for a job. We should be having fun even if we're losing.

Like, that should be part of, like, the fuel. And that was also refreshing. I don't think that made it on tv among all of our things. But that, that was a nice thing to hear from him as well.

A different, a different kind of emotion that was motivating than Yani's.

It was a little bit more positive, obviously, but yeah, and to your point that, you know, you bring in new guys and the dynamic changes, the impact that Brandon Montour has had on the room and the culture of the team immediately is not only intentional, intentional, but really valuable, I think, from what I've observed. But anyway, any final thoughts on that conversation?

No. I mean, I think it's good.

I think every player's got their own way of showing and, you know, we brought up the two that you would say are probably more vocal when it comes to, with Yanni and Monty as well. And.

But I think you just can look up and down the, the room and just watch even as how people play in a guy like Larson, who may not be the most chatty person in the interview, but you watch him, how he plays and that's how he, he can lead and how he shows his emotion throughout. So I think it's a, it's an interesting dynamic and I think that's what makes, you know, locker room so special, but also crazy at the same time.

You have all these people from different backgrounds and what motivates this person may not motivate the next person. And it's all about finding that right and finding the balance of how do we get the best out of everybody?

And, you know, that's something that they're going through right now. Right. And how can they play as a team. Team consistently? And, you know, again, it may not be the same as what it was last year even. I mean, last year.

Now you have a new coaching staff, too. Throw that into the mix where things are different. So, yeah, I think it's. It's only a matter of time. Right. They.

They're not happy with how they're playing. I think it's clear to see that through not only coaching staff, but also through the players and their interviews.

And, you know, that's a positive sign in my eyes. Right. When they're being. When they're outward with. That we're not happy with how we're playing is a better sign for things to move forward.

So this episode is coming out the week of Christmas, so we do want to say happy Holidays to everybody out there, no matter what you celebrate. But, jt, what did you. What did you ask for Christmas?

What did I ask?

Because we had a conversation at three in the morning in the hallway last night where you were hooting about how if your wife doesn't.

Yeah.

Specifically ask for what she wants, she doesn't get anything. So that had me thinking. Okay, jt, what did you ask for?

Well, okay, let me. Let's just backtrack for a second. I did interview. Interview. I said, I need a list. Like, if you give me a list of what you want, I'm gonna go get it.

But if you don't say, if you say nothing, then that means nothing.

So the thought that counts is not an ideology that you subscribe to.

That's not one that. No. Okay, so I did it. I did get her a Christmas gift. Can't say it, obviously, because she might listen to it, but.

Well, this is coming out after Christmas.

Yeah, she already. She already gave me the list, so she knows what it is. But.

And this does come out after Christmas.

Oh, all right, never mind. All right, let me go back. So would I. I asked for a hat. A new hat. A specific one, like a winter hat. But I don't know what. I don't know who makes it.

It's a nice one.

But, like, was it like, I want this hat, or were you just like, I want a warm hat?

Yeah, warm hat.

You want a.

A warm, black, warm hat? Yeah.

Okay.

And then I asked for new cologne. I lost one this year already, so that's good.

And you lost one.

Yep. And then I asked, what else did I Ask for. I asked for a pearl necklace. I don't think I'm gonna get that.

And then I asked for a Rolex, so I don't think I'm gonna get either the last two, but I'm gonna give something. I'm probably gonna get the first two.

A pearl necklace. Like with a single pearl or.

No, like a chain of the whole. The whole necklace with the pearls on.

Oh, stylish.

I'm. I feel like you could probably. Is it a specific one or can you just like go to a pawn shop or raid somebody's grandma's house? Or is that a style?

Am I behind on the trends?

No specific thing. So I think I.

I learned is like, you asked for a couple crazy things, so, like, they're not going to get those, but then you're going to get the other ones for sure.

Okay. I guess I'm more just confused of why the pearl necklace for you stylistically is like a choice. You are. You are unique.

You have a unique sense of fashion.

Well, we're gonna see. We'll see. We'll see. When or if I get one, what's gonna look like?

We'll see. If you get one. If you do get one. If you get one, then we're gonna have to talk about that on the podcast on the next episode.

I don't think I'm getting it. I don't think I'm getting it. Again, I like to throw a couple crazy ideas in there to make my other ideas look less crazy.

Does Lexi ever go off script you because you don't go off screen?

Well, every now and then, yeah. Yeah, that's fine. I'd rather just get what I want, you know. Here you go.

Grant, what about you?

My wife and I discussed what do we need versus what do we want this year?

Okay.

That's not fun.

I know.

That is not.

But I got a new vacuum because it's my job to vacuum in the house. And I love this vacuum. It's really great because we live in a townhomes, we have a lot of stairs.

So I got a vacuum that's really easy to bring up and down stairs. And it's a plug in vacuum because we have cats. And so those like stick vacuums just don't do the job when it comes to pet hair. So I'm very happy.

I've already used it. It's. It's wonderful. I have bought things off script for my wife because we said we weren't going to get each other anything.

I already know she's Gotten me something different. So I'm, I had to get her something as well. So I got her a nice set of earrings that hopefully she likes.

Are they pearl?

Hopefully she likes. I see. I don't like playing that game.

Are they pearl?

Well, no, they're not. I, I, I say hopefully, and I'm, I'm hoping now that we've been married for quite a few years that I've kind of figured out what she wants.

So we'll see. I mean, I, I am taking a big risk here. I am taking a big risk.

So, yeah, when she looks at you and you got those eyes when she opens it and she's like, oh, it's great, and then you can tell that she don't like it, then you're gonna feel not so great.

Well, I kept the receipt, so if I need to take it back, it's fine.

Okay, fair enough. Fair enough.

That's a good call. But I don't know. I think I just, I just fundamentally disagree with jt. Like, I don't. Gifts to me are not about getting a thing or giving a thing.

It's, like, just about thinking of people and being thought of, even if it's something that, like, you don't love. Which, as I said, my husband and I did Christmas on the 15th or whatever, because that's, like, when we could.

And he got me a incredible hair dryer that he actually contacted our, like, Kraken broadcast stylist about, because I was complaining. And I, I've been continually complaining that my hair dryer sucks because I've had it since I was literally 12 years old.

But I just, just, I don't know, I just didn't want to spend money on it. I don't really care about hair. I don't really know anything about hair. I was like, whatever.

But it would, I would have to have it on so hot to dry my hair that I would be, like, sweating, and it would make my hair frizzy by the end because it was so hot, and it would take forever because it was just so old. So he literally bought me like this. It's not a Dyson hair dryer, because I actually don't like those.

And I don't let our hairstylists use that one because the frequency of the sound it makes, like, literally gives me tinnitus because I'm, I have hearing damage despite being young because of our profession and going to so many concerts, I'm sure since I was young. But anyway, he got me an incredible hair dryer that I did not ask for that. I honestly didn't even realize that I needed.

Despite my continued complaining.

Well, that's the thoughtfulness of it. I think that really hits the nail on the head of.

Yeah, it's something you wouldn't buy for yourself, and you've already shown that, you know, since 12 years old, you're not going to buy this for yourself. So the fact that he bought that for you is very nice.

Yeah.

I also. I love it so much that I texted Allison and I was like, hey, do you have a hair dryer that you love? And she was like, no. Why?

I was like, well, I have one for you. And I was like, I need to get the link and send it to her, so I'll have to check in with her if she ends up ordering. Ordering it. But, yeah, it's.

It's excellent. And I'm very.

I disagree.

You got.

You guys go have fun looking for gifts. Okay.

You know what else my husband got me for Christmas, which is sitting right in front of JT and I right now. Jt, you want to explain what. What this is?

It's a rechargeable hand warmer. It also. You can, like, charge your phone with it, too. Yeah, I use those all the time because it's cold in ranks, and I think I. I helped on that one.

Yeah.

JT actually sent my husband the link to these hand warmers that I've known that you've had, and I think Allison maybe has.

Allison has a set as well.

And ironically, I'm the person who lives at ice level who is most exposed to the cold.

It gets cold. So, hey, it's a smart thing to have. I don't have to throw away the. I don't know, just, like, the normal ones.

Packets.

Yeah, whatever. Yeah, yeah, the sand. Well, you know what? You guys are much better than me. Okay. How about that?

No, it's not that. Definitely not that. But, I mean, I will say that one of my gifts was a JT Brown special.

And as the morning that we were recording, this is just before the Colorado game and my dreaded Colorado wind tunnel. So I gotta charge these puppies when we were done recording.

Hey, well, you guys are in my hometown, so I gotta ask, you know, now that you're there, I don't know if you have any time or anything like that. Is there a place that you guys go out and is there, like, a restaurant that you love while you're in Colorado or anything like that?

Grant, unfortunately, JT and I are both like, the two people on the entire travel party that literally don't go anywhere.

Or leave our rooms ever.

And we both like to get off the plane, order doordash and pretty much.

Yep.

Okay, well I'm gonna start giving you recommendations for restaurants you can doordash that are a little better than I went.

To snarfs one time are one of our great videographers, Marcus Allen, producers. He is from Denver too and so he has always recommended snarfs. It's like sandwiches. I've had that.

I do want to throw out one thing I do for the stocking. I get things like that I know she likes or would need or use. So that is, that's kind of, I mean it's not a present, but it's also the stocking.

I gotta get all the little things.

It is, it is a present. If you're getting somebody something that you thought of, that's a present.

I don't get a list of things that I'd need to put in her stocking. Now do I put the same thing in the stocking almost every year? Yes.

But she likes them.

Yes. So I, I, I at least that part. So I don't get get all this hate on social media.

If that's what works for you, then you're not doing anything wrong.

I already know what's coming my way. I am going to turn off notifications on my phone.

I think it's also just surprising because I know how thoughtful you can be. You bring me two little orange star. Star. Not Star Wars. Starbursts. Starbursts. I Don't underestimate yourself. Don't sell yourself short, jt.

Maybe next year.

Maybe next year. I'm excited too because this is going to be the first holiday that I get to spend with my family of any kind.

I'm booking you on a red eye flight from Denver to North Carolina. So me and Forsland are taking a a red eye after the Denver game.

So anyway, on that note, on all of these festive conversations, we've got a couple of interviews with the Kraken players.

For all of you, it's a variety and a mashup of the guys talking about different family traditions around the holidays and just kind of what a holiday was like for them growing up. So again, we want to wish you guys all very happy holiday season.

Thank you so much for, you know, engaging with the crack and hockey community, listening to Signals from the deep and tuning in to every crack and hockey network broadcast. So we appreciate you all and wish you nothing but the best.

Hey, and before we go, if you want to give us a Christmas gift or just a holiday gift, feel free to leave us a five star review. You know, on Apple podcasts, you could write us a little note. You could chirp JT if you want, you could roast me if you want.

Chestnuts roasted by an open fire, you know, whatever. But on that note, enjoy a little holiday cheer from your favorite Kraken players and we will see on the next episode of Signals from the Deep.

I always go down there for Christmas time. Just we don't have a lot of time over Christmas to go back home, especially on the east coast. So spending time with them over Christmas is great.

And I usually see them for a.

Couple days before the season starts.

Christmas probably being the biggest one. Presents and putting cookies out and carrots out, all the above. It's just, yeah, it's still now we're, you know, using it with our family.

Yeah, it's exciting. Exciting to be on the other end of the Christmas as opposed to being a kid on Christmas.

It was huge. Our family are pretty big on both sides, so the parties and the holidays were a lot of fun.

A lot of family member and just try to be there for one another and love those family gathering whenever convenient. We try to have, have Will or Maddie over so they, they feel like they have people for them too.

So I mean, obviously a big family, so a lot of food.

My parents always try to make a, make an event out of the holidays and family and friends over and try to make it as normal as possible nowadays when everyone's in town because you don't get many opportunities to do it.

So it's cool.

Oh, they're always fun. You know, Christmas is probably the biggest one for us. Just getting together with, with family and friends was, was the biggest thing as a kid.

And you know, you're busy with sports and school, so when you get time to kind of just relax and be around, you know, your family and your friends, that's, that's the biggest thing.

Obviously, you know, you get little gifts and things, but just, just having that time together, you know, means the world and you always, as you get older, you always look back to those certain times where, you know, little things make you laugh or certain things that happened. And then as you get older you start losing different, you know, pieces of your family because people get older.

So then you have those memories to look back on.

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 J.T. brown. Music composed by Benny Dravars, production by Grant Beery. Have a question for the show?