Team GG at Wish Cup: Inside the Wish Cup, Creator Culture, and Growing the Game

SPEAKER_03 0:07

Hello, hockey friends and families around the world, and welcome back to another edition of Our Kids Play Hockey. Now, if you're watching this, you'll notice I have a whole team in front of me today. This is again a special edition version of Our Kids Play Hockey or Our Friends Play Hockey here today. I'm here with Team GG, who is now live with us from the Wish Cup in Nashville, Tennessee. And we're gonna be talking about not just the Wish Cup today, but this team, what makes it so special, why they're all there supporting this event, maybe some tips about being a great team in an event, right? We're always talking about youth hockey here. Truth is this when you travel with your friends to an event, it's all kind of youth hockey at the end of the day because you turn into a kid for most of the events. The beverages may change, but the fun is still the same. So to start this again, I usually give a nice big intro for each person, but I'm staring at five different people today. So I'm gonna allow them to pass the mic around, say who they are. There's some very memorable names here that you will know. If you watch the wraparound round table around the holiday time, you have seen some of these folks here. But let's go around the horn gang. Introduce yourselves to the audience, and we'll dive into the episode.

SPEAKER_01 1:09

What's going on, guys? I'm Kazzy. Uh Danny or DB6C Media. What's up? I'm Hensie. How's it going?

SPEAKER_03 1:20

I'm Keegan Olivera.

SPEAKER_00 1:22

What's up? I'm Zach or Zachary Hockey.

SPEAKER_03 1:25

There you go. It sounds like we're doing the opening NFL lineup, you know, for something. You just forgot to say your colleges and uh put the cards there. But uh guys, no, look, thanks so much for being here today. Um, you know, I want to start with this tournament weeks, tournament weekends can create memories for kids forever, right? Like when you think about when you're growing up, you might have a championship here or there in your head, but some of those tournaments and those locker rooms and the hotels that make it crazy. What do you think makes the best hockey tournaments and what why are they so important for team culture and friendships?

SPEAKER_05 1:55

Yeah, so I think the tournament itself and being able to play with guys is is a great time. The games itself are so much fun. But for me, the most cherished part and the most memories I make is outside of the rink. The stuff we're doing here at our Airbnb or if we're out getting food. So the memories we make outside of the rink are just as good as the ones we make uh during the games at this tournament.

SPEAKER_03 2:19

No, I love that, man. It's so true because at the end of the day, and we tell kids this all the time, it's tough to know when you're in the middle of it. We play for quote unquote championships, we play for the big moments, but at the end of the day, it really is the journey that is the reward. And I think the older you get, the more you start to realize that. Um, if I ever ask a question, anybody else wants to answer, just make sure you put your hand up so I know not to jump to the next question. But I am gonna jump to the next question here, which is uh every one of you has a strong following online. Uh, some of you have many, many, many followers and people that love what you do. But it's also important to get out there into the real world, right? Which is one of the things I love about this. You know, I think uh as creators, as influencers, whatever word you want to use there, as as artists, as hockey players, um, the online audience is one thing. We've spoken a lot about that when we had you on other episodes, but it's so important to get out there and see people. Now, not only are you seeing each other, but there's a lot of people that come to this tournament. So tell me about A, what it's like to be with each other in in person and not just, you know, in each other's DMs. And tell me about the people that you meet at this event and how exciting that is.

SPEAKER_02 3:31

Yeah, I mean, I think that's one of the coolest parts is like, you know, when we're at home creating content, posting online, interacting with fans in the comments and whatnot. It's one thing. But then actually getting out there and having hundreds of people come up to you and they know who you are and they watch the videos and they're, you know, telling you what video is their favorite. And it's like, you're able to actually see it and make a true connection when you're there face to face, taking photos, whatnot. So I think that's one of the coolest parts. And then getting out here with all of these guys, like, yeah, like you said, I mean, we're in each other's DMs, I mean, talking decently often, but then actually getting to talk in person, it's just a whole different, different level of connection when you're face to face.

SPEAKER_03 4:07

No, I love it. It's funny too. In hosting this podcast, we've had a lot of big names on the show. Um, and it's funny because A, when you meet them in real life, you kind of know each other, but you've actually never met. That's one of the fourth wall breaks in modern society uh that happens right now. But the other thing too is that you know, when you are online or you are on a screen and people can see you, I always uh equate it to when I was growing up, like the nightly news, right? Where the anchors are in your home, in your dining room, in your living room every night, and you're with them, but they don't see you. So it's always amazing when someone comes up to you, and this happens to me in rinks every weekend during the season of you're the podcast guy, or you know, you're the guy who did this thing, and you're the wraparound guy. And it's I always kind of slow it down and go, Yeah, hey, what's your name? Right, right? Because I might not know who you are, but I love it when people come up to us and tell us about uh a video or an episode or a moment that really spoke to them. Uh, and I think it's just great that you guys are out there. You know, one other thing I'll say too, guys, is that um it seems like a long time ago, but you know, in 2020 the whole world shut down, all the rings shut down. Um, and and this kind of became the only way we could communicate for a time being. I think people got used to that. And I think we're in a time now where we're out again and we're seeing people again. And especially over the last couple years, maybe three years, I've really felt that connection, right? Now, you all have humble beginnings with your channels, okay? And again, we've talked a lot about these on online. You can go back and watch those episodes. But kind of staying on this theme of meeting people, can you tell me about a moment, any one of you, where a fan has come up to you in person and said something to you that maybe stopped you in your tracks a little bit, uh, or or maybe just made you think, man, this is the greatest thing in the world that I get to do.

SPEAKER_05 5:54

I got one. Yeah, so I got a pretty good one. So I do commentary videos about the Chicago Blackhawks, Gohawks. And I went to college at the University of Nebraska, Lincoln, go big ride. And it was there at Nebraska where I was the play-by-play broadcaster for the school's club hockey team. And so it was my last broadcast of my senior year. We were broadcasting at the icebox, home of the Lincoln stars. And right as the broadcast finished up, mind you, this is in Lincoln, Nebraska, a high school kid comes up to me and says, Hey Keegan, I'm a big fan of your channel. I love all that you do. And it just absolutely blew me away. I'm here working towards my goal of being a broadcaster. And I have this kid coming up to me saying, Hey, I love your stuff in Nebraska. And I'm a I'm a Chicago-based page. So seeing how widespread that my content has reached to come all the way to Nebraska where I am, is just so special and honestly an experience I'll never forget.

SPEAKER_03 6:52

I love that, brother. Can we all agree you have a great broadcasting voice? I think we're all like lines, brother. Are you gonna be doing play by play on the bench? Are you one of those guys right there?

SPEAKER_05 7:01

Well, I'm actually gonna do play by play while I'm out there on the ring.

SPEAKER_03 7:05

Yeah. See, that's a real talent, right? I I've always said I got a really good friend who does uh live play-by-play of sports games that he's playing online, and I think he's actually better than real broadcasters. So never never stop doing that. But here's the other thing, I love that story. I was actually just at Fifth Thirds Arena in Chicago um a few weeks ago with uh the national team that I coach, and the Blackhawks were just first class uh along the way. And for those of you who don't know, out in Chicago land, they just doubled the size of that arena uh where the Blackhawks practice. So not to stray away too much, but uh even though I'm a Philadelphia fan and I will never forgive you for 2010, um, I will say that they've done a really good job as an organization for doing that. So, so fantastic with that, man. And um, yeah, anybody else have another moment? I want to I do want to share these guys because I think I think this is part of the stuff that people don't see enough, right? And I do love that that someone in Nebraska, and while you're passing the mic around, I'll let I'll let everybody know. Just last night, I was in a call with somebody from South Africa who used our products and listens to our podcast, and I'm just listening there, listening to them talk. And I told them, I said, I I'm just amazed because on this call we had people from literally South Africa, Europe, East Coast, West Coast, and Canada. And I said to the the everyone there, I said, We have the entire awoken world on this call right now. Like the only people who aren't here are asleep because it's the middle of the night. I said, There's three continents on this call, so it's amazing the reach. And when you're at home or you're doing things like this, you don't always feel that, right? But when you meet these people, it's like, man, wow, we're we're making an impact. Go ahead, Casi.

SPEAKER_02 8:40

Yeah, yeah. So I mean, I've definitely got a couple, but one that came to mind was I think this was last year's Wish Cup, and it might have even been the year before, but um a lot of people have told me that they've started hockey because of seeing my journey of learning hockey. So there was one of one of these tournaments, someone had come up to me and basically told me that I was the reason that they were at this tournament. It's because they had also picked up hockey, you know, a year ago after seeing my stuff, and now here we are both traveling across the country to play in uh you know a roller tournament. So that was pretty cool.

SPEAKER_03 9:11

Yeah, that there's nothing quite as humbling as that. Um, you know, I'll tell you guys one quick story, then I want to talk about Team GG and how this came together because as you said, not the first year, this team has existed. Um, we had a uh a collegiate player on, plays for a very big name university, and she told me that the hockey wraparound, which is again, you know, I don't talk about it a lot on the show, but that's a company that we run, was how she started playing, and that she used that to train to get to her university. And I just sat there and I said, We created this for you. Like that's exactly the dream we had that one day someone's gonna train and get to college because they they this was part of it, right? And obviously it's a little more than just a tool, but that wow, they this has been there your whole journey. And then the amount of people that come to me and say, Oh yeah, I use that thing, like it's just the kind of like uh it was a tool I used, right? Uh it's humbling when when you feel that impact. And Kazi to you too, and it's I'm sure it's all of you when someone finds a spark in love for the game because of something you've done, and I think all of us in the game have that person, right? Uh, you know, we didn't just we weren't just born as much as the cartoons want us to think, plop out and go, I'm a center, right? It it's you find the game, and I think that that's one of the best parts of the game is where the love is cultivated. Now, I do want to say you mentioned the team, you've been around for a few years. How did this team come together? Uh, you know, what year are you? Is this year three that you guys are going to be together? Right? It is, yeah. Right. And and tell me like how to come together, why are you together, and then what are your expectations for the week here?

SPEAKER_02 10:44

Yeah, I mean, so I think it initially started as kind of how going back to talking about being in each other's DMs and not really ever seeing each other face to face, but just collaborating and and all kind of having the same goal of creating hockey content and trying to actually make something out of it rather than just making it, you know, a side thing. Um but uh yeah, you know, it started as a way to bring creators who are all on the come up and all creating content together to be able to collaborate and and network and and uh you know be able to talk about content in a way that you know our friends who are making content don't necessarily care to talk about.

SPEAKER_03 11:22

It's a really great answer. It it reminds me too uh years ago, probably 2018 or 19, I was in Minnesota for the Let's Play Hockey Expo, which is one of the largest expos in the country, and we had a creator game, and every big name of the time, every one of them was there. And I remember we all got on the ice and you kind of realize quickly, we have no idea who's actually played hockey, who's just you know coaching hockey, like no idea where we're all at. And it was just funny because it was such a tentative game for a couple minutes, and then we started talking and it got super relaxed super quick, right? And at the end of the day, guys, it's your point. We're all just hockey players, right? But the connection of being on the ice or you know, on the tile or on the street at this point, right, for you guys, changed the whole dynamic of wow, we're people and we we got to meet each other and we get to create together and have fun. And there was some really great videos that came out of those sessions, uh, but I didn't realize the importance, like you just said, of kind of doing that. It's the game that binds us, and it's the game that should be at the forefront of those connections, right? Now, talking about Wish Cup, right? Pretty unique tournament, been around for a few years. What do you love about Wish Cup that you wish other tournaments maybe would bring in?

SPEAKER_06 12:39

Uh, I would say obviously you have the cause for Wish. A lot of people don't know Wish Cup is under make a wish, which sounds a little crazy, like saying it like this, but um, I definitely think more people should know that. And then I really think because I've been there, how many years have you guys been there now? Three? I I mean I would say it's pretty safe to say that Wish feels more, at least to me, like a family tournament rather than just show up, here's the fee, and play your games, right? You know, so and they've really fostered that with all the all-star stuff. Um, but Colby does a very, very good job, especially with the youth teams, keeping a lot of them together and just the events and everything they do outside of the rink. So I've never seen any other tournament really do that. They just run their games and then they let they let it be that. But that's why I think Wish is pretty special.

SPEAKER_03 13:42

That's a great answer, man. I'll say too that I think it really feels like that. For those of you who haven't seen Wish Cup Online, you can find a plethora of uh of content from the last few years of this running online. But I like that you said it's that family atmosphere, because that really does come across uh, I think in the visuals that we see, right? A lot of smiles, um, a lot of what you just said too, that you know there's clearly a cause behind this. It's it's a little bit bigger than just the game, uh, which is exciting. Now, with that said, though, ton of fun, but you're all out, you're all competitors, right? When we see this, right? I know we're having fun out there, but like any tournament, at some point, the competition is the competition. So, how do you balance between the hey, let's go out there and have fun, which has to be part of it, and let's go win a game, right? Let's go get a goal, let's go get in this thing. Um, is it purely fun the whole time? Is there competitiveness? Are some of you on that? Some of you off that? Where does that play into the whole thing? I gotta laugh there, so I this gonna be a good answer.

SPEAKER_01 14:43

I I mean, for me, obviously, before we start playing games, it's all it's all fun and games, but then once we start playing, it's it's I get competitive. Um we're here to win, right?

SPEAKER_00 14:54

Yeah. I mean, the other thing for me is like I grew up playing competitive hockey my whole you know life, and coming out of this, like the atmosphere outside of the rink is just all fun and games, but then once the games start, it's just a complete like switch. I mean, obviously we're we're having a good time playing, but we all want to win. And last year we made it pretty far as well, like getting to the what is it, the semifinals. And uh we're hoping to do that again this year, honestly.

SPEAKER_02 15:23

So yeah, I couldn't care less if we win or lose, to be honest. I'm just out there, I'm just out there for the vibes, having a good time. I think it's uh the skill-wise oftentimes is a little over my play, my level. Um, so for me, it's all about enjoyment and just not getting smacked. As long as we don't get absolutely worked, I'm having a good time.

SPEAKER_03 15:45

Yeah, I think too, guys, that one of the big mistaken aspects of the game is there's a difference between being competitive and competing, right? And not, not neither one of them is right or wrong. Like they're both different aspects of the game. But one of the things we talk to a lot about youth athletes is that competing is hard, it is fun, excuse me, right? Competing is what makes this game fun. That's part of the vibes for me. And Kaize, that doesn't take away from what you said, right? Like, I'm sure you're not just going out there and you know, controller disconnected and be like, this is fun, right? You're playing, right? You're out there trying to do the best you can. Uh, and I think one of the things that that I love about the game, especially events like this, uh, and and Kaizi, not directly speaking about you, you here, you'll see why I said that in a minute, but no matter the talent level, it's like everyone is welcome, everyone is able to play. Um, and that's one of the cool things I've always thought about hockey is that you know, depending on the environment, like if you're playing for a national championship, that's one thing. But you know, if you're playing in a tournament like this that's based around a cause or an open hockey or an open skate, people tend to help each other. They tend to want to get each other to a better place. And uh using the word vibe, cause like that's one of the things that I love about this game. Like it will never falter that when I go to an ice session or an outdoor session, someone's helping somebody else, right? And and someone's teaching somebody something else. And I will learn from a 12-year-old as much as I'll learn from a 60-year-old out there. I don't care. If someone's got something that they can do that I can, I I want to learn it. I like I always joke. I didn't learn in Michigan until I was in my late 30s. Now, to be fair, the move didn't really exactly exist on a prominent level until I was that age. I won't tell you my age now. But the kids were doing it. I went up to a kid, I said, Hey, show me how you do that. And the kid goes, You want me to show you how to do this? I said, Yeah. He's like, Aren't you? I said, Don't worry about any of that. I said, show me how you do that. And he taught me. He taught me how to do it. That connection can't be replicated uh fully online. I'll say that because I don't want to discount people who teach online at all. All right. Um next question for you guys. There's a gigantic, for those of you not watching, puck around and find out flag. Uh, we didn't hide this in the beginning. Uh, you know, hockey rapper, I'm proud to support your team. You all have the hats on right now as well. Um, I want you to talk about two things here. One is that why partnerships are important for tournaments like this, right? Not just the money coming into support, right? It's more about the connection and maybe why that brand works for this. And then also when it comes to the tournament as a whole, how we're together going to try and raise money for this cause.

SPEAKER_01 18:20

I just to that point, I I think it's a like a symbiotic relationship where both parties are elevated by working together. Obviously, uh, you can get a lot more done working together. Um, and obviously, we're working together for this cause, for this tournament. Um, it's allowed us to be out here all together and with all the benefits that come with working, you know, in in person and being here.

SPEAKER_06 18:50

I also think uh it's definitely important, you know, who you're partnering with and what they stand for. So, like at Wish, for example, um, if you've never heard of buttery roller hockey, I'm sure you have, they do non-profit work in Florida, which you know, that sort of the morals that they have that lines up perfectly with Wish. So I I I don't see how that could be you know a bad partnership.

SPEAKER_04 19:19

Right.

SPEAKER_02 19:19

Pretty cool again to be with a company that not only do we believe in the product and think it's you know something that we would personally use, but we believe in the mission that that you're you know, that you believe in as well.

SPEAKER_03 19:30

So here's the cool thing about these partnership guys, and and you talked about the symbiotic relationship. Um, anytime you have a brand or a mission, whether it's wraparound or making the game more accessible, you've got to amplify that message, right? And what we've always believed, and this is true of the podcast, our kids play hockey, wraparound, anything that we do, is that that's a team too, right? As loud and as as big as our brand is, you guys have all shown us that the way you spread the message and you amplified the message and you broadcast that message is exactly on the same vibes as that we like to, right? And I love how this has grown, that we've had most of you on individually. We got to know you, we got to understand why we love the game. That's how it built. And now we're amplifying this cause together to both grow the game, create something for a great cause, and then again, get these tools out there for people to train. And like you said too, right? Like people might not know if they don't see it for the first time, right? So um I love that. I appreciate you guys spending a couple minutes on that with me. Uh, and yes, for those of you at home watching for the first time, puck around and find out is our catchphrase for the uh the puck. It's been well accepted. We market tested that with a lot of parents before we did it, and every one of them was okay with it. So thank you all out there for doing that. All right, guys, a couple more questions for you. Um, one of the things we talk about, one of the myths that I'm gonna come out right away and say I don't agree with is that inline or roller hockey ruins your ice hockey stride, your ice hockey game. I think that's one of the most ridiculous claims. I don't know where that claim came from. Um, I would like to know what you guys think about roller to ice or inline to ice. Uh obviously different sports, I will admit that, right? They're not exactly the same. The stride in inline is a little different than the stride on ice. Okay, like any two sports, there's small differences. But I know a lot of guys whose hands were born on the street. I know a lot of guys whose hockey IQ was born on the driveway. What are your biggest, you know, comparisons between the two? Do you prefer one over the other? We can go around the horn on this one. I'm sure you've all got something to say.

SPEAKER_06 21:38

Yeah, so I played ice my whole life, so I thought exactly what you just described that roll, you know, roller was just its own little thing I did not want anything to do with. Um But once I got into it, you re you like you realized really quickly it is so offensive. I mean I don't think anyone here likes playing defense at all.

SPEAKER_03 22:03

They don't like it or they don't do it. There's a difference there.

SPEAKER_06 22:07

Yeah. Um, so you just naturally start working on your hands more and more, and then you know, you start seeing clips of like Bodard and Patrick Maroon and Ernie, and we just had Forsberg in the all-star game.

SPEAKER_03 22:23

Yeah. All really small names, by the way. That's that's the all NHL superstars right there.

SPEAKER_06 22:30

Actually, uh back in Pittsburgh, uh Logan Coley, who I'm sure you're familiar with, he played a ton of roller growing up with his brothers um around where I live. And I think his hands are doing just fine in the NHL. So I think there's a real benefit, and it definitely teaches you to be more offensive-minded. Um, defensively, you know, we could probably skip that part. Um, but offensively, I think it gives you the freedom and allows you to be, you know, in that creative space. And if you want to carry that over to ice, you can, but regardless, I think your hands are gonna get a lot, lot quicker.

SPEAKER_03 23:15

Yeah. Goaltenders listening, cover your ears, by the way. This is uh yeah, go ahead, buddy. Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 23:21

Yeah. Oh, to that point, I I've been playing hockey since I was four years old, and I've never played roller growing up. I started playing roller once I started doing Wish with Team GG. Um, I think the biggest thing is that that the stride is different, right? It works different muscle groups, and I can definitely feel that when I'm when I'm out here. Um, I think the biggest adjustment also is that there's no offsides in roller. There's a different, there's a different strategy to it. Um, like with yeah, I mean, it's it's very different from on ice in terms of team strategy, and that that's a huge adjustment for me. But also to Hinsey's point, it it helps with your hockey IQ, it helps with creating plays and and down that avenue.

SPEAKER_02 24:08

Yeah, for me personally, I started learning roller before I started learning ice. It for me it was it was a matter of accessibility, and that's why I like roller so much, is because you don't need anything but your skates and your stick and a puck. You know, like you can go out anywhere, and that's how it started for me was just in the street and then eventually an ODR, and and now it's transitioned into some ice hockey as well. But they definitely are very different yet very similar. Um, and there's a lot of small things that are that are different about it. But it's hard to pick one over the other at this point, to be honest. I feel like there is there's parts I like about roller hockey a lot more. I do like that my hands are a bit faster. I I do actually like the the skating element of roller more than ice, except when it comes to stops.

SPEAKER_03 24:51

I'll tell you a quick story before we continue here. I was playing roller my first year, uh having some success, right? It was doing really well out there, and I remember a play got close to the net. Uh I'd been playing ice at 30 years at this point almost, and uh I went to do a hockey stop just instinctively uh on the tile, and I just flew across into the boards. Uh, but you know, I learned a valuable lesson. Uh just don't do that, right? I just figured that out. You guys can keep going.

SPEAKER_05 25:19

Sorry, I gotta go after that story. I have I have a similar experience. So I grew up playing hockey, kind of similar to Danny. I played ice all my life, and I wasn't introduced to roller hockey until I got introduced to Team GG. Well, the biggest difference for me at least was the surface. I had never played on tiles. I didn't even know there was different types of wheels that you needed to play on the tiles. And so my first time ever, ever playing on the tiles, I was going to make a play in the corner, and the way I was turning the wheels and the tile did not align correctly. I wasn't used to the texture of it, and I went face first right into the dasher. Yeah, and my tooth went through my lip. Kind of like a little hole through my lip. I didn't even notice it at first. I just was trying to, you know, kind of gain my consciousness back like what just happened. And yeah, it was a pretty funny rude awakening to roller hockey, but uh yeah, quite quite the difference in um tile and ice for sure.

SPEAKER_03 26:17

Yeah, you and uh mankind in the Hell in a Cell match from the late 90s have a tooth go through the top of your face. That's uh pretty prized, Undertaker for those of you my age know what I'm talking about. But uh yeah, dude, you got your battle scars on that one for sure.

SPEAKER_05 26:30

I look I learned to you know get rid of the visor, go with the bubble for now on.

SPEAKER_03 26:36

All right, talk to me, brother. This one's gonna be good. You're you're taking those.

SPEAKER_00 26:40

Yeah, I mean, I'm the goalie here, so I think the transition from ice to roller is definitely a little more extreme when it comes to sliding or whatever, but like Kaz said, is going back to the accessibility with it. It's like you can go out to you know a local ODR and just get your reps in as so much more than you can go into ice and finding ice time. And so I think that's honestly the the biggest like difference that I love about it. Yeah is that you literally can you know wake up, just go skate all day and get your reps in and then you know just keep training and eventually you're gonna be better than you were if you would have just you know not gone to the rink or whatever. So I think just having the accessibility is the the best uh part of roller.

SPEAKER_03 27:28

Yeah, well, and and you said it too that you there's it's like a no excuses mentality. I think people that that don't do street or roller or deck or just say hockey off the ice, you're missing out. Uh not just because it's fun, but because there's only so much ice time in the world. And I think anyone that's serious about pursuing the game, however you want to pursue it, whether it's a player, creator, coach, whatever, you've got to find ways to get reps in and do what you can do, right? And uh last time I checked, the outside is always there. If it's not, no one's playing. So it doesn't really matter at the end of the day, right? It's an equal playing field, literally and figuratively, on that one. Um, guys, I do want to make sure we we shout out to you that if I'm not mistaken, you have gone to every ODR in Colorado, correct?

SPEAKER_02 28:11

On the street level, you've visited every yeah, and actually Zach was with me on that video for both parts of that. So Zach has as well, right?

SPEAKER_03 28:18

So you've put the work in as well. Uh yeah, I I do have to ask, top three favorite aspects of what makes a great outdoor ODR for the for the street, the tile, whatever you want to say.

SPEAKER_02 28:30

Yeah, definitely. I mean, I think the the highest ones that we ranked were the ones that did have tiles, which was very rare. Um, I think playing on a tile surface is just superior to playing on a concrete surface. Um, and even after that, if you're if you are going with the the concrete, it comes down to how many cracks are they? How do they do the concrete? Some of them are straight, one layer of concrete, whereas others are more like a sidewalk where there's those massive man-made cracks every three feet, and those are the worst for stick handling. Um, after that, I think it comes down to the nets. Are they standing upright? That's a big bonus with nets. Yeah, bare minimum with nets. We definitely saw a few that were in pieces and and not upright. Um, any any final? What's what's number three?

SPEAKER_00 29:19

I think honestly, like the nets is huge, but also like having high enough glass behind the nets for me is a big one because like I I'm a goalie, so I suck at shooting the puck, and I'm just soaring them over the glass all the time. So I think that's gotta be the other big one for me.

SPEAKER_03 29:39

Yeah, you know, funny story for you guys about that, you know, when we we obviously test all the products we invent, uh, and we have to go outside to do that with almost every wraparound product, and we learn very quickly with the puck round, which is again the same weight as a puck. Uh, if that there's a highway or a street nearby behind the net, and we hit that post, uh, we could get in a lot of trouble if we're not careful. So we we've had to learn how to how to kind of pick and choose our places with that because we don't want a puck to end up in someone's windshield. As cool of a story as that would be for them. Uh we don't want that to happen because we'd end up having to pay for that. I'll tell you guys this too. One of the things you mentioned too is about how the rules are different uh in roller and in line. Uh technically, or typically it's four on four, no offsides, a little bit of a smaller rank sometimes, sometimes it's not, right? Um we're seeing this a lot in hockey now, different aspects of the game growing where I've seen three-on-three hockey taking its place in the world, was just at a tournament in Argentina. Very different rules, right? No blue lines, there's a thing called the retreat line. Every penalty is a penalty shot. If you score from behind the red line, this is on ice, counts as two goals. Uh, and they're building these rinks in a lot of major cities around Europe and the world and South America because it's a lot easier to fit a small rink inside an urban or city environment. So I want to talk to you guys, I'm just bringing that up as an example, about how the game continues to grow, especially in a world where traditional five-on-five ice hockey uh is becoming, uh, dare I say it, too expensive, all right, for everybody. We are pricing people out of the game. So, last question before we get to some rapid fire is how important is it to experience hockey in other ways than the ice, including roller, including inline, including things like the Wish Cup, including like three-on-three, to continue to grow the game. And how are we gonna push forward as as hockey people to make sure that people are getting into the game every single year?

SPEAKER_06 31:29

The the thing with ice is ice is tough because obviously what you just said, the cost, right? So, really, if I'm looking at like a message I want to push to kind of push the game, I'm really gonna go with roller every single time now. And like we said earlier, I think the the culture, even though they're very, very similar, the culture of roller is way more inviting. Ice to me is more structurally organized. So it can to a kid, like it might be a little, I don't know if intimidate like intimidating would be the right word, but it's just not as open, you know, welcoming. Um I don't know. Like, how how how do you keep pushing ice?

SPEAKER_03 32:17

I mean, I think to like just talk about like boys, just pushing hockey. I'm not necessarily just saying ice. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 32:22

Right. I think I think the thing about roller that I like is it it does feel like it's more built around fun. And you mentioned these other these other like variations of hockey that that sound like they're just built to make it interesting, to make it fun and to make it different. Um, you know, especially if you've been grinding competitive ice hockey your entire life. Like roller hockey is typically a more chill environment and again allows you to kind of you know try and try some fancier deks or do some you know crazy moves, and like you're not as punished for for doing that. So I think it just opens up to a lot more creativity and just being able to embrace the fun side of the game, not necessarily always the super try-hard competitiveness. Love that.

SPEAKER_01 33:05

I think one one other thing is hockey, just in general, with the way it's set up, will always be quote unquote inherently hard to access. Like if you compare it to other sports like football or basketball, like you throw on your cleats, throw on your gym shoes, get a ball, you can go out to any field, even with soccer, you know, it's very accessible. And I think that's the the hurdle that I think hockey in general, whether it's on ice or even roller, has to overcome, building more uh roller ranks or making ice hockey more accessible. Or I think you you look at like these even other countries like Norway just won their first ever double IHF uh medal, right? And it's it's all about getting hockey sticks in kids' hands, like whether it's street hockey with like a wraparound, just making sure that they have a way to access the sport in any capacity.

SPEAKER_03 33:54

No, I love those answers, guys. And and you're right, there's an accessibility issue that I think all of us are trying to combat and work on. And uh you said it, it's important is getting sticks in kids' hands wherever they're choosing to play and making sure that they have the ability to continue in the sport. Now, if you're listening to the show, there's a 99.9% chance you have a kid who plays hockey. What I hope we accomplished with this last question is just getting you to think a little outside the box about that ice is not the only thing in the world, right? You know, question I always give it's a it's an open then a question to our audience is how many of your kids have inline skates or rollerblades, and how many of you just let them go outside on the driveway and play with no structure, nobody telling them what to do, no drills, just let them go out there and play the game. And if they have a friend down the street, then you get the competitiveness. That's how I started, right? Again, ice hockey's been my life, but I started on the street outside my house. That's how a hockey coach saw me the first time because I was just playing street hockey at that time with little plastic nets and there were no training tools at that time. It was a different, totally different era of the game. All right, guys, here's what we're gonna do to end this uh episode. I got 10 uh rapid fire questions. There's five of you. Each one is gonna have to answer twice. We're gonna pass the mic. Whoever has the mic gets to answer the question. There's no let me answer that, there's no throw it. It's gonna get a little tense here because you know, we want people to watch and listen to the episode, all right? So let's just start here, okay? Kaz, you'll start and we'll go around the room. All right. This is a perfect question for you to start with because of what you said earlier. Rapid fire, most competitive guy on Team GG.

SPEAKER_02 35:25

Oh, who is the most competitive guy? Yeah. Um, that is a good question. Honestly, it might be Danny. It might just be.

SPEAKER_03 35:34

He's he's there's agreements there. All right, pass the mic. Uh, this one's gonna be kind of different. Best locker room DJ or best taste in music? It can kind of answer either way there.

SPEAKER_01 35:44

Um I might go Keegan. I'm gonna go Keegan with this one.

SPEAKER_03 35:51

I run I run the Ox in the GG locker room. There you go. There you go.

SPEAKER_01 35:55

He's got good music, taste.

SPEAKER_03 35:56

What are you guys listening to? What's on the needle?

SPEAKER_05 36:00

No, I'm I like to be a crowd pleaser. We play some some white girl music from the early 2000s. Okay, you know, that that gets the boys going, yeah, some some fifth harmony going.

SPEAKER_03 36:10

There we go. All right, pass it on. Here we go. Uh favorite part of the weekend the games, the hotel, hanging with the team, the food. What's the best part of the weekend?