Speaker 1:
Are you ready?
Speaker 2:
Let's go.
Speaker 3:
From AMI Central.
Speaker 4:
Now circling in the neutral zone.
Speaker 5:
Here's a pitch on the way.
Speaker 6:
36 yards for the win.
Speaker 3:
This.
Speaker 7:
Here comes the big chance, the shot.
Speaker 3:
Is.
Speaker 8:
Is this the dagger?
Speaker 3:
The Neutral Zone.
Speaker 9:
Score.
Speaker 10:
Oh my god.
Speaker 11:
This is as good as it gets.
Speaker 3:
Now here's your host, two-time Paralympian Brock Richardson.
Brock Richardson:
What's going on? It's time for another edition of The Neutral Zone, I am indeed your host Brock Richardson. Coming up on today's show, we're going to release yet another one of our interviews that we did at the Canadian Paralympic Committee Summit. This time, we speak to para canoe athlete Brianna Hennessy. I also have some updates for you as to what she's been doing in the world lately, as she was at an international event recently. Plus, we're going to be chatting about hockey and what that's been like, as there are no more Canadian teams in the event. All that coming up and much, much more. You never know what happens when you enter the neutral zone, you know it, let's get into our headlines.
Speaker 12:
Neutral zone headlines.
Speaker 14:
The 2023 draft lottery order has been confirmed and our friend from the show Ryan Bennett is very pleased that the Chicago Blackhawks will pick first in this year's NHL draft, which will be held in Nashville later this year. All things are pointing to Connor Bedard of the Regina Pats in the Western Hockey League will be picked first overall in this draft.
Josh Watson:
The Para Ice Hockey National Championships will take place this weekend in Montreal, Quebec. We encourage you to go to www.parahockey.com/fr/index.html for all of the details, including results and the live feed information. I had a chance to enjoy this particular event in person when it was here in Elmira, just outside of the GTA, not too long ago, a few years ago, and I definitely encourage anyone who is local to this to go check it out. We wish everyone the best of luck this weekend.
Brock Richardson:
The Goalball National Championships recently wrapped up in Ottawa, here are the final results. Women's side, gold, Team Ontario; silver, Team Nova Scotia; bronze, Team Alberta. On the men's side, gold, BC; silver, Alberta; bronze, Ontario. We congratulate everybody on their success and wish them all the best in their future endeavours, as national championships usually signify people are going towards Team Canada.
Josh Watson:
Wheelchair Basketball Canada and CBC Sports will be providing streaming coverage of the Ottawa Invitational Basketball Tournament, coming up on May 17th to 21st. The event will involve Canada, the Netherlands, and the USA as each team prepares for this summer's IWBF World Championships, taking place in Dubai. This particular event, the Ottawa Invitational Wheelchair Basketball Tournament, will take place at the Raven's Nest at Carleton University, in beautiful Ottawa, Ontario. Good luck to all teams.
Brock Richardson:
Those are your headlines for this week. Sometimes I need a little bit of inspiration as to what we're going to talk about in the beginning of the show, and today that inspiration came from our very own Claire Buchanan, who tweeted the following, "At Edmonton Oilers, you might want to add, 'If you are able,' when you are telling people, in capital letters, to stand for the national anthem." End statement. So, my question for you guys today is, does the language used in public address announcer situations offend, bother, make you lift an eyebrow as to what terminology they may or may not use? Cameron, start with you.
Cameron Jenkins:
For me, I didn't really think about it until I actually heard it, and then I thought, man, that is a great way to show inclusivity, to show that some people are in wheelchairs as an example, and they're not able to stand. So by saying that statement, it makes them included. I think it's a great statement to have in there and I think, all over the world, if you're at a sports venue they should include that as far as if you're able to, because that just makes you feel a part of being included.
Josh Watson:
From my perspective I certainly would appreciate that consideration when making a public address statement such as that, it's relatively simple to do. It's just a matter of changing your mindset and realizing that not everyone can stand. However, I'm not a person who necessarily really takes stock of, "Oh, that particular sporting event I was told I had to stand for the national anthem." I know what I can do. Unless there's some miracle of modern medicine or some kind of miracle of something else which we won't get into on this program, I'm not going to be standing any time soon. So, for me, it just kind of rolls off my back, I don't really think about it. But there are those who do find it important to be thought of and included, and for those people I think this is a very, very easy thing to fix.
Brock Richardson:
So, for me, before any of these types of words, language was used at public address announcing situations at sporting events, or anywhere else for that matter, I never really gave it two thoughts until I heard it one day and I heard, "As you are able." And the reason I'm going to pick as you are able is because for me... for those of you that don't know, because as you're looking at my wheelchair, you're looking at it and you're kind of thinking it looks like a standard electric wheelchair.
And it is, but the as you are able point stands out to me, because as I am able, if I'm taking it for my own self, I am able to raise my chair up to about four feet to five feet, somewhere in that neighbourhood. To me, that signifies that I am standing for the national anthem or any other situation where I might be asked to stand, and that's where I see the as you are able point to be emphasized.
I've been walked up to in different circumstances where people will say to me, "Oh, I love the fact that you did that. This is your way of being able to stand and you feel included." But before that language of as you are able, I would have never thought about it. Guys, any final comments before we move on? Cameron?
Cameron Jenkins:
Yeah, no, and it's probably just the... pretty much the same words, but if you're able to is I think what I usually hear at the Argos game when I go to the Argos game, if you're able. I just think it's a great way to reach out to a community of people in wheelchairs, or if they're not able to stand, to make them feel included. There's so many things each day that we just take for granted, that the language is for able-bodied people, but we just take it as that's the way it is, and it doesn't even phase us anymore. When things do stand out like that, it's kind of a nice little hug to make me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.
Josh Watson:
And there you go. I know for myself, much like you Brock, with your raising the wheelchair, I will sit up a little straighter, and I will put my hands at my sides, and take off my ball cap if I'm wearing one at a game. That's my way of acknowledging that we're doing something important, but as Cameron mentioned, it's not something that I'm used to hearing, unfortunately, or fortunately, so it's just not something that really crosses my mind that often unless I do actually notice that they have included it.
Brock Richardson:
Well, we want everyone to be included in this program, so if you want to get ahold of us on Twitter, here's how you can do that.
Speaker 16:
And welcome back to The Neutral Zone AMI Broadcast Booth-
Speaker 18:
Play ball!
Speaker 16:
... and we are set to get this ballgame underway. The first pitch brought to you by Brock Richardson's Twitter account, at NeutralZoneBR.
Speaker 18:
Strike!
Speaker 16:
First pitch, strike. And hey, gang, why not strike up a Twitter chat with Claire Buchanan from The Neutral Zone? Find her at NeutralZoneCB. And there's a swing and a chopper out to second base right at Claire; she picks up the ball, throws it over to first base-
Speaker 18:
Out!
Speaker 16:
... for a routine out. And fans, there is nothing routine about connecting with Cam and Josh from The Neutral Zone, at NeutralZoneCamJ and at JWatson200. Now that's a winning combination! And this organ interlude is brought to you by AMI Audio on Twitter, get in touch with The Neutral Zone, type in at AMI Audio.
Brock Richardson:
Brianna recently competed at the World Canoe... Let me do that one more time. Brianna recently competed at the World Paracanoe Event in Hungary, and it happened to be one of those events that was combined between conventional canoe and para event. I recently sat down with her at the Canadian Paralympic Committee Summit and she was wonderful to sit down with, and was really raw and emotional. We would also like to congratulate her on her second-place finish at this event that I previously spoke about. Please enjoy this interview with Brianna.
Let's start here. I want to know what is your favourite pre-game snack, pre-race snack? What does Brianna like?
Brianna Hennessy:
Oh, that's a good one. Well, everyone knows that wherever I go, I bring gummy guys. I always have my sour gummies with me, so that's kind of my treat that I keep in my drawer beside me in my hotel room, I guess. It's funny because at the World Cup that just passed, there was one of my teammates that brought jujubes and a couple of my teammates and I started a jujube reward system while we were there. So, I would say candy.
Brock Richardson:
I love candy. We had you on our podcast a little while ago and one of the things I did not know was that you were a former boxing champion. Can you tell us a little bit about that?
Brianna Hennessy:
Oh my gosh. Well, my dad's cousin is Gale Kerwin and I think he was eighth in the world at one point, so I do have boxing in my family. But I got started in boxing and I fell in love with it; it was contact like my other sports. It was my first individual sport that I had ever done, and I had never put myself to that kind of challenge in my life before. I remember meeting my coach and telling him, "Oh, I ran down the rugby field with four girls on my back."
And he said, "Just wait for 30 seconds on the heavy bag." And I didn't believe him. When I started training, I had never pushed myself to those kinds of endurance points in my life, so it's a sport that I very much respect now, that takes a lot of hard work and tenacity.
Brock Richardson:
Most sports, there are transferable skills. Now, obviously, all of your other sports, you're not exactly punching people or fighting with them, but are there transferable skills that you can take from boxing to your other para-sports?
Brianna Hennessy:
That's actually a really good question, because what my coach did, it was very smart, is he tries to use physical cues when I'm kayaking that are like boxing. So, for example, when I am paddling, he'll tell me that, if I'm jabbing out too straight, which is what we don't want, he'll tell me to throw hooks instead. It kind of gets my boxing brain back into momentum and we use some of those cues from boxing to paddle and get that precision with boxing my arms when I'm kayaking.
Brock Richardson:
Family's always a big portion of what we do in our career. What has family done for you in your career that, but for family, you wouldn't be where you are?
Brianna Hennessy:
Well, I grew up with both my parents being in elite-level sports, playing national-level football for over a decade each. So, I grew up with them as my role models, them showing me that the determination, your self-discipline, and your work ethic is so very important, and in the higher intensity I guess contact sports. But my parents have been my biggest cheerleaders too, and I learned that at a very young age, that it's important in a family unit to support each other and I think that was the first sense of team that I was taught at a very young age. And maybe that's why I fell in love with team sports so much, because you rise and you fall together.
But for me, I had mentioned in a couple of my other interviews that I lost my mother quite recently. She was my rock, she was my number one fan, and she's, for me, the ultimate image of strength in everything I do in and outside of sport. Without my family there, I definitely wouldn't be where I am now. And I have a Pottle family now, and I have a rugby family now, and these are the kinds of communities that I love to try and share with anyone new that has disabilities or that's going through their traumatic event, and they haven't maybe yet connected with a new passion. There are some very welcoming and loving communities out there to connect with.
Brock Richardson:
I'm going to ask you one more tough question and then we're going to move on to the fun stuff, but family is always... they come and they go as we progress in our career, and families use the words, "I'm proud of you." Sometimes it's because we got a good mark on something we did and it's the thing to say in the moments in life where you've done something good. I feel like para sports is a different realm, and what I mean by that is that there's always that moment where you feel the support of your family, where someone puts their hand on a shoulder and says, "Brianna, I'm proud of what you've done." Do you have a moment where that really hit home for you?
Brianna Hennessy:
Yeah, I think with my dad. So, I think he had the most difficult time with accepting that I was going to have permanent disabilities after my accident. When I first started wheelchair rugby, he came to my games, but I could just tell I wasn't getting his heart and passion into it, which is what I need to keep my heart beating. And that was a very difficult time for me, because I was still trying to accept who I was too. And for me, when I came back from World Championships last year with my silver in canoe and my bronze in kayak, my dad was in the backyard, he was doing some gardening. And I came around back, I pulled out my medals, and he took them out of my hands and he started crying. We're big sucks in my family, we're super passionate and emotional. My dad's an English teacher, so everything has sentimental value. But it was the first time that I really felt like he was proud of me since my accident, so it meant everything to me, yeah.
Brock Richardson:
Cool, I love that story. So, you also played wheelchair rugby, can you tell us a little bit about how that came to be?
Brianna Hennessy:
So, that was the first para-sport that I tried. When I was at the rehab centre, the Ottawa Stingers, that was my first contact with para-sport. I used to go down and watch them play wheelchair rugby and I couldn't believe that there was this adult bumper cars game that was full pin throttle, and these guys having these massive smiles on their face, and I said, "What is this?" I didn't know much about para-sport before my accident in all honesty. It was these guys that really got me in a chair and really got me going, it was these guys that took me out of my depression, and just gave me a bit of normalcy back in my life that was no longer normal at all. I have to give my heart to my rugby boys back home, yeah.
Brock Richardson:
I think there can be a level of rugby, as you mentioned, being this crash-bang game. Do you feel, as a woman, that you have had some struggles because it can be perceived as a man's game, quote unquote? Have you had some struggles? And if so, how have you overcome that and proven, "Listen, I belong. Just because I'm a woman means nothing, I like adult bumper cars. This is fine."
Brianna Hennessy:
I think, because before my accident for me personally, I was always in contact sports, always in male-dominated sports, even when I went to the boxing gym. I remember spending the first year with nobody looking at me in the eyes and nobody even saying hi to me. And it sounds kind of crude, but hear me out; in boxing, it's like a brotherhood, and you realize that in lots of other sports you go there wanting respect, but in boxing you earn it. I play for the Tampa Generals, or Warriors, in the US and it's a team of war veterans. So, you have to understand that, at first, when I was a blonde ponytail coming on to their team I knew I'd have to prove myself, but I did have the experience with the boxers in boxing.
Most people that spar, let's say that one out of 30 will actually stick around, and the biggest form of respect I thought in boxing would have been to try and win a bout. And I remember winning my first bout and coming back to the boxing gym the next day, and I could still that there was some sort of hold back with the boys, they still weren't giving me the respect that I really wanted and that I really yearned for, and what I realized is that it was the first TKO.
In one of my fights, when I came back after a complete humiliation with all my family and friends there watching, and I came to the boxing gym the next day after I had been knocked down to my knees, and that was the first time that I got all the head nods from all the guys, it was the first time that they looked at me and gave me that respect. And so, that's when I had learned that, not solely just with guys, but that I had to command and earn that respect. I think, for me, going into Tampa, I was a little scared that I wouldn't get that, but I was prepared to earn it. And being the third season with them now, I'm one of the guys and I'm right in there with them, and I keep them in line.
Brock Richardson:
Good story.
Brianna Hennessy:
That's my job now.
Brock Richardson:
Hey, it's always good to keep people in line, I promise you that. We had you on The Neutral Zone a while ago and one of my favourite stories was from your coach and mentor, and one of the things you said to me when we first started to do this interview was that we haven't talked about this yet today. So, for me, I'm honoured to bring this out, you're probably in your eighth or ninth interview, or whatever the number is, and I know we talked about it, but this is going to go out to a wider audience, so I really would like you to tell the story of your mentor coach, and what that meant to you.
Brianna Hennessy:
So, I'll probably get emotional again. I was lucky enough to be the only Canadian that qualified in para canoe and kayak for Tokyo, for Canada, and I was even luckier to have my coach Joel Hazan come with me through that journey all the way to Tokyo. And I'll tell you, as much as I'm still learning so much now and have so much to learn, in those moments I was under a year that I had been doing that sport. It was a lot of pressure, a lot of expectations I put on myself, I'm harder on myself than anyone can be, but... in those moments in Tokyo. He knew that me going into this I would be very overwhelmed, so he... when we arrived in Tokyo, we actually did a training camp in Komatsu beforehand, so we had a few weeks. But he gave me a book, The Power of One, and I read it, and he told me, "You have to find the saying in this, I'm not going to tell you what it is, but I'm going to be telling you this before your races." So I knew I had to get this book done before the competition started and I hadn't actually read a book since my accident. It's very difficult for me, so I had to get some help, but... Anyhow, what I came down to was, before my race when I was about to leave the dock... Sorry.
Brock Richardson:
All good.
Brianna Hennessy:
My coach would get down on his knee and he'd put his fist over my heart, and he would say, "What are you going to do? It's a 200-metre race, so what are you going to do in the first 50 metres?"
And I would say, "You have to go with your head."
And he'd say, "What about the next 50?"
I said, "You have to go with your head."
And then he'd say, "What about in the last 50?"
And I said, "First with your head, then with your heart." That's kind of what we did every one of my races, so I knew I had him right here on my shoulder riding with me all the way down that racecourse, and I had all of his strength and all of his cool, calm, and collectiveness just to drive me through right to the finish line. So, that was my most moving moment for me when I was in Tokyo, yeah.
Brock Richardson:
What has para-sport done for you that, but for being involved in it, you would not have had happen?
Brianna Hennessy:
I did a video for World Championships that were in Canada, actually, for paddling this past summer, and you know what? I stick to what I say in that I wouldn't be here without para-sport. For me, it's everything, it's my passion, it's my identity, it's my purpose, it's my reason to get out of bed every day, it's the only time that I have any distraction from my pain, and it's something in my life that I love to share with others, because I want to share that strength. It's kind of the only time where I can feel like I'm in control of part of my life again, so I find for me para sport is a way of life. It's everything to me, yeah.
Brock Richardson:
What is your goal for today and have you accomplished it with the day slowly but surely winding down as we do this?
Brianna Hennessy:
I think, for me, one of my biggest challenges is my cognitive capacity in a day, from my brain injury, which is often... Again, it's kind of like those hidden disabilities that if you can't see it, nobody really understands that it's there. So, it's very difficult for me to do some of the word finding the later on it gets in the day. So, my goal was to still be able to express myself in everything that's been flowing out of my heart and my love for para sport throughout the day. I think so far it's been going all right. Lots of passionate tears, but we're getting there.
Brock Richardson:
Hey, we love the honesty in athletes and I'm going to use this in an actual interview. Sometimes you get this whole mentality of pucks in deep and forechecking, and I'm just being an athlete and the cliché situations. A day like today when we set up and we do this, and we think what are we going to get from athletes? And, I think, for us as members of the media, this is what we want and so you're a part of that. You've almost made me cry sitting here and then I have to go no, listen, but don't really listen, listen, because you're going to start, and then everybody in the room around us is going to start-
Brianna Hennessy:
One of us has to keep it together.
Brock Richardson:
... but I love your desire to tell your story. And the final one I have for you is, what would you tell a young girl who's maybe been through an accident, who says, "My life is over." How do you respond to that?
Brianna Hennessy:
I think one of the sayings that I use is once you believe in yourself, you become unstoppable. Another one is I think every girl should, I guess, wear their confidence and have their chin up higher than the heels that they wear. All that, that means is, follow your heart and find the strength within you to keep fighting on, and I feel like as soon as you choose that you're worth it and you gain that self-worth back, your life will change and so will your perspective, and that's when the opportunities and the doors open.
Brock Richardson:
Brianna, thank you so much for taking the time to do this interview, we greatly appreciate it. We definitely learned more about you today than we did with the first interview, so again, we sincerely appreciate that. Best of luck with future stuff with your para sports career.
Brianna Hennessy:
Thanks for having me.
Brock Richardson:
Thank was Brianna Hennessy, para canoe athlete. And like I said earlier, I was at the recent Canadian Paralympic Committee Summit and we congratulate her on her second-place finish at the recent event she was a part of in Hungary. If you like what you heard on this interview or anything else, here's how you can get ahold of us by voice mail.
Speaker 20:
If you want to leave a message for The Neutral Zone, call now, 1-866-509-4545. And don't forget to give us permission to use your message on the air. Let's get ready to leave a voicemail!
Brock Richardson:
One of the things that I have begun to really enjoy doing with any conversation that we have, whether it's with an interview that's with us, joining us, or pre-recorded, I love to take something from that interview and talk about it. Today's episode is called Support Systems and the reason the episode was titled this way is because Brianna really openly talked a lot about her family and what her family has meant to her, and the fact that her mother recently passed away at the time of that interview was in around a month, when she passed away. And she really talked about the support of her mother and her mother being always there with her, and alongside of her. For me, this really made me step back and think the support systems that I had, that I was a part of, and without support systems we can't really do much as athletes in sports whether it's directly someone supporting you on the court, off the court, or anything in between. I just want thoughts on the Brianna interview as a whole and specifically the support systems avenue. Cameron?
Cameron Jenkins:
Yeah, I thought the interview, it was well done by both of you. You were like Barbara Walters, getting her to really open herself up and show emotions. I really enjoyed her comments about... when you had asked her, I believe it was about what are some sayings in life that she goes by, and she talked about keeping her chin up higher than her heels up, I believe. I found that really interesting as far as sayings go. It's like, oh, okay, I understand where she's going with that, and just how much passion that she has inside of her, it's parallel to none. She just lost her mom a month ago and she's trying to keep it together, trying to compete. Kudos to her. She's been on the show before and I have the utmost respect for her.
Josh Watson:
Yeah, it was a fantastic interview, I greatly enjoyed it. As with all of these CPC interviews, Brock, you've done a great job with them, so hats off to you. Having said that, I listened to the interview, I was really touched by it. As with the other interview we've done with Brianna, she's very open, she's very honest, and sometimes that does mean some tears. To have to compete just after such a monumental loss has to be tough, I'm very happy to see how well she was able to do at the World Championships recently in Hungary, and I hope she just continues to soar because she's an amazing athlete and an amazing person. Really hopeful that she does well.
And, I mean, in terms of the family support system, absolutely; support systems are key, you can't do what you do as an athlete whether you're able-bodied or para-athlete, without your support system. And I know my parents will often travel to various points around the province to watch me play hockey, or throw shot put, javelin, discus, or whatever I happen to be doing. It gives me that wonderful, wonderful feeling to be able to climb into my throw chair, or get into my crease, and look out into the crowd and there they are, standing there just proud as can be. Yeah, I wouldn't be the athlete that I am without my support.
Brock Richardson:
Yeah, I want to tell you, just to give you a little bit of insight when I got to sit down with Brianna. First of all, when she rolled into the room that I was in, she knew right away who I was, that we had met before, and she just was really open, and really was honest. I remember, before we hit the record on this, I asked her, I said, "Listen, I'm going to ask you about support systems and I'm going to ask you about how you have managed with supports, and all that."
Not knowing that her mother had passed away. She expressed to me again, before we hit record, that this had happened, and I said, "Do you still want to discuss this?"
And she said, "Yes, because without my mother I wouldn't be where I am today." And so we went on to discuss that, and it was a real great interview.
I remember too, she told me that this isn't the first interview that she had cried in. She said that she was the one that... everyone was like... some of her teammates were like, "Brianna, just stop crying."
And it's like, "I just have emotions and I do that."
To me, this is the greatest thing about doing interviews such as this one, and Brianna has absolutely infectious laugh. When we were laughing before and after the recording, she was just incredible and I really, really appreciate what she did in the emotion. Full disclosure, this is the first of at least two interviews that I unintentionally made two athletes cry, because of my questions.
Josh Watson:
Brock...
Brock Richardson:
I know, I know, right? I'm sorry, it's coming in the future, I apologize. But it was good and you'll see many more interviews down the line, as we still have a handful of them to release to you. Today this one was special to me, just knowing that it was Mother's Day over the weekend as we record this, Monday being released on Tuesday, and I just thought it was kind of important to tip the cap to mothers and support systems. Once again, congratulations to Brianna and we will have her back on the show again, because she's a wonderful, wonderful interview. Before we get into mainstream sports topic, I wanted to ask both of you, was there ever situations where you looked and you thought, "Wow, I'm really glad that my support network was here to see X situation?"
And obviously, we can talk about sports, because we are a sports show, but if there was something else I'd like you to tell me about it, or tell us about it, because I think it's important to know. Cameron, was there ever a situation where you looked up into the stands or wherever you were, and said, "Thank goodness my support system was here to see this take place?"
Cameron Jenkins:
Yeah, it's when I play para ice hockey or sledge hockey, and I don't remember what championship it was, might have been Collingwood, and I didn't think my parents would be coming because of snow and that type of thing. I ended up finding out that they were in the stands and they were watching me play. In my career as a goalie in para ice hockey, the tournaments, those were my jam. For some reason, I was the best when I was playing those tournaments, so it meant a lot to me that they were thought. I think we got a silver medal if I remember correctly that time. But, yeah, it was just... because I didn't think that they would be coming, that was such a joyous moment for me and I was really happy that my support system, or my parents, were there for me. That's one off the top of my head that sticks out to me.
Josh Watson:
Yeah. For me, the one that probably stands out, I would say, the most was a very recent event, actually. And not only my parents were there, but Brock, you and Catherine, and possibly Megan, made the trip down as well, to Oakville, to watch us play in a semi-final hockey game. And it was just a crazy game, it was a situation where we were tied at the end of regulation, we played overtime, and then we ended up in a five-round shootout. And being the goalie for the para ice hockey team, it kind of falls on your shoulders when you get to shootout time. And it was just like-
Brock Richardson:
It sure as heck does.
Josh Watson:
... I am so glad everyone's here, because I am either going to need people to celebrate with or I am going to need people to pick me up off the floor, because I am going to be feeling like crap. Everybody was there, everybody watched, we ended up bringing home the gold medal in the league championship this year which was very exciting, but we couldn't have gotten there without that particular game. And I mean, no matter what season I think of or what event I think of, whether it's my track and field, my sledge hockey, or my para ice hockey, I've always had my parents at certain events and it means the world to me. I've even introduced friends to the sport through different events and they've come to support me. I can hardly describe the feeling of knowing that you've got friends and family there to cheer you on, it makes a world of difference.
Brock Richardson:
Yeah. I'm going to tell you of two scenarios and then I'm going to get back to watching Josh in the final, just for a couple of minutes, because there's at least one story from up in the stands that I want to share with the audience that's a good one. But for me, a support system... listen, as a person who requires top-to-bottom personal care on a daily basis, without my support system in sport, in life, in career, I would be nowhere. I do not look as good as I do on any merit due to the fact that I do it, it's because of my support system that put me up and make sure that I'm dressed nicely before we do these things, or any other thing.
So, support systems are a big deal. But for me, it's two situations. One was in the Paralympic games when my father said to me once when we were having a training camp, and he comes in off the court to get my equipment, and bring it back for another end, and he says to me, "Oh, you do actually listen to what I say, you do actually take in what I say, you do this as well." It's really an interesting thing when you have dynamics of your father being on the court with you.
The second one was one in Beijing, China, when we went for the World Championships, and I just struggled, and struggled, and struggled. It was very tough, it was very hard, and I ended up beating, by I don't know what... by luck, by skill, I have no idea, but I ended up beating the number two guy in the world at an event that I just couldn't hit the broad side of a barn. And I have a picture, and if you zoom in on the picture that you're looking at right now, you can see there's one in the left corner as you're looking at it. That's me with my mother and my mother is in the background almost with tears in her eyes, because she knew how much of a struggle it was for me, that event, and I was able to do it and do it well.
I appreciate all the supports that I've ever had and without support systems, you will be nowhere in life and in sport. Before we move on from this, I just wanted to mention, I met Josh's parents about a year and a half ago and we've become relatively good friends. I was standing up in the stands in this final with Josh's parents and the periods kept ticking by, and Josh's father was just a ball of nerves. Josh's dad turns to me-
Josh Watson:
Cam knows my dad too, yup.
Cameron Jenkins:
I was going to say, that's Mr. Watson, great guy. Ball of nerves.
Brock Richardson:
And I remember turning to Russ and saying, "Are you going to be okay?"
And he said, "Yeah, I'll be fine. Josh has only made me cry once in his career."
And I said, "Will it only be once if he wins a gold medal?"
And this was about halfway through the third period, and they won, and I turned back to Russ and I said, "How about now, are you going to cry?"
And he looks at me, and he goes, "Shut up," and turns around and walks the other way. It was just the moment that I just loved it.
Cameron Jenkins:
Why do you have to put him on the spot like that?
Brock Richardson:
And it was so fun, the joy that we all had, it was great. We appreciate it and I'm sure if Russ can listen to this he'll be so thrilled that I put that out there, but it's all good. You need your support system.
Josh Watson:
I'll never hear the end of it.
Brock Richardson:
Absolutely. Let's talk a little bit about the NHL Playoffs. We don't have any Canadian teams left. Your thoughts on that as a whole, Josh?
Josh Watson:
I'm a Leaf fan, we all know this. We're all Leafs fans, I think, so... I'm very disappointed. I would really like to talk to the head of officiating and ask how you have a delay of puck over glass penalty when there's no glass. But at the end of the day, it's a situation where, unfortunately, these two teams that we had left, Edmonton and Toronto, just weren't quite good enough. Now, I think Edmonton probably had a better opportunity to beat Vegas than maybe Toronto did, but I don't know that for sure. I'm really disappointed, because I feel like a majority of fans here are likely to turn off the Stanley Cup Playoffs now that there are no Canadian teams left. I'm not suggesting for a moment that there has to be a Canadian team in every playoff, that's not how this works, but it's very disappointing that neither of these teams were able to move on.
Cameron Jenkins:
Yeah, it definitely is, and what happens is, when your first and second lines aren't firing and getting you the goals and assists that you need, it comes down to your third and fourth liners, and that's what happened. You know, with Florida, I think Tkachuk... I don't know, he might have gotten one goal, but he didn't get a lot either. For me, in the playoffs, it's always the third and fourth lines that come up with the big goal, and both Edmonton and Toronto didn't have that, so that's really disappointing. The refs... yeah, it's disappointing, but a lot of people only take a look at their own teams to see where the mistakes happen, but it happens on both sides so I don't really think the referees make that much of an outcome on the game. You might say yes because they're down by a goal and if this person was caught for the hooking, or if this person was caught for the tripping, they could have gotten that goal.
But I think at the end of the day both teams, they had enough chances to be able to win it, and they didn't. It's another couple of disappointing seasons in both Edmonton and Toronto. And considering that definitely McDavid's a generational player... Matthews, that could be up for debate whether or not he's a generational player, but they're six, seven years into both of their careers now, and second round for Matthews. And I think McDavid got to the Conference Final, but didn't get any further than the Conference Final. I think that was last year.
Brock Richardson:
Yeah, last year.
Cameron Jenkins:
Their best years are starting to go behind them, so they've got to do something in both organizations to try to win it all. It's going to be interesting to see for both teams this summer, what's going to happen front office-wise and player-wise.
Brock Richardson:
Now that there's no Canadian team left, who becomes the rooting interest for all of you now that we sit here with nobody left from a Canadian team perspective, and there's less teams to pick from? Who's the rooting interesting? Cameron, start with you.
Cameron Jenkins:
Hockey is dead to me. Leafs are out. Saying that...
Josh Watson:
Wow.
Cameron Jenkins:
Yeah. Like, I do mean that, I probably won't watch a lot of the hockey now because the Leafs are out. But I do want to bring one interesting point that I think I've observed between Canada and the States as it goes to hockey. In Canada, if the Leafs are out, if the Habs... well, Leafs would not never want the Habs to win, but... A lot of the times, if there's another Canadian hockey team in it, people are like, "Oh, well I want to go this team, because I want Canada to win the Cup." If it's an American team, once their team's out, they're like, "Okay, we're done, don't care. Don't want it to be an American team, I'm not going to cheer for another team just to have it in America." I just find that to be an interesting point. Vegas looked really good in their series and, I don't know, maybe the Canes? They're looking pretty good in the East, too. Frederick Andersen, I believe he's still on that team, so wouldn't it be really interesting if the Canes ended up winning the Stanley Cup with Frederick Andersen? Boy oh boy.
Brock Richardson:
Josh?
Josh Watson:
Yeah, for me, it's kind of going to be a toss up. It's probably going to be a case where I watch a game or two of the Eastern and Western Conference Finals, see if a team grabs my attention. I will say, if Seattle manages to beat Detroit, then I may watch just to see if Seattle, the expansion team, can actually win the Stanley Cup. That'd be kind of cool, but otherwise, whether it's Carolina, whether it's Florida, whether it's Dallas or Seattle, whether it's Las Vegas... I really don't care now, I really don't.
Brock Richardson:
Hockey is dead to us.
Josh Watson:
I wish I did, but I just don't. It's baseball season, the Blue Jays are doing well, I'll be watching that more often than not. But we'll see, one team may definitely grab my attention. I may cheer for Carolina, just for the fact that they can put Florida out. That would make me happy.
Brock Richardson:
Yeah, I struggle, because we have a situation where we could have two expansion teams battling each other in the Conference Final, and that really... I don't know, I struggle with this one. Should we have two expansion teams in the Conference Final? This one is a really hard pill for me to swallow, because this is not the design of expansion teams. Vegas has blown that all out of proportion since they've been in existence, going to the Stanley Cup Final. This is just driving me insane, Josh. Am I the only one that just feels like this is wrong and not okay?
Josh Watson:
I think what's happening in that regard is that we are looking at it from our version of what an expansion team should be. There's nothing in any rule book or any blueprint that says that an expansion team has to stink. And it just so happens that expansion teams have changed after Las Vegas came into the league. Vegas proved that you can have an expansion team and be, if not good, then at least decent. And so, now, that is the model, everybody wants to try and be the next Vegas. That's not a bad thing for the league, but it is going to be strange if we have Vegas versus Seattle.
Cameron Jenkins:
And you know, like with-
Josh Watson:
But hey, go for it, why not?
Cameron Jenkins:
Yeah. For both of the latest expansion teams, they did not have the same rules as your San Jose Sharks, your Ottawa Senators. I don't know if they didn't have a first-round draft pick in three years, or five years, or whatever the stipulation was back in the Ottawa/San Jose days, but the restrictions were much tighter back then and that's why you had such a horrible team. But now they look at it as, if we're going to be charging $900 million, $1 billion for a franchise, you don't want that franchise to suck, because you want to be able to build your fan base and get butts in the seats, and that's why they don't have the tight rules that they used to for expansion. Because if your team sucks for five to 10 years, who's going to keep up with it?
Brock Richardson:
And then that money's not, as you point out very accurately, if your team doesn't do well that means that you're not making the revenue back of what you charged to get that expansion team. I do get it, I just don't like the way... I guess I have a hate on for Vegas, to be honest, because I don't like the way George McPhee and the ownership group did that. It was very much of a bullish kind of way of doing this, "If you don't give me this, then-"
Cameron Jenkins:
It was smart of them.
Brock Richardson:
No, no-
Cameron Jenkins:
It's called negotiation, it was awesome that they did it.
Brock Richardson:
Sure, if that's the way you want to put it, that it was a negotiation, but...
Cameron Jenkins:
It was!
Brock Richardson:
But I think it was a little bit of an aggressive ploy, but in the end he got what he wanted to do, and that's fine I guess. I am openly rooting for the Dallas Stars to knock... I do not want to see two expansion teams in a Conference Final, no thank you.
Cameron Jenkins:
I don't want any of them to win. Hockey's dead.
Brock Richardson:
And as I close the show out, I will tell you this. Producer Brock Richardson is hearing, "Do not talk to Cameron Jenkins about the playoffs, because he ain't watching it the next little while." But you know what, hockey is still hockey and I know baseball season's there now, and the Jays are doing what they're doing, and that's cool and everyone's happy with it. Which we'll get into the Jays next week, maybe we'll even touch on a little bit of NBA, because there is some intriguing match-ups in those Conference Finals that we could talk about for a couple of minutes. But, yeah-
Cameron Jenkins:
I want to talk about Kikuchi.
Brock Richardson:
Oh, we can talk about Kikuchi. Hey, look at that, time's ending on the broken... Not quite, almost, but... Yes, Kikuchi is doing better than anyone would have anticipated, that is the truth. They've had this way of being these comeback kids lately, of just like, "We're down and we're going to pull ourselves out of this." So, enjoy the Blue Jays as they start a four-game series beginning on Monday against the New York Yankees, and then the Baltimore Orioles follow in their steps. That is the end of our program for this week. I would like to thank Cam Jenkins, Josh Watson, I'd also like to thank Jordan Steves who was filling in for our regular technical producer, Mark Aflalo. Our podcast coordinator is Ryan Delahanty. Tune in next week because you just never know what happens when you enter The Neutral Zone. Be safe, be well.
