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hughesybear · 19 days ago

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Max Sasson just did an interview with Brandon Astle (Abbotsford Canucks commentator)! Highlights include:

Saving the menus from the plane rides

His reaction to the trades and his friendships with the players

Speaking on Quinn's leadership and talking to him after the loss in Edmonton

Full transcript below the cut:

Astle: Well Max, your first game back in Abbotsford after a lengthy run with the big club back in Vancouver, what was it like to be back around the guys and another home game for you here?

Sasson: Yeah, it was super fun seeing everyone this morning. Some of my best friends are on this team, and a lot of them I talked to regularly when I was up, so they were all great. It was unfortunate that we lost on the first night back, but I’m just looking to come back and hone in my game and get better at stuff they told me to work on here, and hopefully get called back up at some point and help the team win.

Astle: We don’t have to talk about the loss about Calgary, it is what it is, I’m more curious about you and your experience in Vancouver. Take us through the whirlwind two and a half months being in the big leagues, that must have been so cool.

Sasson: Oh, yeah, it was a dream come true. The excitement never really ever - every single game, it felt like it was still - the lights were bright, and I had to pinch myself especially playing against some of the best players in the world. Crosby and Ovechkin, I was literally seven years old watching them play. That was the real moment in my second game I think, when Sid was going back for a puck and Letang was yelling “Sid, you got time, you got time,” and I’m like “Wow. This is insane.” These are two guys that I was literally a little kid just admiring them and crying ‘cause the Red Wings lost to them in the Stanley Cup. But it was an awesome experience, so yeah. Hopefully get back.

Astle: Would you say that was your “welcome to the NHL” moment or is there another one that stands out?

Sasson: That one was the one that sticks out for me. I mean, playing against Ovi, when he has this whole - you’re not really watching him during the warmup, but you kind of are, since he kind of holds that much stature, so seeing him just up close and personal, that was pretty cool. But yeah, Crosby, Malkin, Letang, these guys, that was my “welcome to the NHL” moment for sure.

Astle: And getting your first NHL goal a future Hall of Famer is pretty cool too, in Andrei Vasilevsky-

Sasson: No, no, no, it was Boston.

Astle: Oh, was it Boston? Oh, sorry!

Sasson: Yeah, I was like “wait, is Swayman a Hall of Famer?”

Astle: Could be, could be! But the one thing I just wish was that game was a little closer so that you could have that big celebration, what were you guys down, five-one or something?

Sasson: I know! Five-nothing, yeah.

Astle: And you had to have a subdued celebration, but was that tough not to jump out of your skin? Like, you just scored your first goal in the NHL!

Sasson: Yeah, it was tough. Obviously I was super fired up on the inside, and honestly the guys were really fired up. I had some guys come up to me like “hey, you can smile. It’s your first NHL goal, at the end of the day you’re not going to remember the win or loss, it’s the fact that you scored in the NHL.” I’ve never been a guy, though, that’s gonna - I’m always just trying to think about winning. But obviously it was awesome, right? And it was assisted by Millsy, who’s a good friend of mine, and he picked up the puck right away. It was pretty cool.

Astle: I imagine, playing in your hometown - you told me you grew up not too far away from Little Caesar’s Arena [the Red Wings’ arena], you mentioned you were heartbroken when the Penguins beat the Red Wings in Game 7, that must have been a surreal feeling seeing how many people were coming to watch your first game in Detroit.

Sasson: Yeah, it was almost overwhelming. Obviously that was a moment I’ll never forget, playing in Detroit and seeing - there were so many people there in warmups when I was just skating around, and taking it all in. Even just playing against the Red Wings, the team that I grew up idolizing, that was really cool. I think the person that had the most fun was probably my dad [laughs]. He said it was the best day of his life. So yeah, that was awesome.

Astle: What’s the best perk about being in the NHL? You hear about a lot of things, what was something that really lived up to the hype, could be travel, accommodations, per diem, the meals on the road with the guys, or just anything at all, what really stood out?

Sasson: What stood out probably was the plane, the plane rides. Just going right to the plane, hopping right on, we have great flight attendants up there. I saved a bunch of the menus that they have because I couldn’t believe that I was living this life of, you know, eating steak on the plane and stuff. So that was probably the coolest thing for me. And I asked some of the guys, I was like “do you just get used to this?” And they were like, “Yeah.” I was like “I can’t imagine,” cause I would stare [?] every single time I got on that plane. You just had pretty much whatever you wanted to eat or drink, that was really cool.

Astle: And if you don’t mind, Max, just take the fans through what it’s like to get the bad news that you’re coming back to Abbotsford, if you don’t mind sharing, a bit of a loaded question. Where were you, who tells you, what do they tell you to work on, how does that call or text go down?

Sasson: So yeah, I talked to - Patrik called me, the GM, I think when we were about to play Nashville, and he let me know I might be coming back, and then the next day he told me I was flying back. Obviously, it sucks, right? It’s tough to hear, but there was a lot of positives they gave me, and Yogi Svejkovský, the assistant coach up there, had a great PowerPoint with a bunch of video from pretty much almost all of my games. He had probably fifteen positive clips and fifteen negative clips, and probably ten clips of other guys that I could maybe see myself in their role at some point. It sucks, but at the end of the day I’m where my feet are, and I want to get better every day and help this team win, and help myself get back to the next level.

Astle: And another tough part of the business, Max, is the trades. Six players getting shipped out of the Vancouver organization, and I’m sure a couple of them you grew a close bond with, these last two and a half months. What goes through a player’s head when you see stuff like that, and did you find out just like everybody else, through online and on phones and on Twitter, stuff like that?

Sasson: Yeah, I honestly just - before the game, I had some texts saying J.T. got traded and they said there were prospects involved and other players involved, and obviously I got to the rink and I saw Bränny wasn’t playing for us tonight. He’s a great guy, and worked hard, and played really good hockey for Vancouver and played really good hockey for Abbotsford, so it’s tough to see him go. And after the game, I hear that Vincent Desharnais and Danton Heinen, two of honestly my closest buddies on Vancouver - I wish all of them nothing but the best, but that’s the business we’re in. Every team is trying to get better, and it makes sense. Pittsburgh's thinking they got better, and Vancouver's probably thinking they got better. So it’s the business we’re in, and it’s tough. And this is honestly my first real time where I’m like “wow, that sucks, these are good guys.” So, we’re human, but yeah. You gotta move on, and I’m sure the guys coming are gonna be hopefully good people as well.

Astle: What about Quinn Hughes? Talk about a guy that’s honestly probably the best player in the league right now, who you got to see on a day-to-day basis, what’s he like in practice, off the ice, what separates him from the rest?

Sasson: His confidence is unmatched, I think. Just with the puck, you know, not - I wouldn’t say cockiness, but confidence, and knowing “you can’t contain me.” Like “I am gonna do what I want.” And it shows, right? From my first training camp here, I said that he is an X-factor, and just from then he’s been taking off. And off the ice he’s a good leader, helped me - we had a tough loss against Edmonton, [he] came over on the plane and talked to me and hyped me up, and let me know what he sees and how I can help the team. And then obviously on the ice, yeah, he’s in my opinion the best defenceman in the world, and top probably three or five player in the league right now. He controls the game, and I always joke he wakes up with two points ‘cause it seems like every single game, no matter what happens, he does his thing, which is what Tocc’s always saying, “Huggy does his thing,” because it’s true. So he’s incredible.

Astle: And what do you make of your old Abbotsford roommate, Marc Gatcomb - you got your first NHL goal, and now he got one this week, what went through your mind when you saw that one come across the wire?

Sasson: Oh, yeah, I know! I figured it was only a matter of time. I guess he’s been playing really well, I haven’t been able to watch too much of it, but I’ve seen some clips. I always knew he had NHL ability with his skating, and he does things that not many people can do, where he can fly, he can hit, and coaches love that. So it was great to see, I’ve talked to him many times about - he was asking me for advice when he first got called up, and I couldn’t be happier for him. And now it’s pretty cool, ‘cause now me, [Aiden] McDonough, and Gats, we were roommates, we all have NHL goals, so it’s pretty special.

Astle: And Aiden’s having a pretty good year in the AHL as well, hopefully he can get back to the NHL.

Sasson: Yeah, he works super hard, and he’s an even better guy, so I wouldn’t be surprised.

Astle: Well Max, this has been great catching up, great to see your success in the NHL. Hopefully you can come down here, do your best, and you’re back up with the big club in no time! Thanks for your time, buddy.

Sasson: Thanks for your time, yeah.

#endearing as always #his voice when he said 'wow that sucks' :(#max sasson #vancouver canucks #nhl #auriel:media #canucks roundup

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