Ben Gaudreau BLASTS Team Canada, Death Threats from fans and Media, Dropped by San Jose

Ben Gaudreau BLASTS Team Canada, Death Threats from fans and Media, Dropped by San Jose

fires one towards the goal. That’s going to be blocked up by Travis Rig. Well, this is more like it. This is Slanging the Biscuit. Here’s Travis Rig and Dave Wheeler. Ladies and gentlemen, welcome back to Sling the Biscuit and our interview series. Today’s guest is a third round pick of the Man Jose Sharks. He was a starting goalie for team Canada at the World Juniors not too many moons ago. And the pride of North Vegas, the North Bay Battalion in the Ontario Hockey League. Mr. Ben Gadro, welcome to the show. Thank you very much. Thanks. Nice to have me or thanks for having me. Yeah, good to see you. Congratulations on the new contract coming back to Canada. You got to be excited. Yeah, I know. It’ll be awesome to be back home. Uh my grandpa’s actually from Three Rivers, so it’ll be nice to kind of explore that area a little bit and get familiar with Quebec. How’s your parents? Uh, let’s put it this way. Like nothing. So, it’ll be fun. It’ll be fun. You You’ll pick it up pretty quick, I’m sure. Oh, hopefully. What’s the travel setup like? You’re sitting on the bus, the front, bid, back. You making your own bed setup. Give me a breakdown there. Yeah. So, my first road trip was a 14-hour road trip to Savannah, Georgia, uh, from Indie. And I was stuck on the back with three guys on this like U-shaped couch. Um, couldn’t even bend my legs. We had to get up at like 8 in the morning. We traveled through the night. Uh we get up right to practice. Um and I was like I I think I was awful during practice. And then that night I or the next night I played my first pro game and got torched. I we lost like 4-1 or something like that. Um but yeah, I mean that that was kind of the end of that. The rest of that I was laying on the floor for a little bit and then uh once they kind of figured that I was going to be their starter guy and they wanted me well rest rested, I they gave me a bunk right at the front of the bus. So, I was pretty lucky, pretty spoiled to get that in my rookie year. And so, I can’t complain about schedule or travel or anything like that. So, I was pretty lucky. Is that bunk right by the coaches? It’s like right behind them technically. There’s like the washroom, then the door, and then there’s the bunk start up and I was right middle bunk on the left, I think, if you walk in. Yeah, the left. So, it wasn’t too bad at all. That’s an early bedtime every time. I’m I’m curious about the couch, though. Is this like they nailed the couch down, they brought it in? like give me a a picture of like what the setup looked like. Yeah, so we had if I can think, let me think here. Uh it would have been again this is the math coming in. So we had 12 bunks um kind of like three three high, two stacks of that. Then there was like the U-shaped couch at the back of the bus with two more bunks then one more bunk at the very back right over top of the motor which my roommate slept in and I have no clue how he did cuz he legit just sitting on top of a motor that whole time. But uh no, it wasn’t bad. It was like built right into the bus. Um, so it was it was comfy, but it was it was not comfy to sleep on. And they like I don’t know if they put WD40 on that or not, what what it was, but you could just slip right off it. So it was pretty hard just to stay on it to begin with. So uh it made for a pretty long bus ride. What type of hotel set are they putting you up at in Rockford? Or is that is that that was in Rockford, right? Yeah, Rockford. Yeah, that was in Rockford. They put us up like at a residence hotel, so it’s not too bad. It’s uh it’s basically an apartment. There’s no complaints there. It’s it’s not bad at all. Uh good enough Wi-Fi cuz there’s not too much to do in Rockford. in game out pretty good there at least. But uh no, it’s good. It It’s a lot of fun. What was one of the biggest uh and I’ve always said that the metric that I that I follow between the NHL and the American League is the passing. To me, that is the biggest difference when you watch using that same kind of metric. What’s the biggest jump between the American League and the East Coast? Yeah, I’d say the speed of things. Um there’s a lot of things like in the coast where like mistakes are made and they kind of end up right in front of you and it just is what it is. Um whereas the AHL is a little bit more smooth I find. Um but that also means it’s going to come at you a lot faster. You could be sitting there and the next thing you know guys right in front of you with a great A scoring opportunity. But a guy that’s been there a veteran goalie is going to see that coming from a mile away, right? So there’s just little things where you start picking up on stuff. Um my first a game was my best a game. Um if I could have done that a couple more times, that probably would have helped me out a little bit, but um no, it’s it’s a it’s a faster game. Um I’d say the mistakes aren’t as many. Um, but yeah, I mean it’s I like I said, biggest thing would probably how fast everything happens. Have you found that the the goalie coaching through junior through the East Coast and the American League, have you found that your style has changed with the league that you’re playing in and the coaching that you’re getting? How’s that transition been? Yeah. No, 100%. I think uh each league you find something, each goalie coach you find something that you like. Um, and you got to take what you like, too. I mean, a big thing for me is I’ve never been a guy just jumped the gun and this guy’s telling me to do this, I’m going to do this. Uh, I like to t kind of sit back and look at it and study it, make sure it’s something that I think is going to help me. Um, so I, for me, I try to kind of keep things pretty simple. Um, I’m I’ve always had to be a guy that’s worked on my skating a lot. So, if I go into something and don’t know what I’m doing, I’m just going to confuse things for me, even worse, and kind of end up in my own head. So, I try to keep things pretty simple. Is that one of the big things that you see as far as your own scouting report is that you work on your skating and that’s what’s going to get you up and keep going and all all the way to San Jose? Yeah. No, 100%. I think for me the biggest thing is going to be my skating. I got to make sure that that kind of stays in check. Um the faster and stronger I can get with skating, I think that’s going to be kind of the thing that keeps me going. Are you still a San Jose prospect or I think you just signed an American deal, right? Just Yeah, so I signed an American deal. I’m not with I’m not in San Jose’s organization at all anymore. Um, I think they lose my rights after two or three I don’t I think it was two or three years they lost my rights. So, I went down or I went to a couple camps with Tampa the year after and then I was over with Chicago last year which was a lot of fun. Uh, their camp and then I went down in their system. So, this year I’ll be in Montreal and get to do their camp and everything. It’ll be pretty sweet. So, how how have your goals changed as far as how to get there? Yeah, I think the biggest thing for me is just maturing and knowing what you actually need to do to get there. Um, so my biggest goals are just making sure I’m pushing myself to be ready for camp, be ready for that first drop of the puck, and make sure that when I walk in there, I show them what I got and give them a good first impression. Do you remember the first purchase you made after you got your first pro hockey paycheck? Not including I like you’d know how it would be in the coast. It’s it’s not a pretty paycheck. I think I I I remember what I like some of the big purchases like my biggest purchase was a new fishing reel last year. It was like a $500 $600 fishing reel. So that one I had to pull the bank out for that one, but that’s about it. Like I didn’t I tried to save most of it. Um and just kind of I got to pay a truck off right now. So I I wasn’t spending too much money on that uh or other things. So maybe like groceries was my probably my first pay or first paycheck thing I got. Was there any signing bonuses though? Like along the way? No. In the A deals, I didn’t get any of those. So, I there was nothing like that where I was given a lump sum of money and able to go and spend it or anything like that. They give you 90 G’s up front. Here you go. USD. Yeah. See, that’d be a little different. That might be there might be something if I was doing that. You mentioned fishing. I want to touch on that a little bit. Uh there there are some players that I’ve seen that are able to draw parallels between what they do on the ice and what they do in fishing and how they how they kind of marry the two. Are you able to do that? Is there any any similarities? Yeah, I mean I think the biggest thing is just like I I try to stay pretty calm on the ice. Um and I mean you can go out in the water and have some pretty bad days. So you got to learn how to stay calm out there as well. And uh it’s the ups and downs of fishing kind of get incorporated into the ups and downs of hockey I guess. Um you get a little bit more time as a goalie I guess by yourself too. So I I fish a lot by myself as well. So I mean I guess getting that alone time and learning how to talk to myself and positive selft talk when there’s nobody around to tell you what to do. So there’s things like that. But I mean, uh, at the end of the day, I mean, I I try to kind of use it as a like a a step away from hockey and allow myself to kind of relax and take my mind off it if anything. Did you get any done when you were down south or are you looking forward to the fishing in Quebec? Yeah, I didn’t get any down south, but I’m definitely looking forward to some in Quebec there. So, it’ll be it’ll be fun to do that hopefully. And ice fishing, too. Ice fishing as well. I love ice fishing. I hopefully we got enough time to do it. We’ll have to see how it all works out, but uh I’d definitely do it. I know there’s a guy on the team in Three Rivers that uh makes custom fishing lures, so I’m sure he’ll want to get out a couple a couple times there, but that’d be awesome if he does. So, we’ll have to see how it all works out. Is that the guy you’re collabing those Instagram posts with that’s making the fishing reels? No, that’s a different guy. So, that guy, he work he’s out of Hallebertton, uh Ontario. So, just a probably hour and a half, two hours from me. Um but yeah, he makes some real good like soft plastics and stuff, that guy. So, but there’s another guy in Three Rivers that makes some like wooden baits and stuff and plastics and stuff. So, it’s pretty cool to see that, too. Is your fishing gear as important to you as your goalie gear is? Oh, yeah. I probably got more fishing stuff than goalie gear. It sounds really bad. Um like my dad and I went fishing with one of his buddies and like like I grabbed my tackle box like holy crap. Like the last thing you need is another freaking lure cuz my tackle box probably weighs 50 60 lbs. Like I got so much crap in there and I got I oh I probably got 17 different rods and everything. So I I load up on that stuff, but I it’s it’s a fun hobby and it takes me away from hockey for a couple minutes, which is always nice to kind of reset and refocus. Forgive me for my uh my lack of an experience. I’ve never actually been fishing by myself before, but yeah. Do you bring 17 rods in one go? Like I know you have the the baits and the lures and whatnot, but you bring them all together? No, it kind of depends on what I’m fishing. If I got like if I’m doing like a musky day, I’ll probably bring two rods. If I’m going out walleye fishing, I like to have two rods for that as well. Bass fishing, I need a couple more cuz there’s a lot of different setups I like throwing with bass. Um, but it all kind of depends too. Like the other day I had some buddies out so I ended up bringing like six rods just doing them all up for all of us so it was easy to go. And it all depends on what I’m going for and everything. If I was to fish a tournament, it’ probably be a lot more setups. I know my buddy does a lot of pyramid fishing for pike and he says he has like I think it was something stupid like 14 setups a guy. So it’s it depends on what you’re kind of doing and all that kind of stuff. But yeah, I’m curious to know if you’re a subscriber to Brendan Morrison’s channel. I don’t think so. No. Okay. He’s a former Vancouver kuck who’s a full-time YouTuber now with fishing. Is there any guys that you do follow? I do a I’m trying to think of the name. Oh, Jays is a big one for me because he does a lot of like Ontario fishing. Um, I’m trying to think of some more, but that one’s a big one. I I follow a lot of like the pro guys. Um, like Dustin Okonnell, he’s a really good bass fisher. Um, I’m trying to think of the walleye fisherman I follow. Um, but another really good guy. Um, like really great fisherman, too. So, it’s cool to see all what they’re using and all that kind of stuff for sure. Do you flex any of your big catches on social media? Oh, yeah. My Instagram this year has been I think this summer all I posted is fish. So, I caught salmon the other day. I threw that up there. Some nice lake trout started of the summer. So, there’s been a little bit of everything. Threw bear up on there, too. My buddy and I got. So, little bit of everything. Saw that. I like the salmon one. Was a nice big fish. Oh, yeah. It was a nice fish. I mean, we got meat for days out of that thing, too, which is a lot of fun. So, yeah. I have to take me and pop my chair. I’ve never caught my own fish, personally. Oh, we got to do it for sure then. Where where would we go? What’s the best spot to go that you’ve been to? It dep I honest to God I So, I did this guided service for lake trout this year. Um my we had a couple buddies and we went down did a camping trip there and we were on I think it’s called Opongo Lake. Um and the lake trout in that lake were unbelievable. The guide service that we had um with Opongo uh lake guide service uh Jay he took took us out a couple times. I think I’ve been out with him three times this summer. Um and he’s he’s more of a buddy than a guide to me. Um he’s he’s an awesome guy. We go out there have a great time every day. Uh we have a shore lunch. It’s a lot of fun. It’s a pretty remote lake too. Um, no service on the lake at all. Uh, it’s a lot of fun. There’s one entry point onto it and it’s, uh, it’s a lot of fun out there and there’s a lot of fish. Like the one day we caught like over 40 lake trout, so I mean it it can tally up real quick. Yeah. You a fisherman, Dave? I have. Uh, no. The easy answer is no. I I prefer being out on the golf course. That’s where uh I fish for birdies. You got two rods, Benny? What’s that? Sorry. You got two rods, Benn. I got lots. I got lots. Listen, back to hockey. I want to talk touch on the the World Juniors uh as far as your experience there and I I’m curious to know, do you almost feel kind of spoiled looking at all these top names, guys that you played against throughout the season, guys from the Western League and all over the place? Do you kind of feel spoiled being in that locker room, then going out and playing and seeing the kind of success you guys had? Yeah, no, 100%. I mean, I I had a little bit of a rough tournament there. My first game didn’t go too well. Uh I was able to bounce back with a nice quick little 11 shot shut out. Um but I mean, it was it was a lot of fun. I mean, you look around the room, we had great guys. my roommate in Sarnia, Ethan Del Mastro, who I ended up playing with in Rockford as well, was there. Um, so it was a lot of fun spending that time with him. Uh, getting to see a guy like Conor Bard out there. I mean, you can never complain seeing the things that he did there was, um, actually ridiculous. There’s no other way to put it. Uh, watching something like that happen in front of you. I mean, the amount of times we’d look down the bench just be like shaking our heads like, what is going on? So, it was a lot of fun. Um, great group of guys, great coaching staff, and I mean, the fans supported us really well, too, which was a lot of fun. Um, and I mean, Halifax was a great spot to be, too. I mean, doesn’t get much better than being in your own country to do it. And having a spa like Halifax was really cool. Did you get any fishing in while you were there? Now, that I wish we definitely didn’t have enough time. That would have been unbelievable. Um, but it was I got to eat some fish, but it was it was a pretty sick spot. Or the donaire. I you know what? I didn’t get any of those in me. I was legit. Honestly, I we uh we went to a couple restaurants of where lobster is taken and he tries a donaire while in Halifax. Yeah. Wow. What do you expect? Oh, I love poor people food. Same here, dude. I went to Norway. The first thing I got was kebab. Poor people. Although they put French fries in the pizza in Norway, which is pretty good. Listen, he brought it up and I’m I’m I know you’re you’re young, you’re fresh, you just finished your first year, but I’m sure the conversation around the locker room has led to how many years do you spend in the East Coast or the American League before you start thinking about, you know, if I didn’t get my fair shake in the NHL, when do you start thinking about Europe? Yeah, I mean, it’s it’s something I’ve always been thinking about. I mean, it’s something where if the offer was right and I wasn’t getting stuff in North America, it’d be something that I’d do for sure. I mean, it’s uh everything I hear from people that go over there, they love it. So, it’s uh it’s definitely not something that I’m thrown out the window and not doing. Um it’d be a lot of fun, I think. I mean, it’s a new experience and to live in Europe would be pretty cool, too, I think. Um but yeah, I mean, it all kind of depends on For me, it’s depending on how it it’s up to me at the end of the day. If I got I got to show well enough where I don’t have to go, but I mean, if I have to go, it’s not something that I’m opposed to, for sure. Well, I like hearing that. It’s up to you because like I said, you know, you maybe you didn’t get the the shot that you you feel like you deserved, especially after, like you said, a really good World Junior tournament outside of that first game and, you know, kind of taking things in stride going maybe I need to do more. I like that out of No, 100%. I mean, you can’t put the blame on anybody else. You got to kind of do your own job and I think that’s something that my parents have put on to me. I mean, uh, you don’t just get there without doing anything. So, it’s it’s a lot of work to get there and I got to do it. So, uh, I’m not going to shy away from it for sure. You think one of the good things about being a goalender though, like in the grand scheme of of life and sports specifically as well, but in goalending, like there’s really nobody else to blame. Like you make your own mistakes. So like you have no choice but to take pure 100% personal accountability and reflect and kind of go from there. No, exactly. I mean, I I always say this like middle of the game, I’m never taking responsibility. Like you know what, I’m blaming it all on you guys, but the second I look at it after the game, yeah, it’s my fault. I uh I like to kind of throw that out the window during the game just so that I’m not focusing on like cuz I I’ll be the guy that sits there and like think in my head like I should have done this, I should have done that. Um so in the middle of the game it’s a you know what that guy shouldn’t let that guy get around him. But I mean it’s at the end of the day I mean you got to make that save. It’s uh you’re there for a reason. If that guy just got around him and scored every time they wouldn’t have a goalie in net. So uh you’re there for a reason. You got to stop the puck. Whether it’s a slot shot, a deep a point shot, a shot from the other end of the ice, you got to be there to stop that puck and it’s on you whatever happens with that puck. Is there is there a goalie coaster comes to mind? You you’ve had the experience with San Jose and going to their development camps. I do have to point out I love the red team Canada set with the Sarnia bucket and the blue San Jose Sharks jersey. What a great combo that was. The whole rainbow colorways Roy G. Biv, but of all the development camps that you’ve been to, you’ve met different goalie coaches and a lot of goalenders. Is there one that stands out in your mind when you say like that guy was really intelligent. That guy was really smart. I’m really glad I got to pick this guy’s brain. Yeah, I mean I it’d be I’d almost be unfair to say uh just one of them. Like honest to God, every goalie coach that you I’ve worked with, I’ve been really lucky. Um they’ve all had great things to say. Um I think Tampa was pretty special. Uh there’s some really good goalie coaches there. Whether I was in Sy with the Syracuse guys or Tampa guys, they I thought they really helped me out a lot. Um, and they kind of kept pushing me pretty hard which was awesome. And when I finished the season in Syracuse after my OHL year was done. Um, Maxin Valent Court was down in Syracuse and he he helped me out a lot. And um, I know he knows the goalie coach in Laval pretty well. So I’m sure there was something there um that he helped me out here. So I mean those guys right there are guys that really helped me out. I thought um put me on the right kind of tra trajectory um and really helped me finish my last year in the O and helped me get ready for pro. Was Fran Jean there? Yeah, he was. And he was again, you want to talk about a guy that just knows things. Uh that he’s the reason I’m wearing Vaughn pants and a CCM chest protector, right? So, he uh he’s the kind of guy that really helps me help me out with that stuff. He had Brian Elliot’s pants sent to me so I could finally get into some Vans during the summers and stuff. and uh a really good guy and he was a lot of fun to work with and learn from. So, how does that come about? Like you’re not mobile enough in the pants you’re in. I think you should try these ones or can how does that conversation happen? Yeah, with all well with all the NHL specs, they all have sizing, right? So, I mean with those those kind of the CCMs and the Vons are pretty much your biggest stuff you can get for that area. Um so, he was nice enough to kind of bring that up for me and I was able to get into those and get working with those. And I mean, I love them. Like, I wouldn’t uh I wouldn’t change it. I get a lot more protection under my CCM light with the Bower, I find. Uh I was getting a lot of freaking bumps and bruises wearing the Bower where I was almost going through two a year just so I wasn’t black and blue the entire year. Um but that CCM was pretty good. And the Vaughn pants, I mean, they’re the comfiest pants. Feel like I’m wearing like jogging pants. Um so it I can’t say enough nice things about them. They’re awesome to deal with as well, which is really nice. Um they’re really good guys, so it made it pretty easy. Well, I think like 60% or might even be 70 now, but 70% of goalies in the NHL wear Von pants and that’s like the most dominant category. No, 100%. Their uh their protective gear is unreal. Like I have their knee pads as well and they’re like the nicest knee pads. They look they still look brand new and I wore them all last year and everything. So, I mean I can’t say enough nice things about them. What about the uh the Bower sets? You you’ve been a wizard when it comes to some of the crispiest, freshest sets out there. Yeah. No, I love working with the Bower guys, too. I mean, I’ve been with them uh working with them since I was like 14, I think. Um, so it’s it’s been a long time with them and they they always help me out with the gear and all that kind of stuff. So, it’s it’s a lot of fun and they got some pretty cool designs they can do and I mean their pads are sec like I I love their pads. I tried some other stuff. I couldn’t even get into it cuz I just like the Bowers way too much. So, it’s it’s one of those things where I think I’ll probably be in them the rest of my life and I I’m not complaining about that by any means. Who’s responsible for your your paint jobs? Yeah, I do Dave Art. Um, I mean, he’s a legend when it comes to whipping up the paint and the helmets. So, I mean, it’s something uh growing up with another North Bay guy, Ken Applebee, uh, who’s played a lot of pro hockey now. Um, he’s a guy that was using Dave Art and I saw that and wanted to be like him and I was like, I’m going to do Dave Art once I get there and get the chance. So, I uh I love what working with him on helmets, too. I mean, it’s it’s really cool. We had a cool design come up this year, which I can’t wait to have come out and be able to throw that in the bucket. So, it’ll be it’ll be really cool. Manitoba Moose Legend. He just got engaged, too, didn’t he? Can Applebe? He got married this uh last week we were there. Yeah, it was it was a lot of fun. It was a really good wedding, too. So, Moose Legend, he was I think he was one of the OG Bower goalies when they came out with the whole Odin series if I’m not Oh, yeah. He would have been for sure. Yeah. Oh, yeah. Way back. Is it Is it different dealing with your gear? I mean, it’s it’s always evolving. And I mean, I’m I’m curious to know how much how much feedback do you give? Is it like a NASCAR driver telling like, “Hey, it’s a little loose in the back end. I need to tighten it up here. How much insight do you give them and how much do they give you? Yeah. No, they’re pretty good. I mean, it’s uh it’s funny you say that. Like my first couple years with them was a lot of ironing out exactly what I wanted. Um now that I got my stuff, I’m pretty basic on what I want and they know that. They know I like a really stiff pad. They know the boot angle that I like, the knee block, everything like that, the glove angle, all that stuff. So, they just basically I like I haven’t changed my stuff really since like my third year in the OL, I want to say. So, it’s pretty much the same set every year coming with just different graphics on them. Have you tried the uh Vapor 90 glove? I I want to say that might be what I’m using right now, actually. The 580 style. Oh, see, I don’t even I don’t even know what I use. I just know they send it to me and I say, “Yeah, I like that one.” Um, you’re one of those guys. Oh, yeah. I uh I know I’m not smart enough to remember numbers in my head, so I keep the numbers to them and just say, “That one’s nice.” Yeah, I’ll send a picture of this one. I like this one. Benny, since you’re a Bower guy, have you ever heard the stories of Timmy Thomas when he was a when he was a Bower sponsored athlete? No, I have not. I think that contract lasted about a year because they signed him right after I think it was after the vet in the season because he was kind of using like mut style kind of load everything and they’d be sending him gloves glove like 15 gloves at a time and be like nope nope no and they’d ask like what’s wrong with it? He’s like it just doesn’t feel right and he wouldn’t be able to quantify it. They’d be sending him like 20 gloves a month and the rep says, “Okay, like Tim, I’m going to come down. I want you to show me like demonstrate to me what’s wrong because we want to get you taken care of.” He’s still winning. He just said like the feel wasn’t right. And so then they dropped him as an athlete. And then I think the following year, it was after they won the cup, the 1112 season. It’s when he started using like the the Vaughn with the Reebok with the Bower with the like player helmet and the Piku pads. And then he had I think Dennis at Factory Mad. He did like all sorts of custom mods. used to work for I think Vaughn once upon a time, but they’d be like overnight shipping, like $2,000 shipping, sets of pads, and then do adjustments after morning skate every single day. Like, this guy was the most dialed in intense when it came to his gear. No, I I get that with the feel. Like, sometimes it just doesn’t feel right and you can’t put your finger on it. Um, I’ve been pretty lucky with them where like I I’ I’ve tried so much of their stuff that I know kind of what what feels good and what doesn’t feel good. Um, would I like a couple more sets during the year? Yeah, that wouldn’t hurt. Save the palm a little bit and save the knees a little bit. Wouldn’t hurt at all. But I mean, it’s I can’t complain. I’m pretty lucky to be with them and uh they work great for me, so I can’t complain at all. You’re you’re a signed B athlete, though. No, I used to be. Uh they kind of stopped doing that unless you’re on an NHL contract, but uh I got my free set of golf clubs and some Lululemon stuff, so I can’t complain. $5,000 Lululemon spending gift card. Oh yeah, all those fun ones. Out of curiosity, standing at 6’2 and seeing a lot of guys that are coming into camp, do you already put yourself at a deficit knowing that you’re one of the smaller goalenders and what NHL clubs are looking for? Yeah, I mean it’s it’s definitely not the easiest thing being a 6’2 guy, but at the same time, I mean, there’s plenty of guys to do it and guys that are shorter. I mean, you look at like Jussi Sorrowos and Shurkin, I can’t complain, right? So, um, if you’re good enough, you’re going to find a way to do it. That’s what those guys have done. So, uh, if they’re doing it, I I can find a way as well. So, I mean, uh, I don’t I wouldn’t say I put myself at a deficit or whatever. I just got to find a way to kind of make up for that size. And I mean, that means being quicker, right? So, I I just got to make sure I’m strong enough coming into camp fast enough that I can kind of beat those guys out with uh strength and and speed. Is that a conversation that, you know, you had during the drafts or, you know, with negotiating with teams now? Cuz it’s, you know, like to say it out loud, it sounds kind of silly, like, oh, you’re only 6’2, which I think is less than 1% of the male population, but we want 6’5 plus, which, you know, I’m like average height compared to what a lot of these guys are drafting. Is that a common conversation you’re having? You know what, my draft year it wasn’t, but I think it was cuz my draft year was basically the last year where they were like kind of all right with 6’2 guys and then they were like, “Okay, after that we need like 65 guys.” Um, but now I mean I wouldn’t say it’s actually brought up too too much. Um, maybe a couple times throughout the year, but it’s it’s definitely not something where they’re making it the be it and end all, which is nice. Um, but yeah, I mean, if if my legs were straight and I wasn’t bowlegged, I’d probably be 6’4. So, I mean, I kind of did it to myself, I guess. But, uh, it’s it’s not bad. Like, I like I like to kind of be that underdog. So, I mean, it works for me. Well, I’m curious to know now that you mentioned it, being bullged, how how are your hips holding up? hips and the knees being in the butterfly all the time. Oh yeah. No, they’re great. I uh I put a lot of emphasis on that and stretching and doing some yoga and I mean even my workouts I tailor them so that I’m doing them to kind of work that stuff properly. Uh I do a lot of physio as well to make sure that my my legs aren’t too tight and pulling on my knees and hips in different ways that they shouldn’t be. And I mean honestly I can’t complain. I was I’ve had probably the most flexible hips on the team last year. We’d be doing hip stretches and the guys would be like, “What the hell, man? Like, that’s disgusting.” And I’m like, “Hey, it’s what you got to do, right?” So, I mean, it’s uh it’s stuff like that. I mean, I take pride in doing that stuff and make sure that I’m kind of in the best shape I can possibly be in no matter what problems you got to deal with. Well, I’m happy to hear that. My wife’s a registered yoga instructor and she said that’s most important part. Take care of your core and everything else. No, 100%. I mean, you got to take care of that core, too. I mean that’s this year I’ve put a really big emphasis on make sure that core is nice and strong and uh I think that’s going to help with my hands too and my everything like that. So I mean it’ll be it’s one of those years where it’s really do you got to come in here and break it break the seal and really have a good year. Is there a specific style of yoga for fisherman? I don’t think so. I got to find one if there is. We’re going to corner the market. Exactly. By are you mobile enough to do a soft seal? I don’t even know what that is but maybe. Oh, like a soft seal as in like like what are you talking about? Like with po like my post or Yeah. Po um post to post reverse where both both legs are flat totally sealed. Yeah. Oh, you are mobile son of a [ __ ] Oh yeah. Yeah. I I like I’ll just sit there. Somebody’s behind the net. I got both feet on both posts. I’m just sitting there relaxing. What an advantage. What an advantage it is to be able to do that too with how fast the game’s getting where you’re literally in the most neutral position possible and then to kind of build out from there. Exactly. Well, and like I said, that’s why I I make sure that they’re flexible like that cuz I know I’m not 6’5, so it’s going to take me a little bit more of a reach to get over there. Um, so being able to do do stuff like that, it really helps me out quite a bit. It’s worth doing the research. If you can pull this up for the video version of the show, Trav, but there is a picture, there’s an upper deck card from the mid 90s of Chris Terrari, who was a New York New Jersey Devils goender. And on the back of the card, it was an overhead shot of him doing the splits, and he was going post to post. And he wasn’t any taller than 5’11. And it was the first time I remember going, “Wow.” Like like you need to be that flexible to go post to post. And now and now it’s just mainstay. Yeah. No, now it’s uh it’s crazy. I mean, you look at the guys and what they’re doing and how the goalies are responding to like the new stuff coming out and everything. It’s it’s insane. Like uh my goalie coach in India was a great example of that. He he actually played a couple games for us and everything this year. He just retired this year and ended up being a player coach for a little bit there. But uh you want to talk about a guy that does crazy stuff off the ice? I mean, if he sees this, he’s going to laugh. But he he’s doing somersaults and like handstands and like he has a rope. You’ll see he’s doing like Jedi training. Like, oh, we used to trip him all the time, but he he’s a great guy. And I mean, he was a smaller guy and knew he had to be flexible. Knew he had to be fast and uh did what he could do to make himself as good as possible. Well, Trev, you talk all the time about, you know, like you have a little more respect for a coach that can actually get out there and do the kind of stuff that he’s asking you to do, right? Well, exactly. And you know what? He was he was a buddy, too. like he wasn’t it it was a really nice relationship we had and he helped me a lot and um it was it was just I can’t thank him enough for sure for the year. I mean he was one of the guys that kept you sane during the down parts of the year. So it was a lot of fun hanging out with him and I mean we’d go grab lunch and just talk about hockey or talk about something else completely different. Um and we still talk frank like almost every day in the summer. So he’s he’s a great guy and a great friend too. You have any more standard questions before I start unloading the goalie questions? Go for it. You guys nerd out. Yeah. Here we go. Benny, who was the guy you looked up to growing up? It’s going to be a crazy answer. So, when I was real young, the guy that got me into it was Vessa Tosscala. No clue why. Um, no clue. I was a Leafs fan when This is crazy switch up actually. I was a Leafs fan until 2010. So, I’d have been 7 years old when they lost to Boston. Um, and that really pissed me off. I remember coming upstairs like full temper tantrum. Just pissed right off. And I uh I switched that year. I I wasn’t a fan of anybody for like a couple years. And then my goalie coach was a Montreal fan. So I think when I was like 13, I kind of found another team and I was Montreal, which is a complete switch from being a Toronto fan. Um, and then I really started You saved yourself a lot of heartache for the record. Exactly. Exactly. Um, so we uh we switched I switched over to Montreal and I really grew up like Carrie Price and T emulate as much as I could from a guy like that. Not a bad guy to look up to. He’s okay. No, not at all. Not at all. What was it about Tossa? Was it the six setups? Was it the sweet mask? the skull mask, whatever. He had the I think it was the mask a bit. I kind of had a mask that looked kind of like his growing up. So, I think it was something where I was like, “Oh, I kind of look like that guy and he’s a Leafs goalie and boom, there it goes.” Like, I’ve always liked goalies basically for the team they play for. So, it’s it’s been kind of one of those things where I think I grew up kind of liking the goalies based on the team that I liked. Okay. Is there a guy that you you look up to now and you’re like, I want to be more like that guy or this is my guy? Yeah, I mean I think there’s guys when I look like a look at a guy like Shurken, I mean you that’s a guy that plays the puck well, moves fast, and is just athletic as crap. I mean it’s something that I love watching and um if I could even become half a goalie of him, I mean I’d be freaking awesome. So I mean there’s guys like that but what’s that? Sorry. Would you take his temper, too? Oh, I probably have a worse temper. So I mean I can’t complain at all about that. Y little sticks over the pole or was it Bill Rampford? We had him on the show. We talked about Olaf Kig. Four sticks a game in the inner squad series. Yeah. Oh jeez. Throw Billy in there because Oie had no more sticks left. Just remembering. Exactly. Exactly. Patience. Exactly. I’ve had to work on it the last couple years. It’s uh it’s definitely better. I think there’s only two sticks broken last year and it was after getting pulled and we were crapping the bed and I was crap in the bed and it was just anger was let out there. Is that over the post? Is that the carrier price over the knee special or what is that? No, that was the uh pillar in Fort Wayne in the dressing room. You can’t see it and put it on social media. Exactly. Um and then the other one there might have been a post. I’m not 100% sure, but I know I had a post in Sarnia a couple times and uh there’s some pretty funny comments online about that. So I try not to do it on a post if if I couldn’t we can chop this if if you want to after but playing for the world juniors where like all the media is on you being a being a higher draft pick and all the media comes with hockey and I know I know that you have the hockey media training and obviously we’re trying to coax out some good answers out of you despite that but is is that that like a serious concern where you’re like you’re trying to give as little as possible but and so they don’t bury you because the media is just so they’re looking for that audio. Yeah. They’re looking to make you look bad. Yeah. No, 100%. I mean, it’s kind of how it goes now. I mean, I think even when outside of hockey and stuff, everybody’s trying to make everybody look bad right now. And it’s uh it’s crazy to think uh you could kind of end your whole career just based off of something you said online, right? So, I mean, you got to take everything in uh responsibly and try to make your best response as possible. Um and then yeah, I mean there’s stuff like that like um I mean the DMs that I got after that first Team Canada game, I had people telling me to kill myself, quit hockey, like you’re trash, all that. I mean, I could have chose to go and respond to them and I mean, god forbid one of them takes a screenshot, throws it up, I mean, I’m done, right? So, there’s little things like that where you got to be smart about it and you just got to kind of take a deep breath and move on. Do you mind if if we dig into that just for a second and be as respectful as possible like you’re like I get how good you are, right? Like you’re a third round pick. You’re an early chug goalie. I was never good enough to play in the CHL. And so, like I know from, you know, scraping the bottom barrel in the Fed to where you are, I’m like that’s a really nasty goalie. But for average Joe Blow sitting on the couch 100 pounds overweight watching you play for team Canada and it’s like you’re terrible. I could do better. It’s like you have no idea. You’re so delusional. But like how do you compartmentalize that when you’re on the world stage and you got TSN got every media outlet I’m sure tagging you on Instagram and then you have I would assume 2,000 messages after the game telling you to go off. Is that fair? Like 2,000 messages off yourself? Yeah, I had quite a few. I mean I don’t know if it was up to 2,000. I probably would say that I probably got like 200 DMs. Like if you go into my one post, it’s the one right before my World Junior one. There’s still comments on that one. Um but I mean at the same time there’s a lot of people like I they were standing up for me too. So I mean that helps you get through, right? Um there was a lot of people that were in there saying like well ripping the people that were coming to my Instagram and also saying hey it’s not your fault. Like it’s team game. So I mean there’s there’s a lot of people that were also in there and helping me out. And I mean it helps when you have a great group of guys in the room as well. And um I’ve always been taught to not really care what people say. Um like like you said, I mean those guys are sitting up on their couch down in their basement right now doing who knows what. So it doesn’t really matter what they think and it’s more so what I think as if I can look in the mirror at the end of the day and say I gave my best and gave my all and that’s kind of what matters to me. So, I mean, well, and listen, take take this for what it’s worth, but I mean, from a psychological standpoint, the the idea is is that you are a two-dimensional object on that screen. To them, you are nothing more real than a cartoon that they watch with Wy Coyote, and the Roadrunner, right? So, in the same respect, you got to treat it the same way on the other end. These are not real people. These are not real people who would make these comments to your face or say this. This is nothing more than just some words and code on a screen. That’s all it is. Exactly. No. Exactly. So, I mean, there’s I think I’ve only had one instance where somebody’s actually said something to my face off the ice and it was like a six-year-old kid in Sue St. Marie and his dad just stood there and watched the whole thing. Um, but I mean, it was pretty funny. I was able to give his dad. I looked at his dad. Was it a good chirp? Uh, he came up to me. It was after a game. Um, I I like it. He was probably I think he’s 13-year-old kid. He came up to me and he goes, “Uh, just so you know, like or he goes, “Is Ben Gora coming out?” And I’m like, “Yeah, it’s me.” And he goes, like I think his kids going to want like an autograph or something, right? Like way too high on my horse. Um and he goes, he goes, “Yeah, like just so you know, if you want like Charlie Shankle, like the goalie that was I was playing against, he goes, Charlie Shankle can give you some goalie lessons.” And I just kind of laughed and I was like, “Well,” I was like, “He’s undrafted and I went seventh overall. I think I’d do just fine giving him lessons maybe.” And I kind of walked away, looked at the dad, I was like, “Real nice.” Like, “Great job, buddy. You’re raising a good one. But like it’s it’s funny like you know what you can kind of laugh about it later on and everything but I mean it’s uh I mean good on the kid. I mean I at that age I would not have had the balls to compensate something like that. So good on him. I was going to say at that age at that point considering like how much cowards people in the online world are. Yeah. You almost have to respect like this kid had the balls to tell me that I suck. That’s what I mean. Like I can’t even get mad at the kid. Like freaking good on him. Like I if I was that age doing like I still wouldn’t go up to a guy and say that. So I mean good on him. Did you have anything like that in Halifax where I would assume you guys maybe just go straight to the hotel or have a meal, whatever, but somebody says something to you out in public or is that really the only in person? That was really the only in person. I mean, obviously I got chirped on the bench. There was there was a good one actually in the like the suit was the only spot I really got chirped. Honest to God, there’s another one. So, there was this lady that sat behind the bench and she just loved beacon the boys. Like, it was just like she she made it her life goal to just chirp everybody. It was my rookie year and they brought me to the Sue as a scratch and we were like, “You know what? We’re going to sit right bes right behind her so she doesn’t say anything the whole game. So we sat right behind her. She kept her mouth shut the entire game. We go to walk down into the tunnel like after the game and she she like sees me and goes, “How’s it feel to be an eighth overall pick sitting in the stands?” I looked at her. I was like actually I went seventh and just kept walking. I felt I was like a like that was my best big dog moment right there. It was like can’t even get it right. Like so I mean there’s it’s fun. Like you know what I mean they’re there for a reason. I mean, they love chirping you. Like, there was uh there was a couple this year, too. I guess Fort Wayne. Um they Fort Wayne loved chirping me. Um there there’s some good ones. Like, you know what? It’s fun. Like, I like it. Keeps me going. Um I see videos online, too. There was one in Aderondac. Somebody was chirping me. I completely forget what they said, but I mean, I was like, I was actually dying laughing to it. Like, it’s pretty funny. It gets you going, too, which is nice and gets And again, I mean, what do you remember more? the cities that you go into where at least they have light-hearted fans who are willing to chirp you a little bit or the ones where they all get their hands on their knees, right? Well, exactly. Exactly. So, I mean, it’s a lot of fun. Like, we were giving it back to at Around all the time and like we we won some big games and Fort Wayne where we won. I’d give the biggest Sally possible. Like, I’m going to I’m going to let you know and I mean we went back and forth and it’s pretty fun and uh like you said, you’re going to remember those games way more than the ones that you go in there, they sit there quietly or whatever and don’t say anything. So, I mean, it’s a lot of fun to me and it gets me going and don’t let them know, but it usually gets me playing a little bit better, too. You got to give her the old asker. Flip the net and do some push-ups or bench. Yeah, I saw that. I mean, I’m not taking the chance of that net coming down on me. I with my luck, I’d come I’d pull it down too fast or something. Wouldn’t be able to stop it and look like an idiot. So, get trapped in there. Yeah, get trapped or something. That’d be my luck. When When guys chirping you on on Instagram, like what you just mentioned, is it like an Instagram story like, “Benny, you suck. Oh, they just like straight DM me. I had so many like straight just them DMing me or like in my Instagram comments. Um, but I mean, like I said, it was pretty funny. It gets you going. I mean, um, you just got to move on. Like I the next day I did an interview with uh TSN or whatever and like I think I was literally laughing in the interview. Like you got to find a way to move on. I mean, you can’t live in the past. It’s over. As much as I’d love to go back and post a shut out or do whatever and try to make the best case for myself, I mean, there’s nothing you can do about it. So, you got to kind of move on and get to the next one. A couple more questions for you here before you let you go. And thanks for taking the time, too, by the way. But out of curiosity, going into your second year, especially making that jump from from junior to pro, which a lot of people don’t really appreciate how big of a jump it is, especially in the schedule, because I mean, you’re you’re you’re now an adult. It’s like, okay, this is now your job. And as far as being able to manage that off time and what you do with it, do you feel like you’re gonna have a better handle on that going on in your second year? Yeah, I’m I was pretty lucky. Um, my billets that I had in Erie were unbelievable and they really helped me kind of like grow into like an adult before I was able to even get to pro hockey, which was really nice. Um, so I mean it was they were a big help in that I thought really to be honest with you. Um like my billet mom gave me like a full cooking book and everything and uh they were really great people and I mean even the same with my Sarnia builds they they really helped me out too. So I mean going in I felt that I actually managed my time pretty well. I mean I’m I’m a pretty chill guy. Um I like to just kind of hang out and relax. And I mean I had some good buddies last year that we that’s what we do is just hang out and relax. I mean no need to go and drink our faces off and we can just go and chill. And I think we went to the movies a couple times just to like relax. It was a great movie theater in Indie. So, I mean, it made it a lot of fun. And we’d Yeah. We just literally just chill and we’d uh we’d hang out whether we’re going we’d go for a walk or something. So, there’s little things like that where you take your mind off it, relax, reset, make your body feel a little bit better, and you’re ready to go the next day and you can move on to the next game, too. I can’t help but notice you’re sitting on a pretty sick gaming chair. What are you uh what do you what what are you playing when uh when paddles are up? You know what? It’s uh there’s a couple things. I got my PC which my buddies and I like like playing the racing games. Got the steering wheel and everything for that. Uh I don’t know if I’ll bring that to Quebec. That’s a little bit of a No, you’re bringing that. Might have to. Might have to. But uh my PlayStation I I’m usually playing like some Rainbow Six on there with my one buddy. We uh Yeah, we dial in on that. The one day we I brought my PlayStation over to his room. I think most of the team was going out to the bar and I was like, I can’t, man. I was like, we just had a three and three. I’m exhausted. Like I just want to chill. And he goes honestly the same. So, we ended up just kind of chilling in his room. We brought my PlayStation over. We played R six for the night. So, we uh we find a way to kind of that’s another way just of chilling and relaxing. So, it’s uh takes your mind off of hockey, too, which is nice. I mean, you have a bad game, you go hop on the stage with the buddies, and I mean, we just dying laughing on there. So, you you find a way to get over it pretty quickly. Being home this summer, give me an overunder on how many times your door gets knocked on to play road hockey with the with the kids in the neighborhood. You know what? Uh I live on a dirt road, so there’s not too much hockey going on on that dirt road. Um, I’ve been asked to come out to a couple skates and stuff and go talk to some teams and stuff. But it’s uh it’s awesome. I mean, growing up if uh having Ken Apple be around, like I said earlier, that guy did the same for me. So, I mean, it’s uh it’s good to give back and uh we got some really there’s actually a really good hockey player down the road. Uh his dad uh Robin Bushie actually played for the Windsor Spitfire. So, I mean it’s a lot of fun seeing him kind of grow up too and uh hoping the best for him. And he’s something in the water up there. What’s going on? You got a lot of good products up there. Exactly. I mean, there’s something some something in the water, the dirt road, it helps you out. I mean, the kids running on a dirt road every day. So, I mean, if that doesn’t show you how much he wants it, I don’t know what will, right? So, I mean, it’s it’s a lot of it’s a gritty town, and I think that’s kind of what helps out the kids up here. I mean, it’s a it’s a fun hockey town. Everybody loves it here. Uh, obviously having the battalion in North Bay, uh, it’s a it’s a pretty big staple for everybody here. Cool, man. You got anything else? I’m good, man. Honestly, we really appreciate your time. All the best of luck this season and looking forward to seeing you climb the ranks, man. I think you deserve it and I think you got the talent and skill to do it. No, thank you very much. It was awesome to get on here with you guys and uh chat hockey and fishing for a little bit there. Thank you. One one last question I got for you. Custom B said, “What’s the next graphic you’re going to do? Any throwbacks? Any custom stuff?” I can’t even lie. It’s This is my most boring one yet probably. I uh I’m getting I’m getting old. I guess my maturity is starting to come in. I’m just like keep it simple. Like you’re a pro now. You can’t be doing anything crazy. Um, so I got a pretty simple just I think it’s the I’m trying to even remember what set it is. It’s like the It’s a new one that Bower’s doing. Is it the Fly Light? Maybe that’s it. Yeah, I think that’s it. They got so many freaking names now. I can’t remember anything. Um, but yeah, it’s a pretty basic set. I uh I sent to a couple my buddies and they’re like, “Man, you got you got throw some more color on. It’s boring.” But uh so I threw a little bit more, but it’s it’s pretty chill. I can’t lie. It’s pretty tame this year. Are you familiar with the story of Garrett Sparks and the checkerboard pads and the Leafs telling him to gas him? I wouldn’t doubt them get telling them to gas those. I got told to gas like my all black pads when I was in Sarnia. Really? Oh yeah, they did not like Well, my goalie coach there didn’t like the black ones and then I did those uh the throwback pads there. Um and they didn’t really like those either cuz they were pretty skinny. Uh they looked skinny and I I like I agree with them on that. So I probably shouldn’t have done those for world juniors. Maybe I would have made a couple more saves but uh we’ll blame the gear, right? Um but uh yeah, I mean it’s they like to tell you what you can and can’t do and I mean I’ve been lucky this year and the last year too. I mean I’ve been pretty I’ve kind of calmed down with them and um just keeping it pretty simple now. Well I know the red are rebels. Nobody gets custom gear. White helmet, black helmet, white pads, black pads. That’s really it. There’s no you no red like you’re expendable, right? Like there’s nothing custom here happening. That’s like the New York Yankees of the Western League kind of. Yeah. They’ve always they’ve always been like that with the Sutters, but I but the the Garrett Spark stories because they I guess they didn’t have a whole lot of optimism for the guy and then he kind of was thrust into the spotlight. He’s got these sick checkerboard pads that he started with the Orlando Solar Bears might be going to the Marlies plays a little bit and then I think towards the end of the season they told him like this is too much about you fella. Like you got to get rid of checker boards even though he’s paying tribute to one of the greatest Leafs legends of all time. from Trevor Kid, Manitoba boy Manitoba and then he kind of went back to the basics. He do like the the white it out checkerboard. But uh for me obviously I’m biased that’s one of my favorite if not my favorite setup of all time. Do do you have one that comes to mind? We’ll let you go after that. Well, I don’t know if I have one of all time to be honest. I uh it sounds bad, but I’ve never been a big gear nerd. Like I uh I had some decent sets growing up. Nothing special. Like my favorite set growing up for myself was the Warrior Swaggers. Those were funny as heck. I still think those are the funniest looking pads. Um, but like I’m trying to think. I I can’t nothing really comes to mind. Um, like some of the Cary Price like the Carry Price Vons are pretty sweet. I like those a lot. The last one you did the all white the clean slots and that uh was it the Was it the V? No, it wasn’t the vision. It was the the velocity with the like spiral uh fire kind of graph. No. So, I I can’t like there’s nothing that really pops up, but I think if I had to say one, I mean, and liking the guy, too. I mean, it’s it’s pretty hard not to like his pads and setups and everything, but even though it’s like he chilled out quite a bit his last couple years, right? So, I think I kind of got to that stage now. You become a cheer and you like the all-white mostly white plane jane setups, right? Exactly. The biting. Give the man an outro. Anyway, thank you very much for coming on, Benny. This is the biscuit. This is a part of our summer interview series. We do new episodes every single Sunday at 11:00 a.m. Eastern, 10 in the Prairies, 9 in the foothills of Calgary, eight in the Pacific Northwest. I’m Travis, that’s Dave, that’s Ben Goodro. Thanks for watching.

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Timestamp
00:00 Return to Canada / Sign with Montreal
01:00 ECHLroad trips
03:20 AHL vs ECHL differences
04:58 DROPPED by San Jose Sharks
06:10 First ECHL paycheque
07:30 Ben’s love for fishing
12:10 Ben’s atrocious debut at the World Juniors
16:00 Smartest goalie coach Ben ever had
18:58 How much Bauer pays NHL goalie’s
23:20 Why Ben Gaudreau is TOO SHORT by NHL standards
28:40 Ben Gaudreau’s idol was Vesa Toskala
30:50 “I got 200 DM’s after the world juniors”
34:33 The only time a fan said something to my face
38:50 OHL to ECHL for Ben Gaudreau
42:20 Toronto told Garret Sparks NO more checker pads