WEBVTT
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Today's podcast is brought to you by Minerva Hearing.
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Hear the cheers, protect your ears.
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Shimoy Pauba Croisor.
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Hello, everybody, and welcome to Devil's Debrief after the Cardiff Devils have beaten the Belfast Giants by five goals to two.
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Dan Rather alongside Gary Thewish and Neil Francis.
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Gaz, is there anything better than a game like that?
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No, there's not.
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There's nothing better than a four-point weekend, and there's nothing better than ending that four-point weekend getting a win over one of your rivals.
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So, you know, I uh last night was a bit of a struggle and a slog in terms of how the game went.
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But tonight I felt was that game that you kind of befits the celebrations of this weekend and the 40th anniversary.
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Just uh a fantastic and fascinating 60 minutes and delight you together win.
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And it's sort of what we talked about on Insider in the week that Dundee, you know, the underdog team, they can come in and just try and spoil a game.
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And it's so hard to try and break those down.
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And you know, there's lots of pressure, lots of pressure, but um you know it's hard to break through when a team is just willing to defend all night.
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Tonight was the the contrast, you know.
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Belfast, you know, we're very aggressive, really going for us.
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I don't think we helped ourselves, especially early on, um, with too many turnovers in our our zone again.
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Um when you do that against a team like Belfast, they'll just jump all over it.
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And you know, we put ourselves, I felt, under unnecessary pressure because you're gonna get pressure anyway against Belfast.
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You don't need to invite it for more.
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But as the game went on and as the game got chippier, I thought we just grew and grew into it.
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And I and I felt we had a bit more fight in us than than Belfast.
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And uh yeah, worthy winners on the night.
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Paul Thompson described it as a game of two halves.
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I think that's probably the best way to put it.
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We'll talk about the first half first and and and maybe touch on the the more difficult part of it.
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And yeah, Franny, the devils, a lot of giveaways, a lot of turnovers in their own end didn't seem like they settled it, particularly in that first period.
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No, there was lots of people asking me, were they out with the the legends last night?
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Because that's what it looked like.
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I mean, they they looked like I felt today.
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Um but uh you know I I don't think I've seen so many teammates colliding and everything, but just for the record, they weren't out and they weren't drinking last night, it was just how the game started.
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Um but like we said, the important thing was that you know they kind of steadied the ship and um got more and more into the game, and uh yeah, that that second half, if we want to talk like Tomo did, um, was pretty dominant from the Devils.
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And uh I I just loved what I loved most about the game is we got a big rivalry with Belfast, and it felt like a game against our rivals.
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There was chippiness on both sides, wasn't there?
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Lots of little afters after the whistle, there was lots of big hits going in, some a bit late, some not, and uh yeah, lots of scrum.
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So I I just I like the fact that it looks like there's gonna be two teams who know all about the rivalry and uh are looking to be top dog.
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Guys, it was a game as we've spoken about the Devils for the first off were maybe outcompeted a little bit, but there was a turning point, maybe in the middle of the second, Riley Brandt, big hit, gets things going.
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And initially he'd offered a couple of guys out for a fight, didn't go.
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Then he throws a big hit, turns a puck over, eventually gets the goal on the power play.
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And it just felt like he on his own at times dragged the devils into it.
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And once he got them going, they were great, but he was the real catalyst and the spark.
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He really was.
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That that first 30 minutes, I felt we lost too many foot races, I felt we lost too many board battles, I felt that it just we allowed Belfast to get into their rhythm and that they are very, very good in their rhythm.
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And I totally agree.
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Riley Brant was the only one in that first 30 minutes who was trying to make sure that they were more uncomfortable than we were than we were allowing them to be.
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Like you say, things off like little battles off the play, making sure he got in people's faces so that you know they were aware that if there was going to be a dance, he was more than willing uh to do it.
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If there was a hit he thought was a bit over the line, or even if he didn't think it was over the line, that's certainly the argument he put forward.
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And it almost felt like when Belfast turned that down and didn't want to go to that level, he said, Well, fine, give me the pack and I'll score.
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And as soon as he got that second, you could kind of feel, I think viscerally to me, the kind of frustration and the relief around the building that, like, okay, well, we're still in this.
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It's been a bit rough for this 30 minutes, but now we're level, so let's get back into it.
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Let's get our mindset back on what we're good at.
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And I think Brandt just dragged us forward to that.
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I thought it was a really, really a leadership performance from him tonight.
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Yeah, and what it felt to me, and and we've been looking for the first six, eight weeks of the season for the Devils to emulate what we saw at the end of last season.
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You know, that last 12 weeks.
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There was compete every night.
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They were they were imperious at times, but even when they weren't necessarily the dominant team, they just stuck with teams.
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They were the they were in every game.
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You never felt that they were really dominated.
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And for the second half of tonight's game, that's the first time this season, I think we've seen that in abundance.
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And you know, that was driven by guys like Ryan Barrow, Cohen Olyshevsky, you know, getting stuck in.
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The Devils had to, of course, you know, cut their lines as well.
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Panumieho went down with an injury, and so that makes it you know particularly difficult.
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But when you've got guys who are all buying in, and you've talked, guys, recently, about how since that Sheffield game, it's felt like the Devils have kind of been playing as a unit as opposed to as individuals, and tonight I think was the real pinnacle moment of that.
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Yeah, it felt more tonight like that translated into the forward lines and the the way we attack.
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We've been very good as a unit defensively, but I felt today it's like Jimmy Alini, you've seen in the corners as the furthest man forward, Gleason Fournier is the first man forward.
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It was a confidence that you know what we're we're comfortable in our shape in the back and we can do that, but let's push forward and get things as well.
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Tom Coron is another person who I thought was exceptional to tonight in terms of getting into that Belfast zone, protecting the pack, being strong, making plays, just putting that effort in and winning battles.
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That that we grew into the game, we we matched Belfast energy as it went on, and once we matched them, we then bettered them.
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I'd like to see that from the start at times, to be honest.
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But I think mentally, tonight is a really important win of performance because we didn't get frustrated, we didn't shrink, we didn't make excuses.
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We adapted, we got better, we learnt, and we overcame.
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And I think that's really, really important in the context of what a title race is.
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That by doing it tonight, we've proven for the rest of the season there's no excuse why we can't do it again.
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Exactly.
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Yeah, led by Riley Brandt, and I caught up with him after the game.
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Riley Brandt, man of the match performance.
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What'd you make of that one?
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Yeah, I mean, it's always good beating Belfast.
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You know, they're a good organization.
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Ever since I've been here, they've been top of the league.
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So it always feels good to beat them, especially at home.
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Felt like you were really trying to make a difference in the game any way you could and through hits and then eventually get the goal.
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And it must have been a nice one to get that one in the in the in the second period.
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Yeah, you know, it was a great pass by Welshie, good power play.
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Um, yeah, we needed it, and you know, thankfully it went in.
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Yeah, that's a good pass by Welsh, like I said, SC2, and getting the boys set up in the zone there.
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Belfast are obviously a tough team to play, and it felt that that really was really the changing point in the game.
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And after that, you guys were with a better side.
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Yeah, I thought we definitely, you know, it took us a little minute to get under ourselves there.
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And uh once we started playing our game plan, chipping Pox, getting Pucks in behind them, taking the body, I thought we did a lot better uh, you know, getting behind them, and it was good.
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And you guys, you know, four wins on at home now on the on the bounce, and you've started the league top with that.
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It's important to get things off to the right foot in that regard.
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Yeah, it definitely is.
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You know, we had uh our challenge cup games up to start, and it was good to get into the league, obviously get ahead of ourselves here, and you know, four points on the weekend is always great.
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Great to hear from Riley, very understated maybe in his reaction.
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Franny, you know, we we've spoken about about Riley at length.
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Now I think word as well, Josh McDonald took both his goals really nicely.
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The first one maybe a little bit easier, but then the breakaway, I thought that backhand of finish was fantastic.
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Yeah, and that was it was it was a pivotal moment because it's the devils were turning up the screw, weren't they?
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And then they get that breakaway, lovely stretch pass, um, and he's still got a lot to do because he's going at full tilt and to pull a move in tight spaces, and you know, whistle had been playing really well.
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Uh, and you know, he makes that move, and you know, he does what you want your goal scorers to do, and he puts it away in the key moment of the game.
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So I thought, yeah, he was really good.
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And I you know, I loved the Ryan Barrow goal when Joe Jonas Emdal jumped down the wall and made that you know bullet pass to the back door where Barrow had you know presented his stick exactly where he wanted, and and he hit it, and it was uh you know, I really like that goal.
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Um, yeah, I I like the the battle level as the game went on.
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The willingness to block shots was really evident as well.
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You could see how much the guys really wanted this game.
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And just going back to your point, Gaz, yeah, it would be nice to play all the games, you know, as we played the last 30.
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What you've got to put into context, and it's not an excuse, is we play in that way in preseason.
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We've gone down a lot of injuries.
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We've got guys playing with injuries that are just getting on with it, and it does take its toll on you.
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It it is hard to keep playing like that.
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But you saw tonight the willingness of the guys to do it because they needed it to get the job done.
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Where in the other games leading up to here, they to here, including last night, maybe they didn't have to play that style and risk further injuries, and that's not to say they're playing non-contact, but it's just kind of playing maybe a little bit smarter.
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Um, and yeah, I mean, hopefully when we get some more bodies and hopefully Panu isn't isn't too bad.
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Um, you know, we can turn up the screw again in terms of the physicality.
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But you know, I I just did love the energy as the game went on.
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It was a night as well, and Franil, just touch on this with you.
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You know, it's part of those 40th anniversary celebrations.
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The owners are in town.
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Sometimes, even though last night was the main event, there can be a little bit of pressure on tonight just to make sure you get the you know, you end the weekend on the right foot.
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But I thought the Devils eventually kind of lived up to that, that that that billing.
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Yeah, I thought the team handled the occasion really well over the weekend, and you're right, it's a celebration weekend, it's two home games.
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Um, there was still uh a lot of the guys in the building tonight.
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Um, yesterday, you know, maybe understandably, we started a little bit slow after the you know the kind of extended uh pregame um and then grew into the game.
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And you know, even though it was it was tight, I felt it was all the devil's um pressure tonight.
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They had the you know league champions coming into the building, and you know, it was important to make a kind of statement win, and I think I think they did.
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I think it was a statement win.
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And I yeah, I just think over the weekend, instead of what I liked was the calmness when things maybe weren't going our way.
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So when we found it hard to beat the Dundee goalie, stayed calm, just kept on plugging away, plugging away until you know um Brandt makes that nice play that he's been he's been making and the Nick Welsh goal gets the to go ahead.
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Uh, and then tonight it was a it was a good start to get that opening goal, and then you know, I I think two goals probably by inviting too much pressure, by not being clinical with our exits, um, you know, make making some poor choices.
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And when that's gone against you and you you you go a goal down to the Giants, you know how good they can be in terms of locking up games, but the devil's just kept on turning up the uh the pace and the and the battle level and not until they sort of broke through the Giants wall.
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And I think what I you've got to give recognition to I know I've talked about the team defending, but you know, the the 6D that we're rolling at the moment over the last two weeks, what have we conceded?
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Three goals over the last four games.
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Uh you know, we and if you think of sort of guilt ed chances, those sort of clear opportunities, there were a few turnovers tonight, which was disappointing, but that's all we've given teams over the past uh four games or so.
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Like I said I keep mind, like you said, that Sheffield game.
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Since that it seems to have really awoken something.
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And uh we spoke to to Nicholas very quickly in the in the bar last night, and he was uh I think he seemed pretty happy with with the way that people are responding to uh the defensive uh aspect of our game.
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And I I think that's really important because without that foundation you can't be successful.
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Yeah, you know, and you're right to give a shout out to the the 6D out there, but I thought both goalies this weekend were outstanding.
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I thought Bouncy was brilliant yesterday and fully deserved his shutout.
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Uh, and I thought Stover carried on where he was last weekend, where he I mean he made some big stops, and as I said on the the stream in the period breaks, he didn't just make the big stops, but he also managed to kill the play dead to get a whistle so his team could reset.
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You know, there wasn't too much goal mouth sort of scramble actions because he's got this knack of you know getting across to saves that maybe he's got no business making, but still staying in the game and finding a way to grab the puck between his pads and you know and making sure there's no second or or third efforts on there.
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So I thought he was he was really, really good tonight, obviously unlucky on the uh the first goal with the with the deflection, and then on the power play goal, you know, he'd made one save already, and it was um just a good bit of poaching by Goodwick uh Goodwin.
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But you know, he did make um key stops at key times, you know, when we were 2-1 down.
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I mean, there was Conway's miss we talked about on the stream.
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Um but there was also those um those ones with the the pad as well where um you know he came out and aggressively challenged the shooter and made some really really big saves.
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So yeah, big shout out to both goalies this weekend.
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I think uh in closing for for this weekend, and I think I'll go more into this in Insider um this week, but I mentioned to you that just before the face-off happened tonight on the stream, this weekend my my heart's just been full uh for for the the entire weekend.
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It's been probably one of the most positive devils weekends I've been lucky enough to to be a part of and be around.
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Um from the way that you know the the legends came back and to see the smiles on their faces all weekend whenever you've seen them, whether it's been in the bar, on the ice, anyway, they they've enjoyed it so much.
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Um, the way the guys, the Franny said, the guys have reacted on the ice to kind of get that four-point weekend.
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And like I said, I'll collect my thoughts for insider a bit more, but I couldn't leave this debrief without the fact that I'm gonna go home tonight, I'm gonna crack open a beer, and I'm just gonna have the biggest smile on my face because everything that's great about the Cardiff Devils was on show for this last Saturday and Sunday, and I think that's really special.
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Special it is.
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What a weekend it's been.
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And Riley Brand the Hero tonight, the Devils get the two wins.
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And I said last night, if you want to beat the champs, you've got to knock them out.
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Well, round one goes to the Devils, they get one of six, five more to come, baby.
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We'll catch you midweek.
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See you later.
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Good night.
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Thank you very much once again to our sponsor, Minerva Hearing, for today's podcast.
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And remember, Minerva Hearing, hear the cheers, protect your ears.
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Today's podcast is brought to you by Minerva Hearing.
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Hear the cheers, protect your ears.
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Shimoy Pauba Croisor.
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Hello, everybody, and welcome to Devil's Debrief after the Cardiff Devils have beaten the Belfast Giants by five goals to two.
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Dan Rather alongside Gary Thewish and Neil Francis.
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Gaz, is there anything better than a game like that?
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No, there's not.
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There's nothing better than a four-point weekend, and there's nothing better than ending that four-point weekend getting a win over one of your rivals.
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So, you know, I uh last night was a bit of a struggle and a slog in terms of how the game went.
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But tonight I felt was that game that you kind of befits the celebrations of this weekend and the 40th anniversary.
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Just uh a fantastic and fascinating 60 minutes and delight you together win.
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And it's sort of what we talked about on Insider in the week that Dundee, you know, the underdog team, they can come in and just try and spoil a game.
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And it's so hard to try and break those down.
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And you know, there's lots of pressure, lots of pressure, but um you know it's hard to break through when a team is just willing to defend all night.
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Tonight was the the contrast, you know.
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Belfast, you know, we're very aggressive, really going for us.
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I don't think we helped ourselves, especially early on, um, with too many turnovers in our our zone again.
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Um when you do that against a team like Belfast, they'll just jump all over it.
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And you know, we put ourselves, I felt, under unnecessary pressure because you're gonna get pressure anyway against Belfast.
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You don't need to invite it for more.
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But as the game went on and as the game got chippier, I thought we just grew and grew into it.
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And I and I felt we had a bit more fight in us than than Belfast.
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And uh yeah, worthy winners on the night.
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Paul Thompson described it as a game of two halves.
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I think that's probably the best way to put it.
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We'll talk about the first half first and and and maybe touch on the the more difficult part of it.
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And yeah, Franny, the devils, a lot of giveaways, a lot of turnovers in their own end didn't seem like they settled it, particularly in that first period.
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No, there was lots of people asking me, were they out with the the legends last night?
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Because that's what it looked like.
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I mean, they they looked like I felt today.
00:02:04.640 --> 00:02:14.879
Um but uh you know I I don't think I've seen so many teammates colliding and everything, but just for the record, they weren't out and they weren't drinking last night, it was just how the game started.
00:02:15.039 --> 00:02:32.080
Um but like we said, the important thing was that you know they kind of steadied the ship and um got more and more into the game, and uh yeah, that that second half, if we want to talk like Tomo did, um, was pretty dominant from the Devils.
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And uh I I just loved what I loved most about the game is we got a big rivalry with Belfast, and it felt like a game against our rivals.
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There was chippiness on both sides, wasn't there?
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Lots of little afters after the whistle, there was lots of big hits going in, some a bit late, some not, and uh yeah, lots of scrum.
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So I I just I like the fact that it looks like there's gonna be two teams who know all about the rivalry and uh are looking to be top dog.
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Guys, it was a game as we've spoken about the Devils for the first off were maybe outcompeted a little bit, but there was a turning point, maybe in the middle of the second, Riley Brandt, big hit, gets things going.
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And initially he'd offered a couple of guys out for a fight, didn't go.
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Then he throws a big hit, turns a puck over, eventually gets the goal on the power play.
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And it just felt like he on his own at times dragged the devils into it.
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And once he got them going, they were great, but he was the real catalyst and the spark.
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He really was.
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That that first 30 minutes, I felt we lost too many foot races, I felt we lost too many board battles, I felt that it just we allowed Belfast to get into their rhythm and that they are very, very good in their rhythm.
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And I totally agree.
00:03:41.280 --> 00:03:49.840
Riley Brant was the only one in that first 30 minutes who was trying to make sure that they were more uncomfortable than we were than we were allowing them to be.
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Like you say, things off like little battles off the play, making sure he got in people's faces so that you know they were aware that if there was going to be a dance, he was more than willing uh to do it.
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If there was a hit he thought was a bit over the line, or even if he didn't think it was over the line, that's certainly the argument he put forward.
00:04:07.280 --> 00:04:16.000
And it almost felt like when Belfast turned that down and didn't want to go to that level, he said, Well, fine, give me the pack and I'll score.
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And as soon as he got that second, you could kind of feel, I think viscerally to me, the kind of frustration and the relief around the building that, like, okay, well, we're still in this.
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It's been a bit rough for this 30 minutes, but now we're level, so let's get back into it.
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Let's get our mindset back on what we're good at.
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And I think Brandt just dragged us forward to that.
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I thought it was a really, really a leadership performance from him tonight.
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Yeah, and what it felt to me, and and we've been looking for the first six, eight weeks of the season for the Devils to emulate what we saw at the end of last season.
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You know, that last 12 weeks.
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There was compete every night.
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They were they were imperious at times, but even when they weren't necessarily the dominant team, they just stuck with teams.
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They were the they were in every game.
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You never felt that they were really dominated.
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And for the second half of tonight's game, that's the first time this season, I think we've seen that in abundance.
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And you know, that was driven by guys like Ryan Barrow, Cohen Olyshevsky, you know, getting stuck in.
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The Devils had to, of course, you know, cut their lines as well.
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Panumieho went down with an injury, and so that makes it you know particularly difficult.
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But when you've got guys who are all buying in, and you've talked, guys, recently, about how since that Sheffield game, it's felt like the Devils have kind of been playing as a unit as opposed to as individuals, and tonight I think was the real pinnacle moment of that.
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Yeah, it felt more tonight like that translated into the forward lines and the the way we attack.
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We've been very good as a unit defensively, but I felt today it's like Jimmy Alini, you've seen in the corners as the furthest man forward, Gleason Fournier is the first man forward.
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It was a confidence that you know what we're we're comfortable in our shape in the back and we can do that, but let's push forward and get things as well.
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Tom Coron is another person who I thought was exceptional to tonight in terms of getting into that Belfast zone, protecting the pack, being strong, making plays, just putting that effort in and winning battles.
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That that we grew into the game, we we matched Belfast energy as it went on, and once we matched them, we then bettered them.
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I'd like to see that from the start at times, to be honest.
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But I think mentally, tonight is a really important win of performance because we didn't get frustrated, we didn't shrink, we didn't make excuses.
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We adapted, we got better, we learnt, and we overcame.
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And I think that's really, really important in the context of what a title race is.
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That by doing it tonight, we've proven for the rest of the season there's no excuse why we can't do it again.
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Exactly.
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Yeah, led by Riley Brandt, and I caught up with him after the game.
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Riley Brandt, man of the match performance.
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What'd you make of that one?
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Yeah, I mean, it's always good beating Belfast.
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You know, they're a good organization.
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Ever since I've been here, they've been top of the league.
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So it always feels good to beat them, especially at home.
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Felt like you were really trying to make a difference in the game any way you could and through hits and then eventually get the goal.
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And it must have been a nice one to get that one in the in the in the second period.
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Yeah, you know, it was a great pass by Welshie, good power play.
00:07:07.040 --> 00:07:10.319
Um, yeah, we needed it, and you know, thankfully it went in.
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Yeah, that's a good pass by Welsh, like I said, SC2, and getting the boys set up in the zone there.
00:07:15.040 --> 00:07:19.120
Belfast are obviously a tough team to play, and it felt that that really was really the changing point in the game.
00:07:19.199 --> 00:07:21.279
And after that, you guys were with a better side.
00:07:21.439 --> 00:07:25.600
Yeah, I thought we definitely, you know, it took us a little minute to get under ourselves there.
00:07:25.680 --> 00:07:32.879
And uh once we started playing our game plan, chipping Pox, getting Pucks in behind them, taking the body, I thought we did a lot better uh, you know, getting behind them, and it was good.
00:07:33.040 --> 00:07:36.879
And you guys, you know, four wins on at home now on the on the bounce, and you've started the league top with that.
00:07:36.959 --> 00:07:38.879
It's important to get things off to the right foot in that regard.
00:07:39.040 --> 00:07:40.000
Yeah, it definitely is.
00:07:40.079 --> 00:07:48.560
You know, we had uh our challenge cup games up to start, and it was good to get into the league, obviously get ahead of ourselves here, and you know, four points on the weekend is always great.
00:07:49.279 --> 00:07:52.480
Great to hear from Riley, very understated maybe in his reaction.
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Franny, you know, we we've spoken about about Riley at length.
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Now I think word as well, Josh McDonald took both his goals really nicely.
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The first one maybe a little bit easier, but then the breakaway, I thought that backhand of finish was fantastic.
00:08:02.959 --> 00:08:09.040
Yeah, and that was it was it was a pivotal moment because it's the devils were turning up the screw, weren't they?
00:08:09.199 --> 00:08:19.600
And then they get that breakaway, lovely stretch pass, um, and he's still got a lot to do because he's going at full tilt and to pull a move in tight spaces, and you know, whistle had been playing really well.
00:08:19.680 --> 00:08:26.639
Uh, and you know, he makes that move, and you know, he does what you want your goal scorers to do, and he puts it away in the key moment of the game.
00:08:26.720 --> 00:08:28.319
So I thought, yeah, he was really good.
00:08:28.480 --> 00:08:45.360
And I you know, I loved the Ryan Barrow goal when Joe Jonas Emdal jumped down the wall and made that you know bullet pass to the back door where Barrow had you know presented his stick exactly where he wanted, and and he hit it, and it was uh you know, I really like that goal.
00:08:45.519 --> 00:08:50.799
Um, yeah, I I like the the battle level as the game went on.
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The willingness to block shots was really evident as well.
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You could see how much the guys really wanted this game.
00:08:56.399 --> 00:09:02.960
And just going back to your point, Gaz, yeah, it would be nice to play all the games, you know, as we played the last 30.
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What you've got to put into context, and it's not an excuse, is we play in that way in preseason.
00:09:10.799 --> 00:09:12.080
We've gone down a lot of injuries.
00:09:12.159 --> 00:09:17.759
We've got guys playing with injuries that are just getting on with it, and it does take its toll on you.
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It it is hard to keep playing like that.
00:09:19.759 --> 00:09:24.559
But you saw tonight the willingness of the guys to do it because they needed it to get the job done.
00:09:24.720 --> 00:09:38.399
Where in the other games leading up to here, they to here, including last night, maybe they didn't have to play that style and risk further injuries, and that's not to say they're playing non-contact, but it's just kind of playing maybe a little bit smarter.
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Um, and yeah, I mean, hopefully when we get some more bodies and hopefully Panu isn't isn't too bad.
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Um, you know, we can turn up the screw again in terms of the physicality.
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But you know, I I just did love the energy as the game went on.
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It was a night as well, and Franil, just touch on this with you.
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You know, it's part of those 40th anniversary celebrations.
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The owners are in town.
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Sometimes, even though last night was the main event, there can be a little bit of pressure on tonight just to make sure you get the you know, you end the weekend on the right foot.
00:10:05.840 --> 00:10:09.759
But I thought the Devils eventually kind of lived up to that, that that that billing.
00:10:10.000 --> 00:10:16.799
Yeah, I thought the team handled the occasion really well over the weekend, and you're right, it's a celebration weekend, it's two home games.
00:10:16.960 --> 00:10:20.799
Um, there was still uh a lot of the guys in the building tonight.
00:10:20.960 --> 00:10:30.720
Um, yesterday, you know, maybe understandably, we started a little bit slow after the you know the kind of extended uh pregame um and then grew into the game.
00:10:30.799 --> 00:10:37.039
And you know, even though it was it was tight, I felt it was all the devil's um pressure tonight.
00:10:37.279 --> 00:10:46.320
They had the you know league champions coming into the building, and you know, it was important to make a kind of statement win, and I think I think they did.
00:10:46.480 --> 00:10:48.000
I think it was a statement win.
00:10:48.159 --> 00:10:55.360
And I yeah, I just think over the weekend, instead of what I liked was the calmness when things maybe weren't going our way.
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So when we found it hard to beat the Dundee goalie, stayed calm, just kept on plugging away, plugging away until you know um Brandt makes that nice play that he's been he's been making and the Nick Welsh goal gets the to go ahead.
00:11:08.480 --> 00:11:24.559
Uh, and then tonight it was a it was a good start to get that opening goal, and then you know, I I think two goals probably by inviting too much pressure, by not being clinical with our exits, um, you know, make making some poor choices.
00:11:24.879 --> 00:11:39.519
And when that's gone against you and you you you go a goal down to the Giants, you know how good they can be in terms of locking up games, but the devil's just kept on turning up the uh the pace and the and the battle level and not until they sort of broke through the Giants wall.
00:11:39.840 --> 00:11:52.000
And I think what I you've got to give recognition to I know I've talked about the team defending, but you know, the the 6D that we're rolling at the moment over the last two weeks, what have we conceded?
00:11:52.320 --> 00:11:54.720
Three goals over the last four games.
00:11:54.879 --> 00:12:07.120
Uh you know, we and if you think of sort of guilt ed chances, those sort of clear opportunities, there were a few turnovers tonight, which was disappointing, but that's all we've given teams over the past uh four games or so.
00:12:07.279 --> 00:12:09.519
Like I said I keep mind, like you said, that Sheffield game.
00:12:09.600 --> 00:12:12.240
Since that it seems to have really awoken something.
00:12:12.399 --> 00:12:24.559
And uh we spoke to to Nicholas very quickly in the in the bar last night, and he was uh I think he seemed pretty happy with with the way that people are responding to uh the defensive uh aspect of our game.
00:12:24.639 --> 00:12:28.879
And I I think that's really important because without that foundation you can't be successful.
00:12:29.120 --> 00:12:36.320
Yeah, you know, and you're right to give a shout out to the the 6D out there, but I thought both goalies this weekend were outstanding.
00:12:36.480 --> 00:12:40.080
I thought Bouncy was brilliant yesterday and fully deserved his shutout.
00:12:40.240 --> 00:12:54.720
Uh, and I thought Stover carried on where he was last weekend, where he I mean he made some big stops, and as I said on the the stream in the period breaks, he didn't just make the big stops, but he also managed to kill the play dead to get a whistle so his team could reset.
00:12:54.799 --> 00:13:11.440
You know, there wasn't too much goal mouth sort of scramble actions because he's got this knack of you know getting across to saves that maybe he's got no business making, but still staying in the game and finding a way to grab the puck between his pads and you know and making sure there's no second or or third efforts on there.
00:13:11.519 --> 00:13:24.320
So I thought he was he was really, really good tonight, obviously unlucky on the uh the first goal with the with the deflection, and then on the power play goal, you know, he'd made one save already, and it was um just a good bit of poaching by Goodwick uh Goodwin.
00:13:24.480 --> 00:13:29.840
But you know, he did make um key stops at key times, you know, when we were 2-1 down.
00:13:30.000 --> 00:13:32.960
I mean, there was Conway's miss we talked about on the stream.
00:13:33.120 --> 00:13:44.559
Um but there was also those um those ones with the the pad as well where um you know he came out and aggressively challenged the shooter and made some really really big saves.
00:13:44.639 --> 00:13:47.519
So yeah, big shout out to both goalies this weekend.
00:13:47.759 --> 00:14:05.360
I think uh in closing for for this weekend, and I think I'll go more into this in Insider um this week, but I mentioned to you that just before the face-off happened tonight on the stream, this weekend my my heart's just been full uh for for the the entire weekend.
00:14:05.440 --> 00:14:13.519
It's been probably one of the most positive devils weekends I've been lucky enough to to be a part of and be around.
00:14:13.679 --> 00:14:26.159
Um from the way that you know the the legends came back and to see the smiles on their faces all weekend whenever you've seen them, whether it's been in the bar, on the ice, anyway, they they've enjoyed it so much.
00:14:26.240 --> 00:14:31.919
Um, the way the guys, the Franny said, the guys have reacted on the ice to kind of get that four-point weekend.
00:14:32.000 --> 00:14:51.440
And like I said, I'll collect my thoughts for insider a bit more, but I couldn't leave this debrief without the fact that I'm gonna go home tonight, I'm gonna crack open a beer, and I'm just gonna have the biggest smile on my face because everything that's great about the Cardiff Devils was on show for this last Saturday and Sunday, and I think that's really special.
00:14:51.679 --> 00:14:52.399
Special it is.
00:14:52.559 --> 00:14:53.679
What a weekend it's been.
00:14:53.759 --> 00:14:56.720
And Riley Brand the Hero tonight, the Devils get the two wins.
00:14:56.799 --> 00:14:59.440
And I said last night, if you want to beat the champs, you've got to knock them out.
00:14:59.519 --> 00:15:03.519
Well, round one goes to the Devils, they get one of six, five more to come, baby.
00:15:03.600 --> 00:15:04.480
We'll catch you midweek.
00:15:04.559 --> 00:15:05.120
See you later.
00:15:05.200 --> 00:15:06.080
Good night.
00:15:06.720 --> 00:15:11.039
Thank you very much once again to our sponsor, Minerva Hearing, for today's podcast.
00:15:11.200 --> 00:15:14.799
And remember, Minerva Hearing, hear the cheers, protect your ears.
