Hey, hockey fans.

Welcome to another episode
of the Founding 4 podcast.

This was recorded on Twitter spaces live
from Tulsa, Oklahoma, where I, Erica L.

Ayala Was joined by Angelica Rodriguez,
as well as Chi-Yin, the general manager

of the Minnesota Whitecaps and Nate.

The GM for the Buffalo Beauts.

Hear them talk about the Battle of the
Rig playing in Tulsa, ending their regular

season, and of course, off season moves
including finding a new head coach.

Hello?

Hello?

Hi.

What's up?

I'm chilling in Tulsa.

How are you?

Er uh, I wish I were chilling in Tulsa.

Geez.

I know, I know.

Well, because you are a, a
Buffalo expert, I figured I'd,

I'd connect you with someone that
you know from the seven 16 here.

Why?

Yeah.

Hey, Angelica, how are.

Hey, who's that?

I dunno who that is.

Oh, it's Nate Oliver.

Come on.

You know it's me.

It's good to hear your voice.

Hi Nate.

How are you?

I'm doing well buddy.

How about yourself?

I'm doing good.

How's, how's everything down in Tulsa?

How's the weather down there?

The weather is gorgeous.

Uh, blue skies, uh, rather
arid temperatures and warm.

I didn't wear shorts today,
but some of the players didn't.

Some of the staff did, but, uh, yeah.

Yeah, I, I think it's, it's, it's
definitely a change compared to

typical buffalo weather and probably
what it's maybe right now in Buffalo.

Yeah, it's a, I mean, we
have a nice day today.

Um, we're gonna have a nice
Easter as well, so that's cool.

But, uh, good.

Yeah, I, uh, definitely, I think
the only one I saw in like a full

like suit was Iveta and I'm like,
she's gotta be dying right now.

What is she?

Yeah, she, iveta always looks cool.

And yeah, when she was walking around
with it, some of, uh, a few of the

players said she looks like she's.

Men in black are like the
FBI or something like that.

Yeah.

Uh, she's always, she's always had gotten
impeccable style, so I wasn't surprised.

So, yes.

Um, so yeah, of course.

Uh, for those who are joining or maybe
listening on playback, we're with Nate

Oliver, general Manager of the Buttes.

And, uh, so as we kind of get into
this, You know, I guess kinda give

us the backgrounds, cause we didn't
really talk about it last year.

You know, how, how did the whole battle,
the rig, uh, just kind of come about?

Yeah.

So, uh, well, both, as many people
probably know, maybe people don't know.

Uh, both the Buffalo Buttes and the
Minnesota Whitecaps are owned by the same

ownership, uh, N L T T Hockey Ventures.

And that's, uh, fronted by a
gentleman by the name of Andy

Skurto and his partner Neil Leibman.

Um, so in addition to.

Being involved in the phf
and promoting women's sports.

Uh, Andy is just a big
hockey fan in general.

Uh, and he also owns the Tulsa Oilers,
which is an e e uh, ECH h l team.

Um, and oddly enough, I, I'll
throw this in there real quick.

So, uh, former Butte player,
Kandy Sheriff, uh, her.

Brother is playing, uh, for,
for Tulsa and uh, K's also

cousins with Mikayla Grant Menes.

So there's kind of a buttes
connection there already.

But, uh, yeah, definitely going back
to your original question, uh, they

thought it would be a good idea to
give our two teams an opportunity to

play some exhibition games against each
other in Tulsa at the B O K Center.

And, um, the fans, the first year
that we did it last year, in April,

um, they really fell in love with it.

They'd never had an opportunity to
see women's pro hockey before and.

Leading up to this year's event, they
had been asking pretty much all season

long, when are the women coming back?

When are the women coming back?

They were really excited about
it and it was another great out

outcome to be back here again.

So we're really looking forward to it.

Yeah, definitely.

Um, you know, it seems like there's
been, uh, really good, um, reception,

like you said, from the local crowds.

Um, any fans that you recognize
from maybe over at Fort Butte or

is it mostly just the local scene?

So it's been the local scene, but
I'll, I'll call it the extended Fort

Butte because, uh, I definitely saw a
good amount of buttes, uh, Jerseys and

t-shirts in, in the, in the stands.

And I remember seeing the
same last season as well too.

There's certainly some players families
that made it down, which was great to see.

I know that, um, some of Whitney
Dove's family's been here and Dominique

Kramer, uh, Michaela Grant Menis.

So it's nice to see that support, um,
you know, from our, from family members

as well as just general Boost fans.

Nobody that I really noticed
nec from the Buffalo area,

but maybe I just missed them.

Uh, but definitely appreciating
the fan base that that was here

and the supporters that we.

Yeah, and I'll chime in here real quick.

Uh, I know there's a family that travels
from Kansas City and they've come to

the, the Two Battle of the Rigs or, and
have really enjoyed it and have, uh, a.

Of one of their children is on the
spectrum and so they had, uh, the, one

of the Buttes Autism speaks jerseys
on and really meant a lot to them.

They were a little bit concerned
it wouldn't arrive before they

got down to Tulsa, but it did.

So really huge impact.

It was a family that I was
able to meet last year and, uh,

they were back again this year.

That's awesome.

That that's amazing.

Yeah.

That's great.

That is really cool.

So, um, Nate, tell us a little
bit about the facilities.

Um, and, you know,
what's box center really?

It's really fantastic.

I mean, it, it's a
relatively newer building.

Um, I had been fortunate enough
outside of the Butte, I had also come

to a hockey game here a few years
back, and I was just blown away.

I mean, in, in my estimations, it's
similar to an NHL facility, um,

in terms of the layout with the,
you know, with the jumbotron and.

Um, just the video and, and the
theatrics, I guess you could say of it.

They do have cheerleaders.

They do have a lot, a lot
of great music playing.

There's, um, certainly like anywhere
that you can go for a concession

stands, there's you, you, it is
basically like pick your poison, right?

I mean, there's just a lot that
you can choose from in terms of

just enjoying the atmosphere.

One thing that I've noticed about the
Tulsa fans in general is that they

absolutely love collecting jerseys.

Um, they.

You know, even with the ones with
the Oilers, like they're, I think

the, the theme tonight is, I don't, I
don't remember the exact name of it.

The jerseys are meant to look like denim.

And I imagine that those
are gonna be hot sellers.

But even in the time that
we've been here, I mean, they,

they buy up the buttz jerseys.

We did bring a lot of our, um, specialty
jerseys down, um, in addition to our, you

know, our regular and the buttes white.

Mm-hmm.

We did bring down some of the
pride ones and everything like

that, and they just gobbled it up.

So it's set up where you come to
see a, In addition to the fact

that it's a hockey game, right?

There's a lot of theatrics to it, and
I think that's what we enjoy about it,

and it's very welcoming as well, too.

You know, the fan base is
always eager to see us.

There's a men's game that's piggybacking
off of the women's game that we just

played, and our players will be signing
autographs during the first intermission.

The second intermission, we did the same
thing at last year's event, and mm-hmm.

We were just mobs, I mean, just the
pe the amount of people that wanted to

get autographs from us was really f.

That's really cool.

I mean, yeah, it sounds like it's a
really fun, uh, fun time for everybody.

Uh, any, any kind of, uh, tips and sh
or tricks you're, uh, gathering for next

season as far as the theatrics side of it
goes for our themed nights or, or, or not?

Not so much yet.

Well, no, I mean, and that's part of
the other reason why we do this too.

It's a great question that you asked,
is that, yeah, it, it does give us like

different ideas, especially just seeing.

Other teams do.

Um, I was fortunate enough last June,
and maybe I'll have an opportunity to

do it again, but, um, went to an ECH L
conference with myself and some of the

counterparts from N L T T and, and the
white caps and the whole point of it was

to connect with other ech, h l teams.

And, you know, we were, it
was really nice that both.

Um, two pH f teams got
to be there as well too.

So you do pick up those types of
ideas and steal people, do things

differently and, and you borrow
here, maybe steal a little bit there.

Um, but piece it all together to, you
know, to put, to improve your show.

Um, you know, in, in your home ring.

So I do think that that's a big
part of it and why we do it.

Um, one thing that I've been really
impressed with is that they do have,

um, a very large appreciation for
Native American people, um, here.

And they do a lot, um, even with jerseys
and different events that they do here.

And maybe that's something that we could
try to incorporate, uh, in Buffalo.

I would love to see that happen.

So definitely, you know, just picking
up tips and tricks here and there

that, that will help us and we can
bring back home with us to Western.

Yeah, absolutely.

Now, for anybody who may wanna come
to a future battle of the rig, since

I'm sure this will be an annual event
for as long as Nltt is involved, uh,

what's, um, you know, what's the, the
city itself like, and understand you

guys have probably, you know, had a
chance to, you know, roam a little bit.

What, what strikes you
about Tulsa specifically?

Well, I think the first thing right
off the bat is just the weather.

I've been to Tulsa.

Five times in total, two being for hockey.

And it really is just a nice atmosphere,
particularly at this time of the year.

So I would imagine that if we
keep doing these events in the

springtime, it's actually maybe
the perfect time to come here.

Mm-hmm.

Um, you know, because it's a
bit warmer weather and whatnot.

But the food is fantastic.

The people have always been great to us.

There's a lot of good places
to go for barbecue here.

I've also seen some breakfast places, um,
you know, for adult beverages as well too.

There's, uh, some taverns.

Um, you know, different bars in
the area if that's your scene.

There's a lot of, um, uh,
motorized scooters as well too.

That seems to be a popular thing.

Uh, I, I'm, I, I will admit that
some of the players gave, it,

gave it a whirl and, and explored
the city that way as well too.

Um, so that was kind of cool to see.

I, I would say in general, it's just a
fun place to be in a welcoming place.

Yeah, and I can confirm
that as a Tulsa now myself.

Definitely hop on the scooter
to get where I gotta go.

And yes, the Libation immaculate in,
uh, in Tulsa as a former New York City

bartender, I can, I can tell you that.

Nate, I think we're almost out
of time with you so you can

get some food and some growth.

Yeah.

But you know, we're gonna, we're gonna
have an Angel gu set, set you up,

uh, to talk a little bit about some
of the changes that have happened

even since the Butte season ended,
and what that will look like for

you, in particular, this off season.

And we talked even off, off, uh,
spaces about what the off season looks

like, knowing that, uh, there's worlds
happening, um, back in, uh, in Brampton.

Yeah.

Yeah.

I was very fortunate that I was
able to get up to the women's

worlds on Thursday, this past week.

Um, I'll be going up again
once we're back in Buffalo.

Um, we get back to
Buffalo on Sunday evening.

Uh, and so my intent is throughout this
week to be up there as much as I can and

to catch as many of the games as I can.

Um, mm-hmm.

Obviously there's a phf presence with a
number of players from, from up there, but

then certainly a lot of up and comers, um,
just in on the women's scene that are, you

know, maybe just ready to break through.

Uh, you know, the players maybe in
their late teens, early twenties

that maybe we haven't really had an
opportunity to see because they're

not in the collegiate realms.

We're seeing them more on
the international stage.

Um, It's a great opportunity
for scouting and planning for

the, the, the season ahead.

And then also just to have a presence
up there as well too, to, to show

that, you know, the, the, the Buffalo
buts are up there and, and, and taking

interest in, in the women's world,
and that we have a presence up there.

And, and same thing as far
as the Phf is concerned.

Um, you know, I, it's been really
exciting the amount of games that have.

Why not check it out?

I mean, it's from Buffalo.

You know, I, I probably have
the advantage that I'm, you

know, only an hour half away.

So maybe that gives me the advantage
over some of the other, uh, phf

teams other than Toronto, of course.

But, uh, I definitely had a lot
of fun for the games that I've

attended so far, and, um mm-hmm.

There's players certainly that I've been
familiar with for, for quite some time.

And really the, the nice part about it, if
I'm talking from the fan side of it and,

and just loving the, the women's game, is
that there's players that you really have.

Usually only get to see on television
and you know, maybe only once a year,

once every four years that, you know, I
have an opportunity to go see right in my

own backyard, for lack of better words.

And that's been fantastic.

Yeah, definitely.

And you know, of course, uh, with
that being said, I mean I know

we've already heard of, uh, Elena
Mueller, me, you know, mentioning she

might wanna play in North America.

I'm sure there's gonna be a lot of
international interest, um, especially

with the growth the league is undertaking.

Um, and with that comes opportunity for
growth within the BUTS organization.

Of course.

Um, you know, obviously, uh,
Is going to be some changes.

We're gonna be seeing a
new coach behind the bench.

How has that search been going and
what are you really looking for?

You know, all things considered with
regards to the direction the beach

are gonna be going in next year.

Yeah, so great question.

I'll, I'll, I'll touch upon just
the, the aspect of the women's

worlds at first, leading into that.

So, you know, you, you talked
about changes in, in things that

we're preparing for, I think you've
seen it already a little bit.

When you look at the international
players that we did have this past

season, you know, you bring on somebody
like an Emma Newan who's a two-time

Olympian and has played at multiple world
championships herself for Team Finland.

You know, we have Antonio Masks.

Um, mm-hmm.

Plays for Austrian women's national team.

And of course there's a, a big Austrian
player that presumably is, is gonna be

available to us too in Theresa Shael.

Um, so that's, you know, definitely
a player that, uh, I've kept

an eye on for quite some time.

You know, you've mentioned Alina Mueller.

Um, certainly she's done some wonderful,
wonderful things at Northeastern and

we've certainly found success with players
from Northeastern's program before with

Haley Sura and Colleen Murphy and, you
know, players, uh, from, from that era.

Great to see.

I think everybody go in with, with Mueller
has had eyes on her for quite some time.

Yes.

You know, especially since she
found success so early with

Team Switzerland and then now
certainly on the collegiate scene.

So that's exciting in itself.

But moving on to your second part
of your question and, and it.

Talk about something else that's
really exciting is that with a new

head coach search, um, I've been
blown away by the amount of interest

there has been in the position.

Um, you know, I've, I've probably received
over 30 different applicants and, and

it's going through that process of vetting
who the proper candidates are, what,

what matches, what we're looking for,
um, in terms of taking the beats to the

next level and making the improvements.

We're, we're not a last place team.

We're competing and, and looking.

You know, the other teams that,
that have a, a, a head coach, like

a Jerry Haney or you know, a Colton
or, and you know, you know, we, we

want to have a big name as well too.

So I've been really excited to see the
amount of interest that we've had in it.

And, you know, while, and it's the case.

You know, for any sort of a job
that somebody applies for, sometimes

you get applicants that, you know,
they may have good credentials, but

they may not be exactly at that, at
that level that you're looking for.

But then there's some others you're like,
okay, wow, that's a pretty big name.

Or, you know, this is somebody that's
very accomplished and, and I would

be excited to work with that person.

So I would say in terms of, of the
scene, we're right in the midst

of, you know, going through that.

We're, we're kind of in, in
the thick of it right now.

I, I is how I would put it.

I've been doing interviews for a
couple weeks now and continue to do.

I'm really looking to have somebody
in place, um, within the next two

weeks ahead, so stay tuned for.

Definitely, definitely.

I'll definitely be, uh, hitting you
up, I'm sure, uh, with, uh, some

na any updates, na any updates.

But, uh, before, uh, before I let you
go, last question, probably the most

important, uh, what's for dinner,
you, your guess is as good as mine.

Uh, grace Kleink just walked by and Summer
Dobson and Whitney Dove and a whole bunch

of others that are on their way to dinner.

So they're gonna get a
first taste before I do.

Yeah, I have no idea.

I'm gonna go check it out.

Say hi to the Hello.

Hi, how are you, grace?

How?

I'm fantastic.

Good.

Do you have fun today?

Always have fun.

That's the number one goal.

Love to hear it.

Well, enjoy dinner.

Thank you.

So we shall Thanks buddy.

We're getting Grace.

Kleinbach hugs.

Very important.

Grace hugs, very, very important.

Yeah.

Get a hug for me.

Thank you.

Will do.

Thanks to Angelica.

Be well.

Yeah, you too.

Yeah.

Thank you.

All right.

Thank you so much.

All right.

Uh, yeah, I'm gonna go grab some grub
too, but, uh, we, uh, we might have

some other interviews, so I'm gonna mute
myself, uh, but let you guys keep talking.

Yeah, absolutely.

So, uh, for what you guys just joining
us, that was, uh, Nate Oliver giving us a

little bit of a scoop on the battle of the
rig as well as, uh, the changes coming up.

Sounds like the head coaching
search is definitely heating up.

Um, it's gonna be really interesting.

Um, I'm really hoping that, uh, you
know, what he said is, is true and we're

gonna be able to see, um, kind of a
shift in, uh, not just the style and, uh,

skillset and the level of competition,
uh, for the buttes versus the rest of the

league, but, uh, definitely hoping that.

You know, it, I'm just hoping it pans out.

You know, I think we've, I've said
it a couple of times throughout this

season, you know, looking at the rest
of this, uh, this league, you know,

with coaches like Geraldine Haney
and coaches like, uh, Colton or, um,

you know, who have that prestige, you
have that skill and that experience.

Uh, it's definitely gonna
be very interesting to.

To see what Buffalo's gonna
be able to do with that.

So, All right.

All right.

Thank you Angie.

Uh, you see that we have the Minnesota
Whitecaps have joined us, and that

is because we are with their GM here.

Uh, we're gonna talk some, uh, we're
gonna talk some whitecaps hockey.

So first, let's, let's go back to Arizona.

See, we were, we were both in Arizona.

You see that team be able to make
that push, uh, after, of course

we were all right, and about it.

Eight games win list going into the
postseason, what were some of the things

that you saw change with, with the
skaters on the ice and, and your players

that really, uh, created that turnaround
to have an upset against Boston?

Wait, I gotta, I, the, we
gotta make 'em a speaker.

Oh, it's not loud.

No.

All right.

Hold on.

We, we, I'm gonna make
the account a speaker.

Oh, gotcha.

Yeah.

Hang on.

Send speaker invite.

Okay.

I invite.

I invite him.

Okay.

But, well, he's, you're with me.

Oh, all right.

Well then, yeah.

Okay.

Um, uh, sorry.

Going, going back to Boston, uh, I think
what we saw was players just, uh, really

finding that time and to, to back to,
um, co find some cohesiveness with each

other, uh, at the hotel off the ice.

And what we really saw was just, you
know, them, them really looking back

and saying, We can do this and you
know, I think we can, we can put in,

I'll put our effort in and we know we
can win if, if we kind of just play,

uh, together instead of independently.

Yeah, and I mean, I know you have, uh,
Boston Roots, but, uh, I, I'm assuming you

were rooting for Minnesota that weekend.

Oh, oh, yeah.

I, I actually root for
any team against Boston.

Oh my God.

I may have Boston roots, but
it's only because of school.

Only because of school.

All right.

Everything else, it's, it's,
uh, all, all against Boston.

Okay.

Um, you know, this is a white
CAPS team that has had success,

a franchise that has had success.

You have big.

That have been in and out of this
organization, but it, it really was.

And we were talking to Britain, you
know, only, what was it for returning

players or something like that?

Uh, really boing this roster.

Um, you know, what, what was exciting
about that to be able to, to bring

in some new lifeblood to this team?

Well, I will say that when
I, when I was hired, I, I did

not make any roster changes.

Cause I, I didn't, I wasn't a
part of that process last year.

I came in late.

And I think what we're seeing
is, um, I know I've seen, I've.

In women's hockey here or there?

I, when I went to Northeastern, I
watched a lot of women's hockey, so

I've had friends in it, but the game
has changed so much overall, not just

women's hockey, but hockey overall.

So we're seeing a lot more speed and we're
seeing a lot more, um, high end ability

to, uh, handle the puck and, uh, creating
time and space and being able to actually

break down the game a little bit faster.

Um, And I think that the newer generation
of players you'll see is very high level.

And what we're gonna see is
a lot more puck movement.

We're gonna see a lot more creativity
and we're gonna see faster gameplay.

And I think when, uh, when we're looking
at it and you, you get to watch college

hockey now, and for those who don't get a
chance to watch it, um, you're gonna see

a lot of great players coming out of the
W C H A and Hockey East and, um, Forgive

me if I forget any conferences from cj.

Oh yeah.

All, all of the ones.

All of the ones, yeah, for sure.

And I wanted to actually ask
you, I don't know them either.

Don't ask me.

Oh, good.

I wanted to, I wanted to ask you
a little bit about that because as

someone who's on the broadcast, I
noticed that, uh, later in the season

as I started to call Minnesota Games,
we were seeing the, you know, W C H

A playoff ads and stuff like that.

So what is the relationship,
not just from the league and.

Player or former players like Casey
Bellamy are really trying to work on that.

But what, what are the opportunities
that you see from Minnesota to

really grasp onto what's happening
in women's college hockey?

Yeah, I think we're in a really fortunate
position where we're located, uh, we

get to watch a lot of great hockey.

I know it's not called the
state of hockey for nothing.

Um, but, but obviously you, you watched,
I've, I watched a lot of hockey this

year and I watched a lot of W C H A
teams and just seeing how much talent is.

And how much talent overall in women's
hockey at the college level, like

this league is gonna be great and
whatever, whatever it may happen.

And it's, you know, unfortunately
we, there aren't enough spots in

the league, uh, to, to get everybody
in from the next, from, from the

college level, but to the next level.

Um, but.

There's definitely some tough decisions
to make at the end of the day, you

know, in thinking about that, um, you
saw that you were able to get to the

final overtime against the Toronto six
team and talk to some of the players.

Obviously not the, not the goal,
but still a, a magnificent run.

You saw the chemistry even on a trip like
this building for your white cap squad.

What are the next steps now for you and
your staff, um, and, and how much of.

Is kind of gauging where players are
at and, and prioritizing maybe what

elements you wanna bring back as we're,
I believe right now in restricted

free agency, uh, before things open
up, uh, for free agency altogether.

Yeah, I think the goal is always to
build a foundation and build a core and,

you know, look at this group and what
they did at the end, at their stretch.

But, uh, being able to build around
core players and trying to, you know,

my job right now, and I've told all the
players this is like, Hey, I gotta find

a core and this core is gonna be the
foundation for the, for the organization.

And we're gonna rebrand and we're gonna
try and change our culture and get our

culture and I'm moving in a different
direction, but obviously, We want to

keep certain players and we want to make
sure that those, those players are on

board and they don't just want to build a
championship team for one year, but they

want to build a championship team that
ends up, uh, you know, being a dynasty.

Yeah, I love that.

And, uh, I believe my comrade here has
raised her hand in the, in the spaces.

Uh, so I think she's
got a question for you.

Yeah, definitely.

I mean, with the changing of the culture
and, you know, trying to build a core,

obviously, you know, I'll ask the same
question as far as, you know, coaching

goes, um, you know, and the changes there.

What are you looking toward, you
know, as far as your guys next

season comes and seasons to follow?

Uh, you know, right now we're just looking
for a coach that's gonna be able to grasp.

The concepts and, uh, the ability to,
um, build around that dynasty and,

you know, have the same principles,
having a, an underlying foundation that

that'll drive hockey into a, a different
space as far as, um, you know, less

of old school hockey and more of, uh,
what we think the future looks like.

Yeah, I think that's interesting because
on the broadcast we've been starting

to talk about things like positionless
hockey or looking at a white cap

squad and talked to Amanda Bollier
a decent amount about, uh, you know,

hopping up into the play as a defender.

But, you know, finding that balance
because the league just keeps getting

better offensively, so you still
need your def defenders to defend.

Um, but you know, outside of maybe some
of those kind of positionless hockey

things, what do you see as kind of the
next innovations maybe on the women's.

Or women's side of the game,
excuse me, that you'd love to

see Minnesota take advantage of?

Uh, I'm a big fan of puck possession,
so puck possession is number one.

And, uh, I, I definitely look at
players who have poised and making

sure that, uh, they see the ice in
a, in a manner that allows them to

be successful up and down the ice.

And, uh, you know, position as
hockey is obviously one of the thing,

well, it's not obvious to everybody
else, but to everybody who knows

me, positionless Hockey is one of my
core principles and being able to.

Garner players that can grasp
that concept as well as the

coaching staff that can grasp that
concept is, is number one for me.

And, uh, and I think as, as the game
moves forward with men's, women's

doesn't matter, but hockey overall,
like hockey overall is all about.

Puck possession.

So if we don't have the
puck, we're not gonna win.

I love that.

And we also have seen that Minnesota
has had an amazing gold tender since

its inception with Amanda Leer.

We've also seen that Leer has, has,
uh, had to deal with some injuries

particularly late in the season.

Brennaman though, who's here with us
in Tulsa, uh, has been a fantastic,

uh, Complimentary element for
the white caps down the stretch.

Uh, when you look at players like that,
that maybe aren't given opportunity game

and game out, but really have stepped up
and shown what they can do, you know, how,

how difficult does that make your role?

Yeah, and I, you know, every, every GM
and coach has that tough decision to make.

And I unfortunately in, in this
game right now, the number of games

doesn't actually bode well or benefit.

Uh, certain players on teams because,
you know, they're limited in, in

opportunities that they can grasp.

And the opportunities that they
get are basically through practice

and trying to figure out whether
or not, um, you know, coaches, if

coaches want to take that risk.

And really what we need is we actually,
you know, we, there's so many goal tens

out there right now that are helping
push the envelope and making coaches

and GMs like myself figure out like,
okay, well, who's the next, who's gonna

be the next lab and who's gonna be.

Schroder and et cetera.

And, and you know, I think healthy
competition and practices is key in

making sure that, uh, we're keeping,
we're keeping players honest and they're

off season and making sure that they're
getting healthy and staying healthy.

And, and actually, you know, that being
said, I think having enough players

that you can use in your practices to
make sure that, you know, a player, your

number one can get rest when they need it.

So I, I, um, you know, 24 games isn't.

Um, and, and we actually, you know,
you have to look at it and say,

well, we need x amount of points
in order to make the playoffs.

So we have to be conscientious about that.

And, and you know, it's
a strategy a little bit.

You gotta play a little bit of chess.

Yeah, for sure.

Before I, uh, yield the mic over to
Angelica in case she has any other

questions for you, I wanna ask you, I know
I told you I wasn't gonna put you on the

spot, but I kind of am a little bit here.

It'll be a fun one though.

We were in Arizona and you, you kind
of poo-pooed my, my choice to do a

marinara sauce and an Alfredo sauce.

What's up with that?

You don't, you don't
like the sauces mixing?

Uh, you know, I tried
it, uh, three times now.

Today was the third time, uh, It
is grown on me a little bit, but

it's definitely not my number one.

Look at that breaking news.

I did not know that we had the Alfredo
marinara mix, but I'm glad you're on.

So for me it's like, it's like,
you know, I'm, I'm MacGyvering

the sauce to make a vodka sauce.

There's, there's a new one.

There's a new one I heard today,
and this may cause some controversy,

but somebody may or may not put
marinara sauce with ranch dressing.

Oh, I absolutely not.

Nope.

No, that's, I'm not,
I'm not ready for that.

I'm not ready.

No, for me, I'm not ready.

I'm so glad this isn't a video
pod cuz the faces we're making.

Alright.

Most burning questions for,
for, uh, Whitecaps GM here.

Um, I mean, I guess kind we'll end
off on a, on a note just with regards

to, um, you know, just being able
to play, uh, in Tulsa and being

able to connect with the fans.

There's your, your
overall thoughts on that.

Got it.

Um, I wasn't sure where the question was
there, but at, at the end of the day, I

think spreading the game is, is important.

And I talked to a few fans in the
stands, say, yeah, well I don't

walk through the concourse, but
just being able to represent women's

hockey and in, in an area where maybe
women's hockey isn't thought of.

I know I talked to, uh, Maggie
upstairs, she's one of the attendants

and she was just thrilled to.

Women's hockey and was super, super happy.

Like change of pace from
watching the Oilers all the time.

But she loved watching the women
and thought, man, this is awesome.

I talked to a couple of kids that were
out here and just being able to put smiles

on their faces and for them to be able
to look up and look at, uh, professional

women playing hockey, I think gives 'em
a little bit of, um, you know, a hero

so, so to speak, or heroin to, uh, to to
look up to and to, to wanna play hockey.

Yeah, definitely.

Awesome.

Well, thank you so much for your time.

We appreciate.

No worries.

Thank you.

All right, I'm gonna go on
mute, say my goodbyes, and

then I'll join you guys again.

All right, so you just heard
from the general manager of

the Minnesota White Caps.

Uh, just discussing a little bit about
next steps, uh, as we know both the

white caps and the buttes, uh, have.

Uh, active head coach
searches as of right now.

Um, the white caps very, very
nearly made it, uh, all the way.

They did make it to the final, but
unfortunately came up short in overtime.

Uh, still just an unbelievable run for
them, you know, definitely not something

I think anybody really expected, but.

You know, they're a really solid team and,
uh, he definitely sounds like he wants

to keep that alive and, and going strong.

So, uh, excited to see what happens there.

And, uh, as far as the battle
of the ring goes, some things

I'd love to see with that.

Uh, definitely would love to get some
televised, um, exhibition games, uh, soon.

Uh, I'm hoping that that'll
be the case moving forward.

Just cuz it does sound
like it was a great time.

Uh, for those of you who don't know,
maybe, uh, weren't able to follow along.

Uh, we definitely, um, were
keeping live tweets going.

Erica, obviously on location in Tulsa.

Um, live tweeted the game and, uh,
You know, it looks like, uh, Buffalo

went up to a two to one lead after
coming from one, nothing, but it

was all white caps from there and,
uh, they ended up winning the game.

Five two.

Uh, but it definitely sounds like
there were a lot of fun moments,

uh, fun to be had overall.

And, uh, It's a, you know, I think it's
a really cool thing to be able to go

to Tulsa and make it an annual thing.

You know, I think that being able to,
um, grow in a market that maybe not a

lot of people think of immediately, um,
but could be a really lucrative one, uh,

from what, what it sounds like for sure.

So, uh, so yeah, I definitely, um,
Like I said, I think tele televised

games I think will be great.

Or at least having something kind of
like a mixer and having a broadcast

team do it that way, uh, I think
would be awesome for the fans.

So, uh, what are your thoughts on that?

You know, what are your
thoughts moving forward?

Uh, as far as anything, uh, that either of
these gentlemen, uh, shared with us today?

And, uh, Maddy says, I listened to
this entire thing, not realizing

the game happened, or, yeah,
the game, the game happened.

The game was, uh, uh, played.

Uh, so as we mentioned, uh, Minnesota
one, five to two, um, to went on its

tear, uh, in the third period, three
unanswered goals to, uh, win it.

So, um, on the buttes end, we had Summer
Ray Dobson and Claudia Kepler scoring.

And, uh, yeah, I think we have
an arrow back with us here.

Yes.

I loved your recap.

You were doing great.

I was trying to figure out how to use this
coffee machine just to get some hot water.

So, uh,

Oh my gosh.

But, um, yeah, I agree with
a lot of what you said.

As someone who I guess is a, a Tulsa now,
um, it's really been interesting to see

what professional sports is like here.

I've seen an n l preseason game.

I've seen a, uh, NBA preseason game.

I've seen now two P h f
exhibitions and those are just

the events that I've been to.

Um, so, you know, a
nice little market here.

I'm grateful that, uh, Andy gives me
something to do in, in the off season.

But um, yeah, I think it's, I think
it's an interesting market and, and

an interesting concept of, you know,
I think you can definitely argue

whether it's the right quote unquote
time to do something like this.

These things are always tough.

We know that some players, um, will be
missing or were missing, um, particularly.

Thinking of, um, the, the Minnesota
Whitecap side, and of course you've

got, uh, DVA competing for Team Czechia.

Um mm-hmm.

And as, as we heard Nate say earlier,
you know, he's kind of double dipping.

So on the in between, or I should
say he bookends this trip with,

uh, trips to the women's world.

But honestly, that's, that's kind
of the schedule regardless, right?

There's always something
going on, which is good.

Um, yeah.

Definitely it's, it's a sign that,
you know, the game is growing in

the right direction, essentially.

Um, and mentioning, uh, some of
the players that filled in, uh, AV

has a question, uh, for you, Erica,
your thoughts on the, uh, players

who filled in today for this game.

Oh yeah.

Um, so there were five of them, correct?

There were five total.

I know my first tweet was in misinformed.

That's my B, my B, um,
but it was five total.

Um, and two of the five goals
scored from Minnesota came from

Katie, I believe is, uh, S K A J A.

Um, who I think.

Yes.

Well, they're all, they
all have Minnesota roots.

I believe it was two players
from Mankato, two from Minnesota.

And then one from, uh,
the U of M Minnesota.

So, uh, yeah, I'm very curious to
see and, and now realizing that I

forgot to ask Chi when we were on
about that and what that looks like.

Um, but yeah, it seems like, you
know, those players were able

to, to get some reps and I think
that's really exciting as well.

But yes, definitely, uh, that was one
of the players that stood out to me,

uh, had two goals, so that always helps.

Yeah.

Um, it's Katie Scalia.

Uh, so, um, yeah, Katie is a member of
the Minnesota Golden Gophers who, uh, they

very narrowly missed the, uh, Frozen for
final losing, I believe, to Wisconsin.

If I'm not, if there's been
so much hockey, I can barely

keep it all in my head.

But, um, yes, so, uh, really interesting,
uh, to see, you know, hey, even if

it doesn't end up coming out, you
know, You know, sky becoming a white

cap or any of these players becoming
white caps, um, you know, it's always

good to have that kind of a presence
and that kind of a connection.

You never know what'll
happen down the line.

So, um, with that being said,
yeah, sorry, Eric, go ahead.

No, no, that's, that's all good and well,
Um, yeah, so I, I just wanted to hop

in here as I get ready to transition.

There's some Tulsa, I don't know
why I just put an empty box back.

I'm just gonna throw this away.

Anyway, I'm gonna, um, I'm gonna, uh,
head to some Tulsa baseball shortly.

Um, but yeah, I'm glad, I'm glad
that you were available to, to hop.

And we got some, you know, here on
the founding floor pod as part of

Black Rose Media, we, we were able
to, to do some live coverage and get

not one but two GMs from the phf to,
to give us word on a lot of things,

including, uh, the two teams that are.

In the middle of a, of a
coaching search right now.

Yeah, absolutely.

Um, I will let you go
ahead and transition.

Um, I'll probably keep on
for another few minutes.

Just wanted to go over a couple
of other things in thread.

But, um, you know, as far as.

Uh, that chat goes.

I did see Skylar say very interested
in seeing coaches the Butte next year.

Uh, I am too.

I am very intrigued to see who they pick.

Like I had said earlier, you know, I think
that it's about time, uh, with the salary

cap going off and the level of competition
is bound to skyrocket as a result.

And I think that it is high time that.

Really look into getting, you know,
super, not that they weren't serious

before, but I think that it's definitely
a new sense of urgency for them, um,

especially over the last couple of seasons
having, you know, bottom of the, the

league, uh, in terms of the standings.

Not really, you know, getting.

Past the first round of the playoffs.

It's, I tell him that, you know, we,
we get, uh, a coach in there with the

experience, with the level of, I don't
wanna say competency, but competency

that it needed to, um, succeed in
this league because yeah, it just

goes year by year competition tough.

Yeah.

And you know, I thought it was really
interesting to hear, um, had to say

about that regarding the Minnesota
white cast, because I think yes, if

we really listen back to what he was
saying, um, and I think, I mean, you

can take it any way you want because,
you know, he didn't elaborate.

But I think that what I heard as some
broad strokes takeaways is exactly

what you're saying, um, from the
Minnesota perspective too, that there

are ways, um, and we see the game.

Yeah.

And uh, I get the sense from what she told
us, that he is excited to capitalize on

maybe, um, you know, an innovative hockey
style that for one reason or another he

felt has been missing from Minnesota.

I think that's fair.

Yes.

Yeah, I mean I think that it, that
that meant that I know exactly what you

were talking about and he mentioned,
you know, kind of transitioning

from old school to new school.

Um, and you know, that kind of
makes me wonder if, you know, we

are gonna see a changing of the
guard with some of the players.

I'm sure that that's go, you know,
it's bound to happen on both sides.

I think for both Minnesota
and Buffalo as players find.

You know, maybe opportunities
that fit them a little bit better.

And of course, we don't know what's gonna
happen with the P W H L as well, you

know, that could always end up, uh, being
a more lucrative opportunity for them.

Uh, again, with worlds, um,
happening right now in Brampton, I'm

sure that, uh, not just Nate, but
multiple GMs have their eyes there.

And, uh, you know, it's just going to
make things a lot more interesting and

I can definitely, um, tell that there's
some, some big changes afoot, not just

for, you know, these teams in particular,
but for the full, the league as a whole.

So, yes, indeed.

Yes indeed.

Well said.

Edana.

Like you said, I'm gonna let you wrap up.

I'll keep, I'm gonna keep listening.

Uh, I'm just gonna make my walk over.

It's, it's a whole 10 minutes.

So, um, Tulsa, downtown Tulsa is
small, especially if you're from

New York City and you still walking.

You know, New York City blocks.

So I'm gonna stick, I'm gonna stick on,
so if you ever have a question that you

want me to chime in on, just let me know.

But, uh, I'm gonna let you
take it from here, ed, and

thanks everyone for joining us.

Yeah, thanks Erica.

Well, as you heard, Erica is in Tulsa.

She was able to cover ball of the rig and
uh, um, you know, I think overall, uh,

this season has been a very intriguing
one, very interesting one in terms of,

um, what we're already kind of seeing.

I think, you know, Kind of made
a little bit of a transition

already into a new era.

Um, and I think it's
just gonna keep going.

Uh, hearing both GMs kind of discuss
what they've been looking for in terms

of, um, you know, next steps for their
teams is, uh, also indicative of that.

I think that, um, it's, it's.

Definitely gonna be something that
I'm intrigued and, uh, for those

who maybe didn't join in while Nate
Oliver was on, or, uh, caught the

tail end, uh, he is saying that, uh,
potentially in the next couple of weeks

we could hear something regarding,
uh, new head coach for the buts.

So, uh, I will definitely be keeping tabs
on that as far as everything else goes.

You know, we're still covering worlds.

You can definitely expect, uh, some
coverage, not just on Black Brosy media,

but on the Ice Garden as well as I'm
sure, uh, multiple other websites.

Uh, the hockey news.

I know Ian Kennedy is also covering.

Um, so definitely keep your eyes open.

We'll be giving you all
of the news that is fit.

Uh, your viewing and reading
and listening pleasure.

So, uh, other than that, I think we
will wrap it up here, uh, as usual.

Thank you all for joining us on this
very, uh, very, uh, not last minute

because I knew it was going to happen,
but it definitely was a, uh, more

casual sort of Twitter spaces as.

To, um, some members of the
white caps in the buttes.

Uh, for Erica Lindsay, I am Angelica
Rodriguez, and I hope that you all have a

wonderful rest of your night and a happy,
happy Easter if you celebrate, take care.