Game On!!

And I just kind of want to give people, Darren, a sense here of what we're dealing with.

And when you look historically – there have been 782 players who have played in the National Hockey League who at one point earlier in their careers did play in the ECHL, perhaps before moving on to the American Hockey League.

There are some very successful NHL head coaches right now who at one point did coach in the ECHL, including the current head coach and Stanley Cup winner, two-time Stanley Cup winner, right, with the Colorado Avalanche, Jared Bednar? Okay, one Stanley Cup.

But then also current NHL head coach is Spencer Carberry of the Washington Capitals.

He was also the coach briefly for my beloved Hershey Bears.

I grew up watching minor league hockey in the American Hockey League.

There you go.

Peter Lavallette, who won a Stanley Cup with Carolina many years ago.

The first-year head coach of the Las Vegas Golden Knights, Ryan Craig, a former ECHL player there as well.

So, you know, the connection between The ECHL, the ACHL, and that pipeline to the NHL really brings immediate credibility to the team.

And the big thing,

Darren and I went out to practice last week, and the first thing you see is the first thing that catches you is just how damn fast they are.

I

mean, it's incredible how fast they are on skates and also how physical that game is.

And that's what makes it so exciting.

But, you know, we're talking about these affiliations with the Eagles and with the Avalanche.

Look, these guys are hungry.

They know that they have to set themselves apart.

Almost 800 players have made their way to the NHL, and they know how tough it is.

And that's a reminder that it takes a lot to climb the mountain, and they're going to give it their all because they want to deliver a product for their fans, right?

Sure.

But they also want to get noticed, and they want to get up and work their way up the ladder to hopefully make it to the NHL.

So super exciting.

All right, so a lot of people might be wondering right now, how did a former Bernalillo County sheriff – Now, you're from back east, so, I mean, hockey was always in your blood.

You love hockey.

And I just kind of want to give people, Darren, a sense here of what we're dealing with.

And when you look historically – there have been 782 players who have played in the National Hockey League who at one point earlier in their careers did play in the ECHL, perhaps before moving on to the American Hockey League.

There are some very successful NHL head coaches right now who at one point did coach in the ECHL, including the current head coach and Stanley Cup winner, two-time Stanley Cup winner, right, with the Colorado Avalanche, Jared Bednar? Okay, one Stanley Cup.

But then also current NHL head coach is Spencer Carberry of the Washington Capitals.

He was also the coach briefly for my beloved Hershey Bears.

I grew up watching minor league hockey in the American Hockey League.

There you go.

Peter Lavallette, who won a Stanley Cup with Carolina many years ago.

The first-year head coach of the Las Vegas Golden Knights, Ryan Craig, a former ECHL player there as well.

So, you know, the connection between The ECHL, the ACHL, and that pipeline to the NHL really brings immediate credibility to the team.

And the big thing,

Darren and I went out to practice last week, and the first thing you see is the first thing that catches you is just how damn fast they are.

I

mean, it's incredible how fast they are on skates and also how physical that game is.

And that's what makes it so exciting.

But, you know, we're talking about these affiliations with the Eagles and with the Avalanche.

Look, these guys are hungry.

They know that they have to set themselves apart.

Almost 800 players have made their way to the NHL, and they know how tough it is.

And that's a reminder that it takes a lot to climb the mountain, and they're going to give it their all because they want to deliver a product for their fans, right?

Sure.

But they also want to get noticed, and they want to get up and work their way up the ladder to hopefully make it to the NHL.

So super exciting.

All right, so a lot of people might be wondering right now, how did a former Bernalillo County sheriff – Now, you're from back east, so, I mean, hockey was always in your blood.

You love hockey.