[News] Solovyov Interview

[Groot]

Originally Posted by Goriders

Stockton sounds like a wonderful place

The Edmonton of California

[Reggie Dunlop]

Originally Posted by Groot

The Edmonton of California

Bakersfield is the Edmonton of California.

[Jay Random]

Originally Posted by Groot

The Edmonton of California

Originally Posted by Reggie Dunlop

Bakersfield is the Edmonton of California.

Stockton is the Bakersfield of Northern California. It's like triple-distilled Edmonton.

[TheScorpion]

I've been to Stockton. Watched a couple Heat games there. Gorgeous arena but I wouldn't go back to visit.

[Goriders]

I would like to hear what Solovyov has to say about Sharongovich. Think that was one of the topics.

[Locke]

Originally Posted by Goriders

Stockton sounds like a wonderful place

Stockton is like Disney's sordid underground sex and drug dungeon.

[gvitaly]

Sharangovich

• So, Yegor Sharangovich

  yes

• Your teammate, the guy who rewrote the Belarusian record last season. Now that record has been overtaken by Aleksei Protas. Yegor had a somewhat quieter season, probably due to injury. But still, he's a star of Belarusian hockey, a great player who's on his way to setting new records. What’s it like in the locker room? What’s Sharan’s status in Calgary? Do all the guys know he's a top player for Belarus? How does he carry himself, and how do his teammates treat him? It's interesting to hear this from the inside.
  

  He’s definitely a leader on the team, one of the key players. And you asked how people reacted to him rewriting that Belarusian record—well, when he did it last season, he didn’t exactly break it; he tied Grabovsky’s record. The coach congratulated him in front of the entire team.

• The whole team knew it was a Belarussian record?

  Yes, and they all congratulated him, of course. Yeah, and the guys treat him well and respect him a lot because he’s one of the key players.

• And it's not because we all sit around in Calgary reading news about Sharangovich—it’s because, within the organization, in the locker room, he’s truly top-tier.

  He makes a serious contribution to the game, he’s been in the NHL a while, and it’s clear he’s earned a different level of respect.

• Is that also felt in the media and among fans in Calgary—like, do they see him as a star?

  Of course, they love him in Calgary. Well, sometimes not so much—when he has a rough game or two. But that happens to everyone. But yeah, you’ve seen the pictures—fans were even trading LEGO for his stick, for pucks, for who knows what else.

• As a fellow Belarusian, and probably one of the people closest to Sharangovich on the team. When you’re in the NHL, you Belarusians probably stick together the most, right?

  Of course.

• So you can joke with him poke fun of him, and you guys have a special bond. Can the Canadian players do the same?

  Yeah, definitely. There are no boundaries like "where you're from"—it doesn’t matter. Everyone jokes around. I get teased too. Though I can’t really tease the veterans just yet—it’s not my place, status-wise.

• But Sharangovich can?

  Yeah, Sharan can—he can do whatever he wants now.

• Was it a kind of support for you, having another Belarusian in the locker room when you made your debut?

  Definitely. He was the first to find out when I crashed my car.

• You told him?

  Yeah, I had to tell someone. My wife was getting ready for the game. I was going to call her but then thought—it’s better not to worry her. I figured she’d get scared, so I didn’t tell her. I went to Sharan and told him.

• He probably just smiled, right?

  Yeah, he smiled, teased me a bit. I don’t remember exactly what he said, but he said something funny and encouraging, and I just kind of forgot about it after that. Then he told the entire team I hit a car

• So everyone knew by the time you arrived?

  No. It was before the second game against Edmonton, we had a team hangout—not really a meeting, but you know, just a chill get-together. It was after my debut game. The next day we flew out, and that evening we were just hanging out because we had the next day off. So we had a few days off before the next game.
  
  I left the room—I don’t remember, maybe to the bathroom or something. I came back, and suddenly everyone knows. Everyone’s laughing, looking at me, cracking up. I asked Zadorov—he was still with us then—I asked him, “Why is everyone laughing at me?”
  And he said: "Yeah, Sharan told them how you drove to your first game. Now they’re all dying laughing."
  
  They said I should’ve saved that story for the Rookie Party.

[Goriders]

Thanks for translating

[Bingo]

Agreed ... such an interesting dive into these players lives that we wouldn't see.

[dustygoon]

Stockton...what a #### hole. Ground zero for the subprime mortgage crisis.

[Ba'alzamon]

No doubt it's big having a countryman on the roster, especially being from Belarus where there aren't that many dudes in the NHL

[Locke]

The Belarusians seem like the life of the party in the lockerroom.

[gvitaly]

Originally Posted by Bingo

Agreed ... such an interesting dive into these players lives that we wouldn't see.

Yeah I like them as well because we get to see the human, instead of just getting stock answers back.

---

Any other topics I should translate?

[Ba'alzamon]

Originally Posted by gvitaly

Yeah I like them as well because we get to see the human, instead of just getting stock answers back.

---

Any other topics I should translate?

BoA seems like it would be a crowd pleaser

[gvitaly]

The Battle of Alberta

• The Battle of Alberta.

  Yeah

• That’s Calgary vs. Edmonton, right? What is that like from the perspective of a Calgary player or someone who lives in Calgary?

  Well, it’s probably the most intense rivalry in the NHL. The hottest, most heated one—especially, maybe not as hot right now, but when Tkachuk was playing for Calgary and Kesler[Kassian] was playing for Edmonton… You know what Tkachuk is like—it was fire back then. Pure fire. Now maybe it’s cooled a bit, because Edmonton is probably the stronger team at the moment. But I think in a year or two, it’ll be fiery again. Really fiery.

• And how do you feel it? Like, are you prepped for it in a special way? Like, you can read online that it’s a big rivalry, a derby, but that doesn’t necessarily make you feel it. Why is it such a big deal? How do you experience it?

  It’s mostly the fans.

• The fans really set it on fire.

  Absolutely the fans. The atmosphere at that game is different. It’s the most intense game, I think. First of all, it’s always a sellout. That’s guaranteed.

• So your fans just go after Edmonton’s players?

  Yeah, and vice versa. There’s yelling, insults—everything. My first Battle of Alberta was outdoors, yeah. Even then, I could hear the shouting.

• And the crowd was far away, right?

  Yeah, you’ve probably seen how far the stands are at those outdoor games. But the roar is so loud, I swear you could hear it from a plane flying overhead. And the trash talk? It's brutal.

• Even in the preseason?

  Even in the preseason! We play two preseason games against them. Two years ago, I played one at home and one on the road.

• So you got to compare?

  Yeah, and there’s a lot of dirt even in preseason.

• Which fanbase do you think is more savage—yours or theirs?

  Honestly, both. Both sets of fans. There were nasty signs all over. I don’t remember exactly what they said, but there were tons of posters and stuff like “fire ignites oil” because the Oilers are, well, oil, and the Flames are fire, right? All kinds of vulgar messages as well.

• And they target players personally?

  Yeah, especially in the regular[non-outdoor] games where the glass is close. They bang on the glass, they scream… Especially when you’re in the penalty box—you don’t want to sit there.

• Feels like a cold shower?

  Yeah. During preseason, I got a penalty in Edmonton and had to sit there. I just stared at the boards because I could see in my peripheral vision—pure chaos. Obscene gestures, yelling

• They’re right above you?

  Yeah, really pressing you. Like they’re about to climb in. That’s what it feels like. But honestly, I think it’s great.

• It’s like real hatred.

  Yeah. But not hatred toward you personally—just because you play for Calgary.

• And that only happens in this matchup? like against Montreal—it’s way calmer.

  Yeah. In Montreal, they might mess with you a bit, sure, call you names maybe, but that happens every game.

[Locke]

Yeah....we hate Edmonton. And thats the way it should be.

[D as in David]

Originally Posted by Locke

Stockton is like Disney's sordid underground sex and drug dungeon.

Disneyland has a Chicken on the Way?

[Locke]

Originally Posted by D as in David

Disneyland has a Chicken on the Way?

Hmm...they prefer Duck. Thats why their ducks dont wear pants. Its not subtle.

[Jay Random]

Originally Posted by Locke

Hmm...they prefer Duck. Thats why their ducks dont wear pants. Its not subtle.

And yet the Anaheim Ducks do wear pants. Something just don't add up!

[Goriders]

I’m surprised he didn’t mention the smell from Edmonton. Especially from its fans.

Must have got lost in translation