What do you recall about your draft and joining the Flyers?
Especially that weekend showing up to Minnesota for the draft, I think the Flyers didn’t even have a first round pick, so I wasn't thinking at all of being drafted here. But then the night before the draft I met with the team and that's when they had that big shake up with the Richards and Carter deals, so I thought maybe there was a possibility. It happened, and I couldn't be happier – still here 14, 15 years later, and proud to be a Philadelphia Flyer.
You’re on the second team with Daniel Briere and Jake Voracek, two guys you have a long history with. We’ll start with Danny – now he’s sort of your boss, but back then he was your landlord. What’s your friendship with him been like?
Coming in as an 18 year old, playing the NHL with grown men – it’s different, an adaptation, and he was nice enough to welcome me in his home with his kids and just made it easier for me to adapt, just worry about playing hockey and not on paying all the bills and all that stuff. I learned a lot from him not only on the ice, but off the ice – how to be a pro, how to handle yourself. I definitely owe lot of my success to what I've learned from him.
You and Jake came in at the same time that summer, him via trade (along with Wayne Simmonds and Brayden Schenn), and you were drafted. Was there any kind of camaraderie among your little group there that had just shown up as you got used to things?
My first couple of years, or my first year anyway, for sure, I was really quiet, just kind of trying to observe and take it all in, be a sponge and try to get as much information as I could to learn and get better, and just stick around really. But as the years went by, we developed a great relationship. I still talk to Jake; he was one of my best friends on the team forever. I really enjoyed playing with him and Danny, there’s a lot of great memories and they’re two great players, that's for sure.
And then there’s Claude Giroux, who’s the first-team center. You obviously spent a ton of time here with him over the years – he becomes the captain early in your career, and then you succeed him.
It was the same thing with G. I learned a lot from him – his competitive desire, his passion for the game, and how good a teammate and leader he was. He definitely helped me a lot to grow as a as a player as a man. I’m thankful I got the opportunity, really, to play with them and be a part of this great organization.
Your role on the team changed a lot over the years. How did those guys contribute to your growth as a player?
They really helped me out, especially off the ice – how to stay positive and believe in myself even when I was playing third or fourth line minutes, they were always encouraging me to believe in my offensive game and my offensive abilities. Every chance I had to play with them, it always seemed to click. As the years went on, [Jake and I created] a great chemistry with with G as well, and we had a lot of success with with those guys.
What does it mean to you to be on a list like this when you look at all the guys that have come through here in the last 25 years?
It's pretty special. I’m really honored, obviously. It’s starting to make me feel old too. But I'm proud to be a Flyer and hopefully as a team here, we can turn things around and become Cup contenders. That's definitely the goal for sure, is to bring back a Cup to Philly.