AFHL Stanley Cup Media Day
Emotions, experience, legacies, and more
April 8th, 2024
The big day is here.
In less than 12 hours, the Rain City Bitch Pigeons and Laval Nomads will kick off the Stanley Cup Finals with Game 1 in Laval.
This year’s Finals will make history regardless of the outcome. The Rain City Bitch Pigeons could become the first team in the AFHL’s 14 year existence to win three Stanley Cups. The Laval Nomads , meanwhile, are looking to hoist the first Cup in their franchise history.
As per tradition, players, coaches, and GMs from both teams spoke to the media the day before Game 1. Storylines from the previous rounds came up, as did rivalries between players and comparisons between stars.
Here’s a roundup of the best quotes from media day.
Connor McDavid, F, Rain City:
On comparisons being made between him and team Owner/GM Jason Henley…
“We’ve won two Cups together but he [Henley] has obviously done so much for this league and the city and he has had such an impact. I just have to focus on playing hockey. I’m one guy. I just have to worry about myself. But he has to worry about 50 players. I mean every year he has to choose 50 players for this organization and he has to monitor them on a daily basis and make so many decisions on the fly. Add, subtract, promote, demote, trade, drop, start, don’t start. It’s very different and challenging.I’ll take the greatness comparison as a compliment. But at the end of the day, I just look at this as a fantastic opportunity to make history and it’s not easy to get here so I think of it more that way than trying to compare us.”
Quinn Hughes, D, Laval
On the Nomads lack of experience in the Stanley Cup Final…
“It’s been a great journey. First in the Shawinigan series, we came in as a big underdog and we all know what we did in that round and since then we’ve just been building and building and we’re not done.”
Mitch Marner, F, Rain City
On how fast time has gone since last year’s final…
“It’s been quiet the roller coaster. I haven’t really had much time to sit down and reflect. Basically the past year and a half has been kind of a blur. But honestly I’m just so fortunate to be back with this team and back in the finals again and I’m looking forward to it.”
Victor Hedman, D, Laval
On playing against Rain City’s physical forecheck…
“It’s going to be a physical series. They come fast and hard and they finish their checks so we’re aware of that. It’s going to be about having good first touches, getting to the puck first, and making good reads. There won’t be a single play we can rely on every time either, we’re going to have to move our feet and make reads and be smart with where we go on the first touch.”
Sean Monahan, F, Rain City
On his name possibly being engraved on the Stanley Cup for the first time…
“It’s a lifetime achievement. You can ask anyone here, what’s your dream if you can have anything you want and winning the Stanley Cup is the answer. It’s what I’ve been working on my entire life.”
Alex Chau, GM, Laval
On how much better of a GM he feels today…
“Yeah for sure, I think experience is really important. I felt ready for this opportunity in October based on my preparation through the many years in this league. I felt ready heading into the playoffs because I’ve competed in the playoffs before. This isn’t my first time in this league getting ready for a playoff series. I think when you work your way through, you learn different lessons along the way. That first series against the Vikings, it’s not like it all went smooth and was smooth sailing. There were adverse times. We learned a lot about each other in that series. I thought our habits held up under pressure. So I’m really proud of these guys and I’m super happy and excited to be here.”
Jason Henley, GM, Rain City
On what motivates him to keep winning and his key to success…
“I think it’s a real love for what I’m doing. This isn’t a job. It’s really a true love and I fell in love with it a long time ago. It’s fun and I find it enjoyable. Key to success? There’s so many. I’d say an important one is probably reminding my guys about how things are not always going to go your way, so you have to decide how you’re going to react. There are a lot of things in this game that you can’t control. So it’s more important that you identify those things that will give you your best chance to win and focus on what you want. And right now, we’re focused on making history.”
