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Player Spotlight highlights the finer details and elements while supplying insight to the fans on what a player's thought process may be pertaining to a certain play, game or situation. It brings the intensity, passion, and inner most thoughts of the individual player that otherwise may not be felt or heard. |
02/08/03 Ben Prepchuck -- Colorado Mammoth PLPA Correspondent Chrissy Sadowski spoke to Ben Prepchuck after their loss against New York (in New York) and prior to their game against New Jersey at home. He was recently traded to Colorado for seven players and has been molding with the team. After taking a few games to get used to his new team, Ben has begun to do what he was traded to do and scored three goals and one assist against New Jersey to help bring them to a win, his best game so far with the Mammoth. | ||
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New York traded seven players to obtain you, did you feel a lot of pressure in your first game with the Mammoth? | |
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Yes and I still do feel pressure from the trade but I am beginning to feel a lot more comfortable with the team now. The pressure is beginning to go away and hopefully I can now start contributing to the team like they were hoping I would. The pressure is still there but it is gradually going away which is good.
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Steve Govett had said that although they already had strong offensive power they saw something different in you, how did it feel to have seven players traded for you as well as the fact that they had been trying to get you since September? | |
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Yeah they had been trying to get me for awhile and once the deal went through I was actually very surprised at what they gave up to get me. I mean that is a lot of man power to give up for one player. It was kind of a good thing but it does go back to the pressure. You feel like you are under a microscope because of what the team did give up to get you but it is a good feeling and the pressure is in the back of your mind which you have to deal with. | |
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You were selected third in the overall draft pick in 2000 by New York and then you were traded to Calgary the next season, then they traded you back to New York but isn't it true that you actually wanted to be traded to Colorado from Calgary? | |
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What happened with the Calgary situation is a long story but I found out they were trying to trade me the whole time. Because of my situation with school I need to be on a team that is in the west for it to be possible to play in this league, so when I found out they were trying to trade me it limited my options to Colorado or Vancouver. So when I asked for the trade from Calgary, I told them the two teams that I would be available to play for hoping that they would try to deal me to one of those two teams.
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When you played in New York last week describe what it felt playing in the town that gave you trouble with your trade to Colorado? | |
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It wasn't so bad especially after playing the week before at home against the guys. It is a completely different team from when I was there. There are not very many players that are still there from when I was there. It wasn't that difficult as I think it would have been had it been the exact same team that I did play for when I was there. It wasn't too bad after playing them here and then going back there.
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Your thoughts on some of the troubled franchises such as Montreal, New York, and Buffalo? | |
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Hopefully, Montreal will be back next year with a new ownership group. Buffalo is playing well at home so that can only help; you can't throw the towel on them yet. They have a great team and they have great history but they're going through some rough times. You want New York in the league…maybe they need some new blood in there to get them going…they just have to win…It's tough to draw when you're not winning.
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Did you sense there was some competition with Matt Shearer who had scored five goals and even the other players who were traded for you when you traveled to New York? | |
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I think the players that were traded from us to New York figured that they had wanted to prove something to this organization. I believe they did and personally I would have liked to have done better but I am still developing with the team and trying to get the system's down and learn how each one of the player's that I play with operate on the field. I am in a learning experience right now as well.
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Are you eventually moving to Colorado? | |
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That's still up in the air but I won't be able to this year, but next year it is very possible. | |
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What direction do you think the Mammoth is headed? | |
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We've had a few good meetings the last couple of days and we know that we have to play better and get ourselves up for games on the road. We are having problems winning on the road because I think we are not getting up enough for games. We're just not showing enough emotion out there. When we are playing at home we are playing in front of the crowds and stuff and it's easy to get up for games, having all of the fans behind you makes it a whole lot easier to get up for games.
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There must be a big difference playing in front of small hometowns like New York as opposed to Colorado where they sell out and are averaging the most fans in the entire league. How does that feel? | |
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Playing in front of this crowd is an amazing feeling to know that there is that many people out there that want to come out and support you and watch the games. It is just an amazing feeling playing here in Denver as opposed to places like New York because the fan support just isn't there. It's tough to play in a dead arena and it is like you are almost just practicing and it is hard to get up for games.
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What do you think about the league expanding into the West Coast even more now with San Jose possibly getting a team? | |
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I hope that it works and I hope that they have success in their first year if it goes through. I hope they have success to also help this game progress. I think it's good for the game as long as they get the support that we're seeing right now in Colorado.
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| PLPA Correspondent Chrissy Sadowski has a degree in Communications and is currently studying broadcasting. |