tcookie

3) I got to compete for a national championship (5-pin bowling) with the most fun team I've ever been a part of. We came just short - lost our gold medal match by just a few pins, but it was just a great experience. I made my second national all-star team & missed a perfect game on my last ball in one of the round robin matches, so I had a successful event from a personal standpoint too, but it was the team that made it something I will always remember. 4) Nothing special, but I am excited to have the Canada/USA world junior game on NYE again, it's been a while! 5) Probably 3rd in the EU, maybe 2nd? Good enough to be in a competitive position come playoff time which is all you can ask for! 6) Vancouver, Moscow, and Davos all look very strong. 8 ) I mean it's getting to the point where I need a new car, but definitely not a million dollar one lol. If I can split it up, I'd invest half, pay off the house, buy a relatively nice new car, make sure I'm debt free and travel with the rest 9) No pets. I wouldn't mind a cat or dog, but to be honest I'm a little worried life is just too busy to properly care for one!

With training camps and the holiday season both wrapping up, puck drop for S97 is upon us. Sixth-year Malmo centre Phillip Rave is excited to start playing games for real as the Nighthawks will once again try to dispel their pesky playoff curse. "It's been a busy off-season, training camp was nice to get back to some normalcy and now the season is right around the corner," says Rave. "Obviously there's no replacing Jacob Stone, but now we've got Lucy (Leitner) on the team, we've got Bret (Weier) and Narnia (Shaw) and just all these players that work hard, fit together well and just want to win. Couldn't ask for a better group of teammates." With 48 goals, 108 points and 562 shots on goal last season, Rave truly arrived as a star on the VHL scene last season, and he has designs on continuing to improve in S97. "I think even when you play well, when you are able to contribute at a high level consistently, there is always an opportunity to take something from your play that you can improve on. I think that mindset has played a big part in the player I've become and I don't want to get away from it."

1) I have Christmas dinner with my wife and her family on Christmas eve and then with my mom and sister on Christmas Day and that's generally it, try to have game night with friends at some point during the Christmas week as well 2) I do like eggnog 3) I live in Winnipeg, so I'm used to a lot of snow around Christmas time. The last three days the temperature has been -2, 0, and today +2 which, honestly, is ridiculous. The snow is melting on December 27th. It's nice if you have to be outside, but if anything is going to call out how real climate change is, the legitimate possibility of not having a white Christmas in Winnipeg at some point with this kind of weather should do it. 5) I am a gift giver for sure 7) I love to travel. If money wasn't an issue I'd definitely go on vacation. 10) Carol of the Bells is kind of a banger actually

Phillip Rave's off-season was a little more stressful than he's used to, but as he prepares to report to Malmo's training camp this week, everything has worked itself out just as well as he'd hoped. There was the matter of contract negotiations first and foremost this off-season, something Rave hadn't really experienced to the same level in prior seasons. Negotiating an entry-level contract is generally much more trivial, and when his first contract was up, he was still a young player looking for a break and Malmo was a clearly contending team, so there was little chance of anything conflicting on either side. This time around, the end of Malmo's window of contention appears much closer, and a rebuild was a legitimate possibility especially given the team's playoff track record. Plus, coming off an 108-point season, Rave had the track record to ask for more than he did the last time around, and was likely to find a large market for his services if he'd opted to test free agency. Then there was the matter of a GM change in the middle of the off-season, which postponed meetings with players as new management took over and had to formulate their own plan before communicating it to the team. But, at the end of the day, Rave got his wish. He's back in Malmo on a new three-year deal, and he's ready to go. "Circumstances ended up dragging that out longer than usual so it didn't feel like there was a lot of downtime for me this off-season. But now we're here, training camp is around the corner, the relationship with new management is great. Everything's worked out for the best and now I just can't wait to get back out on the ice."

1) I think it's great, honestly. The thing is I think something needed to happen if Malmo is to remain competitive past S97. Trading picks for one good player, or keeping the picks and using them, was not going to do it. Bringing in some prospects that you have a rapport with is smart. It's still going to be a bit of a tough task, but now there's a chance especially if the prospects develop well. 2) It's been good! Signing the extension with Malmo is nice, excited to get to play for this management team, and now we're at the World Cup. 3) I'm a little sad that I finished last year just shy of 50 goals so it would be cool to hit that milestone. But at the end of the day the ultimate goal is to get something done in the playoffs. Five years of great teams and we've done nothing in the post-season, we need to change that. 4) DF to 90 and then bank for depreciation, probably. Maybe a couple points into faceoffs. 5) We could go bowling, I like that suggestion. If it's five-pin I'll win honestly, doesn't matter too much but team bonding is very important, so it's a great idea. Maybe hit up the time honoured Malmo tradition of Taco Bell at some point... lol 6) I still need to finish shopping lol. Basically just hang out with friends and family.

Claim week 2/2