Interview with Isau DaMoose

[Eynhallow 412]

Isau Damoose Interview

With Gale Force

 

 

Gale:  Welcome back, Isau.  Another season older and, dare I say, wiser ?

 

Isau:  Well, thanks Gale.  It is always a pleasure to appear on your show.  So, ya, another season older.  Retirement is starting to loom in the future.  About the wiser part...well...I am not so sure about that.

 

Gale:  Eliminated from the playoffs by a tie breaker decision.  What’s up with that ?

 

Isau:  Yup, we were tied with Malmo with 76 points each.  In the case of a tie like this, the best position was given to the team with the most wins.  Malmo had 35 wins as compared to the 32 wins we had in Riga.

 

Gale:  Where did the wheels fall off?

 

Isau:  I don’t really think “the wheels fell off”.  I think we have to do a better job in the close games.  For example, we had a league leading 12 overtime losses.  Had we been able to win just 6 of those games, 50 percent, we would have been well into the playoffs.

 

Gale:  How about your own season, any high lights or low lights?  Take your pick.

 

Isau:  I guess I had a pretty good season.  Management assigned me second line minutes with some exposure on the power play.  I managed to put up 41 goals and 40 assists.  81 points is a huge improvement over the paltry 51 points I got in Season 77.  I attribute some of my success to improved training, but most of the cause for improvement came from the Reign’s management team who awarded me a big increase in ice time.

 

Gale:  You failed to mention the large number of hits, Isau …

 

 

Isau:  Ya, it seems that I gooned it up a bit.  266 hits led the team by a fair margin.  It came as a bit of a surprise to me.  Along with that came an unwelcome increase in penalty minutes.  111 PIM is quite a lot !!!  That’s like almost a penalty a game, maybe a bit less.

 

Gale:  I doubt that “goon” is the right word.  I mean you were in only one fight,  Which you lost by the way.  As compared to the 7 fights in which Matt “T-Bone” Thunder @Matt thunder was involved.

 

Isau:  My boy, Matt.  He isn’t a goon either.  Maybe more of an aggressive enforcer.

 

Gale:  What are your plans for the off-season ?

 

Isau:  I did not go back to Swords this year.  The covid regulations were just too stringent.  So, I basically turned into a gym rat.  I wanted to develop some strength, increase my faceoff ability and improve my passing.  Of course, I still work on all those other player attributes as well, but not as my primary focus.

 

Gale:  All work and no play ?

 

Isau:  Not quite true.  I discovered that Latvia has fab beaches.  I like sitting in the sun or swimming in the Baltic Sea.  This is Jurmala Beach.  It’s about 20 km away from Riga, so relatively close.  It also features spas and mud baths if you are interested.

 

 

GaiL:  Amazing, who would have thought such great beaches existed in Latvia.  How do you get out there ?

 

Isau:  Ya, well, I was under some pressure by the training staff to try and avoid unnecessary injuries so I sold my venerable Kawasaki Ninja H2R.

 

 

I replaced the bike with a far more sedate and safe car.  I guess age is catching up with me.  However, I know what I am going to spend some of my retirement bonus on !!!

 

Gale:  On that note, I know Riga is pretty secretive about this, but did you experience any significant injuries this season?

 

Isau:  I guess I have been blessed with the ability to heal quickly, so the bumps and nicks one gets while playing a physical game seemed to not bother me too much..  With the number of hits, I gotta say, sometimes I was pretty badly bruised and looked forward to a day off.

 

Gale:  And so, how is Nikki (Starr) ?

 

Isau:  Ya, just great. She seems to really like it over here in Europe.  She has taken on a number of causes.  The latest one being an endangered species...European Mink, I think.

 

 

Gale:  Have you any aspirations for Season 79 ?

 

Isau:  First and foremost is to make the playoffs.  I speak for all my teammates in this regard.  We have paid our dues, have enough talent and desire, not only to just make the playoffs, but to go deep as well.  Personally, I don’t see my position on the team changing significantly.  So, given a couple of good line mates my personal goal would be to get to the 100 point mark next season.

 

Gale:  Do you see any big changes to the Reign for next season?

 

Isau:  Not really.  I think GM Hedgehog @hedgehog337 want to keep together the core of the team, most of whom arrived in the VHL at the same time, so were are all about the same in terms of growth and maturity.  One pressing need will be in goal,  Calvin Harvey is about to retire, leaving us without a true Number 1 starter in goal.  We haven’t had much success in drafting a goalie who has conscientiously added to his attributes over the several seasons it takes for a goalie to mature.  If we are going to compete, I think there would have to be a deal made for a starting goaltender.

 

Gale:  Wow!  With a 100 point season and over 200 hits, would there not be a few who would take you in the Fantasy Hockey League ?

 

Isau:  Well, that would be pretty cool, but really my focus is on the team as a whole.  If my success translates to success for the Riga Reign, then I am all in.  I have great confidence in the Reign’s management group as well as my teammates.  We should be OK.

 

Gale:  As always, Isau, it has been a real treat having you on for this short time.  I wish you and the Reign the best of luck next season.  Thanks.

 

Isau:  Thanks Gale for having me on your show.  And thanks for the good wishes.  Hopefully luck will not play a big role in our success next year.

 

Word Count: 1042

Graphis:  5

[Eynhallow 412]

Week 2