Phillip Rave Career Reflection

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It's been five seasons since Phillip Rave was drafted by the Malmo Nighthawks.

 

A year with the VHLE's Cologne Express, four with Malmo. For Rave, it's weird to think about. "I've almost spent as much of my life in hockey as I did in skiing now," he muses. "It feels different to be considered a 'veteran' these days. It feels weird, considering I feel like I still have so much to learn."

 

Rave entered the VHL draft in S91 with just a couple of seasons of organized hockey under his belt, but coming off of a 74-point campaign with the VHLM's San Diego Marlins which showed that, to some extent, he wasn't out of place. He was raw as they come but at his best was a big body, powerful skater with the ability to protect the puck and having a laser for a shot. The upside was tantalizing, but the floor was low, and Rave was projected to go as a late-first or early-second round pick.

 

"I met with a few teams with late first-round picks before the draft... Moscow, Seattle. I met with London, who weren't picking until 21. And obviously with Malmo. Actually, at one point, I thought it might be Moscow," recalls Rave. "Then they ended up trading around a ton and ending up with three picks in the top five. Hey, can't fault 'em for that, right? I knew they weren't trading up there for me. Seattle had two picks and went another way. S ohere we are in Malmo, and it's just been the perfect fit. They were excited to have me from the get go, and it's been everything I could've wanted in an organization."

 

As the seasons have gone by since that draft, Rave has delivered more and more on that upside. If you were to re-draft S91 today, there's a very good chance he would crack the top five. He's become one of the league's best goal scorers, coming off a career-best 45-goal, 89-point season. Rave took a year to develop at the VHL level, finishing his rookie season with 41 points, but has put up 236 points in 216 games since then. His defensive game has evolved to an elite level, having taken a massive step forward over the course of S95.

 

Though his career is now officially in its' second half, Rave believes the best is yet to come. "I'm playing the best hockey of my life, man," he says. "Still getting better every day. I don't usually talk about numbers, personal goals that I'm striving for. I don't think that's something the focus should be on... I don't see any reason why I can't be a 50-goal, 100-point guy at this level, though."

 

"But whether that comes or it doesn't... the main thing is, we've got a strong team here, a great group of guys and we've got to face the unfortunate reality that the only thing we're known for right now is coming up short in the playoffs," says Rave, reflecting on Malmo's four-straight first round exits despite consistently being one of the VHL's best regular season teams. After playing in the finals with the San Diego Marlins and winning a Renaissance Cup with the Cologne Express, Rave has seen only two playoff wins in Malmo. "So I guess that's the big thing in the second half of my career. Nobody wants that reputation, nobody wants to talk about it every single off-season."

 

Rave's role has grown every year in Malmo, and the expectations with it. It seems likely that, with the retirement of Randy Bobandy, it will take the biggest jump yet in advance of S96. The Nighthawks will, as always, have a strong roster with an excellent supporting cast, but for the first time in his career Rave will enter the season carrying the expectations of being his team's top forward. Whether he plays centre or wing, there will be an unfamiliar pressure on Rave. "If I'm being completely honest, you don't have a lot of time to worry about that on the ice," says Rave. "If that kind of thing gets in your head at all, everyone will be able to tell. Expectations are not really something I worry about. The game is way too fast. So look, I'm not worried about that kind of thing. These guys have all made my job easier for several seasons now. They're all great teammates, and we don't care much who gets what kind of accolades or attention. We're here to win hockey games."

 

There's one other thing to wonder about the second half of Rave's career. S96 will be the third season of the three-year extension he signed in S94, and when you've got a powerhouse team that struggles in the playoffs, the call of change can be persistent for both player and team. So has Rave given any thought to what comes next?

 

"I'd like to play the rest of my career in Malmo. It's not a matter of what happens with the team in the playoffs or anything like that, it's home for me here. It's an awesome organization with a great group of teammates. At the end of the day we're going to see which direction the team wants to go after S96, it takes two sides to agree to a contract, right? But I would like to be here if they'll have me. I would like to play my whole career here. I would like to lift a Continental Cup here. That's the plan."