Rauno interview

[jRuutu 2,426]

Rauno with mustache of some kind, talk about poor playoff beard.

 

Malmo Nighthawks has just won Riga Reign 4-2 in game five, Malmo takes the series and heads into the finals, meanwhile, Riga starts their off-season early. I´m standing here with Riga center Rauno Palo, Rauno - first thoughts after the game?

 

RP: Shit, I feel like shit. This was not the result we wanted from this game, but have to give it to Malmo, they deserved to win and they were better than us today - simple as that. They wanted it more and they used the powerplay opportunities we gave to them.

 

Malmo won the series 4-1, was the difference that big?
RP:  I don´t think it was that big, playoffs and the format we play in can sometimes make it look extra harsh, but I honestly felt this could go all the way to game seven even, lost the first one, but game two was really good from us - then something just happened and we could not turn those game into wins. Lost two in a row and headed into this game 3-1 down in the series.

 

What you think was the reason why you could not turn those games into wins?
RP: Powerplay was not good enough, that was perhaps the biggest one and as we saw today good powerplay is a difference-maker in games, so in a series like this when you play against a good team - you really need to use those man advantages and score goal or two if you want to win a series against any team. Tough to say what was the reason why our powerplay just could not get it done.

 

Experts commented on Rigas's powerplay by saying it was too cute, do you agree?
RP: Maybe on some level, easy to look back now and say how we should do things differently, but the fact still is that we did not get enough shots to the net and we did not have enough guys in front of the net fighting for those loose pucks. In all fairness, the referees helped Malmo and their defense, could push and crosscheck all they wanted out there - almost like two different rules compared to the regular season.

 

So it was the referees fault Riga lost the series?
RP: Not directly, but they did not exactly give us the same help as they did to Malmo, for example, I was the MVP last year - why not give me something extra and help me you know?  Why do I need to work my ass out there, shame really that the league does not appreciate it stars more than this.

 

What is the plan when going forward?
RP: I don´t know, take a good rest and enjoy golfing is the first step, but I think we will quickly have a meeting with the management and see where we are at when it comes down to next year, got one more year left and I´m feeling good - will see what happens.

 

Thanks, Rauno.
RP: Thanks.

 

[jRuutu 2,426]

35 minutes ago, Tate said:

Spoken like a true pro. Getting the opportunity to add an elite player like Palo to the Reign comes around only once in a lifetime, and it was well worth it! We would love to see Palo return to Riga but wish you all the best as you continue your HOF career. Thank you again for all of your contributions this past season, it was truly a pleasure!

 

 

Thanks for the kind words! Everything is still possible, just me being one year away from retirement makes things bit ´awkward´. But will try to show up into the training camp in decent shape