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Anchoring in Anchorage: An Interview with Gabriel Johnson
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It's been a week now since the S47 SMJHL Draft occurred, a draft which saw future star Travis Bitties grab the headlines with his first overall selection. In the SMJHL, all eyes tend to be on the first round selections, because these players always tend to be the ones with the fastest routes to the big leagues. But today, we catch up with a player who did not catch all the searching eyes of scouts, but caught enough to secure himself a selection in the second round: defenceman Gabriel Johnson. The smooth-skating offensive defenceman was selected at #17 by the S47 semi-finalists Anchorage Armada. We covered the Canadian in the hours leading up to the draft in order for teams, players and fans alike to get to know him, but this time it will be my turn to get to know more about the the enthusiastic Canadian defenceman.

GWD: Thank you for joining me, Gabe. Before we start, I just want to give you a big congratulations on being drafted; it really is a great accomplishment.

GJ: Thanks! And the pleasure is all mine; I appreciate the article you wrote about me at a time where I wasn't really getting much attention so I'm happy to give you my time for this.

GWD: That's great to hear! So, to start, a question that any player will be asked after being drafted. Draftees always describe draft day as one of the most stressful and nail-biting experiences of their lives, so was it any different for you last Tuesday? How did it feel to hear your name called for selection at 17th? What was going through your head at the time?

GJ: It's really an indescribable feeling. Going into the draft I felt there were so many ifs, buts and maybes surrounding me, I had no clue where or when, if at all, I was gonna be taken, which really made me all riled up and nervous on the day of. When I heard the commish announce my name, I wasn't thinking about the Armada, or really anything apart from just joy at being taken! I'll always appreciate the Anchorage staff for having their trust in me and picking me.

GWD: Yeah, I can imagine draft day isn't very easy on the heart for players awaiting selection. Now it's interesting that you mention "ifs, buts and maybes", because I'll make my next question about that. Obviously in my article I covered the uncertainty around you on the ice, but was there anything off the ice that caused uncertainty for you leading up to the draft?

GJ: *laughs* Oh yeah, loads. When I was first being assessed by GMs and scouts from SMJHL teams, it seemed pretty clear I was expected to be a mid-to-late sleeper pick who would fall a bit under the radar. But then not long before the draft I was contacted by one team's GM who said that they were considering drafting me with their first rounder. I was really taken aback when I was told this because I had just been in the mindset of, you know, "it doesn't matter where I'm picked, just how hard I work". But when I was told that a team was strongly considering making me their marquee draft pick, it added those extra nerves. That moment made me think that I need to start holding myself to a higher standard, and really messed with my mindset going into the draft *laughs*. In the end, though, things obviously didn't turn out that way, so from there I was totally confused about what was gonna happen next. Once the first round was over names kept going by in the second and I was getting more and more stressed with every name that went! Eventually the Armada stepped up, and I remembered the talks I had with their GM, so I suspected it could be them who would take me in the end, which it obviously was. But yeah I can't say the day was drama-free!

GWD: Wow, stressful stuff! As you said, you felt very happy to be selected in the end, after all the drama passed. How was the time that passed immediately after being selected?

GJ: Well, not long after being selected I was invited to the Armada Discord Server, and was given a very warm welcome there. As I said before, I had talked with their GM, Acsolap, a little bit previously about the league and how I should aim to build my skillset with time, so I was already acquainted with him. It was a little bit overwhelming, with how many people were active in the chat when I joined, but a few members turned their attention to me because of my support for the soccer team Tottenham, some for praise and some for criticism *laughs*! I quickly warmed to the group due to how welcoming and friendly everyone was, and it really makes me feel like I was picked by the right franchise.

GWD: Yeah, Anchorage is known for having a very positive environment, which makes them a popular destination for rookies. As someone who has days of firsthand experience in their locker room now, tell me what it's like!

GJ: Everything about it is awesome. As Acsolap told me prior to the draft, their Discord is full of Armada alumni from years prior who have stayed around to interact with the team and help out newcomers. So many of them have been around the Discord joking around and having fun, which makes it such a pleasant environment. For any questions I've had, someone on the server has been there to help me out, and I feel I've taken massive strides as a player thanks to them. It's very obvious to see why Anchorage is the best team for developing players in the J, and although it means they've tended to have a revolving door for players, it really shows just how well-run an organization they are.
In general, I really feel like I couldn't have been drafted by a better team.

GWD: So you've gone through pre-season and your first 5 SMJHL games now. How have you found your transition from bantam to the juniors so far?

GJ: Its every bit as tough as I expected. The level of play and pace is way harder than what I'm used to, so at the beginning I really feel I struggled to get into gear, but as preseason went on I felt more and more comfortable and I feel I've adjusted well enough. I've been on a line with Darnell [Johnson] so far, and I feel we've meshed very well. We've both found it hilarious that we're both Johnsons, both rookie defencemen, and that we both have similar numbers too [#3 and #13]. We're both very driven to see ourselves improve as much as we can, and with me being offensive while he's more defensive, we complement each other very well on the second pairing. Through the first 5 games, we've been amazing considering our preseason wasn't ideal. Stavros [Halkias] has been the best rookie in the league so far by a huge margin, while Darnell and I have held our own on defence. I'm absolutely loving the look of our boys so far and I bet we can be right up there at the end.

GWD: That's great to hear, and we will all be following your career with great interest here in Anchorage, Gabriel.

That concluded Gabriel's first ever interview with local media, and it confirms what I have said regarding his mentality. Even with how well his team has started, he's not getting carried away, and still wants to focus on improving himself as much as possible this season. It was also very interesting to learn that a mystery team was considering him for their first rounder, and really shows just how quickly he rose onto the scene despite becoming draft eligible just days before the draft. We will see how this rookie season goes for Johnson and the Armada, who, despite losing 5 players to call-ups in the summer, are looking every bit as dangerous as last season.

-gwdjohnson

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#2

Great article fella!

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