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JNH · 09-20-2012, 04:43 PM

Hello everyone and welcome to The Show! I'm your host Jordan Nugent-Hall and today I sat down with Dave Smith, an up and coming prospect for this years NWJHL Season 10 draft.

Here are the transcripts for the interview:

Hey Dave! Thanks for joining me on The Show today!

Dave: It is a pleasure to be here!

Interview

So many mock drafts have you going top 5, what are your thoughts on this matter?

Dave: Well I must say I am quite honoured that the mock drafts have me going in the top 5. I was not really sure where I would end up but my best guess was somewhere between the 1st and 2nd rounds. I am quite honoured to be listed as a top 5 draft pick. Hopefully I can live up to that build up… I guess I have earned some people’s respect.

Interview

How have you been preparing for this year's draft?

Dave: Outside of my time with Team Italy I have been tweeting away on my twitter page @DS77, I have been keeping an eye on league details awaiting that first step in my professional career. I got lucky and was able to spend a lot of time at the Olympics so that really killed a lot of time for me so I could enjoy the game I love. Other than that…my newly signed contract from Ferrari as their spokesperson has kept me quite busy. I just recently finished up the leg of my North America tour. Soon I will be heading out to finish that tour before the draft. So I am quite busy!

Interview

What type of player do you want to be?

Dave: I am currently a two-way type power forward and I want to further my skillset into becoming a dominate power forward that can contribute to the team on both ends of the ice.

Interview

Have you thought yet about making it to the SHL?

Dave:I think about it all the time. As great of a league the NWJHL my big dream is to one day make it to the SHL and one day win a Challenge Cup… well actually the goal is to win more than one Challenge Cup in my career.

Interview

Who are your idols in the NHL and SHL?

Dave: My NHL idols are guys like Dustin Brown, Shane Doan of the modern age of hockey. These guys are not necessarily the flashiest of players but they get the job done. Brown just won a Stanley Cup and like him I hope to win the Challenge Cup and possibly the Four Star Cup as well. In the SHL I know people will expect a kid to have an idol but in Italy coverage of the SHL was not that big until this year I got to play with some of the best from Italy (whether dual citizens or naturally born Italians). So you could say I respect those guys a lot for sticking to the Italian program when they could have gone to a better team and won gold.

Interview

What does a typical day in the life of Dave Smith compose of?

Dave: The first thing I do is I have to check my cell phone. With my Ferrari contract that has me quite busy. It can be something like PR work to tours or anything with them. Did you enjoy my last commercial I made with them in co-operation with Shell? From Ferrari I basically try to train for my career and being available to the media for my hockey career. Once the season starts I get to do a little less work with Ferrari to focus on the season.

Interview

Are you a superstitious guy? If so, what kind of superstitions do you believe in? Do you do them routinely?

Dave:Let’s be honest… have you seen my jersey number? Number 77 (how can anyone get more lucky than the number 7 not once but twice. That would be my big superstition. Even though some of the other great NHL players I respect wore the number 7 or 77 like Chelly and Bourque. Those guys were very solid in their jobs and always got the end product they wanted. I guess me putting on that 77 every day is my routine.

Interview

You played recently for Team Italy in the Olympics, what was that experience like for a prospect who hasn't played one game in the NWJHL yet?

Dave: It was a great experience. I got to play as Team Italy’s third line center. Also got to hang out with fellow countryman Donini who projects to be a top 5 pick as well so that was a blast. Then getting to play with the guys from the SHL it was just a huge learning experience. So everything I learned with the Italians I hope to take it with me and apply it to my career. Anyone who was lucky to play in the Olympics can say it is a dream come true.

Interview

Do you think this experience will benefit you in the future as a player?

Dave: I learned a lot playing for Team Italy this year. Not many prospects were at the Olympics and I was one of the smaller few who played out of their regular positions. So I got to relearn a position I have not played in quite some time. Since in Italy I was normally a winger that would once in a while take a draw. From that I will take the lessons learned and apply them to my future and hope to inspire my future teammates to work hard and try to win the ultimate prize.

Interview

Last couple questions, you've got a decent bank account and scouts like that, what are your plans in terms of earning money? Save or try and keep it where it is?

Dave:I would want to spend it training and making good use of it. I have been training on my own and acquired my equipment these last 3 weeks so I want to use my money for that while having enough to be able to continue working out. I like nice things to but to be honest when I die I am not able to take them with me. So in this league. I would save my money until I got to the point where I needed to spend much more money for future development. I do not want to waste my money if that is what you are asking.

Interview

Any specific teams in the NWJHL you want to be drafted to? Why these teams?

Dave: I have had conversations about the thoughts of going to the Impact, the Falcons or the Firebirds. Those three teams have peaked my interest. The Impact having Light returning and also a lot of very solid picks in this draft. They could challenge the Falcons for the Four Star Cup so that would be a great team to join. The Falcons have Dion which has been a buddy of mine for quite some time and the previous Cup Champions are always a good choice to want to go to, you never know who will be returning to their team and could potentially re-defend their cup. The Firebirds have connected me directly and I like what I have learned about their team. At first they were a team that was not on my radar but when a GM comes to the player to talk about their team and what they think of you as a player that holds a lot of desire as it makes the prospect feel important and actually wanted. It would be crazy to draft a prospect and not even make a single form of contact to see if they would actually want to play for your team.

Interview

Last question, where do you see yourself going in this years draft and why do you think you will go here?

Dave: I see myself as a mid-late first to early second type guy. The top 2 guys look to be Schultz-Donini but right after that it is a major crapshoot and I think I could easily be one of the guys who could be slotted into that spot… It all depends on what the GMs want to do. Personally I think a 5th-7th spot might be the best accurate selection in the draft.. but I would not complain if I was selected earlier.

Interview

Alright thanks Dave, as always it was a pleasure to have you here so stop by again if you have a chance. Good luck in the upcoming draft Smile

Dave: Thank you for having me on the show today… I look forward to speaking to you sometime in the future…. FORZA AZZURI Smile

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Conclusion: It was a great pleasure interviewing a guy like Dave Smith. He's a really great guy and seems to be a really great member around the site. He's got some great skills and after watching him play in the Olympics, he can definitely thrive in the NWJHL and I can't wait to see the numbers that he puts up.

Draft Projection: 4th Overall

Thanks for joining us today folks Smile

Until next time,

Stay Classy SHL Smile