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*Drokeep* · 06-14-2021, 04:28 PM

(DENVER) Being the first German born player off the board during the 60th SMJHL draft meant a lot to new Colorado Raptors Right Defenseman Hans Graf. The rookie prospect looks to live up to the expectations that that honor entails. When asked about it during a post draft interview, Hans said “All I want is to hold my name and my country’s up high. I want the world to see the talent and passions that comes with our nations players. While hockey in Germany is not one of the biggest markets, I want to prove that we can still compete with the rest of the world… it would be a dream come true to get called dup to play for my country someday”.

While he hails from a small town south of Germany, he has not had any problems adjusting to live in Denver. “Life here has been great so far. I was expecting to enjoy it, since I’ve always wanted to live in this part of the US” said Hans. “The views are stunning and the people have been great so far, specially my teammates. Nothing makes a new team better than welcoming teammates. If you come in to a new organization and you are received with warmth and respect, you know you will adjust quicker and be able to further develop your game. . We also asked Hans if he missed home, to which he said “I mean, home will always be unique. Your family and friends are over there, so you always feel like you left a small piece of yourself there. But so far my new home is helping me get over that nostalgia pretty quickly. Hopefully my family can come visit me soon!”

During the interview we managed to inquire more about what kind of player Hans wants to be “I’ve always seen myself as a shutdown defensive man. A lot of player in my generation like to be a bit more offensive minded, but to me the best offense is good defense. It’s hard to win a hockey game if your team can’t get out of the defensive zone. While I do want to focus on my defense, by no means will I abandon offensive skills. As I showed during the prospect league, I can still help my team generate offense. It is not easy to get 30 pts as a D-man in a draft class as competitive as this one”. When asked about his weaknesses his response was very encouraging “I definitely have to get netter in the offense, specially entering the offensive zone and retaining the possession of the puck. I also could learn to be a bit more aggressive with more smart hits. But my goal is to iron these out so I can become the best player possible for Colorado”

Lastly we asked him some lighter questions like what is his favorite drink or his favorite team. Laughing he said “I always enjoy a good beer after a long game of hockey. Sadly I can’t drink here in the US just yet, so I’ll have to figure something else out quickly. As for my team, I will always carry my EV Füssen in my heart. It is the team I grew up watching and it nurtured my passion for the sport. Hopefully once my career is coming to an end, I can go and be able to give back something to such a wonderful organization”.

We cannot wait to see how his rookie season pans out. He is a very promising prospect that could take Colorado to the next step.

Go Raptors!! Raptors

(Word count: 635)

DeletedAtUserRequest · 06-14-2021, 06:57 PM

06-14-2021, 04:28 PMDrokeep Wrote:
(DENVER) Being the first German born player off the board during the 60th SMJHL draft meant a lot to new Colorado Raptors Right Defenseman Hans Graf. The rookie prospect looks to live up to the expectations that that honor entails. When asked about it during a post draft interview, Hans said “All I want is to hold my name and my country’s up high. I want the world to see the talent and passions that comes with our nations players. While hockey in Germany is not one of the biggest markets, I want to prove that we can still compete with the rest of the world… it would be a dream come true to get called dup to play for my country someday”.

While he hails from a small town south of Germany, he has not had any problems adjusting to live in Denver. “Life here has been great so far. I was expecting to enjoy it, since I’ve always wanted to live in this part of the US” said Hans. “The views are stunning and the people have been great so far, specially my teammates. Nothing makes a new team better than welcoming teammates. If you come in to a new organization and you are received with warmth and respect, you know you will adjust quicker and be able to further develop your game. . We also asked Hans if he missed home, to which he said “I mean, home will always be unique. Your family and friends are over there, so you always feel like you left a small piece of yourself there. But so far my new home is helping me get over that nostalgia pretty quickly. Hopefully my family can come visit me soon!”

During the interview we managed to inquire more about what kind of player Hans wants to be “I’ve always seen myself as a shutdown defensive man. A lot of player in my generation like to be a bit more offensive minded, but to me the best offense is good defense. It’s hard to win a hockey game if your team can’t get out of the defensive zone. While I do want to focus on my defense, by no means will I abandon offensive skills. As I showed during the prospect league, I can still help my team generate offense. It is not easy to get 30 pts as a D-man in a draft class as competitive as this one”. When asked about his weaknesses his response was very encouraging “I definitely have to get netter in the offense, specially entering the offensive zone and retaining the possession of the puck. I also could learn to be a bit more aggressive with more smart hits. But my goal is to iron these out so I can become the best player possible for Colorado”

Lastly we asked him some lighter questions like what is his favorite drink or his favorite team. Laughing he said “I always enjoy a good beer after a long game of hockey. Sadly I can’t drink here in the US just yet, so I’ll have to figure something else out quickly. As for my team, I will always carry my EV Füssen in my heart. It is the team I grew up watching and it nurtured my passion for the sport. Hopefully once my career is coming to an end, I can go and be able to give back something to such a wonderful organization”.

We cannot wait to see how his rookie season pans out. He is a very promising prospect that could take Colorado to the next step.

Go Raptors!!

(Word count: 635)

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Jumbobone19 · 06-14-2021, 07:50 PM

Pumped to have you in Colorado. Excited for the season Raptors

JT3 · 06-15-2021, 12:36 AM

Beauty

Credits to OrbitingDeath, Tweedle, Incite, Wasty, and Slothfacekilla for sigs!

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***micool132*** · 06-15-2021, 02:08 PM

Keep it up young stud!

Junior · 06-15-2021, 08:17 PM

Colorado did a great job drafting this rookie class. Can't wait to play with you out on the ice. Together we will continue to make Colorado great again!

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