Louie Garrett Mid-Season Presser
Ready to be graded
Word Count: 2,316

Moderator: Alright everybody. Today we have, right winger for the St. Louis Scarecrows, Louie Garrett here to answer some questions from the press. I know you’ve all been patiently waiting so we’re going to go ahead and get started here. I’m sure you all have a bunch of questions, so give us a signal that you have a question and we’ll call on you. We don’t want a bunch of people asking questions all at once. Alright, we’ll go ahead and start with you first.

Harris: Hi Louie, Bob Harris again of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. How have you settled into the playing in the SMJHL so far? How has it been playing for the Scarecrows?

Garrett: Um, yeah. It’s definitely been an interesting ride so far playing in the SMJHL. The players are all a little bit bigger and faster than you expect so each game is a challenge. It doesn’t matter what team you are playing, there is somebody that has the ability to burn you so you have to be playing at the top of your game each and every night. So, in terms of that, it has taken some time to get used to the pace of the game, but I think that my game is starting to come together. It’s been great playing for the Scarecrows, though. I’m really enjoying my time here. The guys are all great and I think that we’re really starting to find our groove so that’s definitely a plus. I’m definitely glad that I got drafted to play here in St. Louis and I think that the managers are happy to have me as well. We are going to be doing some great things here over the next several seasons.

Harris: You had a slow start to your season, but it seems as of late that you are starting to pick up the pace. Anything contributing to that in particular?

Garrett: Well, I think that there are several factors to my game improving recently. First and foremost, I’m giving it all I got in training. You know, I show up every day and leave everything I got either on the ice or in the gym and I think that that is finally starting to be reflected in my on-ice performance. Secondly, the return of Viktor Vorkämpfer has been huge for me personally. He’s really helped to bolster the second line and honestly, how can you not expect that? He is playing a huge role in our success this year as a team. On a nightly basis, he opens up the game. He makes it easier for his line mates to score as well as putting himself in positions for others to get him the puck. Thirdly, I’m just getting some puck luck that I wasn’t getting earlier on in the season. Some of the shots that I was hitting post on earlier in the season are now finding the back of the net. So, all-in-all, I think there are a lot of reasons as to why my game is improving. I’m just happy that it finally is though. I was getting frustrated with my lack of production and I think the managers were starting to wonder what to do with me as well. Anyway, it’s good for me and the team that I am starting to put up points.

Moderator: You over there. Yeah you, you’re up.

Abernathy: Hey there, Louie. Scott Abernathy from ESPN. Pete Miller (the ESPN reporter that previously interviewed you) was recently let go from ESPN despite that he was really our hockey expert. I don’t know that much about the sport, so I’m just going to ask you an easy question. How do you feel about the Scarecrows success at this point in the season? Were you expecting to be doing this well this season?

Garrett: That’s unfortunate about Pete. He seemed like a good guy who really knew his stuff about the game. In terms of our success so far, I mean, it’s hard to complain at this point. For most of the season we’ve either been in the top couple spots or at the top of the standings. We’ve really been clicking as of late though. We getting production from all of our lines which makes it easier on everyone. When there is the potential to score at any time, it makes it difficult for other teams to defend. We’re able to wear their guys out and that’s when you can capitalize on mistakes. Even though we are getting production from a lot of different players, you have to give extra props to the line of Joonas Rasmussen, Matthew Auston, and Crossfit Jesus. Those three have just been tearing up teams left and right. I personally, didn’t have any expectations coming in. I don’t mean that in a bad way or anything. What I mean is that I just came into this season trying to focus on my game. I’ve just been trying to be the best player that I can be and like I said earlier, that effort is finally starting to show on the ice. While I didn’t necessarily have many expectations, I can’t be disappointed with our results so far. We just can’t take our foot of the gas pedal now. We have to keep showing the other teams in this league why we belong at the top of the standings.

Moderator: Alright, let’s go with you over here.

Williams: How you doing, Louie? Skip Williams from the Seattle Times again. Are you developing any rivalries in the league? That can be on either a personal or team level.

Garrett: I don’t know if I have really developed any serious rivalries on a personal level yet. I mean, I’m always checking the leader boards for different stats and whatnot. You try to not let that kind of stuff get into your head though. You just want to go out there and play as hard as you can. On a team level, it seems like most teams out there have a bone to pick with the Scarecrows. It always seems like someone is complaining about something. We all have a good time with it though. That’s a good thing if we can manage to get under the skin of some of our opponents. I think things kind of got heated at the very beginning of the season. We played our entire season series against the Whalers really early on. I think the frequency that we played them started to get on everyone’s nerves. It all ended up alright in the end though, mostly because the Scarecrows wiped the floor with them for the most part. Can’t complain about coming away from a series with more wins than losses.

Williams: On a different note, what are you working on to improve your game? Are there any aspects you are currently working on specifically or are you just trying to improve in general?

Garrett: That’s a really good question. There are a lot of things that I have been working on. It’s always important to be getting bigger, faster, and stronger. Those are just basic traits that you have to work on if you want to be successful in the league. I think more specifically than that, I have put a lot of work into my puck handling. It definitely was one of the weaker aspects of my game coming into this season, but I have worked really hard on improving it and I think that that is showing up in my game. I’m also a scorer at heart so I have been working on my shot for sure. Really though, I have been putting in a lot of work in a lot of different aspects of my game. I guess you could call it general training, but I think it’s a little bit more complicated than that. I want to be known as a well-rounded player in the league so that means that I have to be able to train in a lot of different ways. It also helps that I have some great coaches here in St. Louis. They have definitely been giving me input as to what parts of my game I should be focusing in on. It seems to be working though because as the season has progressed my individual game has been improving. The last time I checked I was almost in the top ten for rookie scoring despite my less than stellar start to the season, so I’m definitely starting to bounce back now.

Moderator: I think we have time for some more questions. How about we go over to this side of the room. Go ahead with your question.

Hennings: Hey Louie, Mike Hennings from FOX Sports. I’m going to piggyback off of Skip a little bit and ask about the weaknesses of your game. It’s no secret that you don’t play an overly physical game, do you think that that is holding you back at all in this league?

Garrett: You’re definitely right. I don’t play an overly physical game right now and I do think it’s something that I need to improve. It hasn’t been at the top of my list of things to improve mostly because I don’t personally think it’s holding me back right now in my career. I do, however, think that it is definitely something that coaches in the SHL are going to be looking at. They want players who can play weighty. They want guys who aren’t afraid to go into the corners and fight for pucks. It’s those types of things that make up the differences between wins and losses at the highest level of competition. Like I said though, right now I’m more focusing on the fundamentals of my game before I start worrying about changing up my style of play. I think my coaches are happy with what I am doing right now, so I’m just going to stay the course. If they ask me to change things up though, I will gladly do so. I’m a pretty flexible guy and I want to do whatever I can to make the Scarecrows better.

Hennings: Do you have any predictions for us in terms of what teams are going to do well down the stretch and into the playoffs? Things move quickly in this league and you have to be looking down the road.

Garrett: Well, right now there seem to be four teams that are trying to solidify their places in the top of the standings. I think we, along with Colorado, Montreal, and Prince George are all looking pretty tough to beat. Nothing is given in this league though, so even though those teams are looking good right now they have to keep playing hard or they could potentially lose their spot in the post season. Right now, Vancouver and Halifax are a little bit behind in terms of the standings, but Vancouver especially is setting themselves up to be a tomorrow team. They had a really good draft and a lot of their rookies are having excellent seasons. I mean if you look at the rookie scoring leaders they Bennett, Magar, Spitfire, Phelps, and Odjick all in the top ten. In addition to that, they have been going crazy in picking up mid-season additions. They could miss the playoffs this year, but they could be a very scary team within the next couple of seasons. Overall though, I don’t really think that there are weak teams in this league. Any team could beat any other team on any given day so you always have to be playing at your best.

Moderator: Okay, we have time for one last question. Let’s go to the back. How about you? Yeah go ahead.

Keller: Hi Louie, Tim Keller from the SHL Network. Have you thought at all about the SHL, where you could end up someday? Do you have any messages for any of the general managers out there that might be scouting you?

Garrett: No, not really. I really just want to concentrate on winning a championship with St. Louis right now which I think we have a decent chance of doing. The Riot were my favorite team growing up so it would be pretty cool to play for them someday, but honestly, it would be a huge honor to play for any of the teams in the SHL. As I said, right now I’m completely dialed in on what the Scarecrows are trying to accomplish though. I guess I would just like to let the general managers of the SHL know that I am dedicated to winning. I’m willing to do whatever it takes for my team to win a championship. I’m not really sure if any of the general managers are scouting me yet, although I think they probably are I just don’t know it yet. I know that my season hasn’t really been impressive or entirely up to my standards so far, but I’m getting better little by little and I’m about to break out really soon. I just hope that they look beyond the stats and see that I’m incredibly dedicated to the craft of making myself a better player. There are a lot of good players in the SMJHL this year. I wouldn’t want to be a general manager and have the stress of figuring out which of these players are going to be stars and which are going to fall flat. That being said, I think that there is the potential for a lot of stars out of this class.

Moderator: Alright, I think that is all we have time for right now. Thank you to Louie Garrett, we look forward to future press conferences with you.

Garrett: Thank you all for the questions. I look forward to talking with you all again and Go Crows!

Louie Garrett || RW || Texas Renegades || USA || 1715 TPE
------------------------------------------------------------
SHL Total Regular Season Statistics:
GP: 550, G: 253, A: 298, P: 551, +/-: 66, PIMS: 120, H: 514, SB: 161
------------------------------------------------------------
SHL Total Playoff Statistics:
GP: 68, G: 27, A: 42, P: 69, +/-: 15, PIMS: 13, H: 37, SB: 17
------------------------------------------------------------
SMJHL Total Regular Season Statistics:
GP: 150, G: 48, A: 43, P: 91, +/-: 5, PIMS: 57, H: 118, SB: 24
------------------------------------------------------------
SMJHL Total Playoff Statistics:
GP: 31, G: 14, A: 17, P: 31, +/-: 1, PIMS: 10, H: 23, SB: 4

You didn't mention me in this presser >:o

Thank you Brandon, Fish, GeckoeyGecko, Karey, Kit, takethehorizon, and Ragnar for the sigs!


Charles Walker || D || S33 || Buffalo Stampede || TPE: 1,074
Name: Charles Walker
Height: 6'4"
Weight: 220 lbs
Number: 19
------------------------------------------------------------
SMJHL Career Statistics
S32 STL: GP: 50, G: 4, A: 11, P: 15, +/-: -3, PIMS: 28, H:34, SB: 52
S33 STL: GP 50, G: 3, A:11, P:14, +/-: -4, PIMS: 32, H: 58, SB: 60
S34 STL: GP: 50, G: 9, A: 21, P: 30, +/-: 17, PIMS: 22, H: 13, SB: 50
------------------------------------------------------------
SMJHL Playoff Career Statistics
S34 STL: GP: 15, G: 5, A:6, P: 11, +/- 4, PIMS: 0, H:3, SB: 24
------------------------------------------------------------
SHL Career Statistics
S35 BUF: GP: 50, G: 3, A: 9, P:12, +/- 0, PIMS: 58, H: 55, SB: 52
S36 BUF: GP: 50, G: 8, A: 9, P: 17, +/- 14, PIMS: 34, H: 67, SB: 72
S37 BUF: GP: 50, G: 8, A: 21, P: 29, +/- 9, PIMS: 34, H: 24, SB: 73
S38 BUF: GP: 50, G: 18, A: 17, P: 35, +/- -10, PIMS: 22, H: 43, SB: 73
S39 BUF: GP: 50, G: 5, A: 19, P: 24, +/- 0, PIMS: 20, H: 50, SB: 83
S40 BUF: GP: 50, G: 9, A: 26, P: 35, +/- -11, PIMS: 16, H: 64, SB: 67
S41 BUF: GP: 50, G: 14, A: 31, P: 45, +/- 2, PIMS: 42, H: 75, SB: 90
S42 BUF: GP: 50, G: 4, A: 20, P: 24, +/- 10, PIMS: 61, H: 109, SB: 79
S43 BUF: GP: 50, G: 15, A: 25, P: 40, +/- 3, PIMS: 56, H: 120, SB: 61
S44 BUF: GP: 50, G: 5, A: 22, P: 27, +/- -6, PIMS: 56, H: 150, SB: 76
S45 BUF: GP: 50, G: 8, A: 23, P: 31, +/- 3, PIMS: 28, H: 55, SB: 75
S46 BUF: GP: 50, G: 6, A: 30, P: 36, +/- 11, PIMS: 4, H: 5, SB: 93
S47 BUF: GP: 50, G: 16, A: 22, P: 38, +/- -5, PIMS: 4, H: 3, SB: 57
S48 BUF: GP: 50, G: 7, A: 17, P: 24, +/- 3, PIMS: 10, H: 20, SB: 78
S49 BUF: GP: 50, G: 3, A: 16, P: 19, +/- 2, PIMS: 10, H: 26, SB: 53
S50 BUF: GP: 50, G: 6, A: 16, P: 22, +/- 13, PIMS: 12, H: 33, SB: 40
S51 BUF: GP: 50, G: 2, A: 11, P: 13, +/- 11, PIMS: 16, H: 20, SB: 47

------------------------------------------------------------
SHL Playoff Career Statistics
S35 BUF: GP: 4, G: 0, A: 0, P: 0, +/- -7, PIMS: 8, H: 7, SB: 3
S36 BUF: GP: 7, G: 0, A: 2, P: 2, +/- 0, PIMS: 7, H: 7, SB: 9
S37 BUF: GP: 7, G: 1, A: 2, P: 3, +/- -3, PIMS: 0, H: 7, SB: 11
S41 BUF: GP: 7, G: 2, A: 6, P: 8, +/- 0, PIMS: 4, H: 13, SB: 11
S42 BUF: GP: 5, G: 0, A: 2, P: 2, +/- -10, PIMS: 4, H: 22, SB: 9
S43 BUF: GP: 9, G: 2, A: 4, P: 6, +/- -3, PIMS: 8, H: 24, SB: 13
S46 BUF: GP: 17, G: 2, A: 7, P: 9, +/- 5, PIMS: 2, H: 4, SB: 23
S47 BUF: GP: 13, G: 3, A: 3, P: 6, +/- 3, PIMS: 0, H: 0, SB: 23
S48 BUF: GP: 22, G: 0, A: 6, P: 6, +/- 8, PIMS: 18, H: 25, SB: 21
S49 BUF: GP: 5, G: 1, A: 3, P: 4, +/- -2, PIMS: 0, H: 5, SB: 5

------------------------------------------------------------
Transactions:
Drafted 46nd overall by St. Louis in the S32 SMJHL Draft
Drafted 39th overall by Buffalo in the S33 SHL Draft
------------------------------------------------------------

Awards and Accomplishments:
Named Assistant Captain for STL in S33
Awarded Ondrej Ravchitikov Award - Best Defenseman for STL in S33
Named Assistant Captain for Buffalo in S39
Assistant Captain for Buffalo through S53
S46 Challenge Cup Champion
S48 Challenge Cup Champion
S40 IIHF Gold Medalist
S45 IIHF Silver Medalist
S48 IIHF Silver Medalist
S50 IIHF Gold Medalist




Jaska Seppälä || LW || S53 || Kelowna Knights || TPE: 247
Name: Jaska Seppälä
Height: 6'2"
Weight: 205 lbs
Number: 7
------------------------------------------------------------
SMJHL Career Statistics
------------------------------------------------------------
Transactions:
Drafted 23rd overall by Kelowna in the S52 SMJHL Entry Draft


Player Page || Update page

Beast

Affiliate of:

Originally posted by Zombiewolf@Apr 26 2017, 04:07 PM
You didn't mention me in this presser >:o

In the next one, boo.

Louie Garrett || RW || Texas Renegades || USA || 1715 TPE
------------------------------------------------------------
SHL Total Regular Season Statistics:
GP: 550, G: 253, A: 298, P: 551, +/-: 66, PIMS: 120, H: 514, SB: 161
------------------------------------------------------------
SHL Total Playoff Statistics:
GP: 68, G: 27, A: 42, P: 69, +/-: 15, PIMS: 13, H: 37, SB: 17
------------------------------------------------------------
SMJHL Total Regular Season Statistics:
GP: 150, G: 48, A: 43, P: 91, +/-: 5, PIMS: 57, H: 118, SB: 24
------------------------------------------------------------
SMJHL Total Playoff Statistics:
GP: 31, G: 14, A: 17, P: 31, +/-: 1, PIMS: 10, H: 23, SB: 4