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NHL DRAFTJune 27, 2014Travis SanheimPHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA Q. How surprised are you with the choice? TRAVIS SANHEIM: You know, I was obviously a little shocked. The last few months for me have been crazy, and I wasn't sure whether I was going to be selected in the first round or not. I knew I had a chance to go to the Flyers. They were really interested, and I'm just proud to be selected by them. Q. At what point did you sort of consider Philadelphia as an option for you? TRAVIS SANHEIM: You know, my interview yesterday went really well, and they sounded extremely interested. Yesterday was kind of when I had a feeling that it was Philadelphia. Q. What do you know about the organization? TRAVIS SANHEIM: You know, being in the building tonight, the fans were crazy, and you could see the passion. You know, it's a hockey city, and I'm lucky to be here. Q. Does that make it that much more special, that it's here in Philly? TRAVIS SANHEIM: Yeah, for sure, to have the fan support right away as soon as you're picked, it's great. Q. (Inaudible). TRAVIS SANHEIM: Just confidence. You know, I started to play with more confidence and do more things with the puck, and that's what I need to do to be successful in the western hockey league, and I felt like I did that in the second half. Q. What was the wait like? Can you describe it to us, give us a sense of how the wait kind of went out there, waiting for your name to be called? TRAVIS SANHEIM: Yeah, it's obviously scary, and you're nervous. Leading up to the Philadelphia pick when the fans started going nuts, you could feel the passion in the building. I was starting to shake and wasn't sure if I was going to be able to stand for the pick. It was a great feeling. Q. (Inaudible). TRAVIS SANHEIM: Just an honor to be selected by the Philadelphia Flyers. Q. What was it like watching Jake go, as well? TRAVIS SANHEIM: Yeah, that was a special moment for me. I almost stood up and started clapping and yelling at him, but it was a great feeling. Me and him are really good buddies, and I was really proud for him to be selected. Q. What aspects of your game do you feel like have to grow the most to be successful? TRAVIS SANHEIM: You know, the biggest thing for me is getting a lot stronger and having a good summer in the gym, and I'm looking to do that this summer and getting a lot more strength. Q. Are there any players you model your game after? TRAVIS SANHEIM: I think Jay Bouwmeester. He's a pretty good skater and sees the ice pretty well, and that's a guy I model my game after. Q. Can you talk about what the last years have been like for you coming from Manitoba midgets hockey to here? TRAVIS SANHEIM: Yeah, it's been a crazy last year. Last year I was playing midget hockey and wasn't even thinking about the draft or U‑18s or anything like that. I was just trying to crack the Calgary Hitmen roster, and I did that, and a couple months into the season I started to gain my confidence. As I started to see my name in the rankings. It was a good feeling, and I felt like I was doing stuff right. I just kind of rolled with it and ended up having a pretty good second half. Q. What has this week been like for you? TRAVIS SANHEIM: It's been great. It's been a great experience. It's nice to share it with my family and friends. Q. After you were picked, they showed your dad, your parents on the big screen. Did you see your dad with tears in his eyes? TRAVIS SANHEIM: Yeah, I did. It was just a great feeling. They're extremely proud of me. I wouldn't be where I am today without them, and you could tell that they were honored for me to be selected. Just coming from a small town of Elkhorn, Manitoba, it just shows hard work and dedication, you can make it. Q. Did you grow up seeing Ron Hextall at all? I know he's from the same area. TRAVIS SANHEIM: Actually my mom's stepbrother is actually related to Ron Hextall. My mom grew up knowing Ron Hextall, so I did have a little bit of a connection, but we haven't obviously seen him for a long time, so it was great to be back seeing him. Q. How important do you feel that U‑18 performance was in the grand scheme of things? TRAVIS SANHEIM: It was huge. I think I opened up a lot of scouts' eyes and showed that I was capable of playing at the top level against the best kids in my age group. I showed that I could be one of the top guys and relied upon in all situations, so it was a good tournament for me. Q. Flyer fans are pretty passionate. What did you think when the commissioner was getting booed there? TRAVIS SANHEIM: Yeah, you could see the passion in the building, and it was just a great feeling. Q. Did you have any feeling that that connection with Hextall might lead to this? TRAVIS SANHEIM: No, not at all. They're a great organization, and I was happy to be selected by them. Q. When you think about all the competition you had (inaudible)? TRAVIS SANHEIM: Yeah, those are really talented guys, and I'm just looking to come in and make a good first impression. Obviously this year is a big one for me, and I'm looking to step into a pretty key role with the Calgary Hitmen. There's an opening there to play key minutes on that hockey team, and I'm looking to take advantage of it. Q. What are your strengths? TRAVIS SANHEIM: My skating is really well, and I see the ice really well and make a pretty good first pass but also have the ability to read the ice and jump up in the rush offensively. Q. You said maybe that you thought the Flyers were going to be the team. I think you were ranked in the 50s in Central Scouting. Did you think you would be first round, second round? Did you even know what round you'd be? TRAVIS SANHEIM: No, I didn't have some sort of clue of where I was going to be selected, but I had a feeling that it was going to be first round. Like you guys said, my U‑18s was kind of where my stock rose, and that was after Central Scouting came out with the rankings. I had a feeling that I was going to be higher than what they had me ranked, so I was lucky enough to be selected. Q. Were there other teams picking behind the Flyers that you knew were interested in you? TRAVIS SANHEIM: Yeah, there was‑‑ I met with all 30 teams at the NHL combine, so there was lots of interest, and I wasn't 100 percent sure where I was going to be selected, but there was definitely teams interested. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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