Become a Creator today!Start creating today - Share your story with the world!
Start for free
00:00:00
00:00:01
063 - Approaching the Game as a Tall Goalie with Troy Trombley
61 Plays6 days ago
Show notes are available at https://thediygoalie.com/pod063.
This week we sit down with fellow True North Goaltending instructor, Troy Trombley. He explains his experience as a goalie being 6'7", and the pros and cons that come along with it. He also provides insights on his career playing major junior, college, and attending NHL development camps.
Recommended
Transcript
Introduction and Insights on Goaltending
00:00:06
Speaker
Welcome to the DIY Goalie Podcast, where hosts and goalie coaches Nathan Park and Connor Munday share their insights on how to become a better goalie.
00:00:19
Speaker
Goalies, welcome back to another episode of the DIY Goalie podcast.
Guest Announcement and Tribute to Gavin Armstrong
00:00:24
Speaker
We do have a guest with an interview today with us. But just before we get into that, a couple things that we wanted to mention.
00:00:36
Speaker
um First off, just wanted to kind of... ah Take a moment to shout out a bit of a legend in the Edmonton area when it comes to the goalie community. We lost that lost a good one last week.
00:00:50
Speaker
um Gavin Armstrong out of the goalie academy passed away at an early-ish age, kind of 56, I think, or 57. um He was kind of a big influence on me. I went and saw him when I was playing And we have lots of clients who we're seeing him as well.
00:01:12
Speaker
um So bit of a shout out to to him. Kind of sad news for the Edmonton area and the goalie community there. um So but legend, beauty, and rest in peace, Gavin.
Brand Transition to True North Goaltending
00:01:28
Speaker
um Another thing too, you guys may or may not have noticed, but we have started transferring stuff over to the True North Goaltending brand. So the TikTok channel and the YouTube channel now are under True North Goaltending as opposed to the DIY Goalie.
00:01:46
Speaker
And the website is very close to being done. So we'll let you guys know once that gets transferred. um So, yeah, that's kind of just a couple housekeeping things to start things off.
00:01:58
Speaker
um I guess we should also probably shout out Bobrovsky for his second straight cup win, even though everybody. we can just not. actually You know, we can just we can just pretend that doesn't exist. And, you know, don't want to add it from there.
Gavin Armstrong's Influence on Goaltending Community
00:02:14
Speaker
we're goalies first and oilers fans second but you know typical order sometimes uh yeah i just i just i just want to chime in there quickly here but just before we get started just about gavin never knew the guy but i had a lot of students that uh that trained under him so i had ah had a few families reach out to me today and uh just kind of get some solace and uh you know just kind of send my condolences and And all that, I mean, he definitely he definitely left a mark in the goaltending community here in the greater Edmonton area. So it's sad news to hear, but, i mean, you know, we know that to goal you know that his brand, Goalie Academy, will continue on and continue his legacy. So looking then looking forward to the to the cool things that they're going to doing now moving forward.
Interview with Troy Trombley: Goalie Insights and Challenges
00:03:00
Speaker
Yeah, he was the biggest inspiration, I guess, to us opening up the facility because he he had one just basically on his like residential property. And that's where you would go to do one on one. So that was kind of, you know, the dream ever since going there. So that's what led to this. So, you know, shout out to Gab.
00:03:22
Speaker
um But getting into the nitty gritty of the actual podcast episode, we are joined today with one of our instructors at True North Goaltending, Troy Trombley, who is going to...
00:03:37
Speaker
bless us with his, uh, insights from way up in the sky. we're going to be talking about, ah kind of the differences between taller and shorter goalies and kind of some of the pros and cons and the different approaches to training. Um, so thanks for joining us today, Troy. Hope you're doing well and, uh, glad we sorted out some technical difficulties. Very welcome. Yeah. Thanks for your help. This is, uh,
00:04:05
Speaker
first time here so don't be too hard on me oh we will uh yeah i guess um i guess i'll start it off this time um taking taking the spotlight from nathan that's typically what i did around here but let's just uh let's just get a just a quick intro on here just kind of a quick introduction background just kind of uh your your playing career how you got into a goal how you got into uh being a goalie and just kind of your uh your upbringing through hockey So I think I started fairly late. I was a player actually up till I think second year Adam and not a very successful one.
00:04:46
Speaker
And then I always found myself, I'd throw my racquetballs at the stairs and make saves day after day, just having fun as a kid. And eventually I took an interest in it and I actually went to, i was playing spring hockey and got cut as a player and they were looking for a goalie.
00:05:09
Speaker
And ah my coach at the time said he would he would rent me goalie gear for the first year if I made the team as a goalie. And I did, and so I have been since. So that's kind of how that started.
00:05:24
Speaker
Nice. it's ah That's very much my origin story too. It was the i suck at players. So let's go stand in the net and hope that works out.
00:05:36
Speaker
So no, that's awesome. um Why don't you let everybody know exactly kind of where you're at height wise. And then Connor and I can shamelessly put our height into you and we'll go from there.
00:05:50
Speaker
So i'm I'm a shade under six, seven. Yeah, I'm very jealous. I'm sitting here 510. So anytime I'm in the same room as Troy or on the ice, it's kind of, ah you know, a ah bit of a strain on the neck, but a little a little humbling for you.
00:06:10
Speaker
Yeah. Where are you at, Connor? Anyways, you're around five. I'm no, I'm six one. Oh, OK. Well, whatever, guys.
00:06:21
Speaker
Whatever. That's standard right there, Nathan. Yeah, I know. well not in the goal world standards what like six three nowadays yeah typically yeah well at least the nhl anyways yeah um yeah no that's uh i mean i'm jealous but it is what it is um so i guess just from your perspective then troy as kind of a ah taller goalie because i know um i remember actually i think it was devin dubnik at one point uh
00:06:53
Speaker
done an interview back when he was playing with the Oilers talking about the struggles that come with being a taller goalie. And I kind of was like, what are you talking
Skills and Strategies for Taller Goalies
00:07:01
Speaker
about? And it made me a little mad, but as I've gone along through the years, I, I, I do see that there are, there, there are, you know, some challenges that come with it.
00:07:13
Speaker
So what do you think kind of are some of the, the cons or the challenges that the taller goalies have to overcome that shorter goalies might not? I think the, well, I'll get to one of the biggest ones after, but I think skating is a big thing. You see young kids come up as even players and have a hard time, taller, taller kids have a hard time catching up and same, same in the goalie world.
00:07:42
Speaker
And I think on top of that progressing in your game, I think a big thing for taller guys is you open up holes extremely easy.
00:07:54
Speaker
Way easier than anything. You don't have to move much and you open up holes. And I think as much as I love watching Mike Smith, he's an example to me as he ah he just opens up a lot. He moves really well, very high athletic ability. And I think I got to a certain point in my career just off athletic ability.
00:08:15
Speaker
And then later on, I really had to bring structure into my game because i was kind of at a standstill. So So I guess um kind of a two-part question, if you will. So just, I guess, like for you in particular, or even for taller kids, again, like we we use Devin Dubnik as an example here in the Edmonton area.
00:08:40
Speaker
we talked about, you know, kids emulating kind of their game after their favorite goaltender. So I guess the first part to this question was, is that, was there a goalie when you played that you wanted to play like, and did you kind of find it again, like maybe a little bit of a struggle, you know, cause I'm saying, for example, like Devin Dubnik, I would say would be, you know, kind of that, that role model for somebody who's over six foot five.
00:09:08
Speaker
Um, but,
00:09:10
Speaker
and that would, it would make more sense for goalies at that height to emulate somebody like, like doom and like, excuse me, like doom Nick versus, um, a goalie like Henrik Lundqvist as an example. So I guess first part of that is that like, who, who was your kind of favorite goaltender growing up and who did you try to emulate in your career? and I'll get to the second part.
00:09:33
Speaker
Well, right there is a couple of Nashville jerseys. I don't have his Jersey, but it's, uh, My favorite goalie growing up with for a long time was Pekka Rinne. I became a goalie because of Tommy Salo and then Pekka Rinne kind of took over and that's when Nashville took over for me. And again, a guy my size or very big, 6'5", 6'6", with an extremely high athletic ability. And that's i I feel like that's all I was for a very long time throughout my career.
00:10:04
Speaker
was just ah athletic and i could I could get there one way or another, right? I could move well, not necessarily efficient, but I could get there and play like that. So guys like Mike Smith or Pekka Rene, Mike Smith in his first 10 years in the league I think was incredible, and then Pekka Rene for me, and then funny enough, other favorite goalie, as you grow up and you watch more and you learn more,
00:10:34
Speaker
a guy like UC Soros, which is weird because it's total opposite of what I am, but it's, you learn, you learn, you have to take things from other people's games. Like in his, a big part of his was movement. Right.
00:10:49
Speaker
And when you start breaking stuff down, as you get older and learning the learning to be structured and fundamentally sound, a lot of these other pieces kind of fall into place. So.
00:11:01
Speaker
No, that's interesting. So that kind of leads kind of into like the second part of my question then is it just what skills do you think as a taller goalie should be kind of the important parts to focus on versus versus short goalies? mean, again, like I find it interesting that.
00:11:20
Speaker
And I don't know how fruitful it would be really for a taller goalie to emulate somebody like UC Soros. And I guess there there are some pros and cons to that in itself. Movement, like you said, being one of them and kind of more structure.
00:11:35
Speaker
But obviously a goalie such as your size or over 6'3 or 6'5 wouldn't be able to play the same way as somebody like Soros or like Lundqvist or Bobrovsky or insert X goalie here.
00:11:50
Speaker
So just for you, what would you think would be the most important kind of skill development focuses for somebody over six foot three? That's, uh, that's funny you say Lundquist. Cause I was going to use him as one example.
00:12:04
Speaker
Like, uh, I think you look at guys like Carrie price, Henrik Lundquist, Devin Dubnik in his prime. The biggest thing is less is more.
00:12:16
Speaker
You need to learn where your posts are and it what's going to miss you and miss the net and play. I'd come pack, not robo goalie. I don't, I don't like that.
00:12:29
Speaker
And I don't like people not moving at all either, but once you learn angles, big thing. And then once you learn less is more, less is more, less movement,
00:12:40
Speaker
You don't need to push as far. You don't need to open up as well. And that's where you play with your depth. And that's, again, why Henrik Lundqvist, I think, is actually ah great example of that. Like, he wasn't overly, and don't think he's overly tall, but he was probably a master class at less is more and knowing where his net is 100% of the time. He was perfect, perfect at that.
00:13:06
Speaker
I think that's that's a that's a good point to bring up, and thank you for for for humbling me on that. But, um you know, but no, you're right there. I think just a lot of coaches in general would focus more on kind of the height part of it, and I think that's kind of where I was going with that.
00:13:26
Speaker
particular questions like you know don't pay attention to what somebody like henrik lundqvist or uc sorrows or whoever's doing it's like play like mike smith or play like devin doomnit because you're similar in in height and you're similar in athletic ability so those are the guys that you should be watching versus watching somebody like carrie price or henrik lundqvist and kind of taking more the the the the technical structure if you will and implementing that back in your own game Yeah, and I can i could see that too. Like I said, like athletic ability, movement, I think puck handling is huge for any size.
Advice on Body Management and Self-Assessment
00:14:06
Speaker
Being able to do that and stop stop a breakout or forecheck or move the puck, be an extra D-man out there, is it's a very high needed skill no matter what your size is.
00:14:18
Speaker
And then, yeah I don't know. Lundquist is just, He plays in his mini hockey net is kind of what I got taught when I started learning the structural side of the game.
00:14:32
Speaker
And it's, it's, easy it's, it's hard to watch them and you don't even understand how it works sometimes, but it's just, it's reading the release and cutting angles. And once you, once you, like I had, I did have the athletic ability and that got me so far, but then the game picks up speed players are better.
00:14:54
Speaker
you have to start putting other pieces in or you just start falling behind. Right. And I think I got to ah bitter end before I started learning the real structural side of it.
00:15:06
Speaker
And so I don't even, I don't even now at at my age now, I don't even think of it as play like play like somebody because you're the same body as them or size of them, or you skate like them or whatever. It's,
00:15:21
Speaker
You need to find what works, what you're successful at and what works for you. And then you need to understand weaknesses. We all have them. Nobody's perfect. And that's the being a goalie, just like anything in life, you get really good at a couple of things.
00:15:40
Speaker
One thing always goes, you get good at that. It always goes. And it's a constant, constant movement of progression. And I think you just have to add, you have to look around and see what's working and add, add pieces to your toolbox, so to speak.
00:15:57
Speaker
So and kind of want to go back ah to a couple of the things you had said. um So first off, I know you had mentioned like the whole less is more thing and you kind of hammered that home, which is obviously something we teach lots of when we're working with our goalies.
00:16:15
Speaker
Um, But just thinking about it, I'm kind of curious on your perspective. Like, do you think that as a goalie who is bigger, just because naturally you're going to have longer limbs than maybe a bit of a shorter goalie, like because we see so many goalies kind of panic, like they feel like they have to do more than they do.
00:16:40
Speaker
Do you think having that kind of longer reach is, can almost be a bit of a hindrance sometimes because you can move further than you actually need to like with kind of the longer limbs, the bigger body because like,
00:16:55
Speaker
Even if you look at the taller goalies, like when they're in their stance from the pucks perspective, there's so much of their body that's actually above the crossbar. um So do you think that like kind of having that extra real estate can almost, you know, mentally cause some sort of hindrance just trying to think you have to reach more or anything like that? Is that something you kind of experienced when you played? I do.
00:17:24
Speaker
I do think that, it yeah, and I actually agree with you. I think you look at a tall, long, lean athlete in anything, even like football. if you look at a really, ah really tall, wide receiver, same problems to me.
00:17:39
Speaker
Diving, reaching out, and yeah, you almost over, you over exaggerate until you learn your body, right? And I think you do till that point being athletic, you think, okay, I can get there. I don't necessarily care how.
00:17:54
Speaker
And then, yeah, to an extent you do just throw limbs out there. And yeah if that gets you to some point, you're going to keep doing it, right? If you're successful.
00:18:05
Speaker
And I, so i do I do think that does happen to a certain point and then you need to take a step back in your game and say, what I got to kind of piece this together all in one here because it's kind of a little messy, right?
00:18:21
Speaker
Yeah. So then what do you kind of... think can help then for goalies that are trying to figure that out like so I know you probably went through it you probably had a couple like pretty major growth spurts during your career and had to kind of manage that like what advice do you have maybe for goalies out there that might be trying to navigate through that, like maybe they shot up, you know, five, six inches over the summer, or maybe they don't understand necessarily how much outside of the net their body is getting. Like, do you have any advice for and goalies that are maybe struggling with that to kind of try and rein it in a little bit, be a little bit more structured, a little bit more patient?
00:19:10
Speaker
I think ah something like we have going at the clinic, the cameras help. that's a When I had to get structure into my game, that was, I think, the biggest thing that helped me was physically seeing it from a good, proper angle, not from somebody's camera in the stands, but from a good puck's point of view.
00:19:30
Speaker
And i like that we do that, and I've had success showing a couple younger clients that Yeah, like you said, where they are is there their gloves are outside the post or they hold their glove up and it's over the crossbar, right? it's it's Or double coverage, doing the opposite.
00:19:50
Speaker
So I'm sorry, where was this? What was the question again? Just like advice that you have for goalies that are trying to navigate like, you know, the extra limb length they have, growth spurts, kind of trying to figure out their body a bit.
00:20:08
Speaker
I think the two two pieces of that are going to be camera. You need to see it and you need to see it for yourself. What you're double coveraging or not covering at all if you're over the net or outside the post. And the ah second thing I think is the biggest part of this is tracking.
00:20:25
Speaker
Reading the release and you you once you learn to not overreact and I like to call it be on top of the puck. And let it all come to you instead of under the puck and then you're reaching and you get this stuff, right?
00:20:40
Speaker
And as a as an athlete with long limbs, that's the last thing you want to do, especially goalie in the fastest sport in the world. Stuff happens. You don't want to be reaching, opening up holes, sticking your leg up.
00:20:55
Speaker
reaching with your arm and your body's going the other way. So I do think, I think the the two biggest things for me was seeing it myself and learning how to read a release and track really well.
00:21:07
Speaker
Okay.
Career Impact of Goalie Height and Coaching Philosophy
00:21:09
Speaker
So then transitioning kind of that, then back to your own playing career, how much do you think your height and your size played into the opportunities that you had throughout your career?
00:21:24
Speaker
I think a fair bit. Like I grew up in a time where, look, we're talking about Mike Smith, Pekka Rene, Devin Dubnik, who else can I add to all this? Shiguerr.
00:21:35
Speaker
Shiguerr. was a little after Shiguerr. yeah but No, i grew up i I did grow up in that time where the big Ben Bishop, ah big the big blocky goalies was kind of a thing, right? so I would say a little bit.
00:21:52
Speaker
Like, for for sure, it helped me. um I do think there's other parts of my game that i think helped me as well, but I won't lie. I think it makes it makes a difference, and i think it made a difference at that time, for sure.
00:22:07
Speaker
And do you kind of think... Like, what are your thoughts on the perspective of the kind of bigger is better thought process when it comes to hockey? Like, well, specifically goaltending, like, do you think it's about the same as when we played or do you think that there's kind of more of a shift away from that or kind of what do you think the current landscape when it comes to goalie height is and kind of the perception? Because a lot of it is in the hands of people that really don't know much about goaltending.
00:22:38
Speaker
um but do you think people are becoming a little bit more open-minded to the, the smaller, shorter goalie, or do you think it's still kind of, you know, they see six foot four.
00:22:52
Speaker
No, I think, I think Jonathan quick, you can put his name on that. I think they brought, I think it is going down, not necessarily smaller is better, but I think they are looking at all the skill sets.
00:23:05
Speaker
Yeah. Like, Behind me, you see Soros, right? Yeah, Dustin. nobody else can move Nobody else can move like him. Dustin Wolf. I think he is fantastic to watch post to post. It's unbelievable. yeah it's Yeah. it's It's unbelievable to watch and just how these guys move and can contain themselves and be in the right position. Like if you look, like I said about the camera and seeing the Puck's point of view,
00:23:35
Speaker
you don't have to be very big to take up the whole net. And I think the earlier you learn that as a kid moving up and you play like that, you can end up being someone like Dustin Wolf.
00:23:49
Speaker
Like he did he just moves so well and so efficient and that's all because he knows what he has to take up right? Yeah. Well, and I think to the shorter goalies, for those of you out there listening, um, the, the big factor I see in the successful goalies that are around six feet, maybe slightly under is just how good they are at skating, like their edge work, their edge control, their rotations, their explosiveness, like Saros and Wolf are kind of the prime examples of that. Like,
00:24:27
Speaker
Wolf is so fun to watch just because of how good he can move. And it's crazy. like You're like, oh, that's a goal. And then all of a sudden he's halfway across the net making those saves. yeah um so And I do think that's kind of the big differentiating advantage for the taller goalies is the ability to get across because you don't have to get as big of a push to get your body in the way.
00:24:54
Speaker
Other than that, though, I think... That might be the biggest advantage. And if you can just bring whatever skill set you can to the highest level, the playing field, I think, is starting to level a bit more and people are realizing that, which is good.
00:25:11
Speaker
but i was I was going to say like it's about managing the net at the same time and managing your angles. right because big like Again, like the the again like what Troy was saying, and I was going to more lean towards like the box control side of things, the park like the the the amount of net that the puck sees is maybe 2% different compared to what a goalie of Dustin Wolf size sees versus a goalie of Ben Bishop or insert X goalie here sees.
00:25:45
Speaker
It's, it's still the same when it comes to the angle and kind of just how much net the puck sees when it just, when it's at different elevations on the ice.
00:25:56
Speaker
So which kind of transitions nicely into kind of my next question here is as a coach, I'm very rarely are we going to see another goalie of your size or of Ben Disham size as such. And again, like we had kind of said at the start, the general consensus size for goalies in the NHL are about six foot three for goalies that 11, 10 years old. They're maybe like what, five, four, i six, or your four foot something, whatever. Yeah.
00:26:26
Speaker
So for you, Troy, as a coach, just does your approach change at all when you're teaching a taller goalie versus a shorter goalie, or is it kind of a general, basically the same along the board?
00:26:41
Speaker
i it It changes based on their style and what they're showing me, but I don't i don't think I change my approach. My fundamentals are still...
00:26:54
Speaker
the same and I think it would benefit somebody 6'1 and it would benefit somebody It's just about learning to control your your body and not overreact, right? Contain yourself and stay compact. Like one of the students I've had here Tobias, he's a he came and it took him. I had one session with him and it was about it was almost an hour of goaltending theory when I first saw him.
00:27:28
Speaker
And he's improved drastically. And i think that's I think that's just based off I was showing him. what he's given me in the net and I was showing them the angles and what the puck sees.
00:27:42
Speaker
And i think I like to teach its way as a big guy, like I said, not opening up holes I think it's way easier to play here and you move out rather than coming in.
00:27:58
Speaker
And I think that's a very, again, that goes into tracking. I just, I think it's easier to be in your stance and move out rather than chasing yourself in all the time. So I don't think I'd change my approach based on height. It's just, it's kind of what they, what they give me. I think it works for everybody.
00:28:17
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. We, we talk about that lots with the goalies we work with is inside out is always easier than outside in when it comes to stopping pucks. So having tight elbows and working out towards the puck for sure. And that's, um,
00:28:33
Speaker
I know people and I'm going to get Connor going on this, but I know people like the ah whole cookie cutter, goaltending, whatever phrase. But, so you know, it's it's one of those things that it's a general foundational thing that's ah regardless of if you're out there at, you know, five foot two or you're out there at six foot eight.
00:28:53
Speaker
um if you can focus on those general principles and then having a good situational awareness of the game and working towards your strengths, that's kind of what will make
Practicing with Carey Price and Reverse-VH Technique
00:29:06
Speaker
anybody successful. So if you're out there at five foot two, don't get discouraged. You can still do big things.
00:29:13
Speaker
Right. i got yeah I got a quick story here on that and playing, like you said, moving outwards, not inwards was a, When I was in the Western Hockey League in Tri-City, Carey Price met his wife there and came back to get married.
00:29:31
Speaker
So I got to practice for about five days with prime time Carey Price. Nice. He came on out on the ice with us. And I was... This is when I kind of went from full athletic ability to really adding structure.
00:29:47
Speaker
And my goalie coach then was showing me consistent videos of price and Lundquist and how less is more and the amount of net they're taking up and just be more efficient within yourself. Right.
00:29:59
Speaker
And then Kerry price shows up and I'm in the corner and I'm just in awe of this guy of how easy he makes it look granted superstar NHL goalie practicing um out on the ice with Western hockey leaguers, but I don't think for three, four days, he made a glove safe, which sounds ridiculous, but this guy is, he knows where he is in his net and it's, you're, you're only beating me left or right.
00:30:29
Speaker
That's all it is to this guy. And he reads the release and somebody comes down the wall, reads the release, boom, down to the side. He eats it in the pants or the chest. And I'm like, how does this guy, how is this guy, how's this happening?
00:30:43
Speaker
And I'm just watching him and I'm trying to figure out, he's making it look so easy. There's no movement, no, no rebounds. Like and yeah I was just, I was just in awe. Any, any shot, he just corralled it.
00:30:55
Speaker
And it was your only, your only, he knows where he's going to get beat. He knows where he knows where his net is, right? He knows where his open spots are. And that's usually low glove, low blocker, five hole.
00:31:07
Speaker
That's almost all the puck can see. And that ah back into opening up holes, a lot of goalies, a lot of goals go in because you actually move out of the way. yeah Price never moved out of the way. i was i watched him for four days and it was it was remarkable.
00:31:24
Speaker
Yeah, that's awesome. I do want to we are going to get into a little bit about your career and kind of going that route. But just before we touch on that, I want to throw you two quick curve balls.
00:31:39
Speaker
And the first one is, I'm curious your perspective on the RVH when it comes to as a taller goalie.
00:31:51
Speaker
Do you think that it's okay to sit in it a little longer or to be in it a little earlier? or are you still of the camp that it might be drastically overused or used at the wrong time? Like how does your perspective on that change based off of how the goalie or how big the goalie is?
00:32:14
Speaker
ah Well, it's, it's hard for me to put my perspective into it, sitting in my basement and ridicule some NHL goals.
00:32:27
Speaker
I do think it's overused and I think it is a common mistake because you do get there and post play was hard for me. I really had to get good at it. And I, I ended up cheating.
00:32:39
Speaker
I went, I was an overlapper just cause I know, I know I can get post to post. That wasn't, that wasn't an issue for me. So I overlapped. I was so scared of getting beat short side, but when it comes to your post, I I'm still a firm believer, dead angle, close in you can be in your RVH. If they're out on the wall,
00:33:01
Speaker
you got to stand up. There's just the last couple of years you've seen goalies get beat over their ear from the outside of the circle down low. Right. And I do think that's too far, but it's players know that, right. They know they're walking into that angle of a goalie being like holding, holding, holding. Okay. Now i'm going to go RBH, right.
00:33:25
Speaker
These players in the NHL are just as smart as the goalies. They're figuring us out. So, I do think it's overused. I think people stay in it a little too long or or too early, but I still think it it's very useful in your dead angle. That's all I would play in.
00:33:42
Speaker
Yeah, for sure. And then the second thing was, i know I had texted you about it at some point during the season because we billeted a 16 year old defenseman who is six foot four and he was struggling with, um,
00:33:59
Speaker
like a lot of like lower back pain and kind of like, you know, shin splint type pain that we think was just growing. And I know you mentioned when I was asking you about it that you kind of struggled with stuff like that too.
00:34:14
Speaker
So for goalies that are kind of experiencing these massive growth spurts, like, do you have any advice to kind of help with that sort of stuff, like kind of some of the pain and maybe being able to get through it on, you know, training days or ice times or anything like that?
00:34:34
Speaker
I think, uh, stretching is a huge thing. I didn't do enough of it and stretching and mobility. You gotta, you gotta keep up to date on that. Stretching and mobility is the two biggest things, but the pain, I know what you're talking about. I've had them in my, I don't know if I'd call them shin splints necessary, but I've had that shin pain from growing.
00:34:59
Speaker
My back was usually okay,
Growth Pains and Career Experiences
00:35:01
Speaker
but shin pain for sure. I remember I'd, I grew up in a different time though, running stairs and it was like, go, go, go. They didn't want excuses. Right. And it's, you just had to battle through it and all the kids are growing. What do you mean you're special?
00:35:16
Speaker
So it's, uh, it's a, it's a different time now. And I, I, I just think mobility and stretching like those shin splints, you got to stretch. Like those are little fibers in your shin stretching both ways. You got to keep your body mobile essentially.
00:35:34
Speaker
Other than that, a good dose of Rub A535.
00:35:39
Speaker
Fair enough. no So leading away from that and kind of talking, going back to you here, kind of tell us about your time with or in in the WHL and kind of attending those camps and then as well as your experience attending NHL development camps.
00:36:04
Speaker
I think, well, both were pretty brief, but I think I was, because of my height and lack of structure, I do think I would call myself a late bloomer. I do feel I was a year a year behind people a bit smaller than me that were just better at certain things, right? And I always took, so I went, like I played all three years midget.
00:36:31
Speaker
And then I went to the SJ into Melville. I had success there enough that that's where Tri-City actually called me up because Eric Comrie had a season-ending injury.
00:36:45
Speaker
So I got there as a third guy, emergency guy, and I played. I sat on the bench for about two weeks and I played. ah I got one crack at the can and it was on my way to ah Memorial Gardens in Portland against the Memorial Cup champs of a team there with Seth Jones and Bjorkstrand and Raddy and I was like, uh oh, this might not be a good night.
00:37:16
Speaker
Coming out winning that game. Then I kind of played the next one, played well in one and kind of took over in Tri-City for that year. So that was really good. And I got to thank Bob Torrey, the GM a Tri-City for, he's probably the only General Manager I've had be 100% honest.
00:37:37
Speaker
And at the end of that year, he said, we want you here. You had a hell of a season. We know Comrie's back, right? So do you want to stay here or would you like to open the door somewhere else if something came up?
00:37:54
Speaker
and i And I did tell him, I said, I want to stay here unless it's going to be a starting role somewhere else. I'm not going to move and go play for a different team if it's going to be backing anybody up.
00:38:07
Speaker
And he held his word. It went through the offseason, and I ended up going to Saskatoon and played another year there, the year after they hosted the Mem Cup. So that was a pretty rough year. That was, ah I think, 14 or 15 kids were still in high school on that team. Yeah, that's right.
00:38:28
Speaker
But yeah, so, bob but Bob Torrey actually got me, I think he kind of had some influence on it after my first year in Tri-City was, got me a call by Edmonton and being at Edmonton development camp was awesome.
00:38:47
Speaker
Like it's a hometown for us. ah Everything we did is around here. I had to actually had to go stay at the hotel downtown. They didn't let anybody stay home.
00:38:58
Speaker
So, it, it, it made me feel a part of it. I didn't want to be the hometown kid just here. Cause it's your hometown. Right. So to get the full treatment, everyone else is, you get put up in the hotel, you're with everybody all the time, uh, on the ice with those guys. Like it's, it's awesome. And then you go to all your ice times are either at, we're at the old Rexall or millennium place in Sherwood park and have, uh,
00:39:26
Speaker
to have family and friends all come out cause I'm from here. It was, it was, it was really awesome. Yeah. How does that compare to your experience in Buffalo? Different. I was alone in Buffalo.
00:39:38
Speaker
Um, I actually, uh, I flew my dad out, but I didn't get to see much of him. So he was at, I knew he was at the rink all the time watching, but that was, uh, think I was a little bit too shy.
00:39:51
Speaker
It would have been nice to come out of my shell a little earlier, like, back then would have been a really good time but uh no it's awesome the kind of the personal or team combine they put on like it's it's strenuous and I feel like just looking back at it for any kid trying to make it or with the will to make it like I worked hard and I was right there and it's like to work just that much harder would make would make a world of difference.
00:40:27
Speaker
So it's it was an awesome experience. And I'm so, so thankful for it. So if ah if anyone out there listening finds themselves at kind of an NHL development camp, I know a lot of times those are kind of long shots, but Do you have any advice for anyone who's attending one that can maybe help them to stand out a little bit, like just based off of your experience and kind of what you noticed and saw? Like, what do you think really helps guys stand out and maybe, you know, get another another look or opportunity after camp?
00:41:13
Speaker
I think this ah i think this sounds dumb, but I think it plays a big factor. They want, you have to, you have to go into it thinking they want to talk to a young man, not a boy.
00:41:27
Speaker
Right. You have to carry yourself with confidence, be a character, be noticed and have, be respected by them talking to you. So you have, you have to carry yourself with a presence, like everything, everything off ice, you have to be,
00:41:45
Speaker
responsible they have to know you're a young man not a boy and it i think that makes a big difference for the off-ice stuff and just the way you carry yourself right on on ice stuff i think a big like a big part of my game that i think helped me a lot was weird again for a tall guy but skating that got drilled into me as a young age i think i was a very good skater number two was puck playing ability like i was beating in midget or junior like i was beating players i could shoot harder than them and i could probably beat them in a skating drill yeah uh worst ones on the team so it's certain stuff makes you stand out but i do think the biggest one might be the off-ice stuff is they they have to remember talking to you right
00:42:38
Speaker
Um, so again, guess going from that to hanging up the skates, making that transition into coaching, I guess we can kind of tell a little bit of a story over here about how both you and Nathan kind of got together.
00:42:54
Speaker
And then with Nathan bringing you on here with true North goaltending and and know what made you decide to make that switch from playing to coaching?
00:43:03
Speaker
I,
00:43:06
Speaker
Yeah, you have to call it at some point and retire. So that was
Transition from Playing to Coaching
00:43:11
Speaker
that was tough. I did a lot of coaching. I did a lot of coaching with my goalie coach growing up as I kind of came up through the ranks.
00:43:19
Speaker
And then when hockey got really serious, that came to a stop. And then it was junior, and NHL camps, college, all that. And then ending college, it's it's kind of the end. And I never wanted to I've hurt myself playing senior, so I kind of officially ah hung him up. um um I won't even go play. I'm going hurt myself. I don't take care of myself like I should be to be playing goalie.
00:43:48
Speaker
But yeah yeah I never wanted to be out of the game. i I coached before, and it's funny. Actually, before you reached out to me, i was thinking, I was like, who can i talk to or text? Who do I still have that I could ask for just the odd hours, do some sessions like I did growing up, right? Like I don't want to be out of the game and I wanted to give it back. So it was, it was just kind of really timely of when you reached out to me.
00:44:19
Speaker
Yeah. Well, and a former guest, Taylor Joseph, I think was the, uh, one that, that brought up Troy's name and was like, Hey, I think Troy's looking to get, get back into coaching. So, uh, yeah, cause it was, I remember him texting me about that too. Yeah.
00:44:37
Speaker
So because, yeah, Troy and i played against each other back in midget as well as in college. So that's kind of never really personally met until we started coaching together, but played against each other a few times for sure.
00:44:54
Speaker
and Funny how things come full circle on that. Yeah, well, as we as we all know, the goalie community is very small, so yeah's it's not hard. um So just um because i know you talked earlier about being a bit of a late bloomer. ah You kind of talked about your WHL experience and you obviously came back to Alberta, played college in the ACAC with Red Deer.
00:45:19
Speaker
um do you think that like with the new rule changes now that chl players can go and play in the ncaa as well um do you think that that maybe would have played in your favor as somebody like looking to advance their career like do you think you maybe could have gone the ncaa route post whl and looking back at it do you kind of think you made the right choice going the WHL route or do you think you would have rather kind of tried to go the NCAA route?
00:45:53
Speaker
I'll answer the second one first. If I could do it again, would I go that route? Or no, I wouldn't. i Unless you're a superstar coming out of that league 18 20, it's...
00:46:10
Speaker
it's It's almost the end of the road. And before this NCAA rule shifted, like i had i had to be enrolled in school within one year or I'd lose all my schooling.
00:46:26
Speaker
yeah So that rule was really tough because then you're putting a 20, 21-year-old kid in a spot of, do I go football?
00:46:41
Speaker
semi-pro, pro somewhere else? Do I try to go to Europe? it's But then you risk you risk three to five years of schooling and your future almost on it. It's a hard decision to make.
00:46:53
Speaker
yeah If I could go back and do it, I think the other way would have been more successful for me. Like I said, late bloomer. i had I had two good years in the Western Hockey League, two in a little bit.
00:47:08
Speaker
I also had two years in junior that were very good. One was my first year junior, and one was my overage year and when I came back and played Bonneville Pontiacs.
00:47:23
Speaker
And no, to be honest, I'm kind of, before this rule switched, I was kind of kicking myself and going, I could have played junior the whole time and been, ah my phone would have rang.
00:47:37
Speaker
is what I'm saying. So that, that, that's tough. And looking at it now, I think, no, I think it's very good. That rules in, I would have went immediately.
00:47:48
Speaker
I think you need that. I played my, my two billet brothers played on my team in Bonneville. They were both good. Not the greatest one was younger than the other one. He had more potential.
00:48:04
Speaker
He actually signed in Vermont had too many D-men, he withdrawed. The next year, ASU comes into Dev 1, and they wanted both brothers.
00:48:18
Speaker
So they came out of junior, went to ASU, and by instead of 18, 19, like everybody wants it, they played those couple years at ASU after junior, and one side signed an NHL contract, and the other one signed an AHL contract.
00:48:34
Speaker
So you You can't look at this and being like, I want it now. it's You have to want it now, but you have to understand it might not happen now.
00:48:47
Speaker
The best thing for you could be two extra years. So, no, I think that would have been really nice. It's kind of kicking the pants that it's a thing now because it's a little too late.
Career Reflections and Continuous Learning
00:49:03
Speaker
That seems to be... a lot of things nowadays is that, you know, like the a lot of a lot of the changes that are being made in the sport now definitely would have benefited us back when we played very long time ago. Unfortunately, you know, comes that' too little too late. But and I guess just with that then, because we had this discussion on the podcast,
00:49:29
Speaker
however many episodes ago. And so we'll we'll we'll put this question to you just knowing what you know now in terms of how the position is being played, would there be anything that you would go back in your career and change?
00:49:49
Speaker
Or are you content with kind of how everything turned out for you?
00:49:57
Speaker
i'm I'm in my unfinished basement, so I'm not necessarily content with it. But it...
00:50:08
Speaker
No, I'm happy the way things turned out. If I could go back and change one thing, I think it got drilled. Skating got drilled into me. All these other things got drilled into me, and I was very good at them.
00:50:22
Speaker
And the one thing I lacked was ah little bit of structure and self-control. If I could go back and learn, everyone's learning angles, but when when I mean angles, I mean playing within your net.
00:50:38
Speaker
Angles being square less is more of the structure side. If I could learn all that, if I could have learned that a few years earlier, I think that would have really helped. And I like teaching that now. Kids are picking up on it.
00:50:51
Speaker
And I think it is helping them. And they're realizing you don't have to, you can get rid of the windmill. You don't have to do that, right? That's opening up holes and it's not good for your second save option if you...
00:51:05
Speaker
Lord forbid, ever needed to make a second save, right? You're in no position to do so. So I think learning that at a younger age would have been really beneficial. And then what would be your a piece of advice for goalies out there nowadays?
00:51:22
Speaker
Piece of advice? Oh, it's hockey. There's way too many. don't Don't give up no matter how hard you're working. Work harder.
00:51:34
Speaker
You'll thank yourself later for it. um And just listen. i always tell my I always tell my clients at the end, I said, okay, do you are you understanding everything here? Do you have any questions?
00:51:51
Speaker
If you do, ask me. Because i do I want it to make sense to them. And i need to know I need to know it makes sense to them. Or else it's it is just kind of in one ear and out the other.
00:52:01
Speaker
So, I think in in training and in that hour one-on-one or whatever it may be, like I think the one-on-ones are very important because they can be theory, discussion, or they can be reps, right? Once you dial something in, you can hammer out the reps.
00:52:18
Speaker
Once you figure out the theory behind it, you hammer the reps. So i think I think a big thing is just be open, listen, and if you don't understand...
00:52:31
Speaker
say so. it It can be explained differently. i just think be open about it. Open open learning is always the best. it's not You're not going to get in trouble for not listening.
00:52:43
Speaker
it's It's okay if you don't understand. There's no such thing as a dumb question, right? So
Podcast Conclusion and Where to Find More Information
00:52:48
Speaker
if you want to improve, I think questions questions and understanding why you're doing what you're doing is the is the best thing for you.
00:52:59
Speaker
I'm going to continue on here because Nathan seems to be on the struggle bus here. So ah Troy, I guess, first up, pleasure to have you on staff with us at True North Goal 10 Inc.
00:53:12
Speaker
the conversations that you and I have had have been enlightening. And then as well as just from Nathan and myself, thank you for joining us on the podcast today. Before we let you go, where can people find you um if they have any questions or anything about goaltending?
00:53:32
Speaker
Huh. on On the True North website. Or I think i think the only thing i have the only thing I have going is pretty much ah Instagram. Okay. And so the. Troy Tromley. Now you're gonna make me check, but Troy Tromley, it's my, it's my normal name.
00:53:52
Speaker
We'll link all that down in the show notes there. So goalies, if you have any questions for Troy, you can reach out to us at goalies at true north goaltending.com, or you can reach out to him on the, on Instagram at Troy Trombley, Nathan, any final pot, any final parting thoughts you want to get in here before, before, you know, we might have to shoot you to the moon.
00:54:20
Speaker
gonna take
00:54:23
Speaker
okay you guys are cutting out so much i'm assuming you're creeping me but i have no idea and on that note we will leave it here at the uh at this episode with the diy goalie podcast presented by true north goaltending if you're listening on your favorite uh podcasting platforms whether that be Apple, iHeart, or Spotify. If you're returning listener, thank you. If you are a new listener, make sure you hit that follow button and just hit the share button in general because the more goalies that we're able to bring to our little community, the better. If you are following us on the YouTube side of things, again, same deal. If you're a returning viewer, thank you.
00:55:04
Speaker
um make sure she hit the like button uh if you are a new viewer to the channel make sure you hit that subscribe button at true north goaltending and again same deal make sure you share uh the link to this video uh across the social media platforms because again the more goalies that we can bring together the better ah You can follow us on our social media platforms, whether that be Facebook, TikTok, Twitter, Instagram.
00:55:28
Speaker
It's all True North Goaltending, except for Instagram, because we like to be different. That one is Y-E-G Goalie Coach. You can check us out at our website, www.truenorthgoaltending.com. We do still have some open spots for our summer camps happening in late July and as well as early August.
00:55:46
Speaker
So make sure you go check those out. lot of fun stuff there. Like Nathan had said at the start of this podcast, we are virtually at the tail end. of moving everything over from the DIY goalie website over to true North goaltending. So make sure you check back on the website and again, check back on our social media platforms to make sure that, or just to see when everything that has been transferred over, you can follow myself on Instagram at Monday GC and any questions or anything of the sort, please feel free to reach out to us at goalies at true North goaltending.com until then goalies. It's been a fun one. Make some saves. We'll see you guys next time. Take care.
00:56:22
Speaker
take care Thank you guys.