Aaron Ward

If you think about the way this team has been constructed, it's been the last five or six years.

There's been an expectation that this team was supposed to win.

And as you see them bow out to Boston and bow out to Florida, there's that head scratch component to something is clearly missing.

What it is, whether it's like a tactical approach, whether it's not a fit for the players, the system, whatever it was over time.

I think the fan base stuck with it.

Testimony to Roddy Brindamore to sticking to what he is and what he's all about and maintaining that style of play for this group.

Dundon having a level of patience to stick with it also.

I mean, listen, he's a businessman and when things don't go well,

Businessmen have a tendency to make change rapidly and a little bit knee-jerk and to show a level of patience.

Listen, you can fall back and say, I heard the stats yesterday that Carolina Hurricanes, when Gary was getting out the Stanley Cup, the number of regular season wins is the most in, I don't know, what, five or six years?

Okay, so there's that.

But that can only last so long in an environment where in pro sports you have to put up championships or basically your expiration date is done.

So that scar tissue is patience, and that's patience from the guys that decide to stick around, like the Jordan Stulls and the Martinooks and anybody else that came in years ago and saw the potential but just wasn't realized for whatever reason.

Technically, he went to Michigan State University for a year.

Yes, he did.

It's a Greek god kind of mascot, so you could take the Spartan mascot, stick his head on it, and it would be a true life.

Here's the thing about Roddy.

So you asked the original question.

who he is in in those interviews when he shows a level of caring right and and a level of investment in his players is the same way he was as a captain now as a captain he was forced to be less vocal actually was sorry as a coach he's forced to be more vocal as a captain he was very kind of surgical and when and where he stepped in both vocally and with his presence and by his actions so roddy is who he presents himself to be

That's why when I saw the shirt come off and there was a celebration, like someone... It's like a fun thing, right?