Sunday, August 31, 2008

Transcript with Tyson Barrie's Dad - Len

You took over ownership of the NHL's Tampa Bay Lightning June 1st. Has it always been something you wanted to do....become an owner at the NHL level?

"I think you always have dreams, and I think if you don't have dreams you don't have anything to look forward too. Never winning a Stanley Cup as a player, I think you have to go to another level whether you coach or gm, and I think getting to this level now as being an owner at least you can't be fired. Both Oren (Koules)and I are owner/operators and we are involved day-to-day and are looking forward to the season."

It's been suggested that you are the new wave of ownership in the NHL. Do you hope to bring new ideas to the table as you get your feet wet as an NHL owner?

"I am looking forward to the (NHL) first board of governors meeting September 14th and 15th in Toronto, and just sit back. Their are a lot of successful people in that room that have done a lot of great things with the league, and being younger and being a new generation, hopefully we can bring something in and add something better."

New owners in Tampa Bay, a new coach...does that translate into renewed success down there in T-Bay?

"The players are excited to get the season started, and the coaches are excited. We have a whole new staff. We've made a lot of changes in there, we've made changes in there today and we are not done. Everybody wants to be the Detroit Red Wings. That's taken Ken Holland twenty years to do, so we want to be like Philadelphia and Pittsburgh and turn it around quick, so hopefully we've done that."

Let's talk about your son Tyson. What do you see from him in his second season in the WHL, this being his draft year?

"Tyson is just going to go out and have fun. He loves to play the game. You have a great group of kids with a great organization around him and I think it's going to be an exciting year for the hockey team. Anytime you have a great team, it will make it easier on the players."

Do you have any advise for him considering this is his draft year?

"Just go out and play. Don't change anything. Don't think about anything. He's the type of player if the team has success, he'll have success. You can see a lot of talent out here, so it's going to be an exciting year for the Rockets. It's going to be tough, I'm going to wanna watch both teams a lot this season."

Would you change anything in his game?

"You love to watch him play because he's an offensive player. I think Jeff Finley and Ryan Huska have done a great job with him on the defensive side and obviously having Luke (Schenn) to play with has been a real asset to him. I think this team has high expectations for themselves this year, so it's going to be exciting for the city of Kelowna."

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