FFM Radio Intermission Interview - Paul Graham (Nov 9)

From the 1st intermission

NSU18MHL Game - Macs vs. Hunters November 9th, 2025

Visit the NSU18MHL

Learn more about Work Water

Check out FF Media Here

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:02):
The following is in Nova Scotia You eighteen Major Hockey
League Intermission Interview.

Speaker 2 (00:09):
Welcome back to Cole Harbor Place. After one period of play,
the visiting Halifax Max and the home side March and
Milco Hunters tied one to one after one very please
to be joined by the President of the Nova Scotia
A team Major Hockey League, Pologram Paul, Thanks for coming on.
I saw you in the stands. I went over, tapped
you on the shoulder. You were good enough to come
over and chat. Thanks for doing this.

Speaker 3 (00:30):
Oh my pleasures got a isaclator.

Speaker 2 (00:33):
So I saw you and I said, hey, do you
want to come on for a minute. Let's talk about
some exciting news. The ice Jam podcast, which is now
the official podcast of the Nova SCOTIAU eighteen Major Hockey League,
launched last week with episode one. You were kind enough
to come on and guest in episode one. But for
anyone listening, Paul, what can you tell them about kind

(00:54):
of what the mission statement of the ice Jam podcast
is and why the league was interested in.

Speaker 3 (00:58):
Doing it well, The mission really is to learn more
about what the rest of the hockey world's doing at
this age level, what we call prospect hockey level this
fifteen sixteen, seventeen year old Cohort Scott. We feel that
the focus of hockey now has gotten younger and it's
now beyond the junior age group towards the U eighteen

(01:22):
and you seventeen, and lots of things are happening. The
sand is shifting beneath our feet right now with changes
in the hockey world. And I'm not saying they're bad
or critical up them, but we don't quite know and
understand what's all of it is about. And our purpose
for the podcast is to learn to ask and see
what the best practices are.

Speaker 2 (01:43):
Even last night watching Hockey Nay in Canada during the intermission,
Elliott Freeman in the panel, we're talking about what's happening
at the NHL level with nineteen year old and being
able to send a nineteen year old to the American
League and should there be two instead of one and
everything around that. As you said, sands are shifting this
so many things happening, certainly within the last twelve months
or so. What's that like from a league perspective in

(02:06):
terms of trying to navigate all of those things that
are going on?

Speaker 3 (02:10):
Oh, it's a great question. It's confusing to be honest
with you and fun at the same time, because we
do know that things are happening progress too. Is that
the light at the end of tunnel here, So we
want to be part of that. But it is exciting
to think about that. Even at the highest levels of hockey,
they're talking about this younger age group, and again I
come back to it, it's really this real raw prospect

(02:33):
hockey fifteen, sixteen, seventeen year olds. I don't say we're overlooked,
but the focus is on them now because by the
time you're nineteen, like they're saying at the NHL, you're
either professional or headed that direction and you've been well scouted.
It's this raw talent that we're trying to figure out
what to do with.

Speaker 2 (02:50):
Once upon a time, and I don't want to have
recency bias, and you know, think about something that happened
a long time goes way way different than it was.
But I'm pretty sure I remember a time where you
had to be pretty exceptional to make an impact at
the NHL level as a nineteen twenty or even a
twenty one year old. Now, as we broadcast this, we're
looking at Maclin Celebrini, a young man up toward the

(03:14):
top of the league and scoring a conno regard twenty
years old Celebrini nineteen. I even look at my Montreal Canadians. Yes,
I say their mind, I claim them. But the young
team that they have from your perspective, where we are
in twenty twenty five, even compared to let's say twenty
years ago, how different is it in terms of the
youth making an impact.

Speaker 3 (03:35):
Well, you've stated it. It's in my view, it's a
generational change. It is, and we're never gone back. So
by the time you're twenty five, you're starting to think
about the end of your career instead at the beginning
of your career. And again it's not a criticism, it's
just the way we are in sport, all sports getting younger.
So you're absolutely right at nineteen years old, the NHL

(03:56):
is trying to figure out what to do with these
professional kids now and how to develop them into because
by twenty one they want you in the league. It's exciting,
it's exciting for our for our group at this age level,
the focus is on them, but we want to make
sure that we're doing the right like having the right
development plan and right now it's just been confusing and

(04:16):
we want to hear best practices.

Speaker 2 (04:18):
Wrap up with you here in a sec. But our
guest on this week's ice Jam podcast is Andre la Fave.
That episode will drop on Thursday, the thirteenth of November,
so a few days time. But what do you want
folks to know about Honor that they may not know.

Speaker 3 (04:35):
Well, he's been in our he's been involved in hockey
for a long time, been played in our league, and
an alumni of our league, coach in our league. There's
a GM in our league, and now he's the technical
director at one of the HRM minor hockey associations to
open mind. He's also elite scout in the Charlotown Islands
at the queue. So what he brings to the table
for us is a broader, bigger picture. And that's what

(04:58):
I want people to understand too. If Andre's not just
coming in to tell us how to run power plays
or that sort of thing, but we're asking him to
give us the bigger picture of what he sees, his
insights and intuition.

Speaker 2 (05:07):
Tier Well, maybe I'm biased, but you and I were
discussing off Mike that The Ice Jam Podcast has come
along at a very opportune time. So again, thank you
for being the first guest on our initial episode last week,
and we look forward to having Andre on for episode
two and exciting things coming episode three and beyond. And

(05:28):
again thank you Paul for your and the league's cooperation
in getting that podcast off the ground.

Speaker 3 (05:32):
Thank you very much, Scott.

Speaker 2 (05:33):
As always, that's Paul Graham. He is the president of
the Nova Scotia, a team major hockey league. We appreciate
him stopping by for a moment.

Speaker 1 (05:40):
Ready to jam with the future of hockey. The Ice
Jam Podcast is the official podcast of the Nova Scotia
U eighteen Major Hockey League. Each episode brings you inside
the game with coaches, scouts, and league leaders shaping the
next generation of talent. From ringside stories to development insights,
it's all here, available now on all major podcast platforms,
hit play, Join the Jam.

Speaker 2 (06:02):
This has been a production of the Firm Foundation Media
radio network.

Speaker 3 (06:05):
You can follow us on Facebook and mixler. Thank you
for tuning in.

Speaker 1 (06:11):
For over twenty years, feed Nova Scotia has been nourishing
communities with more than just food through partnerships, volunteers and
heartfelt generosity. They've helped thousands of Nova Scotians facing food insecurity.
Every donation, every box packed, every shared meal makes a
difference because feeding hope starts with feeding people. Find out

(06:33):
more at Feednova Scotia dot ca.