QA with Brandon Carlson

Des Moines Buccaneers defenseman Brandon Carlson didn't have earth-shattering offensive numbers at 3 goals and 3 assists in 27 games heading into the USHL's Christmas break. However, he did see semi-regular powerplay time during the first quarter of the season, but he was making a lot of bone-rattling hits in the neutral zone or near the blueline. Carlson, in his rookie USHL season and in his draft year, has quickly developed into one of the top open-ice hitters in the league, regularly angling opponents for a big hip check or destroying unsuspecting opponents with Bryan McCabe's "flying cheek" check. Love or hate McCabe's old signature check, Carlson's penchant for well-timed punishment, in addition to a solid passing game, makes him a player of interest for the 2010 NHL Entry Draft, because successful teams at high levels need defensemen who can strike the fear of God into opponents.

McKeen's correspondent Kevin Wey was able to talk with Des Moines Buccaneers defenseman Brandon Carlson as the USHL entered the Christmas break. Carlson discussed his adjustment to the USHL, his open-ice hitting, his well-traveled youth career, his college hockey prospects, the 2010 NHL Entry Draft, and a couple defensemen in the NHL he looks up to, both of whom he is quite similar, too (especially the one from the Californian's hometown team).

McKeen's: Well, in strict terms of number of games, you're not at the halfway point, but as far as the break falls, you guys are pretty much at the halfway point of the season. So, how do you feel your rookie season has gone up to the halfway point?

Carlson: Oh, I think it's been pretty good. We have a great group of guys. It's been a lot better (pauses), we've made a lot of improvement over last year's team. I think tonight's win, I think we have more wins than we did last year. Everyone's doing well, working hard, but we still have a lot of room to grow and am looking forward to get back at it after Christmas Break.

McKeen's: You guys are definitely coming together, looking good. There was a little scare tonight, but you guys still got it.

Carlson: Yeah, we had a huge, huge come-in by Charles Williams out there. Eric Mihalik got hurt, so that was a big job by him and everyone stepped at the end and played defense. So, it was a good win.

McKeen's: Coming into the league, what have been the biggest adjustments for you and the areas of your game that you've been focusing on improving?

Carlson: Just the speed and making the good plays, good first pass. It's a lot faster. You've got to be a lot smarter out there, you've got guys who are 18, 19 years old. Being a younger defenseman in the league, it's a little harder. But, I think toward the end of the year, it should get easier. It gets easier every day.

McKeen's: On the other hand, what would you say are the strengths of your game and the style that you play?

Carlson: Just a good, steady, stay-at-home defenseman. I try to keep the puck out of the net as much as I can. It gets hard at times, though (smiles and small chuckle). We've got really good guys in this league, so it's still an adjustment period. But, just get momentum for the team if we need it, so a big hit here and there, and make a good pass.

McKeen's: I would definitely agree with you on that big hit aspect. Having been able to watch you since the Battle of Iowa on forth, I've seen you kind of come into your own as a physical defenseman standing up players, angling players in the neutral for hip checks, or even now and again using Bryan McCabe's, at least it looks like to me, Bryan McCabe's "flying cheek" check.

Carlson: (Chuckles) Yeah.

McKeen's: At what point this season do you feel you really became comfortable adding that level of physical presence?

Carlson: I'd say about five games after the Fall Classic. Actually, it was probably after my first fight that I really actually got comfortable and started playing the way I could and then everything started improving. So, I wasn't too comfortable with the speed and everything, but I think once I got settled in, I started throwing my weight around.

McKeen's: Not everyone plays that same style and not everyone can do it as well as you do. So, what would you say are the keys to being able to play with that level of physicality and that frequency of hits in the neutral zone or by the blueline?

Carlson: You've got to be smart about it. You've got to make sure there's wingers coming back and everything. Just make sure the guy isn't looking at you so he doesn't go right around you or anything. But, you need great back pressure from your forwards and great support from the other defenseman to make hits like that. My team really provides that for me, so I'm able to do that as much as possible.

McKeen's: At what point in your career did you start using that Bryan McCabe "flying cheek" check?

Carlson: I started using that (pauses), my pee wee coach, Mike Lozano, coached that in pee wees. So, I've been doing it for a while now. I feel I've got it down, keep using it now.

McKeen's: Not a lot of guys use it, but it's effective. People have trouble getting out of the way of that (laughs).

Carlson: Yeah, especially if they have their head down looking the other way, it can be deadly.

McKeen's: You're listed as being from Ladera Ranch, California, but you've played with the Chicago Mission. How did that come to be?

Carlson: It was my bantam minor year, first year of bantams. The Chicago Mission came out, we hosted a tournament with about five teams, and they came out. My dad started talking to a couple of the parents and the coach from the Mission and they asked me to come out and play for a tournament with them over the summer. I wasn't too happy with that team that year with everything, but Pete Rutili asked me to come out that year and I said, "Yeah." It was probably one of the best decisions. Pete Rutili was the coach that really got my game to a point where it needed to be. My second year of bantam and last year was just, he did a great job with me. He's a great coach. I think it was probably the best career move I've had so far.

McKeen's: Not to go to a negative note, but, unfortunately, statistically, your plus/minus probably isn't quite where you want it to be. Is that any concern with you and the coaching staff?

Carlson: It was probably the first 10 games, my adjustment period. I just got scored on a lot. But, me and [head coach Mike] Guentzel, we talked, and he said, "You're a young guy. I expect you to make mistakes." So, I've had a few plus games and a few evens. It's just one of those things that I've just got to work at and not worry about too much, because that really can hurt a player if you freak out about your stats too much. You really need to worry about what the team's doing and not what you're doing. I think toward the end of the year it'll fix itself as I develop as a player.

McKeen's: Did you play three seasons with the Mission? I was trying to look up your stats and 2007-08 was blank.

Carlson: I was a bit of a suitcase my first year of midgets. I went and played with the Mission my bantam major year. I played midget major for my cousin's old coach, Shane Hicke, for the Nevada Stars for about three years. He got fired, so I left that. I went to go play for Jeff Turcotte and the LA Selects, where I used to play before. Jeff Turcotte did a really good job with me and let me come in halfway through the year when one of their defensemen got hurt, so it kind of worked out. But, the following year I knew I needed to get out there and get exposure, so Pete Rutili called me and I said "yeah" and met the team in November and pretty much got in gear, worked really hard, and it worked out for me being a first-round draft pick (USHL Draft). But, a lot of guys from my team really helped me out there. T.J. Tynan being there on the team and a bunch of other guys, Jimmy Murray, Dom Bellivia, just a great support system at the Mission.

McKeen's: So, in 2007-08, you started with Nevada?

Carlson: Nevada Stars.

McKeen's: And then went to…

Carlson: LA Selects.

McKeen's: There's a couple guys from the Stars now in the USHL. Steve Bolton …

Carlson: Steve Bolton and Kenny Brooks. I think that might be it right now. Yeah, that program, we were the first team that started there. Ernie Hicke, an ex-North Star, got traded for J.P. Parise, actually, he's a really good friend of mine. He started that. He had a really good idea to plan it and everything, but they're coming along and developing good players in Nevada now.

McKeen's: In your bantam major year, age wise, you were drafted by the Seattle Thunderbirds in the third round of the WHL Bantam Draft. It's my understanding you went to their camp in 2008.

Carlson: I went there my draft year, they let us go, all the draft picks went to camp. I think it was, when was it? Last summer. Well, two summers ago, I was at main camp, where I could have made the team. I went there, they offered me a contract, but my dad really just said we should probably go to college. But, I would be treated well there. [Director of Player Personnel] Colin Alexander was great, [General Manager] Russ Farwell great, Rob Sumner, the head coach there, is great, too. It's a great organization. But, I felt that the college route would be better for me. I'd like to thank them for everything, but the USHL is a better route for me, probably, just play as long as you can. You go to college and can play through 25 and get an education. I think the USHL is a better choice for me.

McKeen's: Going back to the beginning of your career, when did you first start playing and how did you get that start?

Carlson: I think I was about (pauses), I started skating when I was about three years old, my mom taught me. My sister was figure skating, and all my cousins, who I was lucky enough to have around me in California, were playing hockey and I got kind of jealous, so I kind of bugged my mom into it. My mom and my dad played a poker game to see if I would play football or hockey. My dad played football at ASU (Arizona State University). So, my mom obviously won. She actually won more money in Vegas. So, I think it worked out for the best. I don't think I was cut out for football.

McKeen's: Where did your dad play football again (wasn't sure I heard the school correctly)?

Carlson: He played at Arizona State University. He was a tight end.

McKeen's: We've touched on this some, but what are the different organizations you skated for coming up through the ranks?

Carlson: I originally lived in San Diego, I played there. My squirt major year, I played for the La Jolla Jaguars, and then I went over to the San Diego Gulls with Mike Lozano, where he really helped me develop my game. I played up a year with the older guys, and it really helped me a lot. I went and played for Jack Bowkus at the California Wave, had to go up there and start playing Triple-A hockey. When he went away to coach for the Indiana Ice, I switched over to James Gasseau's LA Hockey Club. After that I went to the Mission, then Nevada and LA, and then back to the Mission. So, a bit of a suitcase, but I think everything worked out.

McKeen's: Well, it might be better to be a suitcase then than a suitcase up at this level.

Carlson: (Chuckles) Yeah.

McKeen's: The 2010 NHL Entry Draft is seven months away, and it's going to be right in your backyard, relatively speaking anyway.

Carlson: Yeah.

McKeen's: But, CSS didn't have you on their preliminary rankings. However, have NHL teams expressed interest in you?

Carlson: Oh, you know, my advisor is dealing with that. I don't want to know too much about that. I think I need to focus on the hockey and focus on getting a scholarship first. But, I know there are a couple teams that are there talking about me, just want to see a little bit more and everything. But, I just want to focus on getting a scholarship and playing good here and helping the team get to the playoffs this year before I start worrying about that.

McKeen's: Not to dwell on that topic, but what do you think CSS might be looking for, although they are only one organization, to put you on the list?

Carlson: I think they're looking for a little more consistency. I think I need to work on that, being more consistent in my game, being physical every game, being a little meaner in front of the net. But, like I said, I'm not too worried about it. I think I'll develop into it and maybe at the end of the year be like Eric Knodel and not go on the list at all the whole year and just kind of pop up there and be drafted in the fifth round or something like that.

McKeen's: You mentioned earlier the representation. If I might ask, who is your family advisor?

Carlson: Eustace King, O2K Sports, with Dean Grillo and Matt Oates and everything. He's a great guy. He's helped me a lot. He's done a great job with everything. He really lets me be my own player and he only really worries about it when colleges come in. He's a great guy, and the whole organization, too.

McKeen's: With the college route, what are some of the colleges that are pursuing you or the ones that you are strongly considering?

Carlson: I took a visit to the University of Minnesota-Duluth over the summer. I loved it there. I think the new rink they're going to get is going to be great. [assistant coach] Brett Larson's a great guy, so is [assistant coach Steve] Rohlik, and [head coach Scott] Sandelin also is a great guy. My advisor deals with all my colleges. I think Nebraska-Omaha, too, St. Lawrence University, Miami of Ohio was talking to my coach from last year, and a couple colleges. But, nothing real too big yet. I think they're all waiting to see me get more consistent before they really start talking to me.

McKeen's: In your time playing hockey from youth through the Mission, the Select Festivals, and even to the USHL, who are some of the players you've skated with that have impressed you the most and why?

Carlson: Oh, geez. I think T.J. Tynan is up there for sure. This year, I thought coming in here he was going to be a second liner and really work hard, but he really showed me. He's almost leading the league now, except for Matt White, who's been here for three years. But, T.J. Tynan, and Connor Brickley is another one. Christian Isackson from Minnesota is another one. Geez, a lot of guys through the Select Festivals, Colten St.Clair, Cody Campbell, Kevin Lind, Austin Levi, who plays in the OHL, he's a great guy, a good friend of mine. There's a bunch of players I was fortunate to play with and get to mess around with at the Select Festivals. I think T.J. Tynan and Robbie Russo, who's on the National Program now, he played on my team last year. He's a great kid, just works hard and knows what to do with the puck. I wouldn't be surprised to see his name on the rankings pretty high for next year's draft.

McKeen's: I would agree. Of their defensemen, when I was taking notes, seeing them in Cedar Rapids and once here (in Des Moines), he (Russo) definitely forced me to take a lot of notes, especially that puck-moving aspect.

Carlson: Oh yeah.

McKeen's: He's very good at that.

Carlson: I'd say he's a complete package. He plays physical when he has to and he doesn't make any mistakes. He's really smart, a great skater, he'll play his ass off no matter what the score is. He's a great character. He's probably one of the best guys we had in the locker room. He's a great kid.

McKeen's: Lastly, who were some of your favorite players growing up and why, and maybe some players that you feel you're similar to or would like to equate to?

Carlson: I'd say I like to model my game after Matt Greene from the LA Kings. He's a big guy. I'm not quite as big as him yet, but hopefully someday, if I make it that far. But, him and Cory Sarich from Calgary, just the guys who don't really get too much from the offensive side but really work hard in the corners and make the world go round, pretty much the meat and potatoes guys, not too much of superstars. I like the guys that really muck it up and everything.

McKeen's: And every team has to have those guys at, at any high level.

Carlson: Right. You really need those guys who really play hard in the corners and do the dirty work for everyone like that. That's what hockey's about, role players. I think every team needs about two or three of those guys that can really get the job done and keep the puck out of the net.

McKeen's: Absolutely.