Stu Talks

Stuart MacRae or “Stuuuuuuu” if you prefer joined the Devils at the Start of the 2010-11 season from the CHL's Ammarillo Gorillas. Stuart was signed as our third line centre to play alongside Tylor Michel and one the young up and coming British guys.

We asked Tylor Michel who the Best forward he'd ever played with was in our end of season interview with him, here’s some of the things that he had to say about the best forward he's ever played with Stuart MacRae -

“Best forward I have played with is definitely Stuart MacRae. I know the fans will love to hear this but it’s because of many reasons. First off the centre position is a position that holds so much responsibility. A good centre brings a line together.”

“Stu is great on draws which is such an underrated skill. I've played on lines where the centre loses most of the draws. If a centre loses a draw you spend too much time defending and trying to get possession. A lot of the time you will spend most of your shift doing this, thus not getting a chance to carry the play and showcase your skill and determination.”

“Stu always had the ability to find me streaking hard up the wing. Stu has excellent vision and he also communicate well on the ice”. ( You can read the full write up of this here http://the-inferno.co.uk/news/tylor-talk/ )

Playing on our Third line last season Stu scored an impressive 26 Goals and assisted on another 59 goals for a whopping 85 points on the season. Over the summer and for last three months of the season he was number one on many Devils fans wish lists for the next years team. Luckily enough G got his man and Stuart was re-signed and appointed Captain for this years season.

We managed to get Stu to take some time out and asked him for some insight into last season and this years Campaign.

Inferno ( IF) Firstly and just so that we've asked... Last season were the fans chanting "Stuuuuuuu" or screaming "Boooooooo" whenever you touched the puck we've heard a rumour that there may have been some confusion on the subject ?

Stuart MacRae (Stuuuu) HaHa, yes there was some minor confusion at first I must say. I didn’t think they were booing I didn’t know exactly what they were saying. Once I discovered it was Stuuuu, I was quite pleased. I take it as a great compliment.

IF - What got you started playing hockey in the first place? What age did you start? have you always played as a forward ?

Stuuu - I started to skate when I was two years old so it wasn’t really a conscious decision on my part to start playing hockey, just something my parents got me involved with. By the time I was 5 or 6 I was playing organized hockey and I was hooked. I played a little bit on defence when I was younger, mainly because a lot of the time the defence would get to go on the ice more than the forwards.

IF - Who do you think is the best forward you have played on a line with and against?

Stuuu- Well I have been lucky over the years to play with lots of great players and it is not always the “best” player that you may enjoy playing with the most, it just depends how guys play and click on the ice. But if you are looking for the best player I have ever played on a line with, that would be in junior I played on a line with Simon Gagne in the pre season who was amazing. Unfortunately for us he made the Flyers as an 18 year old that year and never came back. The best player I played against would have probably been Brad Richards; sometimes you would catch yourself watching from the bench like a fan when he was on the ice.

IF - Where do you see hockey taking you? Is coaching something you’d consider or do you have ambitions in mind for after hockey outside of the sports ?

Stuuu - I am not sure where hockey will take me, if you asked me five years ago would it take me to Cardiff I surely would have said no, so who knows what might happen. That being said each year I am being pulled a little more towards a more settled way of life. You gain a lot playing hockey but you also miss out on a lot of things back home, I am quite jealous of the Cardiff boys that get to play in their home town if that was me I would keep playing until they didn’t want me any-more. I am interested in coaching I don’t think it is something I would really attempt to make a career of but if the right opportunities came my way it is something I would be interested. I would love to stay involved in hockey, maybe in a management capacity.

IF - In all your years playing, what’s your favourite memory?

Stuuu -My favourite memory would have to be winning a National Championship while I was playing College hockey. The feeling after the game was just incredible, it had been the first time the school had won the championship in over 80 years so it was quite a big deal. Also the championship was held 4 or 5 hours from our campus so we had a lot of support and family in the building, and it made for quite a party afterwards!!

IF - Where do you think the British leagues focus their future development plans? Do you have any thoughts on Import levels? What should GB hockey do to improve?

Stuuu -I don’t really have an answer for that question, I am sure there are people out there that have given it a lot more attention than I have, at least I hope there are! I don’t think that fan support is an issue but I can’t see it growing too much over the next several years and the system in place now may not mesh with the financial reality out there. I think the model of some of the other European leagues is something that the Elite League should aim to follow with less imports and more British players. I don’t think you can drastically cut the number of imports from one year to the next, it is something that has to be done gradually, and the development of British hockey must continue so the players are ready to take those spots, which is not something the Elite league can necessarily control unless they become more involved in the grass roots of hockey.

IF - How did you find the transition from North America ? Did you know much about the league before you signed ?

Stuuu - I didn’t find the transition to be too difficult off the ice, playing on a team with so many imports it was not all that different than playing back home. On the ice the style of hockey was a little different, a little bit less physical and maybe a little bit more time with the puck than you would be accustomed to but otherwise it was pretty smooth. I knew quite a bit about the league from some former team-mates that played here and in particular about Cardiff from Wes Jarvis who was a team-mate of mine on our Championship team.

IF - You’ve got a day off, what are you doing ? What’s the ideal day outside of “work”

Stuuu -It is all pretty routine stuff. Most of our days off are Mondays which usually means we are coming off a couple games and have a week of practices ahead so it will usually be just relaxing a lot. I like going to the movies and reading so I tend to do that quite a bit. Now if we have a couple days off which only happens a few times a year that is quite a different story!

IF - Do you follow an NHL team ?

Stuuu -Yes I follow the Maple Leafs I have had to dip my head in shame the last few years when asked that question, but the guys are looking great this year and I look forward to finally watching them in the play-offs again!

IF - How off putting to players is the Big Blue Tent? Did you know about it before you signed ? Have the Facilities ever cost us a signing to your knowledge?

Stuuu -I think there is an initial shock when you first walk in because it is just not what you are used to, but you get over that pretty quick. Eventually you come to love it, the atmosphere is great and given the choice between nice facilities or a better atmosphere during games you would always choose the atmosphere. I don’t think it has ever cost the Devils a signing, who knows it may have even kept some guys here because they didn’t want to play here as a visitor.

IF - Which one current player in the British leagues (Brit or import) would you like to have playing with you in Cardiff?

Stuuu -I think that McBride in Belfast is a great player; I just heard he is on his way out though so that’s good news for us.

IF - Is there a feeling of unfinished business from last season for the team?

Stuuu - I don’t think I would say there is unfinished business, last year is over and there is nothing we can do about that, we have a new team now. That being said I am sure all the guys from last year have realized that although we had a great season last year we came out empty handed, where as this season it has been more ups and downs starting back in the summer but where we are right now with our team I think we can beat any team in the league on any given night and compete for trophies so we have a chance to do things that last year’s team could not.

IF - Is there anything else you would like to say

Stuuu -I would like to say thank you to all the great fans who have stuck with us through the ups and downs and there is nothing more we would like to do than put another banner up in the rafters this year!