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Five Minutes with Emily Brown
2/27/2019 6:00:00 AM | Women's Hockey
Sophomore defense Emily Brown chatted with the Voice of Gopher Women's Hockey Dan Hamann over the weekend.
MINNEAPOLIS -- Sophomore defense Emily Brown spoke with the Voice of Gopher Women's Hockey Dan Hamann before Minnesota's 4-3 win on the road at Bemidji State over the weekend.
Dan Hamann: Today Gopher Women's Hockey is coming to you from Sanford Center in Bemidji, Minnesota. The Gophers are attempting to sweep the Bemidji State Beavers, last night a 6-3 win was an interesting game nonetheless. My player guest today is Emily Brown from Blaine, Minnesota. You know Emily, you look at a game like yesterday, and it was really odd. First of all, the Gophers jumped up to a 3-0 lead, and then Bemidji State came back with two quick ones of their own. It was kind-of an odd start. How did you see it from the ice level?
Emily Brown: Yeah, an odd start would be a good way to classify it. Bemidji's a tough team to play against, so any time we go in with them it doesn't matter if we are winning by two or five goals, they'll play like it's a 0-0 game. That's what they did last night. It's always a tough game.
DH: Kelly Pannek came through with a nice hat trick there, started in the first period and went on into the second. What does it mean to the team to have a senior leader like Kelly on the squad?
EB: Kelly's awesome. Coming into this season, I'd obviously never played with her, and I heard lots of good things about her, but it's really special to have the opportunity to play with her. She's amazing on the ice; you look at everything she's accomplished and that's great, but off the ice, she's even better. She's a natural leader, and I think that's one of the best things that she brings to the team.
DH: From watching the game, it seems like the puck in this rink just bounces--like a basketball almost. It takes funny hops on the ice and off the back wall, is it just me, or is it apparent to you too?
EB: Yeah, it's a bouncy one. The boards have a little bit of a different bounce than what we're used to at Ridder and some of the other rinks we've played at, but it's also bouncy for them too, so it's level for us in that sense. They know how it bounces, and use that to their advantage, so we are going to look to do the same tonight.
DH: What special challenges does that pose when you know the boards are like that or you know the puck is going to bounce differently?
EB: As a defense, and I would imagine for goalies too, when they take a shot off of the wall, it's tempting to think that it's going to be a breakout, but you always have to be ready in case it goes into the slot. You don't always know for sure.
DH: What is your assessment of the year so far? You've had a successful record thus far, but is there something that doesn't show up on the stat sheet or in the record that the normal hockey fan isn't aware of?
EB: It's been a great season on the ice. It's been a special year, and by far the best team chemistry and dynamics I've ever been a part of. We talk a lot about roles on the team, and I think that everyone embraces their role and what they bring to the team, whether it's on the ice, off the ice, or a mix. If their role changes, people are ready for it, and there's no real complaints about it.
DH: Cohesiveness is a word that's used to describe a team like this. There doesn't seem to be any bickering or cattiness. Have you ever been a part of a team that was like that, and how do you go about dealing with it?
EB: I have been fortunate to not have been part of teams like that. I've had friends or other teammates that have, and hearing about it makes me very glad that I haven't had the opportunity to be a part of a team like that. We have a special group, and though it can be tough for some to be with a group of upwards of 30 players from September to March, we're a family and we get through the little things. We love each other at the end of the day.
DH: What kind of things do you do to strengthen that team bond?
EB: Yeah, at the beginning of the year we go up to Coach Johnson's cabin, to take time and get to know the freshman and develop our team bond. Throughout the year, we don't have a lot of set things that we do, but it seems that every night of the week we are doing something together, whether it's getting dinner or going to Top Golf, which I've found that my golf swing needs a bit of improvement. Shout out to Kelly for pointing that out. We're always including each other and asking what everyone's up to.
DH: You're very key-cog in the power play unit that has been very successful this season. The power play started a little slow, but after the 10-game mark, it's risen to one of the most successful units in the country. What makes your unit so special?
EB: It's an easy job when you get to pass it to Grace Zumwinkle and she shoots it straight in, bar-down. Zum has a great shot and knows how to expose a goalie like that, but sometimes teams look to cover her too much, which then opens up the four other players on the ice, who are all as equally talented in different ways. That makes us a pretty deadly unit.
DH: Nicole Schammel has been a part of that power play unit as well, what a year she's had. Playing as close with players like her, what is that like for you?
EB: Scham is awesome as well. She is the most driven and hardworking teammate I've had. I think I get to the rink early, but she's already been there for an hour. She puts in the hours and deserves every accolade that comes her way.
DH: What is it going to take for this team to get into the NCAA Tournament? Getting in is almost a sure spot, regardless of what happens in the WCHA playoffs, but what's it going to take for this team to get in?
EB: We need to keep playing how we've been playing and how we know Gopher hockey should be. We talk about playing with and without the puck, as well as doing certain things on the bench, so if we follow what we've been coached to do and what we've been all season, I think it'll be a great end of the year for us.
DH: Looking forward to it. Congratulations on a fine year.
EB: Thank you.
DH: That's Emily Brown, my guest today, and this is Gopher Women's Hockey.
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| Listen to Brown's interview. |
Dan Hamann: Today Gopher Women's Hockey is coming to you from Sanford Center in Bemidji, Minnesota. The Gophers are attempting to sweep the Bemidji State Beavers, last night a 6-3 win was an interesting game nonetheless. My player guest today is Emily Brown from Blaine, Minnesota. You know Emily, you look at a game like yesterday, and it was really odd. First of all, the Gophers jumped up to a 3-0 lead, and then Bemidji State came back with two quick ones of their own. It was kind-of an odd start. How did you see it from the ice level?
Emily Brown: Yeah, an odd start would be a good way to classify it. Bemidji's a tough team to play against, so any time we go in with them it doesn't matter if we are winning by two or five goals, they'll play like it's a 0-0 game. That's what they did last night. It's always a tough game.
DH: Kelly Pannek came through with a nice hat trick there, started in the first period and went on into the second. What does it mean to the team to have a senior leader like Kelly on the squad?
EB: Kelly's awesome. Coming into this season, I'd obviously never played with her, and I heard lots of good things about her, but it's really special to have the opportunity to play with her. She's amazing on the ice; you look at everything she's accomplished and that's great, but off the ice, she's even better. She's a natural leader, and I think that's one of the best things that she brings to the team.
DH: From watching the game, it seems like the puck in this rink just bounces--like a basketball almost. It takes funny hops on the ice and off the back wall, is it just me, or is it apparent to you too?
EB: Yeah, it's a bouncy one. The boards have a little bit of a different bounce than what we're used to at Ridder and some of the other rinks we've played at, but it's also bouncy for them too, so it's level for us in that sense. They know how it bounces, and use that to their advantage, so we are going to look to do the same tonight.
DH: What special challenges does that pose when you know the boards are like that or you know the puck is going to bounce differently?
EB: As a defense, and I would imagine for goalies too, when they take a shot off of the wall, it's tempting to think that it's going to be a breakout, but you always have to be ready in case it goes into the slot. You don't always know for sure.
DH: What is your assessment of the year so far? You've had a successful record thus far, but is there something that doesn't show up on the stat sheet or in the record that the normal hockey fan isn't aware of?
EB: It's been a great season on the ice. It's been a special year, and by far the best team chemistry and dynamics I've ever been a part of. We talk a lot about roles on the team, and I think that everyone embraces their role and what they bring to the team, whether it's on the ice, off the ice, or a mix. If their role changes, people are ready for it, and there's no real complaints about it.
DH: Cohesiveness is a word that's used to describe a team like this. There doesn't seem to be any bickering or cattiness. Have you ever been a part of a team that was like that, and how do you go about dealing with it?
EB: I have been fortunate to not have been part of teams like that. I've had friends or other teammates that have, and hearing about it makes me very glad that I haven't had the opportunity to be a part of a team like that. We have a special group, and though it can be tough for some to be with a group of upwards of 30 players from September to March, we're a family and we get through the little things. We love each other at the end of the day.
DH: What kind of things do you do to strengthen that team bond?
EB: Yeah, at the beginning of the year we go up to Coach Johnson's cabin, to take time and get to know the freshman and develop our team bond. Throughout the year, we don't have a lot of set things that we do, but it seems that every night of the week we are doing something together, whether it's getting dinner or going to Top Golf, which I've found that my golf swing needs a bit of improvement. Shout out to Kelly for pointing that out. We're always including each other and asking what everyone's up to.
DH: You're very key-cog in the power play unit that has been very successful this season. The power play started a little slow, but after the 10-game mark, it's risen to one of the most successful units in the country. What makes your unit so special?
EB: It's an easy job when you get to pass it to Grace Zumwinkle and she shoots it straight in, bar-down. Zum has a great shot and knows how to expose a goalie like that, but sometimes teams look to cover her too much, which then opens up the four other players on the ice, who are all as equally talented in different ways. That makes us a pretty deadly unit.
DH: Nicole Schammel has been a part of that power play unit as well, what a year she's had. Playing as close with players like her, what is that like for you?
EB: Scham is awesome as well. She is the most driven and hardworking teammate I've had. I think I get to the rink early, but she's already been there for an hour. She puts in the hours and deserves every accolade that comes her way.
DH: What is it going to take for this team to get into the NCAA Tournament? Getting in is almost a sure spot, regardless of what happens in the WCHA playoffs, but what's it going to take for this team to get in?
EB: We need to keep playing how we've been playing and how we know Gopher hockey should be. We talk about playing with and without the puck, as well as doing certain things on the bench, so if we follow what we've been coached to do and what we've been all season, I think it'll be a great end of the year for us.
DH: Looking forward to it. Congratulations on a fine year.
EB: Thank you.
DH: That's Emily Brown, my guest today, and this is Gopher Women's Hockey.
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