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NHL DRAFTJune 27, 2014Michael Dal CollePHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA Q. How does it feel to be an Islander? MICHAEL DAL COLLE: Amazing. A dream come true. It's been a pretty busy last week for me and my family, and now that it's over with, it feels great. Q. Did the Isles talk to you a lot? MICHAEL DAL COLLE: They talked with me this morning and they met with me, so I kind of had a gut feeling I was going here if I was available, and it worked out great. Q. What do you think bringing your skills to this organization? MICHAEL DAL COLLE: Well, I think I'll fit in well. I think they need some depth in the left wing, and I think I'll add to that for sure. Q. What did the Isles talk to you about this morning? MICHAEL DAL COLLE: Similar stuff, you know, most of the teams, just want to get to know you as a person because I think when they draft you they want to know you off the ice because they see you on the ice, they don't know you as a person, so that was probably the biggest thing. Q. (Inaudible). MICHAEL DAL COLLE: Well, actually I just got called by John Tavares and Kyle Okposo, so that was pretty cool. And they just welcomed me to the team, and Josh Bailey just sent me a text, so it's been pretty good. Q. Talk about your personal life, your mom is a cancer survivor. How do you feel about that, that being out there like that? MICHAEL DAL COLLE: It's fine with me. My whole family is what drives me every day. I'm definitely a very family‑oriented guy, and everything I do in hockey is for them. Q. What did the Generals mean to your development? MICHAEL DAL COLLE: Huge. They brought me in at 16 and they gave me first‑line minutes as a 16yearold, which doesn't normally happen, doesn't happen too often. Can't thank DJ Smith and the entire coaching staff, management staff, I can't thank them enough. Q. Growing up did you try to pattern yourself after someone in hockey? MICHAEL DAL COLLE: Well, my favorite player is Malkin growing up. Now I don't think anymore, but he was my favorite player, but I think a similar style might be a guy like Jeff Carter. I like the way he plays. Q. From your perspective when you think of the Islanders, what do you think about? What do they represent to you? MICHAEL DAL COLLE: Well, I think they're definitely a very young team, and they're up and coming. I think I'll add to a good young core group of guys there, and I think I'll fit in well. Q. Do you think you're NHL ready or do you think it's going to be a few years until we see you out there? MICHAEL DAL COLLE: I want to play next year. That's my goal. If not, obviously one more year of junior, but my goal is I want to play next year, and I think I'm almost there. Q. What about physically, strength‑wise? Do you think you need to grow a little bit? MICHAEL DAL COLLE: Well, that's the biggest thing for me I think is the physical side for sure, but I'm doing a lot this off‑season to get there. Q. What did your family say? MICHAEL DAL COLLE: I have like 35 people here sharing this experience with me, so pretty overwhelming. I only got to talk to my mom, my dad and my sister, but after this it's definitely going to be a good time enjoying this experience with them. Q. What's this whole process like leading up to this night and finally getting drafted? MICHAEL DAL COLLE: It's been awesome. These past couple days have been pretty busy. Some of the guys got to tour Philly, and that was pretty good. First time here, I had my first cheese steak, so it's been a good experience. Q. Are you friends with Ryan Strome at all? MICHAEL DAL COLLE: No, I don't know Ryan personally, but obviously I played against him my rookie year, and he was probably the best player in the OHL. He's a great player. Q. Is there anyone in particular on the Islanders' roster you're looking forward to play with? MICHAEL DAL COLLE: Well, like I said before, they have a great young core group of guys, so I'll be happy to play alongside anyone. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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