Q&A WITH THE OILERS ETHAN BEAR

Edmonton Oilers defenceman Ethan Bear of Ochapawace, SK sat down for an exclusive 1-on-1 with The Rod Pedersen Show which aired Saturday night. The 22-year old former Seattle Thunderbird was a 5th round pick of the Oilers in 2015. Here’s the transcript of our chat.

Q: How has the break been since you last played over a month ago?

EB: It’s been long. Honestly, just trying to stay on top of my conditioning and pretty much trying to workout. I’ve been on the ice a couple of times back home at the rink; we’ve still got the ice. I’m pretty fortunate to have that. I go out by myself, and basically with my little sister so she can pass to me, but basically catching up with family and hanging out at home.

Q: Have you had to amp up your off-ice training since you don’t have NHL facilities at home?

EB: Definitely, more and more, like summertime/off-season workouts, trying to get stronger. Basically, if you can get ahead or any type of advantage over the opponent, that’s what I’m working towards. I’m pretty fortunate to have a gym and a facility. A lot of guys don’t have that, so I got a good workout program from Edmonton. I’m trying to stay consistent with that.

Q: What kind of reception do you get in Ochap when you come home?

EB: Usually it’s really nice. I get a lot of people saying they watch my games and, for me, I’m very proud of that. But right now with COVID-19 I can’t go around or hang out with anybody. It’s definitely different. I’ve been bored too but I’m finding ways to stay busy. I definitely get a lot of love from the people back home.

Q: Are you staying in touch with the Oilers and waiting for a call back to Edmonton?

EB: I follow as closely as I can with emails and video chats. Definitely I can’t wait to get back. It feels weird right now. It’s not off-season, it’s a pandemic! I can’t wait to get back. Once I can get back to training at Rogers Place – I did it there all last summer – I want to build off that and stay ready.

Q: Oiler fans here and in Edmonton say it would be a shame to waste such a great season if you can’t continue. Have you heard that?

EB: Ya for sure. You definitely see everyone commenting about that. I feel the same way. It was a long season and there’s been a lot of hard work, sacrifice and determination to get to where we got. It’s not easy to win in that league, we’ve got a great group of guys, and everyone wants to win. My first year’s been everything I could’ve asked for and I want to make sure I do all the right things and basically just work hard. I hope we have playoffs. It’s a weird feeling right now, and I just want to be ready when the time comes.

Q: You mentioned that Dave Tippett is a “great” coach. What makes you say that?

EB: Everything about him. He’s so cool, so chill. You can talk to him and he’s pretty straight-forward with you. He’s really honest I feel. I’ve had two good coaches I’d say, with Todd McLellan and Dave Tippett, both Saskatchewan guys, both treated me really well and Dave’s done really good with our team so far. A lot of guys really like hin, they’re buying in.

Q: This season in your rookie year you’ve played in all 71 games, have 5 goals and 21 points, and are -4. You couldn’t really ask for anything more …

EB: Definitely. It’s everything I’ve worked for. I spent all last off-season in Edmonton and did all the right things an athlete should. Basically eat well, get good rest, work out and stay consistent. It’s definitely opened up my eyes to what I can do and I wish I learned it earlier but it’s all a growing experience. I’m happy I did it. It’s definitely changed my career. It’s been a good ride.

Q: You guys rekindled the Battle of Alberta with the Flames this year. What’s that been like?

EB: It was actually really wild. Every game we played against them was so intense. It’s just natural. That rivalry’s already there. They wanna win and so do we. The fans really get into it. For me, it’s so exciting and so intense once you show up. It’s like “Here we go” and anything can happen. We had that wicked line brawl and the goalies scrapping. I’ve never been part of something like that so that was a first. Definitely had a lot of nerves and jitters but it brought our team together.

You just buckle down for whatever. It’s the Battle of Alberta! I mean I never knew that was the first goalie fight in the B.O.A. but it sure feels like one’s going happen every night. It’s pretty intense. Crazy.

Q: Can you compare that excitement to beating the Regina Pats with Seattle in the 2017 WHL Final?

EB: That was good. Being from Saskatchewan and playing in Regina, I pretty much grew up watching the Pats and only the Pats. And then to play then in the Final, it was almost too good to be true. We had 5 or 6 Sask guys and all our families were there in one section. When we scored, it honestly felt like a home game. And being from Regina, there’s a lot of native people here, it honestly felt so nice to play in that rink. When we won, it felt like we won at home.

Q: How do you approach being a role model for First Nations youth?

EB: I think it’s a lot of fun. I try to lead by example. I be myself. I don’t try to be anyone else. Basically talk to everyone like I am. I’m the same person as when I left and nothing’s going to change me. I just try to teach kids to work hard and be a good person and follow the rules. You never know what you can do, and try to educate yourself as much as possible because there’s so much opportunity in this world. I basically just try to be a good example by working hard and doing the right things.

RP
@rodpedersen