Monsters Media Day Addresses Outlook On New Season, New Coach And The Pressure Of Defending The Calder Cup

Today, the Cleveland Monsters had their media day for the 2016-17 season. It was an exciting day, as the media had a chance to talk to new Head Coach John Madden, General Manager for the Monsters Bill Zito, Assistant Coaches Toby Peterson and Steve McCarthy and a few of the returning players on the Monsters.

After a two hour practice which featured a lot of tuning up for the season opener this Friday against Rockford, Head Coach John Madden addressed to the media how he feels being the new head coach. He addressed that he has never had the opportunity to coach a defending champion in the AHL or NHL. He liked the fact that the work ethic of the team is always great and that there are a bunch of returning players from last year.

A few of those returning players are Captain Ryan Craig, Anton Forsberg, Sonny Milano and Markus Hannikainen. The team has a good mixture of veterans and young players, so the team will definitely be fun to watch.

An interesting fact that some people may not know is that General Manager Bill Zito was John Madden’s agent when he played in the NHL. Zito made it a point to credit that Madden has won three Stanley Cups and addressed both his success as a player and an assistant coach with the Florida Panthers. On Madden’s playing career, Zito said that Madden has “Made it as far as you possibly can make.”

 

Before the end of the day, Goaltender Anton Forsberg spoke to the media. Forsberg was one of the heroes of last year’s Calder Cup and spoke about this year’s outlook. Click on the link to listen below:
Anton Forsberg Media Day Interview

Make sure to come watch the Monsters play this Friday and Saturday, as they open their season against the Rockford Icehogs. Stay tuned to NEO Sports Insiders for all of your Monsters updates and breaking news. Follow me on Twitter @Eli_Mooneyham.