Thomas Hickey interview

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Nineteen year old Thomas Hickey was Dean Lombardi's surprise first selection for the Kings in last June's entry draft. Many fans were left scratching their heads at the pick, but upon closer inspection there seems to be some method to Lombardi's madness in this selection.

Regarded as much for his leadership potential as his prolific skating ability, Hickey recently completed his third season with the WHL's Seattle Thunderbirds, scoring 11 goals and 34 assists in the regular season, and had nine points in Seattle's first round playoff victory over the Kelowna Rockets.

And on a Seattle team where nearly half the roster is older than him, Hickey was selected team captain. How's that for leadership potential?

Hickey had a chance to sit down and chat about the T-Birds' post season exploits, how his own game has improved, and what it was like to play a seven game series against one of his best buddies.

Q&A with Thomas Hickey

Question: Tell me a little bit about playing in that big game seven against Kelowna.

Hickey: It was awesome. Whenever you can play in a big game like that it does a lot for yourself and a lot for your career because I think you learn a lot, win or lose. Fortunately we were able to win that game seven and advance on to the second round.

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Question: What was it like to go up against your good friend, Luke Schenn for an entire series?

Hickey: It was pretty strange because we are pretty good buddies and I've been with him on the World Junior team and you experience so many good things together and then you come together in a playoff series and you know it's only going to end good for one guy. That was a little bit tough, but we both had fun with it, and I thought he played really well, and unfortunately for him he didn't get the win but things worked out for us. It was pretty neat playing against a friend.

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Question: Did you guys have much to say in the handshake ceremony after the game?

Hickey: We talked a little bit there a little more after the game, and we mostly wished each other good luck. I know he's got a big summer ahead of him, so I just told him he left it all out there and he can just go take care of himself now that he played his hardest during the season.

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Question: How did your own playing progress throughout the season?

Hickey: I think every part of the game needs work if you want to make the jump to the next level. Your whole game has got to improve, and that means all the little things. I feel I improved my game quite a bit this year in terms of the all-around game. That was something that I was working on last season and as this season went along I tried to improve my defensive play, improve my positioning and a lot of little things like that that actually make a big difference.

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Question: You are a wonderful skater. Is that something you were gifted with or is it something that has taken shape and developed over time?

Hickey: It is something I have put a lot of work into. When I was a younger player, probably 11 or 12, it was one of my weaknesses and I had one coach who really harped on me and said I was going to need to learn to skate much better, because there was just a bunch of other things that were getting me by. I put a lot of work into it and I continue to do that, because you can never be too good of a skater. All of the guys who are really good in the game today, I'm sure they still work at it. It is an ongoing thing, but I really like where it's at, but I try to get it better all the time, but it's definitely not something that came natural.

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Question: So when you think about that coach who told you to work on your skating ability, are you thankful or do you find yourself saying, "Look at me now pal?"

Hickey: (Laughs) It's a little bit of both. I'm very thankful though, that's what coaches are for, especially at the minor levels where they are trying to tell you what to do to get to that next level.

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Question: I've seen the phrase "great ice wisdom" to describe your play. Tell me how that adequately describes an aspect of your game.

Hickey: I think they are talking about hockey sense, and it is something that just comes a little more natural as opposed to skating. It's smarts and how you can read the game and how you react and anticipate plays.

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Question: Talk about the honor and responsibility that comes with being the captain of the team.

Hickey: I was really excited at the start of the year when I found out that I was going to be captain, because coming in I didn't know what to expect, and it was just a huge honor. You look around the dressing room and there are a lot of guys who they could have considered. For me at the beginning it was a bit of a learning experience because I'm a younger guy still and there are still guys I look up to, but everyone was really good with it and all the guys really respect it. I learned a lot of things - how to interact with your teammates and try to make everyone happy. It is not so much on the ice, a lot of it has to do with off the ice, in the dressing room and even away from the rink.

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Question: Did you have to deal with any interesting situations this season as captain?

Hickey: No, not at all actually. I think I am very fortunate where there wasn't a crisis or anything to deal with. We've got a good group of guys and we sort of keep each other in line, so for me it was just keeping everyone happy and trying to lead by example.

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Question: How is your approach to a post season game different than a regular season game?

Hickey: I think every play matters more in the post season, and that's not to say we don't put the emphasis on every play in the regular season, it's just that the consequences are much worse if you don't follow through with it in the post season. For me it's about making every pass, making the right play. You don't try and get away with little things that you may catch yourself doing in the regular season. That's the biggest thing; making sure every play matters and every play counts and in a seven game series a few plays can hurt you a few good plays can really help you.

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Question: Most people out here and around the league were taken by surprise that the Kings selected you as high up in the draft as they did. Was it a surprise to you?

Hickey: Yeah, initially I was surprised, and I didn't know what to expect going into the draft. You know I was sort of hoping for the best and then that happened and I won't lie - I was surprised - and then as the season has gone along they've really instilled a lot of confidence in me and that helped a lot. They said that's the guy we wanted, so it has just been continuous improvements during the season and hopefully I've fulfilled that.

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Question: The high pick was a surprise, but did you have any sense going into the draft that the Kings were the team most interested in you?

Hickey: No, actually I didn't. Teams really don't what to show their cards, and there's always other teams asking about you and you just never know who is the most interested. I don't think the Kings wanted other people to know so they just went about their business and did the scouting and obviously liked me, but I didn't necessarily know that.

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Question: I understand that the Kings were impressed with your leadership qualities as much as they were with your skating. You've got to feel good about that.

Hickey: It's wonderful when they are looking into things like that, and I don't really know how many teams do. They definitely do their background checks and those are two of my strong suits and something I bring to the table, so it is nice when other people notice that as well.

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Question: Do you feel like your game has developed to the point where you can compete for a roster spot on the Kings in training camp?

Hickey: Well, that is definitely something I'm going to try to do, but you know it really depends on so many things. It depends on how the summer goes. I know I have to get stronger and parts of my game have to improve, but we'll just see what I can do here down the stretch in the playoffs. Teams want winners, so we'll see how I do. I think it would definitely improve my chances. I'm going optimistic and I'm definitely shooting for it.