Nick Kypreos - Undrafted To NHL Stanley Cup Champion

Mike Hartman, performance mindset strategist. This is develop the mindset of a champion with former Stanley cup champion Mike Hartman. Welcome to another episode Today my guest is Nick Kyprios. Nick played in the National Hockey League for more than eight years. He was in the Philadelphia Flyers organization, the Hartford Whalers, Washington Capitals, New York Rangers and the Toronto Maple Leafs. He was also a former analyst. Amazing on the mic. So I'm so happy to have Nick here with us. He was on Hockey Night in Canada to Sportnet which is in Canada cable television network. Great to have you here, Nick. So great to have you on the show.

Well, Mike, it's pleasure's all mine. Of course we.

Have a bit of.

A history going back to junior hockey, which I've got great memories about North Bay and even turning professional even though we were not together turning professional. You of course, breaking in with the Buffalo Sabres and me with the Philadelphia Flyers certainly remember a few battles that we've had in exhibition games and, and the history that we've had. So the pleasure is all mine being here today with you on, on your show.

And I always enjoy like, you know, I tell people that life's built around relationships and you're someone that's been a friend. Even when if we don't talk for a period of time and all of a sudden we see each other at Mark Messier's event or we just had the 25th, it's like we haven't missed a beat. And you're like a brother, man. You've always been there for me. I know. You hugged me when I got called up and came back from Buffalo. You were the first guy that greeted. I'll never forget that. Believe it or not, I don't forget things. And you've been like a great friend. I was so happy for you. And that's where I want to start. I just want you to share your story because you have a great story. I mean, how you made it not being drafted. Please share your story and we'd love to hear it.

Wow, how much time do you have? I gotta tell you though, you know, it's interesting, Mike, because I just concluded a 21 year run with Sportsnet and the last few years with Hockey Night in Canada. And as I figured I'd take a deep breath and really be off for the first hockey season in 35 years. And I include my first years at North Bay right through the American Hockey League, the NHL and then I got into broadcasting right away. So my feeling was, wow, I'm going to get actually A winter off for the first time that isn't hockey driven either, you know, me playing or broadcasting. And then sure enough, the moment, you know, I make my announcement that I'm. I'm stepping away from broadcasting, I get a book deal with Simon Schuster to write a memoir about my hockey days and, and my broadcasting days. And that book will be out October 20th, Simon Schuster, and it's called Undrafted. So basically that's my story, is that that I was never drafted into pro hockey, and I still found a way, you know, to certainly have an enjoyable career and meet great people and making wonderful contacts, you know, from a professional standpoint as well. So, you know, it really started out of Toronto, and the book will tell a lot of it. But I'll give you the Coles notes real quick. Growing up, immigrant parents from Greece. The only. The only ice my dad knew was in his drink. So, you know, he grew up in the restaurant business. All he wanted out of the Canada was to be given an opportunity to work and earn a living. He was one of those guys that never had his hand out on anything. He wanted to earn everything that he got. And he was able to, you know, along with his. His brothers, own a restaurant one day. So I grew up in that environment. I worked in that environment. I peeled potatoes, I filled water glasses up, and I saw a real work ethic, you know, in my childhood, and I really wanted to instill that. And, you know, restaurant is a people's person business. You know, you got to have a relationship with your. Your clientele, you got to make them want to come back over and over again. And I kind of took that philosophy into the team spirit and know that when you play a team game like hockey, Mike, you. You got to be able to work together with your teammates. You're only as strong as your weakest link. We've heard all those kind of cliches, but they're so true. So I really wanted to bring up that, that type of family culture into the dressing room. And as we know, we were small pieces to a Stanley cup champion in 94. We know who the big pieces were named Mark Messier and Brian Leach and Mike Richter. But you do need to have a cohesive group that get along well, that have a mutual respect for each other if you're going to be successful. So certainly loved my career, loved my broadcasting career, but I try to instill those family values that I grew up with. So I'm. I'm really thrilled and honored to be writing a book about it. And I hope some of your listeners, you know, if they want to, you know, get. Get in touch with some stories that kind of intertwine because life imitates art, art imitates sports. Say what you will, but it's all intertwined about your attitude and your outlook and your perspective on how successful you. You can be in the outside world.

And as a teammate, even in junior, you are always positive. I remember you didn't get drafted, so what people should know, though, I talked to Todd, and Todd had a pretty good junior career, but come on, Nick, you scored. I remember a goal, a game in junior, and I talked to. I talked to another. I talked to Graham Bonner that did it, and he never made it. And I feel bad for guys that never made it because I don't listen to many podcasts, but I did hear Sean Avery say, when you make it to the big time, there's nothing like it. There's no better life. And I'll never forget, you know, the times we had the NHL.

But.

But just to go back, 62 goals in junior, come on. I mean, that's something that. That's unheard of, man.

Well, I don't, you know, I don't know. I can't really. Why the goals came as as many as they did, and I always loved that part of the game. I always enjoyed it. I had a good shot, and I knew I could beat some goalies from 20, 30ft out. But the stars were aligned in Junior to be a top goal scorer. If I'm not mistaken, somebody told me a while back that I think I'm in the top 20 all time in junior hockey for goals, or at least in the Ontario Hockey League, which, when you think about how many names have come through the ranks over the years, it still kind of blows me away that I was able to score at the rate that I was able to. But, you know, you mentioned Graham Bonner, Mike, and there are a lot of names like Graham, and Graham was an incredible scorer as well, much like me. Every time it was on his stick, it found a way in the back of the net. But if you. If you look at the course of history in junior hockey, you can find a lot of goal scorers that, that could knock on the door of 40, 50, 60 goals. And. And somehow they just don't parlay that into any professional career. And I didn't want to. I didn't want to be that guy. I didn't want to be that guy that was a top goal scorer that just had a great junior career and then just Fizzled away. So, you know, when the goals didn't come at a. At a great rate in pro hockey, I wanted to find another way that I could still be a good team guy, contribute on the ice. And I found it, you know, in a different role. And I remember in junior hockey, I remember we would get together with Wayne McPhee, who was our captain, Tim Bean, there'd be a few others. And one. One game, we're playing with Mike Hartman, and then the next night, we're gathering at a Billet's house to watch Mike Hartman play for the Buffalo Sabres in the NHL.

Yeah, but this is about you. This is about.

No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. This is about me. This is about me. But I'm. I'm telling you, it's about you as well. I'm sorry, I got a bit of a role reversal here, Mike, but I just want people to understand that when we're in. When I'm sitting at the Billets house and I'm watching you in the NHL fulfill our dream, it inspired me to go, okay, why is Mike there? Why. You know, why is. How did Mike get called up? Why did he get called up? And it was because you. Even though I was scoring more goals, you had more of a mental toughness to go play in the NHL right away, and that's why Scotty Bowman called you up, because you played. You played a hard game, you played a tough game, and you could go and step in easier in the NHL than I could with all my goals. So it was always in the back of my mind that, you know, even though I'm a goal scorer, I still got to find a way to play the game harder and be more of a competitor and be tougher and grittier and have people on the other side of the bench go, oh, it might be a tough night because Mike Hartman's there, or one day it could be Nick Iprio. So it never. It always stood out in my mind that I needed to add more to my game no matter how many goals that I scored. So when the goals didn't start coming my way, I was reminded that you got to play a little tougher, you got to play a little grittier, you got to be a little bit more competitive on the puck. And it's always. It's never always about just the guy who scores the goal. So I always had that my back of my mind. So when the goals didn't start coming my way, I was able to adapt a little better because I was prepared to do the Things that I needed to do to stay in the NHL besides scoring goals. So that's. That's a bit of the background on how I was able to transition.

Well, everything has a backstory to it, so I'm just going to share something. I really appreciate the kind words. And we'll get, you know, as we get going, we got a couple little stories to talk about, but one thing is you mentioned your parents, and when the team would fall asleep. I hope none of the guys in North Bay hear this. They might get mad at us. I remember Bert would pass out Swiss chalet or we'd pass out pizzas on the bus in Junior, you and I sat in the back and I had these. I don't know if they were like Slovakia. Your mother would make us, like, desserts and, And. And food to take back because your parents would come to a lot of games in Canada. You and I are sitting, eating first class while the coach and everybody else is eating pizza in the back.

That's. You know what, Mike? We're Greek, right? We grew up in the restaurant business. It's always about the food. So my mom, you know, if I told her that I was eating, like, a $50 hamburger from a fast food joint, she would cringe. So she would make sure that anytime that I was ready to go onto the bus, that there'd be a roast beef sandwich, there'd be a Greek salad with feta cheese and olives, and it was all about the food. So. And you're right, I had to hide it and then wait for a few people to fall asleep, or else I was only going to get one bite. And nothing left. That's nothing left but you. I know, Mike, over the years, you were always smart enough to make sure that guys fell asleep and then. And then there'd be more for us. But those. Those are. Those are great memories.

Yeah, really fun memories.

And. And I remember Bert being the only coach I could ever remember who. Who liked to ride the back of the bus. What. What was that? What coach doesn't sit up in the first row? He was the only one that liked the back seat. He.

He wanted to know everything. And I. And I want to. I mean, we could probably tell 50 stories and everything's about a backstory. That's a lot of what. What we do on the show. And the funny thing, one of the backstories, I don't want to get too deep into it. I think I told Todd Alec this or was McIlwain, but what happened was we were sitting around and we had. When I got sent back from Buffalo, the next semester started in school. So I said, hey, let's go to school, Nick. And a few of us went to school. Well, what happened was Bert pulled me aside before practice. He says, oh, the Ohl came out with a new rule that, yes, we have to pay for everybody's college, but we didn't expect anybody to go. You just cost me $10,000. And I said, oh, no, really. He goes, oh, yeah, but don't worry about it. You're going to pay for it. So I hope Buffalo paid you well. I mean, my first contract, I think I made six figures. It was a low amount of money or your first deal in the NHL. But he says, you're going to pay if any of them fail. And I remember some of the guys dropped out. I never ended up paying, but I thought that was funny.

Oh, listen, he. He had. He loved. One of the reasons, I think for sure, that he sat in the back of the bus is he can get a pulse on everybody, right? So I. All I do remember is every once in a while he'd chirp up and say, yeah, some of you guys aren't playing hard enough. And it's gonna be. It's gonna be interesting to see who's pick tomatoes for Grandma Lee, you know, in a few years. You know, Grandma Lee's, of course, this grocery chain or something. But that's. That was Burton, you know, great, great success in junior hockey. I enjoyed playing for him. I'm not sure everybody can say that, but I certainly. I certainly had a lot of time for the man.

And just, you know, you and I could tell stories all day, so I'm going to move us ahead. And I was never so happy. I. We had an exhibition game between. Actually, we played the night before the Sabers played the. I don't remember who we played then. The next night, there was a. Going to be a list on the wall, and the list was going to see who was going to play. And I was sitting next to Lindy Ruff. And Lindy, I got up and I. He goes, where are you going? I said, I'm going to go look at the list. He says, why? I says, well, I'm hoping to play tomorrow in Rochester. We were playing in Rochester against the Flyers. He goes, don't worry, you're playing. And I put. I went over there. I came back with a smile. He goes, why are you smiling? I said, oh, because I get to play tomorrow. He goes, well, talk to me after the game, because they'll dress about 15 guys and we're going to bring one of our big guys along, Andy Ristow. He's going to play tomorrow. This I was thinking about, about Andy. I don't think he was an NHL player, but he was a tough guy in the American League. He was that extra guy that would go out and play tough. He was a guy that was a heavyweight. So fast forward the clock. We get to Rochester. It's about an hour bus trip from Buffalo. We didn't even stay in Rochester. We get to the game and I see you and I'm so happy. And I said, hey, whatever you do, don't fight this big guy. Because I said, please don't fight him. Please don't. And then you could share the rest of the story, if you remember. I couldn't believe it and I said, don't do it, Nick. I want you to make the Flyers and I don't want to fight you. We're friends, but, you know, if you want to hit me a few times, I'll grab on and. Because I really. You deserve to make it more than anybody. And I'll never forget, you fought that monster. And.

He was. She was. I think it was five, six. Five or six, six. And he must have weighed about 250 pounds. And I did fight him and it was off a face off circle and it was just on an offside at the blue line and he whacked me once or twice and just to kind of go back on. Sometimes you want to do stuff to get noticed or make a name for yourself. And you're right. I mean, those, when Lindy told you they'll be dressing 15 or 16, kind of guys that are a little goofy. That was always the case in exhibition games. So it was. Of course they want to see your skill and how you handle the puck. But I grew up, you know, breaking in professional hockey and with the Philadelphia Flyers, who had this Broad street bully mentality. Of course, Bobby Clark was the, the new general manager. So he, you, you wanted to show him that you had what it took to be a Philadelphia Flyer. So I, I had a brain cramp, man, and I just dropped my gloves right away. And I, at the time, early in my career, I was a left handed puncher. So I was actually able to kind of sneak in a couple on Andy. And I believe I cut him open too, which was, which was unheard of on, on a type of guy like that. And then I could not have asked the referees and the linemen to get in as quick as you know, they could because I, if you fight this guy 100 times, 99, you're going to get hurt real bad. I just, I just happened to get the one time when I caught him a little, a little off, off his game.

Well, that was the first time I was ever, I was playing for the Sabres, but I was happy like inside. Say, are you kidding me? I mean, you cut him more than good, so we don't have to get in all the details, but it was, it was great. So then you, your way to Washington, you end up playing for the, for the Capitals, really making a, really making a name for yourself now. You were like a power forward type player. And what was your experience in Washington?

Yeah, it was a little slow, like, like entering the American Hockey League because I didn't have early success in the American Hockey League either, but I was claimed off of waivers. The Fly, the Flyers could not protect me at the time and I had already been in that organization, I think five years at that point. So it was nice to be able to say that when you get claimed off of waivers in October, you're guaranteed to start the season in the NHL. So that was, that was great. I ended up playing half a season for the Washington Capitals. I had some minor surgery off of a, a major knee injury that I had a few years ago that cost me a little bit of time. And then I ended up spending a little bit of time back in the American Hockey League with the Baltimore Skipjacks, which was the affiliation of the Washington capital. So I was able to kind of parlay that and to get my feet wet in the NHL. And then the following year I was able to play, I think, 80 games and score nine goals. And then myself and Alan May kind of established ourselves as, you know, the, the, the protectors of the team. Guys that'll stand up if, if, if anybody took liberties on, on guys like Dino Cicarelli or Kevin Hatcher. So I was able to kind of at least lock in a little bit of some of NHL security with the Washington Capitals, which I was awfully grateful of. And more importantly, we did have a lot of success. Actually, the most success was, was that year in 89, 89, 90 when we went to the conference finals for the first time in Capital's history. We got swept by the Boston Bruins and Ray Bork, but it certainly was a good feeling being a part of history at the time for the Washington Capitals.

Yeah, and then that you had, I thought you did great there because we knew in Buffalo, you know, with, with, with you And. And May, which is. I know Alan very well.

Yeah. Neil Sheehy, too, was a tough guy.

Yeah, yeah. So overall it was like. It was a tough. It was a tough. You know, you had a physical team that could play, and they were always tough to play against. But I always believe that they really never gave you a chance because you could score, you could play. You were overall tough guy. And I believe sometimes the NHL, they set the table for you. So finally you go to Hartford and I think you score 16.

17. Yeah, 17. 17 goals. Yeah.

And finally they let you play because if you could score 17 in the NHL, you got to remember, if. I don't know how much you played the power player, if you did, but 17 is.

I got. Well, Jeff Sanderson was a young kid who scored 40 goals and that season, and I think he had. He had 21 or 22 even strength goals, and then he might have had some shorthanded, and the rest were power play. And I had 17 goals and I had 17 on five. On five. Right. So I got. I got no power play. I was able to kill some penalties there. But, yeah, it was kind of. It was a really good feeling, Mike, that even though 17 isn't 40 or 50 in the NHL, but I wanted to at least show at least once that I scored a lot of goals in Junior, and I could, I could, I could put the puck in the net in the NHL too. And the one thing that happened to me that one year in Hartford was that I pulled my abdominal muscles late in the season and I missed. I think I played. I try to play with them hurt, and I just, I couldn't do it. And I ended up missing, I think, seven or eight games of the rest of the season. And I really was hoping I hit the 20 goal mark because that's a. That's a magic number for a lot of tough guys if you can score 20 goals in the NHL. And that year I had a great.

That's a great number if you could score 20. If you don't play the power play every other ship, first or second line guy, if you stick a star on the fourth line, they're not going to score 23. I mean, that's 30. You could score 30 goals. And I always believed you could have scored more than 20 goals, but that. That's me speaking.

So there was. I knew at the time that there was only like, you know, a handful of guys that have ever scored in the history of the game 20 goals and had over 300 penalty minutes. So I had I, I was like full incentive to be one of those guys. But I pulled my abdominal muscles. I fought Grant Jennings in Pittsburgh and I could hear this little rip. And by the third or fourth day after that fight, I could not even get out of bed. Now you've had abdominal strain as well, didn't you?

This is about you. But I've had two surgeries that. It ended by career. Pretty much these stomach muscle stuff. It started in Buffalo. I think what we did in those days, I think we over trained and all of a sudden you, you end up tearing your abdominal muscle. And I actually had surgery on the left and right side and that pretty much ended everything. So now that was.

Yeah, so I did the same thing. Yeah, I did the same thing, Mike, and it shut me down early, but I, I still kind of wish I would have had a chance to finish the season out, to hit that 2020 goal mark.

So, so then now I'm in New York and right away they told me, hey, Mike, you're going to be an insurance policy. You're going to. We want to keep you here. I really. Neil Smith is a really a favorite of mine and I've known him when I was through the Detroit Red Wing days. He was such a gentleman to me and he brought me there and, and I was happy. All of a sudden we get Nick Kyprios. And I was excited for about three minutes. I said, wait a sec, he's a left winger.

We got a lot of those.

We have a lot of players here. We have a lot of left. Wait a sec here. So, but, but you and I ended up having you come and we had such a great time, not only rooming together, but just. This is the mindset stuff. So we talk about mindset. So people say, well, Mike, what is this is like a sports story. Oh, it's a backstory. Because the mindset we had, we had to be mentally tough, you and I, because you would dress in Detroit, I would dress in Toronto. I'm from Detroit, you're from Toronto. It was like always back and forth. And there's something I have to admit to you, and I'm gonna admit it on the air right now. I hope I don't get arrested, but I. Game seven, you know, it came down to you. You know, Kosar was hurt and I had somebody ready to pull a Tanya Harding on you, but I couldn't find you quick enough.

Oh my God, I had it all.

So I had one of the big boys in New York that owns a restaurant. I don't want to say his name. We said, we can't find Nick. And I said, well, don't worry about it then. And I was so proud. He played Game seven and I was in the. And then after, you know, the party or the, the team stuff that we did, and we hugged each other and cried in the dressroom. I still have those pictures. But, but the thing I remember the most, this is what I'm bringing it up for. I. I was in the limo with your dad. We drove together. It was you. It was you and I in the car. Your father was in there and he was like crying and I felt just so happy for you inside. Like.

Yeah, it was great. It really was. Well, listen, I, I mean game seven was amazing, but I, now that we're 25 plus years away, it's, it's not really. I just remember the whole season and what it took for all of us to get there. And you know, yeah, me and you, we competed for the left side, but there was a lot of nights that we played together, you know, and there was a lot of nights that we were cheering for each other. And on some teams, yeah, there are, there are scenarios when, you know, you don't pull for somebody to take your spot away. But people gotta understand, listening, that when, when you end up in New York or when Mark Messier ends up in New York, or myself, you instantly inherit this overwhelming feeling that is much bigger than just me, you or even Mark Messier. And that is this, this 54 year drought that you instantly inherit the moment you become a member of the New York ra. And it's, and it can be overwhelming and it can be this behemoth, you know, can't overcome it. You guys are cursed. You'll never win in New York. And it, and it really, really took a special group to end a 54 year drought. Misery, call it whatever you want. And we needed everybody on board, even the guys that played, the guys that didn't play, the coach from the coaching staff, the training staff, the pr, the administration, Tommy, who, who did the laundry at the practice facility. There, there could not be a weak link. So if you had a guy who was jealous of another guy, the whole thing could come crumbling down. So I don't ever remember me and you competing for any spot. I just remember you being the supportive guy. I try to be supportive other people, you know, Doug Lidster, captain of the Vancouver Canucks, comes in, ends up being a black ace. We had all these guys that didn't play at old Chuck, a star with the Toronto Maple Leafs. And Chicago Blackhawks and, you know, and all of a sudden he becomes an extra piece. But it never affected us to the point where we. We would sabotage the bigger picture. And I know in some teams it does happen. It's like, if I can't be a star or I can't be an irregular player, I'd rather lose than. They're not. They're not be here, you know, or than be here. And we didn't have any of those guys, none of them. And that's what I remember. Yeah, it was great playing in game seven, but I just remember what we needed to get there and then what we needed to do, stick together. And we had some animosity and we know Keenan was Keenan. And sometimes he put himself in a tough position, he put us in a tough position. But we always found a way to overcome for the greater good of trying to end this drought. And that's what I remember the most.

And I have to agree, we were like family. And I'll just bring up one quick story because again, it's a lot about the backstories. And the one story was I got a little frustrated. I break my stick on the bench and I'm really mad. And he doesn't sit me, you know, or he doesn't play me for a while. I think I sat like four games. Well, what he did was actually, the funny thing was he told me to leave the ice early because I smashed my stick against the thing, which I've never done. And then he calls me, he says, I don't want you to come down to the game. So I thought, I'm either going to be sent down or I'll be picked up on, on waivers or traded. He calls me at 5:15, he says, come down to the rink, you're playing. And we're usually there at 5 and in traffic. So I get there just in time for warm up. I put my stuff on. He plays me like a lot against the Islanders, right? So then the next night, I go to Montreal, I play no shifts. I go to Boston, I play no shifts. So I didn't get credit for the game and bought not a shift. I never did that in my career. Then we get to Quebec and I'm on the bench with you. This is why I'm bringing it up. And I'm sitting there and we're winning five nothing. And Mess looks back at Keenan and says, come on, like, like, how long are you going to be mad at him? Really? We're winning like, or we're winning maybe six to one. And they play that funny banjo music. And he says, okay, Hartman Graves Messier up. I said, oh, I get to play with the big boys. And they play that funny banjo music. And I'm sitting next to you, and it was the funniest thing. I'll never forget this story. So I'm listening to the banjo music, stretching, and then you say, hardy, those are your hamstrings. And I smile, and Keenan grabs me and says, sit down, you're done. I never played a ship because I laughed about the banjo music. But that's funny. Going back. Nick, it's been so great having you on the show. It's been a real pleasure. Thank you so much. And I just want you to share with everybody a little bit about what you're doing today.

Oh, man, it's. Yeah, listen, we're like everybody else. We're just grinding it out. We're challenged like everyone else. But it's. It's not the cards you get, it's how you. You play them. Right? So, for me, first and foremost, I got to write a book, a memoir of my life in hockey from growing up in Toronto right through my junior days. That included, of course, you, Mike, in North Bay, turning professional as an undrafted player and just finding ways to contribute at the professional level over the course of 12 seasons. From there, I talked a lot about my 21 years in broadcasting. And the tip of the iceberg is being on our historical Hockey Night in Canada for a show that's the longest running sports show in history. So big thrill for me. And now the next step, Mike, probably get back in hockey a little bit. I want to work on producing a daily show through the Internet. Of course, we know how that's advanced. Look at you now. You're a big star right now, doing your own podcast. So that's. Those are the plans, Mike, moving forward. And I hope to have something very soon on the horizon. Let's get hockey going again. Let's get this world doing great things once again.

Well, again, it was so great having you. I just want to. Where can they get the book? Is it on Amazon? Is it through a website? Share with us a little bit about where people can get the books. I know it's going to be a great one. And not only that, I think all the parents out there and families should understand how hard you worked to get to where you are even today. So you went from undrafted, not making it all the way up to playing in the National Hockey League, winning a Stanley cup, having a great career, and announcing I can go on and on. Where can we get the book?

Yeah, well, my, my publisher is Simon Schuster, one of the biggest in North America. So if you were to go onto their website and Google Nick Kyprios or the title of the book is Undrafted, you will find a link to get it. So that's Simon and Schuster is the publisher. And I hope you enjoy it. And I hope, I hope the the life lessons that I had learned along the way. Some people can instill in in their daily lives and hopefully get out what I got out the last 35 plus years in the wonderful game of hockey.

Well, again, thank you, Nick, and have an awesome day.

Mike, always a pleasure, pal. Great teammate. Thank you.