“It just makes you want to push yourself to get better, I think, seeing the level they’re at, the way they train and handle themselves every single day,” Savoie said. “It’s just cool to see firsthand, see and experience it. Yeah, it’s a privilege.”
Said Howard, “It’s pretty cool even to be asked about them, to be able to talk about how dialed in those guys are and how good they are from a day-to-day standpoint. It’s pretty cool to be able to talk about those guys and get to know them. Seeing them every day is pretty special.”
Savoie and Howard joined the podcast Wednesday from the NHL’s New York City office, which is one block from Madison Square Garden, where they were part of the Oilers’ 2-0 win against the New York Rangers on Tuesday.
This is also the first trip to New York City for both players. Savoie is from St. Albert, Alberta, a suburb of Edmonton, and Howard is from Hudson, Wisconsin.
They’re also here to play the New York Islanders at UBS Arena on Thursday (7:30 p.m. ET; HULU, ESPN+, SN360) and the New Jersey Devils at Prudential Center on Saturday (3:30 p.m. ET; MSGSN, SN, TVAS).
“The city is pretty sweet,” Howard said of New York. “It seems like it’s always buzzing. A ton of good dinner spots. We’ll be excited to try a couple different restaurants here and maybe do some shopping as well.”
In addition to a conversation with the Oilers rookies, some of the topics covered include the hot start to the season for the Boston Bruins and goalie Jeremy Swayman, the cold start for the struggling Buffalo Sabres, first impressions of New York Islanders rookie defenseman Matthew Schaefer, the Rangers’ inability to score at home, Brady Tkachuk‘s injury and the impact it will have on the Ottawa Senators and, potentially, Team USA at the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026, and Montreal Canadiens defenseman Lane Hutson‘s new contract.
For more from Savoie and Howard, plus opinions from the co-hosts, listen to the “NHL @TheRink” podcast, which is free, and listeners can subscribe on all podcast platforms. It is also available on NHL.com/multimedia/podcasts and the NHL app.