Josh Flynn
Number: 9
Position: Defense
Height: 6'0"
Weight: 175
Birthday: 9-6-78
Hometown: Andover, Minnesota
Last team: Anoka High School

Player Biography

Josh Flynn is new to the Bucs. Last year he played for the Anoka Tornadoes in Anoka, Minnesota, where he was All-Conference. He likes to listen to Pearl Jam before games, and admires Eric Lindros of the Philadelphia Flyers.

Player Interview

2/25/98

Steve: Josh, where were you born and where do you call home?

Josh: I am from Anoka, Minnesota. It is about 45 miles north of Minneapolis.

Steve: Have you lived there all your life?

Josh: Pretty close, yeah, in that general area.

Steve: What was it like growing up in Anoka?

Josh: It is pretty easy going. It is a good time, hang out with your friends. There is a lot to do. You can either go into the city or you can stay out in the wilderness, I guess.

Steve: Is Anoka the same size as Des Moines or bigger?

Josh: No, it is smaller. I do not know how many people they have, but it is not like a big city. It is not too bad.

Steve: Tell me about your family.

Josh: Well, mom and dad obviously. I have a brother that plays hockey and I have two dogs. That is about it.

Steve: How old is your brother?

Josh: He is going to be 11.

Steve: So he is up in Anoka also?

Josh: Yeah, he is a goalie.

Steve: Have any of your family been able to see you play as a Buc yet?

Josh: Yeah, they come down here quite a bit. It is only a four hour drive so they spend a lot of time down here.

Steve: How did you start playing hockey?

Josh: My mom and dad got me involved in it when I was probably five. I just loved it from then on.

Steve: When did you know or decide that you wanted to pursue hockey full time?

Josh: Probably when I was real young, when we started to play traveling hockey. When you start traveling all over and playing different teams is when it starts getting competitive and that is when you start liking it.

Steve: For the fans that may not know about traveling teams, now did you still play in Anoka but you traveled to other cities?

Josh: Right, yeah.

Steve: Tell me a little bit about that.

Josh: Well, you try out every year just like you do for the Bucs. You make either an "A" squad or a "B" squad depending on your ability. Then you just travel around to the cities, have a few out of town tournaments. It is a pretty good time.

Steve: Of course you have to pay to do that.

Josh: Oh yeah. There is just different things; hotels and ice time and that kind of stuff.

Steve: Have you always played your current position?

Josh: I played defense and forward. I started out playing defense until I was probably 14 or 15 and then I started playing forward for a couple years. Then my senior year in high school I went back and played defense, and now for the Bucs I play defense and forward.

Steve: How did you come to play for the Bucs?

Josh: Basically, Des Moines has Anoka's rights or something. I do not know the exact term.

Steve: Protected team?

Josh: Yeah, right. So I came down here and tried out and made it and I am here now.

Steve: Had you seen any Buc games before, you know, while you were in Anoka?

Josh: No, I have seen them on video tape and stuff because there are a few older guys that graduated from Anoka that played down here, but I had never been to one before this year.

Steve: What are some of the things that you like about playing for the Bucs?

Josh: Just the crowd; the fans are great. They treat you pretty good here. It is a fun place to play. You go out there in front of 2500, 3000 people every night and when they get rocking it is a good time.

Steve: When you are up in Anoka, do they draw a pretty good crowd?

Josh: Yeah, I do not know how many people. Anoka is traditionally pretty good at high school hockey. Yeah, we get a pretty good amount.

Steve: Are there certain teams you would rather play or not play in the USHL?

Josh: I do not know, we compete pretty good with all of them. We have our ups and downs but I don't think there are any favorites. There might be a few rinks that I don't like to go to, but other than that, it is pretty good.

Steve: Which rinks don't you like?

Josh: Thunder Bay. It was kind of a pain to drive up there. Sioux City is a hole. Playing against the Vulcans is not very fun because they have like ten fans. That is about it.

Steve: Do you have a favorite college or pro team?

Josh: No, I like to watch all of them. I used to like the Gophers but they are not very good, so it is kind of boring watching them now. But St. Paul is doing pretty good. I do not know, just around home teams pretty much. I do not have a pro team, but that is the way it goes.

Steve: What are your future hockey plans?

Josh: I don't know. I would like to move on and play college but I don't know exactly where. I don't know, it doesn't really matter. Hopefully move onto the next level.

Steve: What is the most embarrassing thing that has ever happened to you in hockey?

Josh: Oh man, I don't know. I haven't really had too many, I mean, besides game mistakes. There's a lot of those, but that is about it. I got my helmet knocked off a few times. It is kind of embarrassing. You kind of feel like a wuss. But other than that, nothing major.

Steve: Getting your helmet knocked off, is that something that you don't like to have happen to you?

Josh: Yeah. I mean, when a guy comes up and hits you hard enough to knock your helmet off, it's not something you like.

Steve: Okay. Well, we are going to switch a little bit and we are going to go to some personal things. What is your favorite food?

Josh: Oh boy. I would have to go with pizza, which is pretty good. And then my dessert, just anything chocolate.

Steve: Do you have any favorite type of music that you like?

Josh: I pretty much listen to it all. I don't know, I am kind of getting sick of country because the guys like to play it in the locker room and it gets pretty annoying. Otherwise, anything. I listen to it all, except for classical and that kind of stuff. Opera doesn't really turn me on. I like different things.

Steve: How about a favorite movie or car or anything like that? Any other favorite stuff?

Josh: My favorite movie is probably "Slapshot" or "Air Force One." Those are kind of two different movies but I like them.

Steve: Not "Strange Brew?"

Josh: Yeah, that is not a bad movie.

Steve: How about what type of a girl do you like? Do you like them tall or short, color of hair?

Josh: Oh geez. I don't know, I don't really have a preference. You know, it is the personality that counts. It doesn't really matter how they look. You have got to see what's on the inside before you take away the outside, you know.

Steve: Okay. Do people consider you shy or out going?

Josh: It depends on the situation. I kind of like to crack a lot of jokes every once in awhile, you know, just kind of blurt things out. But it depends. If you're sitting at like a formal dinner or something like that, you know, I kind of keep quiet and don't say a whole lot. But it depends, I guess.

Steve: What do you do in the summer?

Josh: I work and that is about it. Like last summer I laid carpet. The summer before I think it was a grocery store maybe. I worked at a rink one year.

Steve: So you go back home?

Josh: Oh yeah.

Steve: Do you have any other hobbies or interests that you like to pursue?

Josh: I like to hunt a lot. I went pheasant hunting here a couple of times this year. I do not know, it is just to get away from things and go walk around and blow things up, I guess.

Steve: Complete this question. The fans would be surprised to know that I . . .

Josh: Ride a motorcycle. I don't have it down here but it would be nice if I did.

Steve: Street or dirt bike?

Josh: Street.