1-On-1: with Austin Poganski

Roadrunners Forward Austin Poganski joined Adrian Denny and Kim Cota-Robles on this week’s Insider Podcast after signing a two-year contract with the team. To hear the complete interview and how Austin did on our first ever podcast BuzzFeed Quiz, download the full show below.

Listen to “Austin Poganski Takes The Test” on Spreaker.

You’re up in your home State of Minnesota, land of 10,000 lakes, how’s everything going and how’s your summer been so far?

It’s been great, kind of crummy weather up here in Minnesota, it’s been a little rainy, now it’s humid, but you can’t complain; with friends and family, like you said 10,000 lakes, so much to do up here; great place to be in the summers.

You and your wife have a new house, that’s new, new, new, new; so kind of getting settled, getting it cool; and having kind of a staycation summer?

There’s always things to be done, always grass to be mowed. Just doing little projects, furnishing different rooms. It’s “adulting”; not sure what I’ve gotten myself into here (Laughs). I think we closed on the house two weeks after we got married (last summer in August 2023), so it was kind of a hectic month of August, and camp opened in early September; so it was kind of a quick summer last year; but a lot of really good things, a lot of happy things and now we have a little extra time this summer to enjoy being married and enjoy having our own house; it’s been good.

Roadrunners Rapid Fire Questions: Austin described the below in one word or one sentence:

Summer in Minnesota: Lake life
Next season in Tucson: High potential
Favorite Restaurant in Tucson: Reilly Craft Pizza and Drink
The TCC: Home of the Tucson Roadrunners
Head Steve Potvin: Energetic, positive, storyteller.
Assistant Coach Zack Stortini: Tough guy, but a big teddy bear.
Dream Vacation Spot: Either an Alaskan fishing trip or Hawaii.
Favorite Sport to Watch on TV: Tennis
Favorite Sport Other than Hockey to Play: Golf
Favorite Sport to Watch in Person: Football
Halloween Costumes 2023: Average Joe’s
Pregame Skate Song: Mr. Brightside (By The Killers)
First Professional Goal: In San Antonio in 2018 against Grand Rapids.
Best Vacation You’ve Ever Been On: I went on a Mission Trip in Africa, I wouldn’t call it a vacation, but we did go on a Safari which was awesome. Or I would say a Caribbean cruise.
Favorite Theme Night: I’m a big Harry Potter Fan, so Harry Potter Night.

Congratulations on the new two-year deal, that was great news to get.

I appreciate that, it’s always nice to get that dialed in early in the summer, so you can get to work and not be so stressed and thinking about what your next year’s looking like. To sign a two-year deal in a place that I really enjoy; surrounded by such good people, the coaching staff and such a fun team; it was really a perfect situation for me and my wife and we’re happy to call Tucson home for the next two years.

How’d you get connected with the organization right before the season last year?

I was on a PTO, which is pretty much a paid tryout at the NHL camp; I actually signed that really late. I didn’t really know exactly what I was going to do. So I was lucky enough to get an opportunity and I worked my butt off in camp; then came down to Tucson and continued that. I wasn’t able to get in for the first couple of games, because we had such a deep and really good team here in Tucson. Eventually I got in and earned myself a little bit of a role and the rest is kind of history. I gained a little bit of trust from the coaching staff, grew together with the teammates and it was a great fit. But it was definitely a slower start, was grateful for the opportunity and lucky enough to turn it into a couple of more years.

What excites you the most about coming back, we had a great year, second place and a lot more in store in terms of the core guys that we have coming back, some new prospects and it looks like another great season.

We did have such a good regular season last year, I think we left a little bit on the table there in the playoffs, but that’s what we’re going to learn from. And we’re going to get better and better throughout this year. Just as Potsey (Head Coach Steve Potvin) emphasizes, we don’t take any days off, we get better every single day, whether it’s practice, whether it’s an off day, we’re still getting better, whether it’s a game day, we’re getting better as a team, we’re growing closer as a team. That was kind of the motto of our season last year, we did get better every single day. The guys that went up to the NHL did really well and we had guys come up from the ECHL that did really well, so it was really a full team effort and that’s what it takes during a long grueling season and into the playoffs. We had a pretty young team last year and I’m really excited to see what everyone is bringing to the table this year with another summer under their belts. We have some new guys coming in like Andrew Agozzino, I’ve played against him; I actually played with him in San Antonio for a few games. He’s been a great competitor to compete against for the past five-years, so excited to have him on our side. So with the core re-signings that have been here for so long, that keep this ship going, it’s going to be a lot of fun, I’m extremely excited to get that started.

What app are you most addicted to on your phone right now?

This one goes out to Curtis Douglas, Clash of Clans, we’re actually in the same clan and I play that game a ton, it’s really fun, it’s pretty addicting. ‘I like social media, but there’s so much junk on there nowadays, that I try to stay away from it as much as possible, so I’d have to say Clash of Clans, it’s cool.