2009 Pittsburgh Penguins draft picks: Q&A with Philip Samuelsson (with audio)

After the Pittsburgh Penguins selected Philip Samuelsson 61st overall in the 2009 NHl Draft, he stepped down from the stage and fielded a few questions from various members of the press.  Here's the transcript of the Q&A session after the jump (or you can listen with this link).  Keep checking back throughout the day as I add Q&A sessions with other draft picks and members of the Pittsburgh Penguins. 

I jumped in a few seconds late, but the first question asked him about whether or not he was familiar with Pittsburgh.  Read on after the jump.

I was born in 91 and we lived there for two or three years so I'm sorta familiar with that area.  I saw my dad win two Cups there so I know how passionate they are about the sport.  It's great to have a city like that that has passionate fans.

You probably don't remember those Cups then, do you?

I was just a little baby.  We have pictures of me sitting in the Cup around the house.

You're going to Boston College.  Was that a difficult situation knowing your father's history with that?

No.  He played the game how he played it.  You can't take anything away from him.  That happens every now and then in hockey.  It's his career and if I get some comments every now and then that's just gonna happen and I have to deal with it.  Boston College is a great school and I'm excited to be a part of that program here in the Fall.

How much do you know about your dad's career?

I know a lot about it.  I was nine years old when he retired so I uh, I saw him play a lot.  I played many hockey in a lot of green rooms growing up so I got to meet a lot of people in the hockey world at a young age so I know a lot of people sitting out there in the draft floor and it's very exciting.

Did he say anything specifically to you about his time in Pittsburgh?

No he just said come prepared to play every day especially.  He really liked Pittsburgh the city, it's a great hockey town and a great sports city so nothing too in particular.

How does you game compare to his?

We play similar styles.  I'm maybe not as physical as him but you know, similar styles - shutdown defenseman and I can really eat some big minutes on the ice there.

I know you're aware of his playing but are you aware of how big a deal he still is to a lot of fans back there?

Yeah I see it going back to Sweden in the summers we see it.  They still ask him.  He did win the Stanley Cup so I mean thats a very big deal and not many people can do that in their lifetime so I'm extremely proud of him and his career.

Any areas of your game you're looking to improve on?

Yeah.  Today's rules skating is very important.  My skating is not the best so that's one thing I'm honing in on this summer just getting mobile with the puck so I can better adapt to this new style of game and as well as I have strengths that have gotten me to this point and just fine tuning those things to one day play in the NHL hopefully.

What are your offseason plans?

Well I'm in Sweden working out with my dad, you can't ask for a better trainer.  Getting on the ice maybe once a week.  Working out hard and working on what I need to be in shape for Boston next year.

What's it feel like to be drafted this early?

It's a dream come true to be here.  I was not expecting this this early but it's an honor to be picked by the Stanley Cup Champions and it's just so (inaudible) with me now it hasn't really sunk in with me yet.