Before they head to Penrith this weekend we caught up with the two new Mustangs' AIHL All Stars, Mark Higgins and James Isaacs and All Star returnee Pat O'Kane for their thoughts on the event.
What do you think of the AIHL? Mark Higgins: I love it. It's a lot better than I thought it was going to be coming in because I never even knew there was hockey in Australia. The local talent is a lot better than I thought it would be and some of the imports out here have so much skill. The best hockey I've played is Division III college hockey which is a bit more physical, more systems, but the skill level of this league is some of the best I've ever seen. I love playing here.
James, unlike Mark who has come from college hockey, you have played pro in a number of leagues. Does this change how you view our league? James Isaacs: I don't want to say I underestimated it because I thought it would be better than some people think it is but the skill level is a lot better than a lot of people around the world give it credit for. Playing pro is a lot more systematic and tactical that way but like Mark said the skill level is definitely there and you can see the game is growing over here for sure.
What do you think of the All Star concept? MH: I think it's a good idea, the leagues trying to grow, they're trying to grow the sport in Australia so getting the best guys to play on one weekend, it should be a fun time.
JI: I think it's a good idea too, I mean theres a purse up for grabs, there's money to be won haha. It's a lot better than a lot of the other leagues that don't do all star games. There's no real selection process with other leagues so it's nice here.
Which skills event are you looking forward to participating in? JI: I'm looking forward to the hardest shot MH: I'm probably looking forward to shooting acuracy
What did you enjoy most about last year's All Star game? Was it the novelty cheque? Pat O'Kane: Getting some money was awesome but its such a good time to just relax with a bunch of guys you play against all season. Last year it was at the end of the season so this year its a bit different, kind of halfway through, so one weekend you're playing against the North Stars then the next weekend playing with them.
What are you most looking forward to this year? The skills competition. Unfortunately we missed it last year due to the Mustangs presentation night but it's just fun. It's just a good laugh. Money aside, it's a good time to show some skills and watch some of the amazing guys we have in the league.
Who are you looking forward to teaming up with? Last year, apologies Mustangs fans, but playing with Army (Matt Armstrong) and Tommy (Tommy Powell) was pretty darn good. I don't know who I'll play with but there's some good guys on here. Big Bert Malloy, he's a good friend of mine. I'm not on a team with him though. It'll be fun, there's a lot of good guys and some good coaches too.
As returning MVP do you think that puts more pressure on you? Haha no, I don't think there's any pressure on this game at all. Especially this year, it's the middle of the year so a lot of the imports can go. There's no pressure, it's just fun.
Which skills event are you most keen to partake in and which would you rather sit back and watch? I'm definitely going to win the hardest shot, that's obvious. Haha no, it'd be fun to see how fast I can go if I get the fastest skater competition but I want just to watch some of those guys shoot the puck, get some breakaways, some of the skills that I don't have!
RHINOS
LIGHTNING
NORTHSTARS
ICE
THUNDER
ADRENALINE
MUSTANGS
BRAVE
