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Conversations With Legends: Bryan Little - Sept. 5 2022 - Vol. 76, Issue 3 - Jared Clinton 

THE HOCKEY NEWS: There were some lean years in Atlanta and Winnipeg. But in 2014-15, the team finally makes the playoffs. What was it like to get that first taste of the post-season?

BRYAN LITTLE: I can’t remember how many seasons into my career it was that I didn’t play a playoff game, so I was craving to get into the post-season. That lived up to expectations in the way the building was and the atmosphere was and coming out to ‘The Whiteout.’ It made you hungry to get back. It didn’t go our way, but a lot of those games were close, and we actually had the lead in a couple of them. Just being a part of that first playoff experience back in Winnipeg was amazing, something I’ll never forget.

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THN: You mention how close the games were. How important was that in setting the stage for the 2017-18 run?

BL: It gave the guys like myself, who didn’t have any experience, a taste of what it was like. Even though it was just four games, we saw the ups and downs of a series. It’s just a different level of play in the playoffs, and we all got a taste of it, and it made us hungry and a bit more battle-ready for the next time we got in.

THN: A lot of fans who look back on that run will remember the Nashville series. Game 3 – when the Jets came back from a 3-0 deficit to win 7-4 – is the standout. When you’re down 3-0 in that game, what was the message and mentality?

BL: We had quite a few games that regular season where we came back and won games. It’s a weird feeling when you have a confident group like that and you get down a couple goals. You never stop believing you can come back and win. It just snowballed. We got the first goal, then the second goal, and we kept rolling. We did come back, and that’s how the whole series played out. Even though it went seven, we just felt we were going to win.

THN: You were a part of it snowballing. You assisted on Dustin Byfuglien’s goal to make it 3-2. When the momentum is building, how does that feel?

BL: It gives you an energy boost, especially at home. The crowd was going nuts. You feel like you could go on the ice and stay on for five minutes and go as hard as you could. You just have this energy in your legs that is really tough to find during the regular season sometimes but comes naturally in the playoffs in a game like that where you’re coming back, and the atmosphere is unbelievable. You just get this energy in you that is hard to explain.

THN: We often hear about the noise from Winnipeg’s home crowd. Can you put into words what it’s like?

BL: The first couple times you experience it, it’s tough to drown out because it’s so loud and intense. I remember the first playoff game against the Ducks in 2015, we come out for warmup, and usually, the building is 25 percent or half full for warmup. But everyone was in their seats and standing up for the whole warmup. I couldn’t believe it. When you get into a building like that and experience that, it’s tough to compare it to anything. The more playoff games you play there, you get more used to it, but still, those times where there’s a big hit or a big goal, it gives you this energy and feeling in your body that is unbelievable.

THN: After beating Nashville in 2018, how much pressure is there not only being in the Western Conference final but being deeper in the playoffs than any Winnipeg team, past or present, had ever been?

THE MORE PLAYOFF GAMES YOU PLAY IN WINNIPEG, YOU GET MORE USED TO IT, BUT STILL…IT GIVES YOU THIS ENERGY AND FEELING IN YOUR BODY THAT IS UNBELIEVABLE.

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BL: It was tough. You know that you win one more series and you’re in the Stanley Cup final. That alone, you feel that pressure. For us, we didn’t even really have time to think about it. We went to seven games, had one day off, and then went right into the Vegas series. We were getting a bit beat up and tired as that Vegas series went on, and I think it showed a bit. A lot of the guys on that team will probably look back and be pretty disappointed with how the Vegas series went, but they were a great team. You have to hand them that. And Marc-Andre Fleury was unbelievable that series and that playoff run for them. It’s tough to look back and see what you could have done better.

THN: There’s some disappointment, of course, but when you look back now, how special is that run to you?

BL: It was definitely one of the highlights of my career, definitely in the NHL, it was one of the highlights. It’s hard to look back on it now that I realize that was my best chance to win a Stanley Cup. It’s almost tough to look back on it now and think about it because that was the closest I ever got.

I’m sure for the guys who were on that team and are playing still, they have aspirations of winning the Cup, but for me, it’s tough because it’s a great memory, but it’s also difficult to look back on that and not think what could have been.

THN: A concussion in 2020 forced you to step away from the game. What has it been like being a full-time dad at home?

BL: It’s a bit different. Obviously, it’s been a while now since I’ve been home and since I haven’t been playing, so I’ve gotten used to it. It’s a bit tricky at first when you’re used to being on the road a lot…just being home a lot is a bit of an adjustment at first, but it’s fine now.

THN: Are you starting to think about what comes next?

BL: A little bit. It’s one of those things that came out of nowhere, so it took me off guard, and I wasn’t really thinking about it when I got injured. Been thinking about it a bit, but just trying to take my time and see what happens.

THN: How has it been reckoning with the way your career came to a halt the way it dids?

BL: The first six or seven months were really tough because I was at a point where I wasn’t sure if I was going to play again, and I was going in and out of doctor’s visits and flying different places to see specialists, getting different opinions everywhere. It was a rollercoaster the first while. Once I said, “OK,” and made the decision and kind of dealt with that, it was easier to deal with knowing that I was done. Then I could get on with it and adjust to life after hockey.

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