DALLAS, TX--San Jose Sharks rookie defensemen Matt Carle scored two goals in the third period of the 2007YoungStars Game in Dallas, TX on January 23. His first goal was shorthanded. The 22 year-old from Anchorage, Alaska has been a hit since he signed with the Sharks. In fact, the defensemen with the scoring touch scored his first NHL goal in his first NHL game on March 25, 2006 at Minnesota. Only 10 players in Sharks history have done that. And he continued to accumulate points, registering three goals and three assists in his first 12 NHL games.
Carle, Denver University’s first-ever Hobey Baker Award winner, was a sensation in college. The team captain was the first player ever to earn the WCHA Player of the Year and WCHA Defensive Player of the Year in the same season. He also made the First Team All WCHA that year, his junior year in school. Outside of the rink, Carle has been a passionate gamer for as long as he can remember. The NHL YoungStar stopped by the 2K Sports NHL 2K7 Competition to talk to SportsGamer.com about his love of gaming.
How long have you been playing videogames?
I think the first system I got was the Game Boy. My parents would never get me anything like a Sega Genesis or a Nintendo, so slowly but surely, the next thing I bought new was a PS2.
That’s a big gap between the Game Boy and the PS2.
I bought a used Sega Genesis from a friend somewhere in there. He had upgraded to something else. I also spent a lot of time playing games at my buddies houses.
What games do you like to play?
I always loved playing Tiger Woods and the NHL games.
What gaming consoles do you have now?
I have an Xbox 360 at home set up and a PSP for the road.
Did you play the old EA Sports NHL games growing up?
Yeah. Everybody remembers the glitch in NHL 94 when you could do the wraparound goal and get the puck stuck on the post. I played those games growing up with all of my buddies that I played hockey with. I remember staying up late at night having tournaments and having fun. It’s all part of being a kid.
What’s it like to see yourself in NHL 2K7 in high definition?
It’s kind of funny. I was giving the 2K Sports guys some grief because when I first saw myself in their game they had given me a goatee and I don’t even think I could grow a goatee. So I was like, what are you guys doing? It’s weird. When you’re younger you’d always create yourself, but now I don’t have to do that anymore. It’s different, but it’s fun.
Do you always play as the Sharks?
No, because when my younger brothers were down for Christmas, we usually just play random. We make up a rule where you can do three random picks and choose the best team of those three to play with. That’s how we usually play.
Can you talk about how you worked with 2K Sports on their upcoming hockey game?
They had a script that was written up for myself and Anson Carter. It’s mostly the goal celebrations. We were in the booth doing all kinds of random things. Mostly, it was a strategy session. They wanted us to play the NHL 2K7 and help them out in crafting the new game a little bit. We helped them with things like where guys lined up for face-offs and they just really wanted to make the game as realistic as possible. I think when you’re playing the game, we just gave them some tips and ideas of how to do that.
Can you hear your chatter in the game?
The voiceover we did was for the NHL 2K8 game, because they had already released the 2K7 game before I went up there.
Are there a lot of gamers on your team?
Our team, when we travel, we all have PSPS. So we play SOCOM against each other and it makes for a pretty fun time.
Who’s the best SOCOM player on your team?
It’s probably a toss-up between Marcel Goc and Christian Ehrhoff. Those guys are pretty good. We always have to split them up so they don’t play on the same team. It’s pretty fun. The guys really get into it.
Do you play anything else on PSP?
I also play Tiger Woods. I stick to those two games.
Joe Thornton had said he plays videogames. Are there any other gamers on your team outside of the PSP?
I’m sure other guys have Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 at their homes. I don’t know exactly who has what, but games are a good way to relax during your down time.
What role do you see the NHL videogames playing in helping to grow the sport, especially in the U.S.?
Games are getting so much more realistic, so hopefully when fans want to experience what we go through in the NHL they’ll be able to do that through the videogames. Hopefully that will help grow the sport and get more people involved.
Do you check your player stats with the new games?
We all want to see how we do in the new game and give each other grief about it. We’re all pretty interested to see what the 2K Sports guys think of us.
Do you have an in now that you’ve worked with 2K Sports?
Exactly. When I was there I tried to smooth talk some people about getting my overall rating up and I told them which areas I was a little better in and asked them to jack those numbers up. It’s all fun and games. I was just joking around with them when I was up there.
Do you play anything outside of Tiger Woods and the NHL games on your Xbox 360?
I have Top Spin Tennis 2 and I’m waiting for Halo 3 game to come out. I had the old Xbox and I used to play Halo 2 on that. I was never really very good.
Did you ever play Xbox Live?
Yeah. When I was in college that was a big thing on our team. Everyone had Xbox and we’d all meet up online and play Halo 2.
Have you ever tried playing against people you don’t know?
Yeah. I’ve played by myself once in a while. I wasn’t very good. The competition out there is pretty tough. Yeah, but my rating never got that high so I was always playing against the amateurs.
What’s this All-Star Experience been like for you?
It’s been a lot of fun. To be here and be in the YoungStars Game…playing with guys you’re used to playing against and getting to know them a little bit. Obviously, we’re just getting dressed in the locker room and it’s just down the hall from all the big stars and you’re kind of a little bit star struck. This is my first experience at being at one of these and just walking around and seeing these guys in the locker room getting ready for the Skills Competition was a lot of fun. It’s a fun thing for the fans and a fun thing to be part of as a player.
What’s it like to play hockey where you don’t have to worry about checking and penalties and that kind of stuff?
It makes for a fun game. The physical side of the game isn’t really my go-to, so being able to skate around and wheel-and-deal like we did last night was a fun experience for myself and I think for the rest of the guys that were there.
