Episode 86: Marc Langbein. It was good to finally have on an agent who I see around the rinks a lot here in Germany, Marc Langbein. Marc grew up in the Bietigheim area in Germany and so began his passion for hockey. Marc cofounded Win-Win Sports Agency back in 2018. On this episode, we talked a lot about the agency business, some things Marc has learned along the way, and as well as the types of clients they look to attract at Win-Win. For me, it was nice to have a look into Marc’s life and the philosophy they have within the agency. Marc talked about the grind of starting out and how the company has grown over the years. He also touched on a personal achievement from the company when one of their athletes was drafted in the 4th round to the NHL in 2024. Small victories like this are part of the reasons agents like Marc have a passion for their job. Hope you enjoy!

Episode 85: Damon Whitten. Lake Superior State University HC Damon Whitten joined the prohockeypod this week. He started his hockey career as a goalie and played until he was in his Junior year of highschool before switching to forward. It seemed to be an easy transition as Damon would go on to play tier 2 junior hockey in multiple leagues before heading off to Michigan State University. He would spend 4 years there playing alongside the likes of goalie Ryan Miller and forward Shawn Horcoff, both who went on to have respectable NHL careers. After school, Damon spent 2 years in the ECHL where he won a Kelly Cup with the Greenville Grrrowl. After this, Damon would make the switch to coaching and spend 2 years at Wayne State University. Damon then moved to Univ. Of Alaska-Anchorage where I was very eager to talk to him about his living experiences. He joked about seeing a lot of wild life but enjoyed his time there. Damon would then get a chance back at Michigan State as Director of Hockey Operations. I picked his brain about his day to day responsibilities and how he felt it was a very importance experience for his coaching career. Damon went on to Michigan Tech for 4 years, coaching a buddy of mine, before getting his first HC job at Lake Superior, where he has been stationed for the past 11 seasons. This episode is full of great helpful experiences as well as advice for any young coaches out there. Happy Damon had the time to share them with me. Hope you enjoy!

Episode 84: Ben Syer. Ben grew up in a small town and was drawn to hockey immediately. Coming from a family of teacher’s, Ben knew the act of hard work and earning everything you got. He would go on to play Junior B hockey before attending Western University. After University, Ben would get an opportunity at Quinnipiac University that would change his career path forever. Since this opportunity, Ben has been involved in college hockey for the past 20 + years. He worked 10+ years at Quinnipiac University, 13 years at Cornell before moving on to Princeton where he just finished his first season as Head Coach. We joked about his early days of recruiting where he carried around a huge binder with players names and contacts in it. We talked about how he learned over the years of working alongside great coaches and how he was ready to make the jump to the big chair. Ben also shared the types of players he looks to recruit at his programs. Unfortunately the video feed malfunctioned a bit and only works when I am speaking. Luckily the audio from Ben is still there so you can hear him speaking. It was great to talk to Ben and someone who has been involved in college hockey for so long. Hope you enjoy!