DARRAGH: Your former Denver teammate Mike Benning is also in the Florida Panthers organization. Have you been able to talk to him about his pro experience so far?
DEVINE: Me and Mike have been keeping in touch a bit. He’s obviously been in Charlotte most of the season now, but it’s been pretty cool to watch him, and I’ve watched a few of their games. It looks like he’s having a good year and it’s nice knowing you have someone in the organization you that you can talk to and connect with to figure out how the adjustments have been and how he’s liking it there.
DARRAGH: What is something fans should know about Mike?
DEVINE: He’s a pretty funny guy. He’s always smiling and cracking jokes.
DARRAGH: You got to spend some time down here in Florida for development camp. What were the biggest things you took away from that experience?
DEVINE: I think development camp is a great opportunity to meet the staff and other prospects. It’s obviously a quick camp, but I think it’s just about grabbing a couple details and implementing them into my game this season. It goes by quick and there’s a lot of information, but anything you can take away and implement, I would say is a successful camp.
DARRAGH: Have you been able to watch the Panthers in the last year and half and, if so, what has stood out to you about the team?
DEVINE: I definitely watched their playoff run last year and I try to throw on as many games as possible when I’m not doing schoolwork or practicing. I think what excites me is that they look like a team that just has fun out there. They definitely look like they have a strong group that’s together and connected. Just watching, they have so much skill, but they work really hard and I think that aligns with parts of my game.
DARRAGH: Is there a NHL player that you’ve tried to emulate their style of play either growing up or now?
DEVINE: I don’t know if there’s exactly one NHL player, there’s tons of guys I enjoy watching and try to pick little things out of. This year it’s been really fun to watch a guy like Sam Reinhart. He’s obviously a tremendous player, second overall pick, he scores a lot of goals and does a lot of great things. I don’t know if I try to emulate my game, but he’s such a tremendous player that I try to watch and bring a few things into my game.