A day after his fight with Tampa Bay Lightning agitator Steve Downie, the Caps’ Karl Alzner has no painful repercussions from the tussle, aside from his legs being tired from the rough game.
When asked about his mother allegedly wanting to talk to him after the game, Alzner said it wasn’t true, but that he probably should be calling home so his mom won’t worry.
“That’s a great rumor,” he said. “I haven’t spoken to my parents yet. I texted my dad, but I haven’t talked to them about any of that. I know my mom doesn’t really like it when I fight, so she probably wants me to call her.”
Since the fight, Alzner’s said he’s gotten a lot of support from other friends and family and thinks he might he hear from more once they see the highlights.
“I turned on my phone and I had 16 texts from people, so they’re pretty excited because they know that’s not usually what I do, so they were pretty happy to see that,” he said. “I’m pretty sure I’ll get a couple more once people start watching the highlights today. Sometimes you don’t get to catch ‘em all last night.”
Teammate and fellow-fighter Matt Hendricks also thought Alzner handled himself well and gave the beginner fighter some tips for next time.
“I talked to Hendy a little bit. I was letting him know my thought process during the fight and he thought it was ok, just because Downie’s a smaller guy than I am,” Alzner said. “The way I was trying to go about things was alright, but he’s just letting me know that if I’m going to fight someone who’s bigger, what to do and how to hold, and stuff like that, which is nice to hear.”
As for another fight in his future, Alzner isn’t so sure, but now that he’s gotten a taste of fighting, he’s willing to drop his mitts if needed.
“I haven’t made any dates for any more fights, but it’s just a thing that once you get one, you kind of remember what it’s like,” he said. “For me it’s been about five years since I had my last fight and you just forget. You forget what you’re supposed to do and how it all is. Now that I’ve gotten a little taste of it again, I might, if the chance is there. I’m not guaranteeing anything, though.”
Editor’s note: Though we were standing next to Alzner after the game and before his press interview, if Alzner says we misunderstood the conversation about his mother wanting him to call, we’ll concede that we misunderstood. And that’s why we followed up!
