• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

MayorsManor.com

NHL blog, LA Kings hockey news and interviews from The Mayor

  • Radio Replay
  • Prospect Rankings
  • Podcast
  • Contact Us
You are here: Home / AHL / Kaunisto eyes twitter return, not ready for Europe though

Kaunisto eyes twitter return, not ready for Europe though

August 8, 2012 By John Hoven

Kaunisto Kings AHL MayorsManor“I’ll be back!”

That’s not Arnold Schwarzenegger uttering his famous line, it’s actually NHL prospect Ray Kaunisto talking about his impending return to twitter.

“I’m just taking a little hiatus,” he told us during a recent phone interview from his home in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan – YooperVille USA, if you will.

Never afraid to speak the truth, Kaunisto came on MayorsManor last summer and threw his wife right under the bus, calling her a ‘lost cause’ when speaking of her devotion to the Anaheim Ducks. He was quickly back at it again this time around, expanding on why he deleted his twitter account.

“I was spending way too much time on it. I have to give my family a little more attention than my twitter followers,” he said. “My wife was kinda getting on my back a little bit.”

After a quick laugh – and a reminder that he may want to listen to her, considering he married out of his league – we got back to hockey.

On June 20th the Kings announced they’d sent qualifying offers to seven of their eight restricted free agents. Kaunisto was the guy left on the outside looking in.

“Actually, I found out on twitter,” he shared.

A few minutes later came the first of several text messages and phone calls to roll in that day. ‘Hey – what’s going on? I saw they didn’t resign you.’ said the text from his now-former teammate in Manchester, Andrew Campbell.

Kaunisto wasn’t really sure how to respond, saying he knew about as much as Campbell at that point.

Even now, some six weeks later, he’s yet to hear anything from the Kings or their AHL affiliate.

“I thought that I at least would have had a phone call or something,” said Kaunisto, who originally signed a free-agent contract with the Kings in March 2010 – just after he completed his college career at Northern Michigan University.

“Sometimes that’s how it goes though,” he theorized. “I’ve had a couple of conversations with my agent. But, I’m not too sure what’s ahead right now.”

He’s had some time to process things, yet it’s still all a bit confusing says Kaunisto.

“I definitely thought I’d be back in Manchester. But, you never know when your contract is up and it’s in the hands of upper management. You just go home and wait to see what happens when you don’t have a contract.”

His agent went to work immediately, scouring the hockey world, trying to secure a job for his client.

“I’m just waiting on a phone call from him,” said the 6-foot-4 forward. “We’ll look at different options. But, I don’t even know if I’ll be able to get an NHL contract at this point. That’s what we’re hoping for though.”

Although mindful that beggars can’t be choosers, if given a choice, he’d also like to play center – something he first told us about last September in an article here.

“That’s where I’d like to be,” Kaunisto reiterated. “If you look at my numbers in the past, that’s where I produced the most and have done the best in my career so far. That’s where I was in juniors and that’s where I was my senior year in college.”

So, besides a preference to play up the middle, what’s next for Kaunisto? Where does he go from here?

“I don’t think I want to head over to Europe quite yet,” said Kaunisto, in reference to the possibility of joining his buddy Bud Holloway overseas. “I’ve always been a late developer. So, I feel like I want to take my chances here and see how that goes for a couple more years.”

Given that most minor league teams fill out their rosters with a mix of players assigned to them by their parent clubs and a few free agents, something should be available somewhere. Does that mean if another AHL team doesn’t come calling, the ECHL might be an option?

“If that’s what I had to do, yeah,” said Kaunisto.

After a few second pause, he added – “That’s not ideal. But, if that’s what I had to do.”

How about signing with Anaheim – would that make his wife happy?

“I haven’t talked to her about the Ducks situation,” he said. “But, I think she’s in the same boat as me – I’m just trying to get a job right now. Lately I’ve been telling my buddies, ‘You get lunch this time, I’m an unemployed hockey player.'”

In addition to free meals, Kaunisto has been putting in the necessary time at both the gym and the rink.

“I feel like I’m having a really good summer right now. I’m getting a lot bigger, stronger and faster. I’ve taken a lot of experience and learning out of Manchester – not just on ice stuff either. It’s about being a pro, preparing and stuff like that. So, I feel like I’ll probably be able to get to the next level at some point.”

Regardless of where he lands, a return to twitter won’t be far behind.

“I’ll be back soon, maybe even a few weeks,” proclaimed Kaunisto. “I’ll come back with a bang. I’m not going to change anything up.”

And signing a new contract? When is that likely to happen?

“Depending on the lockout situation, there are just so many different kind of factors involved,” said the 25-year old forward. “I’m just sitting here waiting. But, I know that window of opportunity is dwindling because the summer is almost over. I’m just waiting for something to come up.”

Until then, the only thing on his calendar is hitting up Jordan Nolan’s Stanley Cup party in a few weeks.

Follow @mayorNHL

Filed Under: AHL, HockeyBlog, Interview, Kings, NCAA, NHL, Prospect Tagged With: AHL, comments, contract, Europe, free agent, hockey, Holloway, interview, Kaunisto, Kings, Los Angeles, Manchester, Mayor, MayorsManor, Michigan, Monarchs, NHL, quote

About John Hoven

John Hoven is a former member of the Professional Hockey Writers Association and co-hosts Kings of the Podcast. He's also the founder and editor of MayorsManor.com, which has been named Best Sports Blog in Los Angeles and Hockey Blog of the Year. Click "ABOUT OUR TEAM" below for a full bio.

Reader Interactions

Trackbacks

  1. Kaunisto the correspondent reports from Nolan’s Cup party says:
    August 20, 2012 at 11:35 pm

    […] read our recent interview with Kaunisto, click here.  Also, we have exclusive on-ice video from moments after the Kings won the Stanley Cup with […]

Primary Sidebar

Kings Of The Podcast

Kings Of The Podcast: Ep. 147 with Jordan Spence

Kings Of The Podcast returns for another all-new episode, and this time around John Hoven and Dennis Bernstein are joined by LA prospect Jordan Spence. Some of the topics covered in this hour-plus KOTP edition include: — Mark Yannetti and the NHL Draft — Being born in Australia and relocating to Japan, then Canada — […]

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Recent Posts

  • Reign Recap: Petersen Shines in Ontario’s 5-2 Win Over Tucson
  • Ontario Reign Projected Lineup vs. Tucson Roadrunners; Several LA Prospects Returning To Action
  • Kings Of The Podcast: Ep. 148 – Live from NHL All Star Weekend in Florida
  • Rapid Review: Notes and Highlights from Kings Latest Stormy Loss in Carolina
  • Reign Recap: Four Goal First Period Powers Ontario to Victory Over Colorado
  • Projected Lineups – LA at Carolina; Kings Blow Into Town With History Against Them
  • Ontario Reign Projected Lineup vs. Colorado Eagles; It’s a 3-2 Season Series
  • Reign Recap: Ontario Falls Short Against Calgary 4-1
  • Ontario Reign Projected Lineup vs. Calgary; Time to Wrangle Up Another W
  • Rapid Review: Notes and Highlights from Kings 5-2 Loss in Tampa Bay

Tweets by mayorNHL

Footer

Archives

Tags

AHL Blackhawks Brown camp Carter Clifford coach comments Doughty draft Ducks history hockey interview Kings Kopitar lineup Lombardi Los Angeles Manchester Mayor MayorsManor Monarchs Murray NHL Ontario Penner Playoffs Prospect Quick quote Radio Reign Richards roster Sharks Stanley Cup Stoll Sutter Toffoli trade video WCB West Coast Bias Williams

MayorsManor

  • About Our Team
  • Contact Us
  • Store

© 2023 MayorsManor.com