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“Ryan will probably be better,” he said. “I think he’s quicker and has a harder shot than I did at his age.”

But Ryan quickly jumped in, saying, “Because John taught me so much.”

"For example, in the summers, John is so dedicated. He wakes up really early in the morning, he has a specific diet he does, he makes all these little sacrifices that contribute to his success now."

"John's family drove out a couple of days early. There's pictures actually of his hometown friends all holding up a 413 flag because Western Massachusetts. There's a lot of pride in coming from there. It's an awesome place with really good people."

"Maybe a little fun fact about John is when we talk about at some point starting a family and having kids, he's like ‘it would be so cool to have a daughter that was on the LPGA Tour and I can be her caddy’. That's one of his life-long dreams."

Ryan: “I always want to work as hard as John."

(Source: Daily Hampshire Gazette, archived)

Ryan: "I talked to him before the year, before I left, because that was the last time, I was going to see him before the circus kind of took off a little bit, if you will. He said, 'Have fun with it. You know you're going to be a top pick and not a lot of people get to go through it. So, have fun with it and make the most of your opportunity.'"

TSN: It was different for him. He ended up as a sixth round pick in 2018. Could he give you any advice on the draft process?

Ryan: "Not really. John didn't really have all the interviews like this or with NHL teams throughout the year. He was just playing hockey and if he got drafted it was just something to check off his bucket list. He knew he wasn't going to be a top pick. Even on the day of the draft, I was at a summer tournament with my family, and he was golfing with buddies and got a call from San Jose on the sixth hole and that just kind of happened. He wasn't in this position, but he gives me insider stuff on how to be a pro."

TSN: Can you draw inspiration from how he (John) grinds?

Ryan: "That guy has not been handed anything. His first year in Green Bay [in the USHL], he barely played. We go out for a weekend and we couldn't see him that much. Going out to Wisconsin for the weekend, you hope he plays. He played one game that weekend and maybe played 10 minutes if that. It's tough to see a loved one struggle like that. Even right now, he's not really playing in the [American Hockey League] playoffs. Their team is the conference final and he's watching after all the guys came down with Nashville. I mean, he's rooting for the team and all that, but it's tough to see him go through that after how good a season he had."

Ryan: "Yeah. I think that's what makes hockey fun, honestly, is kind of having that bite to your game and making the game interesting."

TSN: How do you go about doing that? Are you a trash talker?

Ryan: "I don't consider myself the biggest trash talker out there. I don't have the best lines, but just doing little things to piss people off. You can't fight at our level yet, but maybe someday I could have that role. But getting under people's skin, stuff like that, just helps me."