Players on Pause: Alex Goligoski

While the NHL continues its break in play due to the ongoing developments resulting from the coronavirus, 'Players on Pause' catches up with different Coyotes players to see how they're spending their time.
PLAYERS ON PAUSE: FISCHER | GRABNER | STEPAN | OESTERLE | DEMERS
Alex Goligoski is in the midst of his fourth season with the Coyotes and is one of just seven players on the roster to have appeared in all 70 games this year. He has remained in the Valley with his wife, Amanda, and their two kids, son Roman, three and-a-half years old, and daughter Mila, two years old.
"Right when the season got halted, the virus was starting to make waves, so initially it was unsettling," he said, looking back on how things have evolved since the March 12 pause. "We didn't really know what was going to happen, and it's still that way … it's been a little weird for everybody."

The veteran defenseman is on pace to match the second-highest single season point total of his 13-year NHL career. He ranks second on the team in assists (28) and seventh in points (32).
"You go from traveling around and playing every other day -- this crazy schedule -- to just stopping abruptly in such a different fashion than normal," he added. "For [my wife and I], it's been about keeping busy and finding new things to do with the kids, and that's really where we are."
How have you been passing the time?
"My wife and I kind of switch off [with the kids], we get our workouts in every day, or we'll do a workout together. I bought a mountain bike, so I've been hitting the trails a little bit which has been fun, I go with J.P. [Major] and Curt [Truhe], our trainers, they're big mountain bike guys, so they've been showing me the ropes of what to do, it's a good social distancing exercise. Other than that, we're on the kids' schedule, you do your morning routine and then they take a nap, then in the afternoon we find stuff to do around the house and in the yard, so it's nice that the weather's been nice, we've been outside a lot."
Any particular TV Shows or Movies you're binge watching?
"We've snuck in some TV. We watched "Tiger King", we actually have two episodes left, we kind of binged it for five or six straight nights and then ran out of steam on it, but it was entertaining. We started "Succession" on HBO, and we're a few episodes into that, it's a little slow right now but we're both into it, so we'll keep going."

Any books you're reading?
"Yes, actually, it's called "The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck", it's a New York Times Best-Seller, Mark Manson is the author."
As far as video games, have you been playing to stay entertained?
"No, I used to be a big gamer but not anymore. I used to be heavy into "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2", I played that for probably a solid five years when I was a young guy in the league and Amanda was back in Minnesota, so I would chew up my time after practices just by gaming."
What's life been like at home with more time to spend with your family?
"It's been awesome. You go for such a long stretch, especially with our schedule, it felt like our team was never home this year. It's kind of been a shock to everybody. Amanda, my wife, she has her program that she abides by when I'm gone, it's almost like you're getting in the way a little bit when you're around all the time. To be around the kids for full days at a time is awesome, you see so much stuff in them that you don't see when you're just around them for a limited time, so it's been great. Time with the wife during the season is tough to come by, it seems like you're both running on fumes, so it's been good, quality time."
Have there been challenges to staying in shape? What have you been doing to stay conditioned?
"I exercise pretty much every day, the only challenge obviously is not being able to be on the ice. I actually have my sister-in-law shipping my "Marsblades" [in from Minnesota], they're roller blade bottoms essentially, but you get them riveted on hockey skates and instead of roller blades all of the wheels are flat, it's supposed to mimic a hockey skate. I had those in Minnesota this summer, they give you somewhat of a hockey feel again. I've been doing a lot of mountain biking, we have a Peloton here, and then doing a lot of workouts in the yard, just finding different things to do."

Have you taken up any new cooking skills in the kitchen during this time? What have you focused on diet-wise?
"My wife and I are big cooking people, we've been that way for a while, so it's been fun to get back in the kitchen. During the season, you don't get to do it a whole lot. Lately we've done Indian, Greek, we're doing everything from scratch. [Cooking] is kind of 'our time', we throw the kids in front of "Curious George" or something and we get to work in the kitchen, so yeah, we've been doing a ton of cooking. Diet-wise, I'm not really burning as many calories right now even though I'm still working out, but we'll do homemade pasta once in a while. Other than that, the carbs are kind of limited - a lot of clean proteins, vegetables, keeping it tight."
What steps have you been taking to keep you and your family safe? Any particular message you'd like to pass along to fans?
"We're doing what all of the experts are telling us to do. If my wife and I have to go out or go to the grocery store, she made a couple of facemasks out of an old pillow casing and rubber bands, so we've got the facemasks going, gloves too obviously, hand sanitizer and all that, so we're just trying to do our part. We're lucky to be where we are right now, especially with the kids, they get up in the morning and hop out the door to the backyard to go play, so they're entertained all day."

Lead Photo Credit: Sean M. Haffey - Getty Images // Second Photo Credit: Norm Hall - NHLI via Getty Images // Footer Photo Credit: Norm Hall - NHLI via Getty Images