On the All-Star experience thus far: "It's been relaxing. I saw my family and caught up with them a bit. I saw a few my buddies - Jack (Eichel), Auston Matthews, (Zach) Werenski - and got to hang out for a little bit and had a good time."
On being named an All-Star: "I was pretty excited. I was a surprised a little bit. I'm excited. It's going to be a great experience. I talked to Justin Faulk who has been a few times and he had nothing but great things to say about the weekend. I'm looking forward to it, and I'm excited to be here."
On his development as a young defenseman: "It's been more of a slow and steady progress in my development. Each year I've gotten better and better in certain areas of my game. Coming into my third year, I think my confidence with the puck has grown a lot. I'm trying to make more plays than I have in the first two years. My game is definitely headed in the right direction, but of course there are a lot of things I can work on to get better at."
On the adjustment to playing in the NHL: "It's just gaining confidence. I think when you come into this league as a young defenseman you can keep it simple. For me specifically I just wanted to go out and ease my way into it. I'm an offensive guy. I want the puck and I want to make plays. Sometimes at first you're a little hesitant to do that stuff like old onto the puck, jump into plays and take some risks. That was probably the most difficult part: gaining that confidence and that comfortability in doing that. … I've learned so much in my first few years, and I still have a ways to go to be where I want to be."
On his skating abilities: "Ever since I've been a little kid I was always told you're not going to make it in this game if you can't skate, so that's always been my biggest focus. Even when I go back in the summertime, I like to work on my skating."
On his friendship with Eichel: "It's been awesome. We still keep in touch quite a bit through the season. He's an unbelievable player. Last time we played him he had a hat trick. He's always a blast to play against and talk to during the year. Last year at World Championships we were roommates, so we were together for about a month last summer. He's a great guy, and it's awesome to see the relationship continue as we play our NHL careers."
On the future of the Hurricanes: "We have a pretty young team, but I think that makes it special. We're all growing together and going through the same experiences. It's been great, and we're excited for what's ahead. … There are guys in our room who have won. It's just about collectively coming together and figuring it out. I think when we do that we'll be a dangerous team."
