The Rangers’ trio of first-round draft picks — Vitali Kravtsov, K’Andre Miller and Nils Lundkvist — team up for some Q&A with Post columnist Steve Serby.
Q: Describe your mentality on the ice.
Kravtsov: I do everything to help the team win, and that’s No. 1 priority. I like to play beautiful hockey style, creative style and style that gets many goals and many assists so the team can win.
Miller: When my team is down, I like to get the energy back up on the bench and on the ice. Going out, make a big hit or making just a good play, a hard play, I think that’s a huge part of my game. I think guys look up to me, as a player and as a person. I always have some of my best friends to look up to as well, so having just relationships like that is a great experience.
Q: Why do you think guys look up to you?
Miller: I don’t know. I think I’m a pretty quiet leader, but definitely a leader. I’m always doing the next right thing. I take time and really develop my game, and I don’t take any days off.
Lundkvist: Just do your job and always do something creative with the puck at the right place and always do something good for a team, so have fun on the ice every time.
Q: What drives you?
Kravtsov: What motivates me is winning the Stanley Cup, because my teams never won the Cup where I was playing, so I’d like to be able to win this Stanley Cup and to raise it above my head.
Lundkvist: I think it’s to be the best version of me.
Miller: I think all that my mom has done for me. Her putting in all the time, effort, money into my development. I hope one day I can kind of pay her back for all that she’s done for me.
Q: Describe your mom.
Miller: She’s my best friend, she’s a great role model that I always look up to. I can go to her about anything. She’s amazing.
Q: A scouting report on you.
Kravtsov: I excel at being a creative playmaker, setting up teammates for scoring chances, and working for the team’s success. I’m good on the power play, with good vision and good creativity, and I think what I should improve is my penalty killing so I not only help the team score goals, I will help them not give up any goals.
Lundkvist: As a person, I think I’m a guy that’s always hungry to learn new things. Serious in everything, like in school, always taking care of my business. As a player, great skating, great hockey sense, need to improve my shot and being stronger.
Miller: I think a hard-nosed guy willing to get better every day, willing to do what it takes to get to that next level, hard guy to play against.
Q: What makes you hard to play against?
Miller: I think my size, my strength, my speed.
Q: What positions did you play in football in high school?
Miller: Wide receiver and corner.
Q: Who were your favorite players?
Miller: Marshawn Lynch and Richard Sherman.
Q: You didn’t have a favorite wide receiver?
Miller: I love Odell Beckham Jr. It’s kind of hard to not like him (smile). Hopefully I get to meet him some day. I have pretty big hands, and I’ve made a couple one-handed catches just like him (smile).
Q: What is your best skill?
Lundkvist: I think my hockey sense. I always was smaller than other guys, so I have always [been] trying to be smarter than everyone.
Q: Nils, you’ve been compared to Anton Stralman. Is that a good comparison?
Lundkvist: A little bit. But hopefully I think I have more offense in me. I like to watch Kris Letang, players like that.
Q: Vitali, you’ve been compared to Evgeny Kuznetsov.
Kravtsov: It’s a fair comparison in some ways because we grew up in the same city in similar environments. Our styles are similar in some ways because we try to help the team win. He’s a very good person and I think I’m not a bad one either (smile).
Q: What is your best hockey moment?
Lundkvist: This season when I scored my first goal in the SHL, and when I played my first game with my uncle [Jan Sandstrom]. That was really fun, and I couldn’t even believe it when it happened.
Kravtsov: When I got drafted by the New York Rangers.
Q: What did you know about the New York Rangers?
Kravtsov: When we were kids, we came to the U.S. for a hockey tournament, so I bought a New York Rangers jersey with [Jaromir] Jagr on it, and I always wore it, even for my club practices I would wear it underneath my practice jersey, and my coach would get very upset and sometimes kick me off practice for doing that. So I’ve had a long history with the Rangers (smile).
Q: Who are players you like to watch?
Lundkvist: I like to watch of course all the Swedish guys. … Kris Letang’s really fun to watch. I like to watch smaller guys like the guy in Colorado now, Samuel Girard.
Miller: Mikko Koivu. I try to model my game after Seth Jones. Being a person of color, I think I’ve always kind of looked up him, for some of the reasons and courage that he’s had playing in the league for so long already and having a great career so far.
Q: Why do you use the word courage?
Miller: Hockey’s kind of more of a white-dominant sport, so having a guy like him in the league, guys like P.K. Subban, Wayne Simmonds, great for the league and organizations that they are in, great for the communities, too.
Q: Do you want to be an inspiration to other players of color?
Miller: Yes.
Q: What’s a funny story about how young you look?
Lundkvist: At the Combine, I was at the meeting for like five minutes and then a GM came in and said like, “Oh … are you the player? You look like 12.” (smile)
Q: How do you feel about that?
Lundkvist: I don’t care about it, it’s just fun.
Q: K’Andre, when you were 10 years old you were in a commercial with Mike Richter, Pat Lafontaine and Neal Broten.
Miller: I used to do modeling when I was younger (chuckle). To do a commercial with NHL greats was a dream come true. I actually have kept in contact with Mike Richter quite a bit, and him going to Wisconsin, he’s given some great feedback.
Q: Why did you go to bed with your hockey stick?
Kravtsov: I thought it would bring me luck, and I wasn’t mistaken (smile).
Q: When you went 10 games without scoring, you looked for an online psychologist?
Kravtsov: No, I didn’t find a psychologist, I just decided to throw all these thoughts out of my head, and then things worked out and I was able to help the team.
Q: Boyhood idols?
Kravtsov: My father. He’s not afraid of anything.
Q: Your mother.
Kravtsov: My mom sacrificed a lot for me in my hockey career, moving with me to Chelyabinsk from Vladivostok, splitting the family and being with me so I can pursue my dream, so she’s very precious to me for that.
Q: Do you call your mother after every game?
Kravtsov: It’s very important to me to enjoy victories with my teammates first and savor that moment before talking to my parents. But I ask them not to talk about hockey.
Q: Who are athletes in other sports you admire?
Kravtsov: [Roger] Federer, [Lionel] Messi.
Lundkvist: [Swedish soccer star Zlatan] Ibrahimovic, [Rafael] Nadal and Federer.
Q: What do you know about Madison Square Garden?
Kravtsov: I haven’t been to Madison Square Garden yet. I’ve been to Times Square, and I walked around there for four hours, and those four hours went by very, very quickly. There’s just so many people, and such energy and intensity, which I love. People are smiling, they’re running around in a hurry, but I love the buzz.
Lundqvist: It’s a really big arena and it looks amazing, so I’m really looking forward to see it.
Miller: From what I know, it’s a great place to kind of thrive. I heard it gets loud in there, so I’m pretty excited, and it should be fun.
Q: Do you like the big stage?
Miller: I think I play my best against the best players in the world. … I think I thrive in those big games.
Q: What do you want to see in New York City?
Kravtsov: I want to see a lot of different places because each building is historic, but I want to see the Statue of Liberty.
Miller: Definitely the Statue of Liberty.
Lundkvist: I would like to see the Freedom Tower.
Q: Three dinner guests?
Kravtsov: Michael Jackson, Jagr, Valery Ponomarev.
Miller: Wayne Gretzky, Barack Obama, Michael Jordan.
Lundkvist: Ibrahimovic, Barack Obama, Henrik Lundqvist.
Q: Favorite movie?
Kravtsov: “Legend No. 17.”
Miller: “Sandlot.”
Lundkvist: “The Blind Side.”
Q: Favorite actor?
Miller: Mark Wahlberg.
Q: Favorite actress?
Miller: Jennifer Anniston.
Q: Favorite singer/entertainer?
Kravtsov: Eminem.
Miller: Migos.
Lundkvist: Ed Sheeran.
Q: Favorite meal?
Kravtsov: Steak and potatoes.
Miller: Steak and mashed potatoes.
Lundkvist: Steak.
Q: A message to Rangers fans?
Kravtsov: I will do everything in my power to make myself better so that I’m a meaningful part of this family and this family can win something together.
Miller: I’m excited to be a Ranger, but I think developing my game a little bit more before I come is gonna be a necessity. I can’t wait for the day that I sign and officially become a Ranger.
Lundkvist: They got a prospect that is really hungry to be a part of the team one day, and a guy that always sets the team before himself.
Q: What kind of player do you want to be?
Lundkvist: I want to be a top four defenseman in the NHL.
Q: What kind of a career are you driven to have?
Kravtsov: I would like to be an important part of a team, and a key player on the team who decides games for the team and with the team and wins something with the team.
Miller: Obviously, every kid wants to have a long, successful career, try to limit injuries and try to play as many games in the NHL as possible. I definitely want to bring a Stanley Cup back to New York.