Red Wings prospect Lucas Raymond was profiled by GT.se’s Adam Johansson ahead of the World Junior Championship. What follows is roughly translated from Swedish:
“It could be embarrassing when friends came over”
Lucas Raymond had all the conditions to succeed, but it was he himself who chose to become a hockey player.
With joy, before the “must.”
That’s how Swedish ice hockey’s biggest forward crown jewel was formed.
“There have never been any ‘musts’ in our family,” says his mother, “Cia.”
In a long report before the World Junior Championshp, SportExpressen now tells the story of the Junior Crowns’ big star, Lucas Raymond, 18.
“His pacifier blanket was a stick”
It is Cecilia “Cia” Wosse Raymond who describes her son–and she does so with excessive love.
“He’s just such a damn good person. Stubborn, too. That’s what makes him who he is. I’m very proud of him. Especially when I know what work he’s put in, from a young age to today. There’s never been any whining. He just chews onward. It’s mighty impressive. And we’ve never had to bother him. He has known what he wants to do from the first moment.”
The picture [in the article] of the boy with the curly blonde hair in a floral shirt represents Lucas, 3 years old, in the Raymond family’s basement.
He seems ready.
For a second his gaze rests on the camera lens, and in the next he seeks the ball that lies at his feet.
“I always had a stick in my hand, often a floorball stick and a ball. If I was going to go and see my [older] brother play or if we were going shopping in IKEA. I liked playing with a stick and ball very much from an early age,” Lucas explains.
For as long as he can remember, Lucas has wanted to be like his brother. Hugo, who is three years older.
“He’s been my idol since I was little. I still look up to him,” says Lucas with a warm tone in his voice.
As in so many other sibling relationships, there’s been a constant competition between the brothers.
“Ha ha, yes, we’ve fought and been beaten more than usual. Age has never been a problem. On the contrary, we’ve had huge competition against each other, and I think it developed both of us very much.”
Hugo himself plays hockey in Goteborgs IK, but the eliteserien bet was placed on the shelf a couple of years ago.
Sport is an obvious element of the Raymond family.
Father Jean played tennis or football, mother “Cia” works as a personal trainer and dietician (we will return to that).
“We like sports, absolutely. In all forms. We go water skiing, windsurfing, and the boys play a lot of golf. Lucas is a devil at golf, even though he doesn’t have time to play much. He has a physical element in his body that makes it easy for him, regardless of the sport,” says “Cia.’
Lucas could have actually chosen another sport–namely soccer. He played in Orgryte, or OIS as they are called, until he was 12-13 years old.
From an early age, his talent was remarkable.
He has had a certain flair.
It is noticeable even today, because the guy has an x-factor.
That which cannot be explained, but which people pay the entrance fee of a ticket to see.
He himself says it’s in his spinal cord.
“I try not to think so much when I play, but instead go on instinct. Trying to read modes and take what you get afterwards. There are things I want to sharpen, and I still think I can take more shots and be more north-south. I want to continue to develop and then I have to get better at what I’m already good at, and also improve at what I’m not as good at.”
How much is talent, and how much is training?
“I think you can definitely have talent in different sports, that you can be born more athletic, but a lot comes from working hard early. Even though many players are seen as prospects, it’s hard work that’s behind it. I don’t think that you’re born into being a good hockey player, and I myself have trained a lot. However, when I was younger, I didn’t see it as training because it was a lot of fun.”
You did it for fun.
“Yes! When I was little, and still am, hockey was the best thing I knew of. To go on public rides before and after practice, or to play hockey on the street. It’s actually training, but I never did so because of it. I played because I thought it was fun.”
That word–fun–keeps on coming back in conversations with Lucas and “Cia.”
They speak the same language.
It seems to be the foundation of Lucas Raymond’s career and life.
“It’s come naturally because we had sports in us from the beginning. Since then, there have never been any ‘musts’ for our family. It has had to come by itself. There is nothing forced. It should be fun. Lucas also got to try lots of different sports. He wanted to try swimming at some point, and then he started a course at Valhalla in Gothenburg. He thought it was very sad after a quarter of an hour because they did not jump from high enough, they were not allowed to dive from the tier,” says “Cia,” who at the same time has an infectious laugh break out again.
However, she emphasizes:
“Although we were also careful that if he chose to start a course or sport, that he would complete what he started.”
“Mom cannot cook for a lifetime”
It’s easy to be dazzled by Lucas Raymond’s hockey journey, even though it has barely begun. He’s determined a World Championship final, was picked as the fourth player in the NHL draft and is already playing in his third season on Frolunda’s “A-team.”
Sometimes it’s difficult to understand that the boy is 18 years old.
The road here has been marked by strong love for sport, but Raymond’s upbringing has also given him the right conditions to get into a position where he is seen as one of the country’s most prominent talents.
Since his first skate cuts, he’s been with one of Sweden’s most successful talent factories, Frolunda, which has given him the right tools during the journey.
The support from his family has been invaluable, and to top it all off, mother “Cia” has a certain expertise, as previously mentioned.
“Mom has a good grasp of diet, of course it is taken up sometimes. But I’ve probably had a good time, too,” says Lucas with a light laugh.
It must be the ultimate to grow up as a hockey player under those wings.
“Yes, for better or worse. It’s been very helpful, even though I might not have thought about it. I’ve always eaten well and gotten the right things for me. I also gained a lot of knowledge of diet, and learned because of it. Mom can’t cook for a lifetime, therefore I’ve gained a knowledge of food, what is good, and not good, to eat. That you have to think about. At the same time, we sometimes eat well, too. It’s not been zero or 100%, sometimes you have to treat yourself.”
At what age did you start to talk about diet and exercise? And what significance has your mother had?
“Huge. Diet is only a small part of it. Both my parents have been extremely supportive, and that includes my big brother. Getting your diet into it is just a bonus. We’ve never sat down and talked about diet, but instead, have learned gradually.”
“Cia” herself tries to tone down the concept that her career course has shaped Lucas as a hockey player.
“Of course I Tried, but it’s difficult to be a prophet in your own land, I usually say.”
Her laughter makes the phone vibrate again.
“Of course, our children have always learned that you eat well from the beginning. In my profession as a dietician, you should eat everything–but in moderation. And of course it’s based upon how and what you train for, you need more of certain things.”
She believes that her children have never been pranked on any diet schedules or exercise routines. The ambition has been to create individuals with healthy habits.
“The fact is that we never thought about this when they were younger. They trained because it was fun. That was the most fun thing they knew. To play hockey, soccer and other sports. When Lucas came up to an age where you start to control a little more with diet and exercise to create good conditions, he was already with a nice organization like Frolunda is. There you get all the help you want. Although I’ve liked it sometimes…Like when the food may not have been 100% in the restaurant sometimes.”
Not 100%…What do you mean?
“This also applies at school sometimes. When it’s sloppy food, bad with vegetables, and it’s tasteless. You need to get young people to be encouraged to eat good food. If it doesn’t taste like anything, then they may resort to fast food that doesn’t provide energy or nutrition.”
What do’s and don’ts have been in the family?
“We’ve tried to avoid semi-finished products. It has been a rule, to cook from scratched. It should be versatile, and the diet circle is a very good base to start from. Then it can be embarrassing when friends came over to us sometimes, and were served quinoa, bulgur and things they had not eaten before. They sat and looked at the plate: ‘What is this?’ But it’s not been in any fanatical direction. Sweet potatoes are an example, it came to us early. The children have learned that it saturates a little longer, but otherwise it has been calm and calm.”
Is there anything that Lucas has not eaten–that you think he shouldn’t have done?
“Not really. After all, Lucas is not a vegetable fan, he never has been, ha ha. When it comes to lettuce, tomatoes and cucumbers, it’s not something Lucas liked to eat directly, but then it became something else instead–like root vegetables. Again, we’ve been normal and not controlled the kids. You have to sneak in because they’re omnivores. They like all kinds of food. It’s been a rule of thumb with us, not to cook three different dishes so all taste buds are fulfilled, but they have been allowed to eat what is served. There have been no strange things.”
How much have you influenced Lucas when it comes to training?
“Not very much. In my world, you should exercise and have fun. In their context, such as soccer and ice hockey in particular, it’s been handled fantastically well in both Orgryte and Frolunda, where Lucas has had very good coaches. I may have gone in and helped the children when they asked for tips on exercises. In the summers we’ve had fun with training, like when I developed resistance bands and they have to run across the lawn. And when we train on slopes in the country. But that was only when they started to get a little older.”
Lucas Raymond has barely had time to grow up, but when he reasons about ice hockey, his career, and the life that brought him here, it may sound like he’s been playing at the highest elite level for several decades.
He talks and acts like a pro.
Maybe because he is.
And he knows who to thank for being here.
“My whole family has had a huge impact on my career so far,” says the player who will now try to help the Junior Crowns at the WJC.
Only 18 and this kid is full of character, Wing fans are going love him for a long time. I hate to say this but he will be treat to cheer for. Larkin and Raymond, excellent building blocks.
The rebuild is starting to look very good!
I recall reading about Gretzky when he was a kid. What he did was to sit in front of the TV and draw where the puck went. He would do this continually. My point is that you not only have to have the talent to be great, you have to really be driven and work like crazy to be great. The kid seems to know what it is all about.