Thomas: I try to keep the game simple. I try to get the puck to the net, try to use my strength. It’s a physical game. I try to be a dominant player on the ice. The best area for me is down low in the corners, and be strong. Try to beat guys to the net and get lots of shots.

Michael: I have a different role on the national team than in the NHL. I play more of a centre role, have the puck, try to be creative and create some scoring chances.

Q: Thomas, why did you decide to play junior in Canada for a year?

Thomas: I had the chance to start playing pro when I was 16, so I played for two years, and then there was the NHL lockout and our club had some players over, Jason Krog, Ethan Moreau. I was young, and I had a chance to play with them, and I had a pretty good year. They helped me get a chance to play in the WHL, and everyone knows there are a lot of scouts. I was trying to promote myself to play in higher leagues. It turned out to be really hard if you’re not used to the smaller ice surfaces.

Q: Michael, you were never drafted, so how did you get into the NHL?

Michael: I went to Sweden and played with really good players. We had a good team. Filip Forsberg was there. A couple of players from the KHL were there, and they’re in the NHL now. There were always scouts at the games, and I kept working hard. It was always my dream to play in the NHL. I had a pretty good year in my second year and came to the World Championship in Helsinki. That’s when people first started asking me if I wanted to go to North America at some point in my career, and I said yes right away. That it worked out like that was a dream come true.

Q: When did you first represent your country at the same time?

Michael: The first time we played together was 2011 in Kosice. I got injured after three games. That’s the only thing I remember. It’s not such a nice memory. When I think back, I don’t even remember Thomas being there!

Q: The Austrians get promoted then demoted, promoted then demoted. Where is the national program at now?

Michael: I think we’re going in a better direction now. We have a really young team. We don’t have a lot of veteran guys, but we’re a hungry group of guys who work hard every day. We’re here for one reason, and that’s to stay up. And if everyone plays for the team, we have a chance to do that.

Thomas: We’re going in a good direction with the Austrian Federation right now, and we’re making good progress. Obviously, we don’t have that many players in Austria. We always have to hope that when the World Championship comes, we have every player available. We can’t have too many injuries. I’m really surprised at how well our defencemen are doing here. Most of them come from the Austrian league, but we have so many imports, they have a different role. As a group, we know we can win hockey games.

Q: You guys teamed up for a huge goal in the first game of the tournament, tying the game against Switzerland late in the third period and then winning in a shootout. Has that happened often?

Michael: That was our first time being in on the same goal in a World Championship. That felt nice. It was a big goal.

Q: Why do you wear numbers 5 and 12?

Michael: My dad always had number 5, and they retired his number. Thomas was the first to make the team, so he got to choose our dad’s number. When I made the team it wasn’t available, of course, so I was just given 12. I just stuck to it.

Q: What is your top career memory so far?

Michael: It’s always nice to win something, so one of my best moments was when we earned promotion to the Elitserien with Leksand. It was quite a sick moment. On the other hand, I’ll always remember my first NHL game.

Thomas: If you win a championship, it’s always nice. We won it this year again with Salzburg. Another nice moment was when we played in the Olympic Qualification and beat Germany.

Michael: Yeah, lots of good memories.