I thought he was decent. Seemed down to earth, offered some intelligent ex player insights. Good first impression for me.

When we say someone played a "critical role" in making something happen, we are often acknowledging that they might have been a catalyst or worked 1000 hours etc... But the idea of a "role" means that you need others to play roles too. It's a collective effort and that means others are part of it.

Realistic would be recognizing the truth of a situation. Pragmatic would be devising solutions to it.

To date, the team has been uexpectedly better and more entertaining than we could have hoped for. Competing night after night is absolutely joyful for fans, especially compared to the dread that sometimes comes with a contender's expectations. Losses are just losses instead of indictments.

Covered with snow (eventually?)

Low stakes in a poker room is absolutely right-coded.