	products recent interviews FastScripts archive about ASAP Sports

Our Clients:

Browse by Sport

Find us on

Subscribe to RSS

Click to go to
Asaptext.com

View our
e-Brochure

NHL HERITAGE CLASSIC MEDIA CONFERENCE

February 19, 2011

Brent Sutter

Q. Coach, if I recall walking out and getting on the ice, seems like a fun practice to begin with, a little scrimmage round. Tell me what the atmosphere was heading on the ice.
COACH SUTTER: It was good. I think the guys were excited to get going. There's been lots going on here in the last little bit and leading up to it. Today is one obviously one day now when the game starts. It was good to get out on the ice and have a practice, a brief and crisp one. Guys got used to the ice and the boards and had a blast and the overall environment out there is good.

Q. (Off microphone)?
COACH SUTTER: Those are robins, he gave them to me to wear for practice. He got them from some, I guess, some banquet or something he did in some reserve up in northern Alberta somewhere a couple of years ago. He said why don't you wear these, I said no problem. Warm. Very warm. They're nice.

Q. (Off microphone)
COACH SUTTER: Yeah, I noticed that in practice. Good thing there's a lot of Sam Peter fans.
It wasn't that bad out there. I think the guys, I think it was more their fingers, their hands. Not a lot of guys had anything inside their gloves. So their hands were cold. But other than that there's no one complaining about anything. Outstanding setting.
You notice it like out skating really, outdoor rink, the pond or whatever, there's some hollowness, but other than that the ice was outstanding.

Q. Are you ready for the game now finally after all of this build-up?
COACH SUTTER: It will be nice tomorrow for it to get started. We'll wake up tomorrow and get focused and obviously we've tried to keep it as normal as we can for the guys tomorrow getting here and their preparation, be ready to play. Obviously it's a big game for both teams. A little different situation, circumstances as far as the timing of this game, with it being closer to the end of the season and the game's obviously very important. And we've got 22 games going left in the regular season. They're all huge games for us. So tomorrow like I said we'll be ready to play and I'm sure Montreal will, too. Big game for them, too.

Q. From a coaching perspective, do you guys make many adjustments from your end?
COACH SUTTER: No. I think we, as a coach you stress to your team as year long is you play a certain way no matter what the circumstances are, no matter what surroundings are, doesn't matter what you're playing, what time of day you play, you've got to play a certain way.
And I think that there will be - you've got to expect something to be a little bit different in the game, just because of the circumstances of the weather. But other than that, as far as preparation, as far as the players are concerned, as far as structure, systems, whatever teams use, it doesn't change.

Q. Just curious about distractions. It's a fun day today. It's meant to be. How do you - you can't just flip that switch. How do you get that focus that you command out of your team after a day like this, of enjoyment and that?
COACH SUTTER: Well, number one, is that you want your players to experience just in a very positive way and enjoy it and take all the great things out of it.
But on game day, it's game day and the guys know it. They're professional athletes. And they understand circumstances and they understand how important the game is. So I don't think that will be an issue at all.
For me it's been everything leading up to it, the last two days, just making sure that the practices are still crisp and sharp and get ourselves as well prepared as we can be for tomorrow. And we've been off since Wednesday now and we gave the guys a day off to keep them away on Thursday and just a break.
Yesterday we had a practice at the dome and today was the first skate here. So it's been what you just try to manage it the best you can leading up to game time. The guys have been outstanding. They've been great about it. And like I said they're professional athletes. They understand the importance of the game and they'll be ready to go.

Q. NBA All-Star Weekend U.S.A., who cares about that, but in the Canadian hockey market, at a grassroots level, the Hockey Canada issued calendars to parents in different languages, trying to get interest at a grass root level. What does it mean for the Heritage Classic to all the people watching and how does it go participating at a grassroots level?
COACH SUTTER: The game in Canada is, obviously it's a culture here for us. And all different ethics and origins. You see all different permits. Like I say, different origins and everything playing the game today. And the game is really - obviously it's always been a huge part of life in Canada.
But you could see it growing. And when you get, you look down into the U.S. and see how the game is growing in the U.S., and I can't speak in other areas of the world because you don't experience that firsthand. But just from listening to players that come from different countries, the game is - it's a great game. It's a magnificent game. And to see young players learn the game at such a young age and everyone involved in it, it's a great thing.
And to have this game played outdoors, it's how all of us have learned to play the game really. It's really, to be quite honest, it's where your skills have come from as a hockey player is what you've done on the outdoor rinks and on the ponds and the slews and what you do in your own team environment, that's what it is. It's a team environment. You're structured certain ways to do certain things. But when you're allowed to go out on a river or a lake or an outdoor pond or outdoor rink, that's where you learn your skills.
You're playing not necessarily with a puck. You'll be playing tennis balls or whatever, a whole different environment. And the game has grown. And it's obviously huge in Canada but it's grown elsewhere.

End of FastScripts

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297