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BRIDGESTONE NHL WINTER CLASSIC: BLACKHAWKS v CAPITALSJanuary 1, 2015Barry TrotzWASHINGTON, D.C. BARRY TROTZ: I've got the first question. Did anybody have any fun? Yeah, I'm having a lot of fun right now. Q. Can you talk about that five on three in the second period. That was pretty tough? BARRY TROTZ: To me, that was the tipping point of the game. We don't kill that off, the Chicago Blackhawks are leaving here with the two points and we probably have a pretty disappointed locker room. So, the first penalty kill we had, we killed off about three seconds, they scored. And that was huge. And a lot of times, your stars in these big games, they step up. Those were our guys, our ‑‑ the guys that are sort glue guys sometimes. The guys that don't get a lot of credit. All of those guys were huge on the kill. Guys like Jay Beagle, Brooks Laich, and Orpik, what can you say about him today? And Carlson and Niskanen, all those guys. So a really big kill. If we don't kill that off, I'm pretty sure were ‑‑ you're asking me a different question today. Q. Technically not halfway, but for the sake of discussion, halfway through your first season here, is the team where it needs to be, are you happy with the progress? BARRY TROTZ: I'm happy in a lot of ways. The progress, we need to learn a few things. And one of the things I learned today is that the game started ramping up, and I thought we came out with really a good game plan and good intentions and we executed it and we had a lead and then it sort of unraveled on us and we started to unravel a little bit. We haven't been on the big stage as much as maybe the Chicago Blackhawks the last couple years, and that's an area that we have to improve upon. But the thing that we have been really good at this year is, when we get off what I call the rails a little bit and we lose our focus, we're able to get back and find ways to win. Today was anothercase in point. This team last couple years has been able to score quite a bit, but haven't been able to win close games. Haven't been able to win games when the power play hasn't been clicking. So, this whole month has been really a test for us, because our power play hasn't been good this whole month, I would say, and we're finding ways to win. You ended up with two of the hottest teams coming into this Winter Classic, which was great. Q. Just describe this whole experience. What this was like for you and what will you take away, what will you remember, other than the win? BARRY TROTZ: I will ‑‑ the whole month I will remember a lot of things, because we have grown a lot. Obviously, when ‑‑ not used to having the not the center of the universe, but everybody watching our every move. I do apologize to all kids that my F‑bombs during the whole segments and I think Joel beat me by quite a few, so I think I'm safe. But we tried to give the experience of just being ourselves. I went into this just saying, you know what, I got to be myself, the players can read through that. And all that. So good or bad, we were going to go through this and it's actually helped us learn a lot about ourselves. Dealing with pressure, dealing with situations, and building up to this game and learning to deal with all the distractions. We were the home team. We probably had a lot more distractions because I just talked to Mike, I was sitting down having a quick bite to eat because we haven't eaten since this morning and he said he's got like 50 people here. And Johnny Carlson's got like 70 people. We were, as I said, we're creatures of habits and I was really worried how our focus would be and we came out with really pretty good focus. We're maturing as a team, but still in the second period we were crying about everything and whining about everything and it just, our focus wasn't on the right things. We got off track there. But third period I thought we got back on track and I thought we played a pretty good third. Q. Could the script have been written any better with Troy scoring the game winner against his former team? BARRY TROTZ: Not really. Today the big players were in play. A guy like Ovechkin, Troy Brouwer, ex‑Blackhawk, us killing penalties and then going on a power play late in the game and turning that thing around and getting a big win. So, emotionally, that was a great script for us, because it showed a little bit of what I think the Capitals are becoming as a group. Us as a team, is that we are‑‑ we can win different ways, we can be really resilient and we play to the end. That's been sort of our MO. We have been in a few games that were 3‑0, behind the eight ball, and we find ways to get a point. There's only one game in the last 12 or 13 that we haven't got a point in. And we have been on the road for a month, for the most part. I think we only had two home games really when this whole thing started. So, a lot of effort has gone into it and I think our group has grown. We're finding out a lot about guys. Q. What was the lead up like for Brooks Orpik in terms of him deciding to play? BARRY TROTZ: Well it was‑‑ well Brooks skated the other day under the radar at Kettler when we were over here. He felt pretty good. He was classified as 50/50 and got up to 75 last night. Then this morning, our trainers always want a little leeway, he got up to 85. And then Brooks, when I talked to him before warm up, I said, how are you feeling? And he says, unless something happens, I'm pretty sure I'm going to go. And I asked him when he came off, are you good to go? And he says, yeah. I says, no hesitation? And he said none. Tonight he was fantastic. He played like 24 minutes. A lot of kills, which is what he does. You can only admire what he does and brings to the group. He just makes everybody better. He doesn't say a whole lot in the room, he says everything with how he plays and how he lives and his actions and his commitment to the game. So, it really is an important piece to what we're trying to do here in Washington. Q. What did you learn about Alex and the way that he does seem to kind of relish this big stage? BARRY TROTZ: Alex, the bigger the stage, the bigger Alex is. Alex is a ‑‑ he's a rock star. When I was in the other conference I didn't see the Caps a lot, but Alex has this ability, as the great stars do, that you want to keep your eyes on him. Even if he's not doing anything good, bad, or indifferent, you want to watch him. And that's what's star power does. You want to watch those guys out there. You can say, you know, bad game, good game, whatever, you can pick him apart, but you want to watch him. That, to me, is a star. The bigger the stage, the more Alex stands up to it. There's a lot of players in this league who want the big stage, but when they're put in the spotlight, they're not as big. I think that the great players of their generation, and Alex is one, is that, when the stage is very big, you know what you're going to get and you're going to get a good performance, a great performance. I know, since I've been coaching Alex and we have gone around, a lot of people want to tear him apart, but how many superstars have scored as many goals, how many superstars put people in the seats, how many superstars play as physical as Alex Ovechkin. There's not very many. And that's what makes him unique. He's been a pleasure to coach and very easy to coach, really. Q. You mentioned first time on the big stage for a lot of guys in this organization. Is this something, come playoff time, that they can draw back on to help them through a playoff run on the big stage? BARRY TROTZ: Yeah, I think so. Any player that gets on the big stage and is a part of it, grows as a person, as a player, and we needed more of that. In the organization. We have got some young guys who have been there, we have got some older guys who have forgotten a little bit about what it takes and are re‑learning that a little bit. To have this stage is, it's important for what we want to do. We're not near where we want to get to. We played the Chicago Blackhawks, they have won Stanley Cups. To me, that's still the gold standard. Until they're knocked off the pedestal they're still the gold standard. We aspire, in this organization, to be the best and you're not the best until you can put a Stanley Cup banner up in the rafters here. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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