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NHL WESTERN CONFERENCE FINALS: BLACKHAWKS v DUCKSMay 30, 2015Joel QuennevilleANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA: Game Seven Chicago – 5 Q. Coach, we talk about Jonathan Toews' leadership quite a bit. What did it mean first to get off to that start? Any surprise he was the catalyst? COACH QUENNEVILLE: No, not at all. I mean, he's an amazing person. He's an amazing hockey player. Bigger stage, bigger the setup, he just seems to excel in big moments, big stages. Shows as good as leaders in any sport. Q. Joel, seemed like the decision to put Kane and Toews together tipped the scales of the series. Do you feel that way as well? What type of boost did those guys give you against the Ducks? COACH QUENNEVILLE: Well, it was in Game5 when we got behind in the third. We put them in a couple shifts. Looked like they really clicked. You're thinking on the offensive side of things. Then Game 6 we put them together. They took off right away. Saader had a real good last part of the series where he was dominant in a lot of ways. Kaner with his play and patience level, play selection, as good as it is. Toews, call it everything. Really gives us a lot of options offensively and defensively. They play the right way. They had really a couple big games for us. Q. I know Bryan Bickell didn't play much past the second period. Is he okay or a personnel thing? COACH QUENNEVILLE: Mostly on him. I think he should be fine. Q. Also Kruger. COACH QUENNEVILLE: He should be fine, too. Q. Patrick Kane, when you got him back at the start of the playoffs, did you think you would get this much this soon from him? COACH QUENNEVILLE: Maybe at this stage of the game. Maybe we needed to win two rounds the way it was forecasted on the original prognosis. He was skating, skating, skating. He's a special player. When the puck is on his stick, he wants the puck, his play recognition is at the top of the game. Had a real big series for us in the first round. Scored big goals in the Minnesota series. He's a threat every time he touches the puck out there. Tonight he was great. Q. Joel, when Toews and Kaner are that explosive, do you think to yourself, I should be doing this more with these guys? COACH QUENNEVILLE: Well, it's a great opportunity, it's a great strength of our team, is the depth and the balance. We always feel if they've got to be concerned with Johnny, Kaner, might free him up a little bit. A lot of teams have good top lines, checking lines, a top pair. Sometimes that depth, you can work it a little bit. But, you know, I think sometimes on a need basis they get together a little bit more. I think they get excited about it. Q. In retrospect, how much did the Game 7 loss last year serve as motivation, not only tonight, but throughout the season as something that was fuel for you? COACH QUENNEVILLE: It was a tough thing to visit. A real negative moment. It's a real hard thing to accomplish. Last year, getting that far, it's an amazing journey. It's a tough battle. There's a lot of tough ones. Then you have to get ready in training camp and think, Wow, do you know how long it is to get to where we got today? It's an eternity. We commend the guys' perseverance, finding different ways, challenges. Making the playoffs in today's game is a great accomplishment, especially when teams are excited about playing you. That's just a testament to the consistency and the way they prepare. I commend the guys that have been through it. Q. Joel, how has Corey Crawford progressed throughout the playoffs? Had early troubles, but seems like he's improved as the series have gone on. COACH QUENNEVILLE: I think we've seen Crow in the playoffs. A lot of question marks. 2013, he was outstanding, a big factor in us winning. Last year, you go that deep in the playoffs with your goaltender, he's got to be doing something right. This year, well, I think Darls came in, call it what you want, he won a couple big games. But Corey stayed with it, got the net back, showed what it's like to be a good pro. Q. You have this core that has played in so many big games over the years. Does it get any easier for you as a coach when another Game 7 comes along, because you have guys that have done it so many times before? COACH QUENNEVILLE: The rah‑rah part, motivation, get your team excited, I don't say too much in that regard. I'm terrible with the motivational speeches. The guys, it's about competing. They demonstrate how you can be successful. They do their playing, it does a lot of their talking for them. Q. There's a lot of day‑to‑day challenges. Do you ever step back and think about what this group has accomplished? Is it something like what you envisioned when you took over here? COACH QUENNEVILLE: That's dreaming in color times 10. I think you try to win a game, you try to get in the playoffs, you try to win some rounds. We got a lesson in 2008 or 2009 against Detroit, playing in a Conference Finals. We had some different type of teams here. But the core has been through a lot of the challenges and battles. Still a very young group at that time. I was very fortunate to come in here with a team that was sitting on go. They keep going. Q. I assume this is going to be your happiest trip ever to Tampa Bay. Talk about the team you're going to be facing. I assume you have a great deal of respect for them. COACH QUENNEVILLE: I do. We had some interesting games against them. Jon Cooper, I know him a little bit. I have to commend him on what he's done, getting to the Finals. It's a team you can talk about a couple lines, this, that. It's too early to dwell into what they've been up to. Certainly watching their series against the Rangers, they have a lot of options with their skill, how dangerous they can be with putting pucks in the net. Q. How difficult was it for your coaching staff to figure out how to play the team on the other side? You went up against a pretty good coach and a former teammate of yours. You had to come back, win the last two games. COACH QUENNEVILLE: Well, we felt that after Game4, Game5 was an amazing comeback by us. The guys never say die. It was a brutal loss going home. Every game was close. This was an amazing series. Probably the most competitive one I've been a part of. And I felt that both teams left it out there going into Game 7. We had a great Game 7. But we did some good things along the way. They made us earn everything we got. Q. Joel, with it being Tampa, there will probably be a focus on Richards, Conn Smythe winner. COACH QUENNEVILLE: I think when he first came in here, we'll see how he handles it. Job description. As he went along, got familiarized with the system, how he had to play as a centerman. When he started playing with Kaner, all of a sudden he started taking off. I think he wanted to play with Kaner since day one. Took us a little longer than we would have liked or the way it evolved. At the end of the day seemed to flourish with him. The two of them were productive. Had some different linemates along the way. But I think his scoring, his patience level, got a little quicker as the season progressed, a little more jump in his stride. Noticeable as we got further in the playoffs, as well. THE MODERATOR: Thank you, coach. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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