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NHL STANLEY CUP FINALS: BLACKHAWKS v LIGHTNINGJune 15, 2015Jon CooperCHICAGO, ILLINOIS: Game Six THE MODERATOR: Questions for coach. Q. Can you describe Nikita Kucherov's availability for tonight? Do you expect him to play? COACH COOPER: Go in football terms. How do they go? Probable. I'll go probable. Q. On a day like this one, before a game this big, is there anything you can do to try to make sure the guys aren't playing with fear or concerned about the negative? COACH COOPER: What do you mean 'the negative'? Q. The reality. COACH COOPER: That was Game 6 in Detroit, Game 7 in Detroit, Game 7 in New York. They all have the exact same meaning. You want to get to this point. We have been fortunate to get to where we are. Those were all do or dies. Somehow, some way, those guys have found a way to draw a line in the sand and say, No more. That's what they've done. I can't sit here and predict the result tonight. But I will tell you we will show up. Q. They were saying on the other side they're approaching it like it's just another game. I'm sure your guys will say the same thing. Is that possible in an elimination game in the Stanley Cup Finals? COACH COOPER: No chance. The Stanley Cup's in the building. I can't believe they would say, Oh, it's just another game. We know it's just not another game. We haven't treated those elimination games like that. This is much different than Game1. You got to win or you go home. On the other side you know what happens if they win. No. I don't like to sugarcoat anything. This is the reality of the business we're in. We need to rise to the occasion. Q. You've had a lineup that's worked for you, but at the same time it's been a couple games now. Can you describe the battle in your head between wants to tinker and tweak things versus knowing things have worked for you? COACH COOPER: Well, I've always had confidence in our players. We've done different things. We've gone 12 and six, 11 and seven. We've moved different guys around. Primarily we've had most of our success when Johnny's line has been together, when Fil , Stammer and Killer have been together, when Paquette, Callahan and Browny have been together, Boyle, Morrow and Joe, that's when we've had our success. Circumstances have pulled that away from us sometimes. Kuch gets hurt. You've had to move different guys around. For the most part that's got it done for us. No reason to change now. It's not a matter of, Well, we're going to put a player in here, a player in there. It's, Boys, you got us here, now you just got to get it done. Q. You often have said that culture beats strategy sometimes. COACH COOPER: I say that all the time. Q. Regardless of how this plays out, how much impact do you think this experience will have on your team in the years to come? COACH COOPER: Ask me that question when the series is over. It's not over yet. Q. You mentioned you can't really believe that they say it's another game. What's the advantage for you guys of going through this for the first time, soaking it in, versus maybe their team having been here before and done that? COACH COOPER: Well, this is another one I want to say to ask me after the series is over. You can't trade these experiences in. When this playoff series first started, there was so much talk about Ben Bishop never played in a playoff game, Jon Cooper never coached in a playoff win. Go down the long list of, We've never done anything. You can't say that anymore. My writer is going to be annoyed that I talk about this. You take the driver's exam and get an A plus on it. Doesn't make you a good driver. You still have to get behind the wheel. I think we've gotten behind the wheel in the playoffs. Is this going to guarantee future success? You can't sit here and say it will. But being there before definitely helps. At this point of the series, though, I still don't feel we're the inexperienced Lightning. We've picked up a lot of experience here in the last two months. I understand that Chicago's won a couple Cups in the last few years, have a heck of a team over there. But I think we have a heck of a team, too. We're a pretty hungry group. So I think right now you throw the experience out the window. It's going to come down to will. Q. Given the offensive talent on each side, you wouldn't think the first goal would matter that much. The Cup being in the building, if they get on the board first, how important is it for your team to take control with the first goal? COACH COOPER: I'm sure you've seen the numbers. Team that scores first has a pretty good leg up to win the game. I think there is a lot of offensive firepower on both teams. But really this has been a Cup kind of about defense. The goalies have played extremely well. It's hard to say you're going to see two better defensive pairs than the one they have over there and the one we have. It's been a lot of fun to watch, but it's been kind of a defensive gem. Tonight when the score is 6‑5, don't ask me a follow‑up question (laughter). It's just been really exciting. But the first goal, these are five one‑goal games. Getting the first one, it matters. Q. We noticed you were at the Cubs game last night. Seats next to Joe Maddon. Did he hook you up? Was that good for you to forget about hockey for a night? COACH COOPER: All I'm going to say is it's the first pro sporting event that I've been to for a long time, sit there, relax, not have a stake in it. That was good for my head. Q. The power play, you don't get a lot of practice time. Do you go into the game expecting your power play to make a difference? COACH COOPER: Well, as this series has gone, there hasn't been a lot of penalties called. So when there is one called, the stakes are a little bit higher. But I don't think special teams has been a big difference in this series. That doesn't mean, though, we shouldn't score on the power play. I think we've only had 12 of them. But when it comes down to special teams, we talk about winning the special teams war, regardless of penalties, power play goals, shorthanded goals, you got to win that war. When you're not scoring, it's tough to do that. But I think it's tough to gauge our power play because we've only been getting one here and there. We had the five‑on‑three. Games are all blending together. Game3, we don't have a five‑on‑four. One power play in Game5. I look at Stralman breaks his stick on a slapshot, Hedman whiffs on one. We haven't had a chance to get this going. I think probably, much to what Pierre was saying, scoring the first goal, the team that gets the special teams goal, if there is one, will have a leg up. Q. With tonight's game, I think you'll have played as many games as any team ever chasing Stanley. You've had playoff runs at other levels. This two months, do you have an appreciation from guys fighting through injuries, the emotional back and forth? COACH COOPER: I don't have enough adjectives to describe what these players go through. I'm not just saying our team. I'm sure the same bodes for Chicago. There's so much physical pain that goes through what these guys fight through day in and day out. But I don't think everybody underestimates the mental side of things, what a grind it is, the ups and downs of series and games, how those guys have to control those emotions, still give their best, execute under such intense pressure. It's really, really impressive to watch. There's no question, after going through this run, it's definitely the hardest trophy to win in sports. THE MODERATOR: Thank you. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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