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WORLD CUP OF HOCKEY

September 18, 2016

Rickard Gronborg

Toronto, Ontario

Team Sweden – 2
Team Russia ‑ 1

Q. Coach, when did you learn that Henrik Lundqvist was not going to be able to play? How much of a surprise was it, and did it force you to adjust the game plan at all?
RICKARD GRONBORG: I found out actually right after I was up here. I walked downstairs and found out he was sick and couldn't play. We didn't adjust our game plan. I think obviously Markstrom is a very accomplished goalie and he proved that today. There was no change in the game plan. Unfortunately, for Lundqvist, that he couldn't play. It was tough to make an adjustment at that point in time.

Q. You guys smothered the Russian forwards for 59 and a half minutes very well. What was the game plan going in? Was there anything specific you guys wanted to do to the forwards?
RICKARD GRONBORG: Well, we felt that we needed to put pressure on the defensemen. We kind of had a game plan that we wanted to make sure that their transition game didn't happen so quickly. So number one, we were aggressive on the forecheck and make sure our first forward coming into the zone is putting pressure on the defenseman. And secondly, we need to be ‑‑ the high No.3 guy was really important so our defensemen could play good gap control. I think that was pretty important.
At the same time, on the offensive end, when we had the puck, it was really important for us to have puck control. We didn't want to get into run‑and‑gun kind of a game with the Russian team because that's where their strengths are, so we tried to‑‑ just solid game plan that way, and the guys executed, I think, real well.

Q. Victor Hedman, he was named first start of the game. What were your thoughts on his performance and how he performed and the defensive unit as a whole?
RICKARD GRONBORG: I think the defensive unit as a whole played really a solid game, but they also got help from our forwards in making good decisions. Our forwards, it makes it a lot easier for the defensemen to sort things out. The communication between the backchecking forwards and the defense was excellent. Same thing when they have pressure in our zone. It was good communication.
So it's easier for the defensemen even though a great job by the forwards doing their job. I think Hedman is a horse; you saw it today. He played all kinds of different situations, and now I know why he's so highly regarded. I knew that before, but now he's proven to everyone back at home in Sweden that this is how good he is. It was nice for me to see Victor have that kind of a game.

Q. I don't know how important it is to you to go with a hot hand, and you know it's early, but if Henrik is well enough to go on Tuesday against Finland, do you want to go with a hot hand and come back with Markstrom in goal, or have you given that any thought at all?
RICKARD GRONBORG: Right now I haven't put any thought in it. I'm just happy that we won this game. That was the most important thing, whoever plays in the net. We've got to obviously go back tomorrow and reassess where we're at, not just the goaltending situation but with the whole team, see where we're at with injuries and being sick and all that stuff. Right now I have really no good answer for you.

Q. Is there anything further that you can tell us on Lundqvist in regards to what it was or how he feels?
RICKARD GRONBORG: I talked very briefly to him before he left, so I have no more information other than knowing he wasn't healthy enough to play. He was sick and went home. That's all I really know.

Q. He didn't stay for the game, right?
RICKARD GRONBORG: No. No, he left.

Q. The other day a couple of your guys and I think you said it, too, were commenting on the last pre‑tournament game and how maybe it was good for us to have that, it could be a blessing to see what went wrong so we can fix it. Do you think about that now, hindsight being what it is? Was it?
RICKARD GRONBORG: I think always if‑‑ no matter the result of the game, you need to reassess where you're at, and obviously we have to think about a few things we were doing out on the ice, especially when the result turned out the way it did in that game. If you really think things through, even if we would have won that game, there's always things that we need to get better at, but it was really evident we weren't patient enough in that game, which I think we showed tonight that when we're patient and play the way we're supposed to, believe in what we're doing, we're a pretty strong team to beat. Yeah, it was a pretty important game for us.

Q. Can you just talk about Mikael Backlund a little bit, this was his first time at a tournament like this, and your mindset into letting him take that big a space off the time where it looked like they tied it?
RICKARD GRONBORG: Yeah, no, he had a hot hand. He was pretty strong on the face‑offs today. I think he had a solid defensive game. When it comes down to that situation, we felt we needed to go with the hot hand, so that's the reason that‑‑ he's a responsible player. I like the way he looked today, and I like the way he's playing especially the second half of the year last year with Calgary. So that was kind of my thinking.

Q. Coach, granted it's early in the tournament. Sweden has always been able to adapt their game, whether it be international ice or NHL‑sized ice. It must be a source of pride with the Swedish Federation. If you guys want to play physical, you can do that, defensive, speed game, anything. They showed that again tonight, that they can really adapt against any team.
RICKARD GRONBORG: Yeah, I think, generally speaking, when it comes to Sweden and team sports, we're pretty organized as a team. I think we showed today that we can play really any kind of a game and still come on top of a game, because obviously with Russia's forwards, I would rate them No.1 together with Canada as the top‑rated offense. And playing as well as we did, really it makes me confident that we can make a bang in this tournament for sure.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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