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NHL WESTERN CONFERENCE FINAL: DUCKS VS PREDATORS

May 14, 2017

Peter Laviolette

Anaheim, California - Pregame

Q. Peter, you had said yesterday you really liked the way your team played in Game 2, up 1-0 in Chicago; didn't love it so much in St. Louis. Despite the obvious, what has to be more like Chicago, less like St. Louis?
COACH LAVIOLETTE: I don't think that you can pull something from either one of those games. I think that this series is its own identity. We're going to need to play a good game today. They're going to be ready to play. Our guys will need to be ready to play as well.

So I think I'm stating more the facts of round one and the facts of round two. And I'll probably have an opinion of how we play after I see what goes on on the ice today.

So it's difficult to put one to something that we need to do today or something we didn't do then in St. Louis. It's just the way the two games played out.

Q. We've seen some pretty big named guys play through injuries in this Playoffs, Karlsson and Crosby. Wanted your thoughts on that. And to take you back in time a little: What thoughts in your mind about Ian LaperriÃ©re and his comeback in 2010 for you guys?
COACH LAVIOLETTE: What was the first question? Guys injured? I guess this time of year, guys -- you gotta keep pushing through. I mean, most locker rooms are probably banged up at this point in the year.

And at the time when Ian came back, it was pretty courageous. A guy laying down and taking a slap shot in the face, and coming back and playing at that point, it was -- that's playoff hockey. Guys are willing to do whatever they can to try and help a team be successful.

Q. How important are faceoffs going to be today in this series. And is that part of the line with Jarnkrok and that being part of (indiscernible)?
COACH LAVIOLETTE: No. I think we're looking a little bit -- since Kevin left the lineup with a broken leg -- we're looking for different pieces inside the lineup. And then again it goes to the opponent. Faceoffs are a big part of the game.

We're playing one of the best and what has been one of the best in the league for a few years, is three guard to faceoff success.

And it comes down to possession. And possession is the name of the game. If you have the puck, you can look to do something good. If not, you've got to figure out how you're going to get it back.

So faceoffs a lot of times is the starting point and they're good at it. And we need to continue to work at that and try to get better.

Q. Two-part question: How would you describe Phil's approach to coaching in terms of how he coaches your defense? And how would you describe his approach to coaching with you and the rest of the coaching staff in terms of what he brings to that staff and what he has imparted on you as a coach as you work together?
COACH LAVIOLETTE: I think he's been terrific with our players. All of our coaches, I think -- I've worked with Phil now for a few years. And I think he's done an unbelievable job.

He's a smart coach. He's been a head coach at different -- with different teams. Not necessarily in the NHL, but probably going down that road. Brings a lot of on-ice experience, a lot of knowledge. He's a good teacher in the way that he gets things across to players. And I think all of our staff does a good job with that.

As far as me, coaching is a constant learning from everybody, from players, from coaches, from general managers, from good experiences, from bad experiences. So anytime you get to work with somebody new, certainly there's things you can pull from them.

Q. Wanted to know your thoughts on the (indiscernible) line against the Kesler line so far. Two pretty good two-way lines. Everybody is on their toes, what you saw in Game 1 and what you're looking for the rest of the series?
COACH LAVIOLETTE: I mean, there's times when we were able to go in a different direction. There's times when I think Ryan's line did a good job against them and times when I thought that Kesler's line played well against them.

It's a little bit more difficult being on the road. But I think that they're working through it. It's too early in the series to see how it actually plays out with matchups and what they're looking for. So those are adjustments I think that go on from game to game inside the game. But certainly we know that's the matchup they're looking for.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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