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NHL EASTERN CONFERENCE FINAL: CAPITALS vs LIGHTNING

May 22, 2018

Jon Cooper

Tampa, Florida: Practice Day

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. Was there an icing on the second goal in your mind?
JON COOPER: It was close. That wasn't the reason we lost the game. Yeah, no, it was fine.

Q. (Question regarding Game 7.)
JON COOPER: Game 7s are like the playoffs, really in a nutshell. It's a series of highs and lows. It's how you manage them. You just can't let the game consume you. Yes, it's Game 7. Yes, somebody's season is going to be over. There's been probably a 93-game dress rehearsal for this moment. When you're this deep into the season, this close, you just can't let the game consume you. You just have to do your job.

Q. Are there ingredients to make up a proper home game? How is it different from an ideal game plan for the road?
JON COOPER: First period of Game 5, bottle that up and do that three times, we should be okay (laughter).

When you get this deep into a series, seven games, all these players know each other by heart. Now it really comes down to a little bit of will. You have to will yourself to this moment.

Both teams have done this so far. I do like the fact that will be 19,000 people helping us, willing us to victory. I want our guys to enjoy the game. It's a phenomenal experience. This will be my third one in four years.

You just got to remember, don't let the game become really bigger than it is. Go out, execute, leave everything out there, see what happens.

Q. How important is a guy like Victor Hedman in a Game 7?
JON COOPER: Everybody's important. Victor is such a huge part of our team. He plays in every situation for us.

The one thing, this isn't the first one for these guys. To be a part of this, you think it's going to be reaching back into the memory bank a little bit to say, What did we do so well in our mindset three years ago against the Rangers? What was the difference between Pittsburgh two years ago?

Victor is such a huge part of our team. Along with him, a lot of other guys, really need to be on top of their game.

Q. The results were different, but when you went into the game in 2015 at the Garden, the game in 2016 Pittsburgh, did you feel different because you had done this before?
JON COOPER: Those are both on the road. I think both of them we lost Game 6, had a chance to close them out. The one thing for us, it was just about an attention to detail. We're not necessarily sitting here dreaming about what the outcome could be. It was go out and execute your next shift. When the buzzer goes, let's see where we're at. I think that's how we kind of grew into this team. It's kind of taken that attitude.

The one thing I do know, they're tight checking, low scoring, close games. It really doesn't come to how many you put in the net, it's how many you keep out. That attention to detail on the defensive side has to be there.

Q. (Indiscernible.)
JON COOPER: He's a big part of our team. 40 goal-scorer, a hundred-point guy. We need him. Our power play has had a lot of success this year, he's a huge part of that, especially in this series.

If that one doesn't ring off the bar with six seconds left... Sometimes it's going your way, sometimes it's not. I know that players with that special talent, I've seen him rise to the occasion time and time again. I expect nothing different tomorrow from Kuch.

Q. What do you have to do tomorrow to generate or traffic in front of the net?
JON COOPER: A lot of that's will. Are you willing to go to those areas that are a little bit harder on the ice than other places? Sometimes we've been on that, sometimes we haven't.

The other thing is we have not shot the puck near enough. When we have, we either miss or they're blocked. Time and time again we'll look at our shot attempts in the game, we out shot attempted Washington, but they've got more shots on net. They're delivering them in spots where stuff can happen, we're not. We got to be better at that.

Q. Do you believe in momentum carrying over between games?
JON COOPER: Once you get to Game 7? Let's be honest, after Game 2, we had all the momentum. After Game 4, who had it? After Game 5, who had it? It just bounces back and forth. Now it's just one game. It's like you played the first six for fun, now this one means a lot.

Q. Home ice advantage at home for you tactically, what does it mean for you as a coach?
JON COOPER: The matchups. Again, you don't get them all the time. You put guys in positions you think are going to help your team succeed. That's probably the big one.

Q. Say anything special to the guys as you left and said good-bye?
JON COOPER: We weren't saying good-bye (laughter).

Q. Anything special you said to them as you left your meeting?
JON COOPER: We'll answer that question tomorrow.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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