|
|||
|
|||
|
 |
|
|
NHL EASTERN CONFERENCE FINAL: CAPITALS vs LIGHTNINGMay 22, 2018Alex OvechkinTampa, Florida: Practice Day THE MODERATOR: Questions, please. Q. Pretty physical game. How did you feel this morning when you got up? ALEX OVECHKIN: Great. Q. We asked you last night if that was part of the game plan going in. Do you think when guys are that physical, you're a bigger team, the cumulative effect can wear them down a little bit? ALEX OVECHKIN: Yeah, I think since Game 1 we play the same way. Obviously, as you can see, we won first two games, we was dominating them I think physical part. We just don't want to play differently. Last night, you can see, everybody was play hard, everybody was involve their body. Give us result. Q. You've played in a lot of Game 7s. What is the most important thing you've learned? ALEX OVECHKIN: I think you just don't have to be frustrated if something happen not your way. I think you have to stay the same course, play the right way. Doesn't matter what happen till the last second. We just have to continue play like that, like we play last night. Play simple, play smart, don't give them freedom in neutral zone and offensive zone. Q. Do you allow yourself to think about what happens after tomorrow? Never been here. ALEX OVECHKIN: Yeah, never been in this position before. I'm excited. All the guys can't wait tomorrow. We all want to be in this position. We want to move forward. Q. Can you appreciate all you've gone through already in the playoffs to get to this point? ALEX OVECHKIN: No, we don't have satisfaction yet. We still don't reach our goal. Tomorrow is going to be huge step forward. It's going to be fun. It's going to be exciting. Like I said, we can't wait till game start. Q. Last night your coach said if there's one group you want to go into Game 7 with, it's this group. What makes this year's Caps a special group? ALEX OVECHKIN: It's hard to say. I think we just play smart. Everybody knows what's in the line. Everybody know how difficult was the year mentally and physically. We just don't want to finish the year. We support each other no matter what. We never give up. That's the biggest thing in this group. Doesn't matter what happen, everything bad we leave in the locker room. What happened before, we forget it and move forward. Q. Do you remember your first Game 7, the emotions going into that? I think it was 2008. ALEX OVECHKIN: Yeah, against Philly, against the referees (laughter). Q. Stepped on the stick? ALEX OVECHKIN: Yeah. What they doing still? Make a mistake and cost us the game. Nothing can do with that. Q. What is the emotion knowing this is what you have worked for? Are you an anxious type of guy? Cool cucumber? ALEX OVECHKIN: I don't know. As I say, it doesn't matter which position we are, we just going to enjoy it and we going to play our way. It's fun. I don't think nobody thought like we going to be fighting against Tampa Lightning for the Stanley Cup Final in Game 7. I don't think you guys felt like we going to be here. Probably going to be on vacation somewhere (laughter). No, we here. We excited. Q. Yesterday you had a couple big hits yourself, one on Girardi. He caught you in the neutral zone. Looked like you got up like, Nice hit. ALEX OVECHKIN: No. What's the ref even thinking (laughter)? Geez, seriously. I don't have puck. I didn't even see him. He hit me. Q. Could be interference? ALEX OVECHKIN: What do you think? Q. I think so. ALEX OVECHKIN: That's what I think, too. Q. Do you get some justification knowing a lot of people didn't assume you'd get this far? ALEX OVECHKIN: I don't think we mentally, our mind, think about, What's the people say? Lots of people say we going to lose Columbus. Lots of people say we going to lose Pittsburgh. Lots of people say we're going to lose Tampa. Tomorrow is probably biggest game in my life, this team, organization probably. How I say? We just want to be here, want to come back here to Game 7 and win the game. Q. How important will it to be to manage your time on the ice and the shifts? ALEX OVECHKIN: For me doesn't matter which situation I am: I'm on the bench, on the ice. I'm just going to give my best energy, supporting my teammates, do like what I can. It doesn't matter if it's going to be goals, fights, whatever. Everybody have to be on the line. Everybody have to be ready. Q. Was there ever a moment you wondered if you would get this close? ALEX OVECHKIN: What do you mean? Q. Did you ever wonder if you would be one game away from a Cup Final? ALEX OVECHKIN: Of course, you have dreams, you have thoughts. You have all the different stuff before the year, before the playoffs. Right now you in this position. You just don't want to give up this opportunity. It's not going to be easy. It's not going to be, like, a regular year, regular season game. Like tomorrow going to have another one and we can bounce back. Tomorrow is going to be, I said, the biggest game in our life maybe. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports   |
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
About ASAP Sports •
FastScripts Archive •
Recent Interviews •
Captioning •
Upcoming Events •
Contact Us
FastScripts | Events Covered | Our Clients | Other Services | ASAP in the News | Site Map | Job Opportunities | Links |
|
ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297
|