NHL STANLEY CUP FINALS: HURRICANES v RED WINGS

June 3, 2002

Sergei Fedorov

Brett Hull

SERGEI FEDOROV: You don't want to have that kind of light because you go out there and you are getting hit and getting crosschecked all the time. You are playing forceful hockey. But you are still getting sort of up and downs too. So as a person you are showing it. It's not like a walk in the park. It's going to be a very intense game. And I think people should give more respect to Carolina. And they really deserve it. I remember I scored in one game on the powerplay. I remember the second one we were playing in Carolina, it was an easy period for us the first period. We were leading 3-0 but we ended up winning 4-3 because they came back in the second and third period and played pretty well. I know Arturs Irbe played well against us. It was a very fast game, very intelligent hockey game like against Colorado, but I remember they were a strong opponent.

SERGEI FEDOROV: I don't think I expect for ourselves that we are going to control the game or control the way we play because that's the only thing we can control.

SERGEI FEDOROV: I have no feelings about that at all. Back then I was trying to get back and play hockey. It doesn't matter who we played. I said lots of things to Carolina and to this organization by stepping up and making an offer and am very appreciative to the owner Karmanos and Jim Rutherford, but that was back then. I was gearing up to play hockey.

SERGEI FEDOROV: I didn't get to meet him at all. I think I met him on about five occasions, and two or three times after that time.

SERGEI FEDOROV: Well, things smooth out and I never really mentally left, but I was trying to get back into the game and try to play hockey. And back then there was a lot of misunderstanding and miscommunications about -- I didn't feel like I was being totally right, I should have probably come out and talked to the media a couple of times, but I was -- and from their sides I didn't get any support to do that.

SERGEI FEDOROV: Yeah, it has been a pretty hard three rounds. I thought we had a pretty good chance when we started playing L.A., and then we lost twice in Colorado. But back then we started -- we had a pretty good team -- this year it has been a little bit different. It was more of you know to play throughout the regular season. There was more teammates who understood each other better and play and execute throughout the entire 82 games. That makes our personal expectations very high, but our goal was to get to the Stanley Cup and we were always talking about the present, not the past or the future. And we try to stay focused on what needs to be done. I guess we did a pretty good job and I think the acquisitions that we made in the summer last year, obviously three great players joined the squad and so far so good.

BRETT HULL: It's very special just to win it and be on there again or have the chance to be on it again, but he loves the game and loves the fact that I am doing well, and can't wait to watch.

BRETT HULL: I didn't know anything about what was going on, I was coming out of college; I hadn't been through the whole thing. I just stepped in and all of a sudden I am in the Final.

BRETT HULL: I was very fortunate I was able to come here. I just wanted to be able to keep playing, no one else wanted me. But I am glad I have the chance to play.

BRETT HULL: That's five months ago when we played them before. They have added some people. I don't think there's a lot difference. They are very well coached. They are big, they are strong, fast, young, enthusiastic and they have got some good leadership. People are playing them down as the David against Goliath. That's kind of ridiculous when you have got a team in the Finals to be thinking that they are --

BRETT HULL: I don't know, we don't play them enough to get that opinion. I know what we did in Dallas, but I don't think there's too many teams that play that well -- that play that way. They are a trap team that plays very responsible in the neutral zone. And they are well coached. They do what they are supposed to do, and they do it well.

BRETT HULL: Black and White. That's it. They are far opposite as you could possibly be in personality and in style.

BRETT HULL: Yes. All coaches are demanding in different ways: They have the game plans. You do it or you don't play. That's basically what it comes down to.

BRETT HULL: I think he did that for you guys, not us.

BRETT HULL: That's what we have coaches for. They decide. They have scouts out there watching, and we play them very early in the year and then right after that. So we haven't seen them for months.

BRETT HULL: They move the puck very well. They are mobile, big, strong, you have got to be disciplined; you have to be well positioned. It is just like playing any other team. You have got to do those little things to help yourself make scoring chances. All depends on how we want to be positioned against them. That's the only difference between teams.

BRETT HULL: Well, playing with him, you finally get to feel actually what is going on in his head and what his thought process is and his motivation towards things. Playing against him he's that scary guy because you never really know what he's going to do or how he's going to do it and that, as a player, that unknown is something that's hard to play against.