NHL STANLEY CUP FINALS: RED WINGS v FLYERS

June 5, 1997

Mike Vernon

MIKE VERNON: We can't let up. I mean, we got ourselves in a little trouble in the first period with some penalties and things like that which, I mean, the guys did a great job. We did a great job of pulling it off. They only had one goal on the power play. The guys did a great job. We have to just continue to focus on the same things we have been for the last couple of months here.

MIKE VERNON: Well, I think that our hockey club has been getting better with each series. And, the guys, they just believe in themselves. And, when you start believing in yourselves and working together, the way the guys have been, it is tough to stop. We play with 4 lines and 6 defense, that is a lot of depth and we keep just keep moving the lines. I think that is to our advantage.

MIKE VERNON: I don't know about that. I mean, I feel good out there. You know, things are going well, and. You know, we just have to just keep going. We have to -- I have to stay focused. We all have to stay focused and do the job.

MIKE VERNON: That has been our game plan all along. We saw some great success early in other series and things like that. And, you know, we just have to continue to throw the pressure at them and force their defense. That is the key to any team. If we are going to play the whole game in our end, I don't like our chances. If we are going to play the game in their end, I like our chances a lot. So, we all understand that and we just want to go out there, work hard, keep the puck deep, and just keep cycling and doing those little things right. The guys have been executing excellently.

MIKE VERNON: I think we played -- we didn't have our great games in Philly, but we played a good road game. That was important. Tonight we played very well. They got -- they jumped onto the board quick and, you know, we countered that. We just -- after they scored it just seemed that, you know, the guys weren't satisfied with that. They just went out there and continued to work hard and that is what they did and they saw some success.

MIKE VERNON: No, I mean, there is still a long way from it being over. The fourth one is the toughest. They are a great hockey club. They have got a lot of pride over there and I don't anticipate them there lying down at all. So we have to be ready to play. Just continue to play the same way. Like I keep saying, we can't lay down. We can't sit back and just expect things to happen. We have got to go out there and create it.