	products recent interviews FastScripts archive about ASAP Sports

Our Clients:

Browse by Sport

Find us on

Subscribe to RSS

Click to go to
Asaptext.com

View our
e-Brochure

NHL STANLEY CUP FINALS: OILERS v HURRICANES

June 11, 2006

Peter Laviolette

EDMONTON, ALBERTA: Practice Day

Q. Peter, after Edmonton lost the first two games they obviously made some adjustments. You lose a game, do you need to make adjustments or to do you need to do the same things you did before better? Any lineup changes?
COACH PETER LAVIOLETTE: I am not sure about the lineup changes.
As far as adjustments go I think there are things that we can do better within the system that we play. We have won an awful lot of games playing a certain way, and last night I think that they outplayed us at times. At times I think we outplayed them. The scoring chances were 15 to 14 or 16 to 14. That was a pretty even game. I think, you know, rather than making changes we need to execute a little bit better, skate a little bit better, and be a little bit more disciplined. So just little things I think with inside the team itself more so than making changes. That's not to say that we might not tweak the forecheck a little bit or look to do something different or maybe on the power play now that -- it's almost like a game within a game, now the penalty kill, their penalty kill shut down our power play pretty good. So we go back, look at it, figure out a better way to generate offense.
I think there will be minor changes made. But for the most part I think we can execute a little bit better, show a little bit more discipline, skate a little bit harder.

Q. Can you talk about Staal's play. Anything different from him now than earlier in the playoffs (inaudible)?
COACH PETER LAVIOLETTE: I don't think any player in our team has never relied on that, any player has started Game 1 and finished whenever their season is over and always been the most dominating player on the ice. I think that, you know, he had his chances and will continue to get his chances. I think he's one of the top players in the league. I think he's been one of the top players in the playoffs. I have a tremendous amount of confidence and faith in him that, you know, if we need to win a game he can be a guy that gets it done for us. He's been that guy all year and I guess it's just a lot of belief on my part, in his skills and his ability and his work ethic, his character, so I mean, a lot of times when you talk about offensive guys automatically translates into whether or not he's putting the puck in the net. He could be playing great defense, he could be playing hard, then if the puck is not going in for him, it will, it is just a matter of time for him.

Q. Cory Stillman is having an excellent playoffs. How do you assess him as a player? What made your team want to get him in the off-season?
COACH PETER LAVIOLETTE: Just watching him down in Tampa Bay we got to see him quite a bit. We liked what we saw. I know that Jim Rutherford had tried to get him on several occasions; I think once with Calgary and once with St. Louis or after those seasons, but he had talked about it. And I think Cory is a skilled player who can provide offense but most importantly make other players better.

Q. Your team was pretty upset with the officiating last night, the goal and some other calls. After Game 1 Craig MacTavish was pretty upset about faceoffs, he says the squeaky wheel gets the grease, is all of this part of the gamesmanship of the Stanley Cup Final?
COACH PETER LAVIOLETTE: You guys asked me questions about the officiating, I just gave an answer. I wasn't up here to complain about it. You said, did the officials come over and tell you about the goal. I said no, there was no communication about the goal. Did you think it was goaltender interference? Yeah, I did. But you are asking the questions, we're not up here making a gripe, so sometimes it comes off the wrong way, we should clear that up a little bit.
But regardless we put ourselves in position to take penalties maybe because we didn't skate as well as we needed to, and we got to do a better job at making sure that we don't take penalties and we stay disciplined. So ultimately there could be disagreements with last night but we need to play a better game.

Q. Eric Staal's ice time has gradually or consistently diminished in the last six games. Has he hit a wall? Is there a specific reason for that?
COACH PETER LAVIOLETTE: No, a lot of times it has to do with the game itself. Prior to last night, I am trying to think here -- I think we were 4-1 in our last five games prior to last night. When we get a lead, I use my bench differently; when we don't have a lead, I use my bench in a different manner as well. And we have had a lead where -- we have been where we wanted to be in that point in the game, so I -- it's not that I don't play certain people, I try to spread it out more on the bench. So that's pretty much the reason that his minutes changed from game to game.

Q. Talk about Matt Cullen and what you saw in him a couple of years ago when Florida had kind of given up on him.
COACH PETER LAVIOLETTE: I think for me, I think Jim has always liked him watching him down in Florida, Jim Rutherford, I liked him personally based on what I saw in the World Championships in 2004 and even in 2005 before he got hurt at the World Championships. He's a dynamic player, he has got great puck skills, smart kid, he's a great kid. He had had a terrific year for us and terrific playoff so far. But for me it's what I saw at the World Championships with his skating and his puck skills.

Q. You said you didn't get explanation from the referees during the game on that play. Is that usually the case during a game where they come or they won't come over, and if it isn't, should that be a thing where they always come over and confer with the coach?
COACH PETER LAVIOLETTE: I would have liked that. I can understand it's a hot topic, you know at that point in the game. But I would have liked the explanation, I think at that point.

End of FastScripts...

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297