|
|||
|
|||
|
 |
|
|
NHL STANLEY CUP FINALS: OILERS v HURRICANESJune 13, 2006Peter LavioletteRALEIGH, NORTH CAROLINA: Practice Day Q. Talk about the importance of Cory Stillman on your team. COACH PETER LAVIOLETTE: Cory has been a player that seems to be quiet when it comes to the media, but yet he has been an outstanding player for us all year long. I always go back to the press conference somebody asked, "What do you expect from Cory Stillman this year?" At the time we were the lowest scoring team in the league and my response was we expect him to bring his 80 points, which he did. And we expect him to make other players on our team better, which he did. We expect him to bring his Stanley Cup experience, which he did. Q. Your defense as a whole, your blue line group, hasn't really probably deserved, like Cory Stillman I guess, had the kind of attention that it deserves. Some people refer to it as a no-name defense, but it's played exceptionally well in this playoffs, and really doesn't get that much limelight. COACH PETER LAVIOLETTE: You are right, it doesn't. They have played extremely well in the playoffs. They are all big strong defensemen that can skate and move the puck, but yet there's not that 35-minute, 32-minute defensemen and maybe that's how it gets lost sometimes but they certainly have played well for us all year and they played extremely well in the playoffs as well. Q. Your thought about your day tomorrow, how you approach it, do anything different, what you might say, whether you feel this is the time to say anything different because the Cup is in the house and all of those things, wonder if you have thoughts about tomorrow? COACH PETER LAVIOLETTE: Tomorrow is going to be the same for us. One of the questions was at the start of the playoffs, do we change anything in the locker room from what we have done all year and the answer was throughout the locker room, no, we won't, and we have run things business as usual. Tomorrow is a big game for us obviously, but we'll treat it just like we did any other game and try and keep our eye on the ball because that's the most important thing, not to lose sight of the game itself. We'll run our meeting the way we always do and we'll be prepared, we'll be ready. I am sure there's -- everybody will have something great to say tomorrow night because it's -- that's why we are here and it's an opportunity and we have to make the most of it. Q. Seemed like Eric Staal got to do what he does well last night, can you talk about that? COACH PETER LAVIOLETTE: The slumping Staal? (Laughter). Every team should be so lucky to have a 24 point slumping center. The points didn't go in for him for a couple of nights, doesn't necessarily mean that he played poorly. We won one of the games -- two of the games, and that's the most important thing. Game 3, I guess it gets magnified because we didn't win, so it was nice to see him come back because when you guys keep telling him that he's slumping so much, maybe sometimes he will start to believe it, which is good that he didn't. He came back with two points and played a great game offensively and really I think what he's done all year, it's been consistent. I mean, yeah, there's been a couple of games where maybe a week or he hasn't torn it up but for me he hasn't been an inconsistent player, but just the opposite, a guy who produces points almost every night, almost every game in the playoffs. You go back to the playoffs I think he had a 15-point or 16-point scoring streak so its consistently there, but just because he was off for a couple of nights I don't think he was playing poorly. It was nice to see him get the point and be a major contributor in the game of that magnitude last night. Q. Doug Weight, Mark Recchi, some of the veterans Glen Wesley, were saying a few moments ago that they are relishing this experience, you just can't get caught up in it. How about you, can you enjoy this? Are you having fun with this? COACH PETER LAVIOLETTE: You know, we're extremely fortunate, Edmonton and Carolina, because we're the only two teams left playing, but there's -- I guess there's a lot of work to do. You never really, I don't know if I am maybe misunderstanding it, you never sit back and enjoy it as much as maybe you are saying because there's a lot of work to do, a lot of time put in, the players have to make a big sacrifice and big commitment, and ultimately it's about trying to be successful and win a championship. We're on our way there. I guess what I am saying is I don't want to sit back and enjoy it too much because we're not home yet. We still have a lot of work left and we need to keep our eye on the ball. Q. The new CBA has created some uncertainty but it would appear this particular group isn't going to be back next year the way it's comprised this year, does that add anything to this next -- tomorrow, next couple of games? COACH PETER LAVIOLETTE: Who said that? Q. What? COACH PETER LAVIOLETTE: That they won't be back next year. Q. Well, there will be some changes. COACH PETER LAVIOLETTE: I don't know. I certainly -- Q. You don't foresee any changes with the CBA? COACH PETER LAVIOLETTE: We're below the salary cap by 10 million, and then. Q. Four unrestricted free agents -- COACH PETER LAVIOLETTE: I guess what I am saying, we're below the salary cap by 10 million and the salary cap may go up 4, 5 million. I don't get into that whole salary cap thing, but I don't believe that that's the message coming from our organization at all. And I am not -- I don't know what the future holds. I said last night the same thing, I don't have a crystal ball to see what the future holds but that's not the plan that I have heard. Q. I am assuming you are going to give away another bottle of wine for this series? COACH PETER LAVIOLETTE: I am. Q. Can you tell me who is the leading contender right now? COACH PETER LAVIOLETTE: You know what, I said before I don't pick, like it's -- it would be wrong of me to pick one player on team that's based and comprised of the word "team." So it would be wrong for me to pick. The little girl and the family picks and they text message it to me. But I do have them text message three to make sure the ball is going down the right road. Q. How do you think of the way Rod Brind'Amour has played in this series? COACH PETER LAVIOLETTE: He's played this series like he's played the last three, like he wants to be a champion. Q. You guys have been subdued every step of the way, you won a division, you didn't do much celebrating, conference didn't do much celebrating, did you have to say anything to them to kind of hold them in check just because we have all kind of said the thing is over and the fans seem to think it's over? COACH PETER LAVIOLETTE: It's definitely not over, I can tell you that. They got they have a lot of experienced players guys like Pronger and Peca, Staios and Smyth that have been around. They are well coached, and they will fight 'til the end. We won't make that mistake tomorrow night. We know that they are coming here to win a hockey game and we'll have to be ready for that as well. Well, the partying part? Q. Yeah. COACH PETER LAVIOLETTE: There's really no reason to party, or to celebrate and the team knows that as well. The playoffs isn't about winning a round or winning three out of four. Ultimately when you start the season, the goal, I think you have a lot of goals within a season, but the ultimate goal for every organization I would think at the start is to -- it's the most important goal, is to be the winner when the season ends, when the last second ticks off to be ahead on the scoreboard. That has been our objective. Q. You probably remember growing up, this franchise this organization as the Hartford Whalers were one of the lovable losers in all of sports. They won one playoff series in 20 years. You guys have obviously put that to rest. But is there satisfaction, I mean, do you hear from Hartford people that this is finally something that they can take credit in as well? COACH PETER LAVIOLETTE: They certainly can. I mean, I haven't heard a whole lot of it, but I will be honest, that doesn't mean that the talk is not out there. My head has been in the sand, so. I just found out that New Jersey got a coach today, so just things happen. It's amazing what you don't hear. I was watching Tiger Woods is going back to play golf. I didn't know his father passed away; is that correct? That was three weeks ago. I didn't even -- like just, I don't know. I don't hear a whole lot outside of what is going on here, so. I didn't hear anything, sorry. Q. Lindy said you guys have champagne on ice as we speak (Laughter). COACH PETER LAVIOLETTE: (Laughs) No, but I do have bottles of wine with my signature on it for sale tomorrow night up in the concourse for a great cause, so feel free to buy one.
End of FastScripts... |
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
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
|