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NHL WESTERN CONFERENCE FINALS: DUCKS v RED WINGSMay 13, 2007Randy CarlyleScott NiedermayerRob NiedermayerDETROIT, MICHIGAN: Game Two JAMEY HORAN: Questions for Rob or Scott. Q. Scott, it seemed like you controlled play both games. Feel good to get out of here with a split? Maybe the bounces went your way. SCOTT NIEDERMAYER: Yeah, definitely feels good to win this game. It was a pretty big win for us, obviously. I think tonight we came out well. We started to get away from our game and take some penalties. They were making us pay on their power play right now. Obviously that's something we're going to have to improve right now. We just kept battling even after they scored that goal to go up five-on-three. Didn't get down. Kept fighting. Tied the game, kept going at it, got it in overtime. Definitely a big win for us. Q. Scott, the second time it's a Niedermayer combination. Last game against the Canucks. How did you read the play? Was there an opening below the glove on this side? How did the play develop? SCOTT NIEDERMAYER: I'm not sure how the puck kind of changed sides. Everybody was on the left side. I'm on the right. The puck came off the boards. I pinched down, bumped the puck down, I don't know, to a forward. My brother ended up getting it. He just chipped it back out to me. I didn't really have anybody on me. I think Travis Moen was going to the front of the net. I just tried to get it up. I didn't really see it go in actually. I saw it hit the post. Then I saw it on his back, so... Q. Rob, your role as a player has changed over the years. Can you talk about what it's like to be able to play the shutdown role as you did tonight, but also chip in offensively? ROB NIEDERMAYER: Well, it certainly is nice to chip in offensively. I mean, our line is sort of asked to play a lot more defensive, shut down the other team's lines. But, I mean, whenever we can, it's nice to chip in, for sure. Q. Both of you, is this the kind of night and moment that you envisioned when you chose to play together? ROB NIEDERMAYER: Yeah. I mean, this is a big thrill for me, for sure. It's certainly nice to come up with the win tonight. I mean, just watching Scott score that winning goal was pretty special. SCOTT NIEDERMAYER: It's been fun competing together. Every player who loves Stanley Cup playoff time, to be able to be on the same team on the same side pulling together, it's been fun, this year, last year. Teaming up for goals, that's neat. Just every day being able to come to the rink together and, like I said, working for the same team, it's been fun. Q. Scott, if anybody but Hasek is in net, do you think you win that game in regulation? He made some unbelievable saves. SCOTT NIEDERMAYER: We played a pretty good goaltender last round. Minnesota, their goalie, they ended up winning the Jennings. Playoff time you see great goalies, great goaltending. We expect that. We try to do things to make it hard on 'em, you know. Don't let 'em see the puck, keep getting the puck there, go for rebounds. It's simple. Q. Pretty good Mother's Day present. Where is Mom tonight? Anaheim? ROB NIEDERMAYER: She's in Edmonton right now actually. Q. Rob, talking about the chemistry, being the shutdown unit, how it developed, what your thoughts on the chemistry. ROB NIEDERMAYER: Well, I've had the chance to play with Sammy for a couple years now. And Travis Moen, we've been together all year. Randy didn't split us up once all year. I think when you spend that much time together, you certainly see each other's habits, know where each other is going to be on the ice. I think there's that trust factor that sort of starts building up. I think that can be said with our line right now. Q. Rob, talk about the physical play tonight. Do you think the Red Wings stepped things up? How were you able to counter that? ROB NIEDERMAYER: Yeah, certainly. I mean, they have some physical guys over there that finish their checks, get in pretty quick on the forecheck. That's what we're trying to do, too. We're trying to not pass up any checks. You certainly don't want to run at any of these guys because they're so skilled. I mean, you run at 'em too hard, they're by you. It's just trying to stop progression. I think both teams have done a good job of it. Q. Rob, on the winning goal, what did you see where you saw Scott would be a good option? Scott, did you pretty much have the green light to pinch down, being a veteran, having that knack as an offensive player? ROB NIEDERMAYER: I just actually was in front of the net. I was sort of waiting for a shot. I think the puck switched sides. I was able to get there first. I think two guys sort of just came on me. I seen Scott. He sort of gave me a yell. I just chipped it to him. He made a great shot. SCOTT NIEDERMAYER: Yeah, I mean, when the puck's there, I feel I can get to it, you know, we're allowed to push it back down, allow our forwards to continue to work. When we can help them out like that, that's an advantage for us. All teams try to do that. After I did it, Rob made a great little pass. Just a little backhand pass to me. I had some time to make the shot, so... JAMEY HORAN: Thank you, guys. We'll have Coach Carlyle right now. Questions for Coach. Q. Randy, when you saw your team unable to score on the power plays, giving up two goals, did you say, Not again tonight? Did you feel you still had the control of the game even though you took that many penalties? COACH RANDY CARLYLE: Well, I think we started really strong. You know, we scored the first goal. We seemed to build off that for probably the first period and a little bit of the second. Then we got ourselves into problems with the penalties. They took the momentum away from us. We came back with the McDonald goal, which was the reviewed goal, the first one. We felt it was in the net. Then we got a break back. You know, again we give them another power play goal on a great play by Nicklas Lidstrom coming late. You know, you don't allow that guy that type of time and space in the middle of the ice. All of a sudden it's a 2-2 hockey game. I thought we kind of lost our composure for 10 minutes or so. Then we go down to the five-on-three to start the third period, and they score a goal. But I really thought that our guys showed a tremendous amount of resiliency. We felt if we continued to stay with the game plan, that we would be rewarded. You know, there wasn't any secret. We worked hard, and so did they. It was one of those games that could have went either way. We feel very fortunate to win the hockey game. Q. Randy, can you talk about the importance of the Pahlsson unit, not just shutting down, but contributing offensively tonight, what that means in the dressing room? COACH RANDY CARLYLE: Well, what it does, those guys play the toughest minutes and have played the toughest minutes for our hockey club all year. When they have an opportunity to provide offense, that's just a bonus for us. But, as we say, when they play the amount of minutes that they do, and everybody has the ability to elevate their game in the playoffs, they're being rewarded for their hard work. It would be scary to think where we'd be without them. The type of style they play, we've been consistent with that grouping of players all year. Through the course of the season, we've mixed up every other line but that line has stayed true. They've been, I guess, the hardest-working forward group and worked the toughest minutes for us. Q. Given his background as a pretty good offensive defenseman, how much of a green light does Scott have in those situations, even in overtime, to try to pinch down and create something? COACH RANDY CARLYLE: Scott Niedermayer, first and foremost, his ability is his skating. I think I'd be foolish to try to harbor or restrict his ability to read and move off of pucks and off of situations. I think if you look at Scott Niedermayer, he's one of those rare players that can be in on the forecheck with the first guy from a defenseman standpoint, yet be first on the back-check. He has that ability. I think we don't - we're not really what you'd say a group that expects our D to be involved from every aspect. But Scott Niedermayer has pretty much a green light to go when he wants. Q. What do you anticipate Chris Kunitz's availability for Game 3? Were you happy with the juggling you were able to do to try to fill in his spot on that top line? COACH RANDY CARLYLE: Well, I thought Dustin Penner came in and supplied us with the necessary energy, puck control. Then in the third period, we made a decision we'd put Todd Marchant there and go to our bench. We lost Shawn Thornton at the end of the first period. We were down to 17 skaters. It taxed everybody. At times I thought it looked like we were tired, but it seemed once we got into the dressing room between the periods we were able to calm down, relax, regroup and refocus. I think that was the most important thing for us, to get out of the third period tied and then get back into the dressing room, get our composure back. Hey, just stay with the program, play our game, and hopefully we would be rewarded. Luckily tonight we were. Kunitz's availability will be day to day until we get another assessment done tomorrow. Q. Video review wasn't around when you played. How do you feel about its inception now and how it's changed the game? COACH RANDY CARLYLE: Both pucks were in the net. It's simple as that. That's what you're supposed to be, you're supposed to be rewarded when the puck goes in the net. Those calls, I don't really look at them any other way. If the puck crosses the line, it's a goal. If it doesn't cross the line, it's not a goal. If it's inconclusive, it's not a goal. Obviously, both pucks were over the line. Q. You seemed to control play in both games. Feel good to get out of here with a split in that respect? COACH RANDY CARLYLE: Well, I don't know if you feel good about getting a split. Obviously it feels better to win one game than to lose both of them. We expect on whatever ice surface we're going to play on, the Detroit Red Wings have the ability to play. They've proven it. They've proven it in the Calgary series. They've proven it in the San Jose series. I'm sure they're going to be a hockey club that's going to be very, very determined. They've got a skilled group. They've played hard to get where they are. There's a lot of respect you have to show for that hockey club. They have some veteran savvy. There won't be any easy ones, I guarantee you. JAMEY HORAN: Thank you, Coach. End of FastScripts |
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