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NHL ALL-STAR WEEKENDJanuary 26, 2008Jarome IginlaVincent LecavalierATLANTA, GEORGIA THE MODERATOR: We're pleased to kick off the media availabilities with the captain of the Western Conference and Calgary Flames Jerome Iginla, and the captain of the Eastern Conference All-Stars from the Tampa Bay Lightning, Vincent Lecavalier. We'll take questions formally here for about ten minutes. Q. Wanted to ask you guys about the shootout that's coming up. The judged event. I think Ryan Getzlaf had said in the paper there was a certain amount of trepidation about really letting it hang out and just getting crazy and trying some ridiculous stuff out there. He'll wait and kind of see what other guys do. As the captains of the team, can you kind of put that message out there about how don't worry about being judged, don't worry about showboating, because it's maybe not in a hockey player's nature to do that so much. For this event, do you just let it hang out? VINCENT LECAVALIER: Yeah, well, I think the guys are pretty excited about it. And I'm sure Ovechkin or one of the guys are going to have some nice moves, creative moves to do; you know, I don't know. I think everybody's going to enjoy it. I think they'll be very creative, but obviously, the main thing is to get the goal, not to get the move, so. JAROME IGINLA: Yeah, and I think after the first couple of guys go and hopefully, get comfortable and see some of the moves, guys will feel more comfortable as it goes on. Because like you say, sometimes hockey players we don't like to showboat, but this is a good time to watch the young guys. Especially a lot of the young guys coming up. They have so many good moves. And those trick skills, too, and it's something I'm looking forward to watching. I never really worked a lot on those ones, so. VINCENT LECAVALIER: No, me either. JEROME IGINLA: I'm just a fan (smiling). Q. Explain the culture. Why do guys not want to show off? JAROME IGINLA: I think it's just, you know, it's something that is a little bit different in hockey. I think you look at some other sports which there's more talking in the media and build-up to games. Some of it can be enjoyable, but for whatever reason in hockey, I think it's slowly changing. I think a little bit since I've been in. It's starting to change a little bit and people are starting to step out a little bit more, and I think it's good. I think it's good for hockey. I think we kind of all -- it's definitely team first, but you can still -- within the team there are a lot of different personalities and things that we see as a group of guys, but you don't always see it in the media. VINCENT LECAVALIER: That's pretty well said (laughing). Q. The league is so bent on trying to sell the game, sell the game in Europe, sell the game around the world. How important do you think is it that these personalities get out? So often we know who you are just from covering, but beyond where fans and media that don't cover the game will come to understand what personalities there are within the league? VINCENT LECAVALIER: I think what's great right now is last year's second time I came to the All-Star Game. I was surprised how young the players were. I think it's I guess a Young Stars league. You look at the Crosbies, Ovechkin, Malkin. And I think it's great for the league. It's great for marketing. I think the last few years it's been really going great that way. No, I just think it's exciting. I think people want to watch young guys, the 20-year-olds, 22-year-olds show what they can do on the ice. I think it's exciting. Q. Back during the lockout there was a lot of discussion that perhaps would be better if we reduce the number of games so you have a better quality of hockey and not have as many injuries. Now we're talking about 84 games. Can both of you talk about your feelings about extending the schedule and reducing the number of preseason games? VINCENT LECAVALIER: I don't mind the 84 games. This year, you know, exhibition games and I think it's just better that we start the season right away instead of just playing like eight or nine exhibition games. I think the guys now once they arrive at camp, they're ready to go. So instead of playing nine exhibition games, why not play a little bit less and put them in the regular season. I don't think the guys really mind doing that. JAROME IGINLA: I agree, too. I think we show up and guys are in really good shape. Once the preseason starts going on you get to the 7th, 8th game, you're ready to do it for real. And I really like the idea. I hope we do go to 84. I also like the ideas for, as a scorer for milestones and stuff, I think you'll see more guys get close to 50 goals. Our guys are going for 100 points. Those are games we're going to be playing, and it's always more fun as an athlete to play them when they count rather than play them in the regular season in exhibition. Q. You've played against Shawn Horcoff for a number of years now. When he first broke into the league he was barely a fourth line winger on that team. He's kind of built himself up into a first line center and now an All-Star. Can you talk about what you remember of him early and sort of the evolution that he's taken? JAROME IGINLA: Yeah, playing against him when he first came in he was always a fast player, worked really hard, competed really hard. Every year, now he's just, you can see he still works really hard. He competes. He's very quick out there. But you can see his confidence in play making. He's scoring goals and he can score goals, but we play against him a lot and his play making and vision, you know, it's a big part of it's confidence for all of us, and you can see that he's rolling and how he's a top player in the league. But ever since he's come in, he's competed so hard and it's paid off, I guess. Q. Two, three years ago you guys were in the Stanley Cup Final pounding on each other in a scrap. I think it was Game 1. Two questions, who won that fight? And just tell us something about hockey players that one day you're pounding on each other, and the next you're sitting up here seemingly pretty good friends? VINCENT LECAVALIER: I got a lot of rib shots that kind of hurt (smiling). But I think obviously we were both battling to win the Cup, so we did whatever we had to do for our team. Once it's over, it's over. You can tell that after every series, guys shake hands. And a lot of the guys in this league are friends, and I think it's just respect, I think. Hockey players have respect for each other. To go through what they do in the playoffs, you know, what both teams went through, our journey to the Stanley Cup Finals, it was just a battle. So once it was all over, and it could have went either way, so, yeah, I think it's respect. You respect the other person, your opponent. JAROME IGINLA: Yeah, hockey I think is definitely unique like that. It's something that you go out there and when you're on the ice you're competing, you're battling. There is sometimes trash talking. Guys trying to take your head off and -- maybe not quite "head off" -- but a little vice versa. But, yeah, it's a real cool sport like that when you get a chance to be at All-Star Games or play with guys or see them around. Off the ice is different. You respect each other. Sometimes you respect the most some of the guys who play the hardest against you. It's not personal. I really enjoyed, kind of really enjoyed playing against Vinny there in the Stanley Cup Finals. I know our team, we were trying to be as hard on Vinny and St. Louis and Richards as we could. And our team was a physical team. We're trying to push them, and we couldn't. We couldn't push them out of the games. And the respect grows and it was seven games. They played great, and they're battlers. Getting a chance to play with him in team Canada and stuff, our respect just goes up and up. I think that is a real cool part of hockey is you play but you also get to sit back as a fan, too, as much as you hate to see it at the end, you really respect it. Q. So who won the fight? JAROME IGINLA: Um (smiling). Q. Vinny can answer that. VINCENT LECAVALIER: I don't know. JAROME IGINLA: It was a draw. VINCENT LECAVALIER: Yeah (laughing). THE MODERATOR: Thanks a lot. End of FastScripts |
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