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NHL EASTERN CONFERENCE FINALS: HURRICANES v PENGUINS

May 19, 2009

Dan Bylsma

PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA: Practice Day

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. (Question regarding the hit.)
COACH BYLSMA: I know that the league was reviewing them and they'll decide what they thought the hit was about, make their decision.

Q. How much of the power play success recently is a matter of some bounces are going to go your way and how much of it is your defensemen seem to be comfortable with the puck and get shots through?
COACH BYLSMA: A few things we've done well that's allowed us to have more success. I think we've done a better job with the puck at breakout, allowing us to get it set up more often. We've been attacking the net from down low, the low guy, and we've also been a little bit more aggressive on the backside, having different facets and different positions with the puck to create situations where you can take three or four guys. If you can do that over and over again, give yourself a better chance.
If you don't get the entry, puts more pressure. We've been able to get the entry set up and more zone time. As a result, we've been able to get more attacks at the net, more pucks at the net, loose pucks, getting second chances.

Q. Can you explain why Kunitz isn't scoring, how concerned you are or are not about that.
COACH BYLSMA: Every player has a foundation to their game. They have their role. Certainly Chris Kunitz is a guy who will end up on the score sheet. But his role is straight line, aggressive hockey to the net, physical. If things aren't going well for him, he should always make sure he returns to that foundation. We've talked about it. He has to focus.
Sometimes if you don't score, you start to focus on that more than you do your foundation, what he does well. That's what he continually is trying to work on and get to his foundation.
If he plays physical, straight line, forechecking, wins the puck battle, he's a guy who tracks that, he's been doing those things. At the end of the day, it's always about the next play, always about the game situation.
He hasn't scored a goal, but he's added to our team in different ways. He adds to that line. We talked about the success of Sidney Crosby a lot in the last year. Chris Kunitz was on the ice for a lot of that success. While he hasn't had a goal, he's been a big part of our team's success.

Q. When a guy like Satan gets sent to the minors, then comes back, doesn't play, when you decide to put him in the lineup, do you talk to him in terms of confidence? What do you say to a guy before you throw him back in in a situation like he's gone into and played pretty well?
COACH BYLSMA: He's played very well. He's played very well in situations where sometimes you get in the top line, sometimes he doesn't play a ton of minutes.
If you have been around him when he went to Wilkes-Barre, how he reacted there, how he worked there, his attitude there, then when he came back, his attitude, his approach to what might happen, you would understand why he's out there having success right now.
He was willing to, Whenever you need me, I'll be ready to go. In practice, he worked like he was ready to go. He's earned more opportunities with the way he's played, both things he's done offensively and away from the puck and work-wise. He's earned that right to have that success in the game that he did with his attitude, the way he's worked, the way he's approached the game.
It's not a real surprise to see him get success if you've kind of seen him, the way he's worked, his attitude the last month.

Q. (Question regarding Evgeni Malkin.)
COACH BYLSMA: I think when you refer to the foundation of a player's game, his power play execution would be part of his dominant game, his play with the puck, his puck management, allowing him to get to the offensive zone. Driving wide, handling the puck in the offensive zone, driving to the net, that's what he can do with the puck. But he's also a guy who, when he's playing well, he works hard to get it back.
I imagine him looking at someone's stick in the neutral zone, tracking back, going back the other way, getting in the offensive zone, rebound, winning the back behind the net, cutting the scene, driving it, that's the main game on any shift from him.
People are trying to stop him, and they're good players. They know what he's gonna do. So it's a challenge to be able to play that way shift in and shift out, be able to elevate your game. There's been a lot of focus on it. But he's been very successful in the playoffs. His game is not up to the expectations of the media, there's focus on it. There's a lot of players that would be happy with his point production in the playoffs.

Q. (Question regarding Matt Cooke and the hit.)
COACH BYLSMA: The call last series with Ovechkin, I didn't share my feelings on the hit because it's not my job to share the feelings on the hit. We're coaching the team. We're getting ready to play. That's up to the league.
He was engaged, trying to make a hit on the guy. The league will decide, and always does decide, what they think about the hit and they'll make their decision.

Q. (Question regarding Sidney Crosby.)
COACH BYLSMA: It's based on what the expectations are, how he's going to play. I think it was really a signature on the first period. We were up 1-0, had a great shift. Got a turnover in the neutral zone. Sidney had it on the stick, chipped it in. Went in and forechecked, we got it back. Continued the good shift. He went back in the neutral zone. Gino got out there and we went in and scored the second goal. That was a result of two or three good shifts in a row, smart puck decision.
If there's one thing that I think, in addition to the points that we talked about, his answer to the scrutiny about getting goals and so forth, is his decision on how he's played without the puck, how he's played a team game. Chipping the puck in, going to the forecheck, getting the hit, continuing what we're trying to accomplish as a team, to me he did that again last night in a lot of different areas.
Faceoff, he was good again. His power play execution in zone was good again. A foundation of his game. He continues to set an example for a line and for a team, that's the way we need to play.

Q. (No microphone.)
COACH BYLSMA: We're talking about a game, mistakes. Every game, you try to focus on things that you do well. There's always plays you have in your head you can do better. 'Perfect' is never how I describe a hockey game or a hockey player.
He's a guy who continually is trying to add in a lot of different areas. He's not just trying to score points. He's not just trying to lead the league in goals or assists. He wants to win. And he wants to compete and he works on things like faceoffs, he works on different parts of his game so he can keep improving.
You know, he has improved. He's playing a good defensive game. We are comfortable putting him out for a faceoff with 30 seconds left in a defensive situation. He is confident and capable on the penalty kill. Certainly on the power play he's out there. He can play in any situation.
You know, that's what you're looking for from the big guys on your team. You can throw a guy out, he's gonna play 20 minutes, just as capable defensively or reliable defensively as he is in the offensive zone, you got something special.
THE MODERATOR: Thank you.

End of FastScripts

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