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NHL STANLEY CUP FINALS: PENGUINS v RED WINGSMay 29, 2009Marian HossaNicklas LidstromDETROIT, MICHIGAN: Practice Day Q. How are you feeling and we heard you're ready to go; is that true? NICKLAS LIDSTROM: Yeah, I'll be ready to go tomorrow night. I skated a little bit yesterday, practiced today, and felt fine today. So I'll be ready to go tomorrow night. Q. Big question, do you expect to be feeling the love when this series moves to Pittsburgh? MARIAN HOSSA: Well, obviously it's going to be an interesting service. This doesn't happen every day being in this kind of situation. But I am on this side, looking forward to it. It's going to be a great challenge because Pittsburgh's a really good team. You know, we'll try to have fun. Q. Can you talk a little bit about what happened to you? Was it a freak accident? Something in practice or a game and what it was like to watch playoff games the first time in your career? NICKLAS LIDSTROM: It was very hard watching, sitting on the sidelines and watching the guys play. I haven't experienced that before in the playoffs. It was very tough to sit and watch. It happened during Friday night's game, Game 3 in Chicago. And just couldn't play on Sunday. Same thing the other night, Wednesday night for Game 5. I wasn't ready to go. So I feel good now, and feel fresh and feel ready to go and go at it now. Q. How different is this team from last year? I think, obviously, Helm was maybe a guy that's come a long way, but overall what else can you see in there? NICKLAS LIDSTROM: I think a lot of the players gained a lot of experience from last year's playoffs and being able to win it last year. You mentioned Helm. Other players have stepped up, too, that had an opportunity to play. I think Filppula has gotten better, gotten more experience. You can go down the line, Samuelsson, Cleary, Franzen had a good playoffs last year, he's been playing well for us now, too. So I think just knowing what it takes to play in the playoffs from last year helped us to get to this point right now. I think you can see in our team with the depth that we have. A few guys go down and other guys step in and play real well. And being able to win a series for us like we did the other night when our top line didn't score, but Helm came up big for us. He played a tremendous game and got the winner at the end, too. So I think it shows we have a lot of depth on our team. Q. I just wondered if you were able to watch or chose to watch any of the Penguins playoff games and series as they were moving towards this point? What went through your mind when it sort of dawned on you this is how it might play out for you? MARIAN HOSSA: Well, obviously when I had the time to watch it, I watch a lot of hockey games. When you're just sitting at home you're watching the hockey. And obviously I saw Penguins playing well during the whole playoffs. Obviously, they were playing so well, so it came to my mind, obviously, we can end up playing against each other which would be very interesting for myself either (smiling). So it came down to that, and it's a unique situation. Like I said, you know, now I'm in a Red Wings uniform and I try to help the team to win. Q. Can you just take us through your thought process in the off-season, where you took less money and you were in the final with Pittsburgh last year to make the decision to go to Detroit. And also as a second, do you have any extra motivation for this to play your old team? MARIAN HOSSA: I think being in the final is motivation. It's definitely motivating. Going through the summer it was through a difficult decision to make. You know, it came down to two choices like I said. You know, it could be a good scout because I picked the two best teams right now (smiling). But to tell you the truth, it was a hard one. You know, in life you have to choose a hard decision, and I chose this one. Hopefully I made the right decision. Obviously I had a great time here during the whole year. It was a tremendous organization, and great guys. But now I try to enjoy it, and I hopefully can go all the way. Q. What do you expect to notice the difference to be with the Penguins who have gone through this last year? What do you expect to see from them in terms of the experience we've talked about them gaining? NICKLAS LIDSTROM: Well, I think they know what to expect having been in this situation last season and being right back at it again. I think they gain a lot of experience from going through that last season or last season's playoffs. I see a lot of similarities to our team with their team with the depth that they have as well. And, you know, the top players that they have, how well they're playing, but you know are the depth that they have is going to make it a really interesting series. Q. You said it was a difficult decision. When you did pick the wings you said that was the best chance to win the cup. Do you think in any way that your former teammates on the Penguins would be upset by that? MARIAN HOSSA: Well, that's the thing. You know, that's a part of it why I decided. Not just because of it, but of course the winning situation was one thing. But another thing, you know, no offense to Cheli who may end up playing longer than Sid and Malkin, but there was another reason why I choose this team because the group, Cheli and Nick, and Draper and Maltby. The experience who can help me in the future learn something new from those guys. Why they're winning so well and why they're going so well during the years. So that was another reason why I Joan joined the Red Wings. So it was not about the best chance to win, right. Because Pittsburgh had an unbelievable team, you know. That's why it was so difficult. So on I chose this for a number of different reasons, not just that. Q. If you can personalize this a little, 214 playoff games. 17 years, whatever it is, can you remember your first playoff game? Can you remember the last time you were nervous? And are you immune to that with all the huge games you've played in 17 years? NICKLAS LIDSTROM: I do remember my first game and being very nervous playing on the first playoffs. I still get butterflies in my stomach a. I still get nervous. I think it helps me with staying focused. If you are a little bit nervous, you're a little more sharp, you're more focused. You have to try to stay cool in certain situations when the game is on the line or it's a very important series that you're in. So I think just the experience of going through different kinds of series have helped me to this point where, you know, you never know what to expect. You never know what's going to happen, but the series can be a real quick one or a long, grueling, 7-game series. So just the experience itself has helped me over the years. Q. Not to suggest you take any of these opportunities for granted. But how much does having some fresh blood in the local room that hasn't hoisted the cup, you had drape last year, Marian this year, just two guys as an example? NICKLAS LIDSTROM: You try to gain motivation from anything at this point. You try to whether it's the guys that haven't won it or you feel that you're good enough to win it. So you're looking at anything to gain motivation. That's one of them. Hossa hasn't won in the past. We have guys that are new on our team or a few of the rookies that haven't been here before. So you're looking at everything to give that little jump to your team. You know, that's one of the things that guys that haven't won it in the past. Q. With the game tomorrow night and a game Sunday turn around playing Tuesday, you were a little late obviously at the blue line -- light obviously at the blue line because of your situation. This is a team that would have benefited from a few days. It's hard to believe maybe the Penguins wouldn't have benefited from a couple more days. What is the risk, not that the finals will be damaged by the way these games are being condensed. But what is the chance they might be a little diminished because of the fatigue factor? NICKLAS LIDSTROM: I'll go first. You know, when you're looking back and you start in mid April going into the playoffs you're so excited about being there. Now you've reached almost the final step to where you want to be. So just being so close, being in the finals, being so close to winning the Stanley Cup has got to work as motivation for you. You're not going to start feeling tired or feeling that you should have gotten another day or two in between games. You're just excited about being here. You're just looking forward to the opportunity and you're going to be energized by the crowd or by being in the finals. So I don't see the fatigue factor coming into play. I think you have to be smart about, especially in the second game on Sunday, be smart about trying to keep the shifts a little bit shorter early on. Trying to get the four lines rolling and just using your whole bench. But as far as a fatigue factor, I don't see that coming into play. MARIAN HOSSA: Well, he said it. Exactly like I wanted to, so it's hard to say something even more, so, there you go (smiling). Q. During your career can you at all appreciate you're going for your fifth Cup, what kind of company that can put you in? Is that something you can appreciate when you're in the moment? And your quick thoughts on Ericsson and how he filled in for you in the one game that he did and in the playoffs in general? NICKLAS LIDSTROM: Well, first of all, you never know when you're going to get a chance to play in the Stanley Cup finals. Whether you're having a great regular season or winning the president trophy or what not. You never know when you're going to be in the finals again, so just appreciate being here again and having a chance to win the cup. It's something that I cherish a lot. You want to take advantage of that opportunity. As far as Johnny, he's been -- when he had a chance to play back in March when Lils went down with an injury, I thought he stepped right in. And he played really well to get some games under his belt and feel comfortable with the team and our system. And I thought he carried that into the playoffs. He didn't look nervous at all going into playing in key situations in the playoffs. He's been getting better and better. And his minutes have been going up. I think when he played with me he played over 20 minutes. So he's been used to getting more ice time. I thought he played really well in that Game 4 in Chicago, and I wasn't there. Too bad he had to have surgery there on Wednesday, I believe. But Jonny's been playing with such a maturity and using his poise and using his size to his advantage that you can't really tell that he's been in his first playoff. Q. Having been on the other side last year, can you talk a little bit about the first two games I think the Penguins talked at the time about being maybe watching a little bit, maybe the finals getting in their heads a little bit. Can you talk about those two games and what the character you saw of that team, would you expect something different from the first two games this time? MARIAN HOSSA: Well, when I was on the other side last year we came with, I don't think with not many players going to the finals. It was like they cut us right away. You know, it was like we were in the final, but it seems like for whatever reason we started looking around like what's going on right now? After we decide to, okay, you know, I think we should just play. It was already 2-0. I don't think we played bad, but there was something that wasn't there right in the two games. I mean when you look at this year I think those guys are going to be ready. They're going to be hungry and well prepared. Because everybody has been there, and they are well prepared from last year's situation. Q. You talked about how hard that was for you last summer. You were, correct me if I'm wrong in the Bahamas at one point at the same place as Sidney and you guys obviously met up and had a cup of coffee. I'm just wondering how you left things with him at that time. Because obviously he was lobbying and wanting you to come back. How did you leave things with him? And after you decided to sign with Detroit did you reach out to him to explain your decision? MARIAN HOSSA: Well, I don't like go through all the details of the vacation, but me and Sid we had a talk. We talked about stuff. You know, we'll stay in touch. When I made the decision I wrote Sid, I think it was email, and I tried to explain to him, you know. Then during the year we played here. We had dinner and we talked about some stuff, you know. Obviously, he's a smart guy. He understands things. And we definitely would have liked me to stay there in Pittsburgh, but, like I said, sometimes you have to make decisions and like I said it was a really hard one, and I had to make it and that's what you I did. Q. It's been suggested that you had a kind of unofficial gentleman's agreement with Ray Shero that if they were to match any offer to keep you in Pittsburgh that you would have stayed. Did that discussion happen and if not where did the misunderstanding come from? MARIAN HOSSA: Can you repeat that again? Q. There was kind of a verbal agreement with ray shearer that if the Penguins could match any offer that you got in the off-season that you would have stayed there. Did that ever happen? And if not, where would the misunderstanding come from? MARIAN HOSSA: No, I've heard that for the first time. Q. From what you saw of Pittsburgh the two times you played and the way they're playing now along with the additions they've had, how do you expect, if you expect at all this match-up to be anymore difficult or different than last year with the style they played? MARIAN HOSSA: Well, I think they improved so much after they make in the trading deadline they make a move. It seems like the team all of a sudden had a good jump. They made coaching changes. You know, it seems like it helped rapidly for the team. You know, since that day they've been winning hockey games. They're playing desperate and playing really well. So obviously they're going to be ready. And it's going to be really hard because they're a quick team, they've got superstars on their team. We're going to have to be really prepared for the first games. Q. With all the attention and all the questions we're asking you about this, do you have any regrets at all about the way your decision went down? And do you almost wish the Penguins were not here to bring more attention? MARIAN HOSSA: Regrets? Not at all. I've got the chance to go to the finals and win the cup. So not at all. If I wish the Penguins would not be in the final? Well, that's a difficult question. But to tell you the truth, they're here and they deserve to be here because they're one of the best. They beat really good teams and they are in the finals. They deserve it. It's going to be fun. It's going to be a big challenge. End of FastScripts |
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