	products recent interviews FastScripts archive about ASAP Sports

Our Clients:

Browse by Sport

Find us on

Subscribe to RSS

Click to go to
Asaptext.com

View our
e-Brochure

NHL STANLEY CUP FINALS: PENGUINS v RED WINGS

June 2, 2009

Mike Babcock

PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA: Game Three

Pittsburgh Â– 4
Detroit - 2

THE MODERATOR: Questions for Coach Babcock.

Q. I know Letang's goal wasn't a break down by the unit, but still tonight, two power-play goals against, and it's been kind of a strange theme throughout the playoffs for your team?
COACH BABCOCK: Obviously, the second power play, I didn't like the first power play, but that's the way it goes. In the second power play they had us hemmed in. I don't know how long. 1:52, couldn't get our sticks on it.
It was a power play game. They got 3, and we got 2. You know, that's the facts.

Q. If Pittsburgh's sort of feeling in their dressing room like they got some traction in that third period. That they played the best period that they've played. Did you see something different tactically? Or did you just see a team that was very desperate because their season was on the line?
COACH BABCOCK: No, I thought they played a good third period. I mean, I thought they played a good first ten minutes. I thought we took the game over for about the next 30 and really had great opportunities in the second. Probably as many as we've had at any period of time. We didn't score.
They came out with a good push. They got the power play there with the call on Ericsson. And at that point, they took over.

Q. Can you talk about the advantage of them having the last change with what they're trying to do with Crosby and Malkin when they're home here?
COACH BABCOCK: It just makes it easier to get people on and off the ice smoother, and get what you want. But we had that for two games, too. So it works out.

Q. Did Matt Cooke kick Chris Osgood early in the third when he was in front of the net there? It looked an awful lot like he got him?
COACH BABCOCK: Yeah, I've got no idea. I have no idea if he did or if he didn't.

Q. It seemed as though they were in the series they've been letting a lot of the interference on the forecheck go. The dump ins. And then all of a sudden there was a call. Did that surprise you?
COACH BABCOCK: No, they told us that they were going to clamp down on it. But I'd seen four from one particular guy on their team prior in the game that never got called. So that's -- you know, in a series they call what they think's a penalty, and they're trying to do the best they can just like the teams.

Q. One more crack at the PK?
COACH BABCOCK: You can take all the cracks you want.

Q. Is it a concern or not? You're ranked 14th on it. But I've been around your team for a couple of rounds. They're not all sort of break down goals. Some of them are lucky, so?
COACH BABCOCK: Yeah, but even tonight they went on the one goal they went half wall across, which is a mistake by us. We can't let it go there. Okay. So that's -- now, it was an ugly goal, but it still went, we should have cut it off. On the second power-play goal, to me they worked real hard. I thought we worked real hard. We didn't get our stick on it good enough to get it 200 feet. That's the way it goes. They got the power play in the third period, we did not get it.
It's not like we couldn't have some power plays in the third period, we could have. It's just didn't go that way. You've got to give them credit. They battled hard.
I think sometimes the way we do things we look for fault. To me there's two good teams playing real hard. They found a way to execute, they scored, that's it.

Q. Did you like the way your team was playing through two periods? You were outshooting them 26-11. What did happen in the third period, did it change a bit?
COACH BABCOCK: I thought they came out with a push, but really what happened, they got the power play, didn't they? We can go anywhere we want. I thought they had a better push at the start of the period than we did. No question about it.
But I also thought through two periods -- they were better than us the first ten minutes. We ran around in our zone. They were coming, and we didn't execute. Then the next 30 minutes was, you know, I mean, I thought pretty good for us: And so the question about the traction in the third and all of that.
I think these three games, we didn't necessarily, in my opinion, in the two games at home, one of them could have gone the other way, too. So this series is where it should be. I think there's two good teams playing hard. They executed on the power play.

Q. How frustrating was it for you earlier in the first period it looked like they had an extended time with six guys on the ice. Looked like you didn't notice for a while. No one seemed to notice. Then you guys caught on. I saw banging the sticks there and no call. Must have been a frustrating moment there?
COACH BABCOCK: I mean, what do you want me to say? (Laughing). You know, I mean. See you guys tomorrow.

End of FastScripts

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297