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NHL STANLEY CUP FINALS: FLYERS v BLACKHAWKS

June 6, 2010

Peter Laviolette

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS: Game Five

SCHUYLER BAEHMAN: We'll take a few questions for Coach.
COACH LAVIOLETTE: Good morning.

Q. Peter, I've seen a lot of Flyer teams over the years, but this is one of the few that through every round of the playoffs was very loose. Scott Hartnell said one of the reasons he thinks this is a different team is that they play a lot of games in the morning skates and before practices, stuff we don't see in the dressing room, just to take tension out of the room and keep the atmosphere loose. Can you talk a little bit about that versus teams you have had in the past that got this far?
COACH LAVIOLETTE: I'm not sure about the games they are playing. I know they kick a soccer ball around to stay loose. I think it's important -- there's obviously a lot of intensity and pressure when you get to these situations.
I think it's really important that you stay loose and do whatever you can to try and hold that pressure at bay, and really that will allow you to perform out on the ice. When you don't perform, usually the pressure eats you up a little bit. So I think it's important to stay loose.

Q. Peter, do you have to go back to Games 1 and 2 and figure things out? Or do you play off of what happened in 3 and 4, if you know what I'm saying?
COACH LAVIOLETTE: I do know what you're saying. I said after Games 1 and 2 I like the way we played. I didn't like the scoreboard. Our chances in Game 1 were almost 2 to 1. They were 2-to 1. A little bit less than that in Game 2. There's things we can do, I think from Game 1 anyway, we didn't give up a lot of chances. The ones we did give up, they were too much. They were too point blank.
It hasn't been like that since the first game. They were probably saying the same thing. Nobody expected 6-5. But I would like to change the scoreboard from Game 1 and Game 2.

Q. Coach, how do you think the team has changed maybe mentally as to when they came in here last week for Games 1 and 2? Do the nerves amp up even more now that it's a best of three? Or because they have four Cup games under their belt more relaxed in general?
COACH LAVIOLETTE: Our group is pretty relaxed. I just mentioned there's pressure in here. There's stress just about every turn in this building. You try and deal with that and try and keep it loose, because carrying it around, I don't think it's going to do any good for you on the ice.
I think our guys, to answer Tim's question, I think our guys do a pretty good job of that. We're not a tight group. We're a confident group. I think that's really important.

Q. Peter, if they make some line changes as expected, does that make it more difficult, give you a coaching challenge as far as getting the defensemen out there?
COACH LAVIOLETTE: I've said this before, we have confidence in all of our players on the ice, whoever goes out there. We're not going to change too much on what we're doing. I can't speak for what may or may not happen, because I'm not sure where they're going with their changes or with their systems or who is starting in net. Those are answers that I don't have.

Q. Peter, Toews hasn't been on the score sheet for them much. He thinks -- he's still contributing in other ways. How do you see it? He hasn't obviously scored, but...
COACH LAVIOLETTE: I would rather not comment on their team.

Q. What has he done well?
COACH LAVIOLETTE: I would still rather not comment on their team, on their players.

Q. From your standpoint, Peter, as a coach, what's more challenging in a Finals like this? Helping them stay loose, your players, or the X's and O's part of the game?
COACH LAVIOLETTE: It's a little bit of both. The X's and O's part, right now I think we're trying to execute our game to the best of our ability. I think there's small changes you make based on the opponent, but not drastic wholesale changes.
So there's always some X's and O's that we're working on. I think staying loose is a big part of it. Like I said, the pressure, if you allow it, it can become crippling. You want to really check that off to the side. It will allow to you play your best hockey out there. I think takes really important for our group. Like I mentioned earlier, I do think we're trying to do a good job of that. The guys are fairly loose. Even out there this morning, we know it's a big game tonight, but they're pretty loose.

Q. Pete, it's been well documented how tough of a player Chris Pronger is. How tough is Kimmo Timonen?
COACH LAVIOLETTE: Like I said, goes back to the question, I don't know if that's where you were going with mixing and matching of the lines and the pairings. Kimmo has been excellent all year. I've stated numerous times back in Philly that he plays the game every bit as good as Chris Pronger. Defensively he's always in position. I think there's a different physical element when it comes Chris's game as opposed to Kimmo's.
But Kimmo is a good first-pass, always in position, can play against anybody's best players on any given night and be successful. Coby has been excellent. Matty Carle has been excellent. The other defensemen we have asked to fill in roles, Lukas and Ryan, Oskars, they've done a good job as well.

Q. Coach, Lappy was saying how poor the discipline on his team was back in Christmas and how it's gotten so much better recently. How much of that is mental? How much of that is physical? How much of that is letting you guys play more? Where would you put that?
COACH LAVIOLETTE: We're definitely in charge of our actions on the ice. I do think we are more disciplined back where we were in December. I think you learn and you need to be disciplined at this time of the year. I think our guys have done a really good job in the playoffs.

Q. Peter, you coached against Chris Pronger in the Finals series, a seven-game series. Now you have him on your side. With your experience in Carolina, do guys get too worried about him during the series?
COACH LAVIOLETTE: He's on the ice for half the game. It draws attention. There's probably not many other defensemen you would want on your team in a playoffs series or in a game that meant something than Chris Pronger. He's a money player.
He plays half the game. So it draws conversations from the other side. It did in Carolina on what to try to do. He's, I guess a lot would say he's the best at what he does.

Q. Peter, sorry if this was already asked. Some of the guys were talking about when they first game here Games 1 and 2, there was some nervousness. It's the Stanley Cup Finals and didn't realize all the media hoopla. After the way the series has gone taking the last two, how much more comfortable and confident do you think your guys are come here for this game?
COACH LAVIOLETTE: I think we have had a lot of conversations just about that trying to stay loose. It's definitely a change from where you are at the end of the regular season with the media and the hype and being one of the last two teams, as the Finals wear on, Game 5's, Game 6's, Game 7's, that sort of thing, it definitely creates nerves.
That first game was funny. It almost -- it was missing the intensity of the battles in front of the net at times. It's not that Chicago didn't compete well, or we didn't compete well. You take four or five days off and then you come in and there's this hype around the game. Just wasn't a normal game. And they ended up winning it's 6-5. The next game, I thought, I didn't see it as much. I thought it was a good intense hockey game.
SCHUYLER BAEHMAN: Is there anything further?
COACH LAVIOLETTE: Thank you.

End of FastScripts

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