|
|||
|
|||
|
 |
|
|
NHL STANLEY CUP FINALS: BRUINS v CANUCKSJune 14, 2011Chris HigginsRyan KeslerRaffi TorresVANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA: Practice Day THE MODERATOR: Questions for Raffi or Chris? Q. Raffi, you've been in Game 7 before. What would be the most inspirational message you could give your teammates? RAFFI TORRES: Obviously it's a great opportunity for us. The main thing is to leave it all out there. It's a chance to bring the cup here to Vancouver, and at the end of the day, you don't want regrets out there. Q. Can I ask you about fatigue at this stage of the game? Raffi, you were in that series with Edmonton and Carolina, when you were back and forth and back and forth. Are you able to play at the highest level when you've put so many travel miles on your body? RAFFI TORRES: I think so. I think this is why we, as professional athletes, this is what we train for all summer long. It's the sacrifices you make over the course of the year in order to have yourself ready to go. I think at this time, it's not hard to get up for these games. Especially being at home tomorrow, it will be an emotional night tomorrow night. Obviously with our fans, how good they are, how good they've been all year, it's not hard to get up for these games. Q. Guys, I don't know that you don't need more added motivation, but you saw how Nathan Horton impacted Boston. Will losing Mason have the same kind of affect on you guys? CHRIS HIGGINS: Obviously Mason is a popular guy on the team and we would love to have him in there. It's unfortunate that he can't play and we would love to win this one for him and for ourselves, too. It's Game 7 of the Stanley Cup finals, so we're going to have fun out there. Q. Raffi, as a guy who plays a physical game, plays the game hard, on the edge, what was your interpretation of the hit last night? If you were in that position, would you have held up? Did you think it was a reckless play, a dirty hit? RAFFI TORRES: I'll be honest with you, I still haven't seen it, so it's tough for me to comment on it. Q. Raffi, again, has it been a difficult series to judge what you can do and what you can't do with some of the officiating? I know players don't like commenting on the officiating, but has it been a difficult series to decide what you can do and what you can get away with? RAFFI TORRES: Personally the track record that I've had lately, I'm always second guessing whether I'm going to go through a guy or pull out. But it's what happens. Sometimes you get labeled and at the end of the day you can't worry about the officiating, all that kind of stuff. They're going to make their calls, we're going to be happy, not going to be happy. That's just the way the game plays out. For me going into Game 7, I'll be as physical as I can within the guidelines. Q. For any of you, what do you think you have to do to win and what's going to be the difference tomorrow night? RYAN KESLER: Well, I just think we need to keep doing what we did at home the last three games. Focus on our game plan, execute it to a tee and impose our will on 'em. Both teams want this obviously, but we have to be the harder working team. Q. Ryan, your team has a number of injuries that you have to deal with going into the most important game of the season. How do you think those injuries will affect the team? RYAN KESLER: We've dealt with injuries the entire year. I think for us, we've lost many guys this year to injuries, and, you know, it's going to be the same thing: go about business as usual, work extremely hard and just do business that way. Q. Obviously you don't know who is going to be playing with you, but if it's a guy like Jeff Tambellini, what can he bring if he plays on your line? CHRIS HIGGINS: We don't know who is going to play yet. We just had a six-hour flight across the country, so we're not too sure what's going on yet. We'll regroup tonight and figure out our game plan. Q. For anyone, can you talk about the six-hour flight. It's the end of the road, a lot of travel back and forth. Is fatigue a factor? And because you guys are a more traveled team, could that be possibly an advantage? RYAN KESLER: Like you said, we've done it all year. I don't think any guy is going to complain about fatigue tomorrow night. We're going to be jacked. We're going to be ready. They had to do that trip one more time than us and that's why home ice is so important. Q. Raffi, compare this experience that you went to Game 7 with Edmonton and Carolina. Compare this one with a team that a lot of people expected to be here, but not necessarily playing this game? RAFFI TORRES: Everything in '06 was unexpected, finishing 8th. Everything was a upset for us, so for us, we went into every game like we were the underdogs and all that kind of stuff. It worked out for us. At the end of the day, hard work and the effort we put in, you know, it beats skill every night there - obviously not the finals. But for here, we've played the right way. We put ourselves in a great position all year long to play this way. We feel confident, we're happy to be home, and it's going to be good. At the end of the day, it's one game do or die. Q. Ryan, the team has managed to score only eight goals in the six games, and obviously all season, you've been a team to put up big numbers. Why have goals been so difficult? Is it Tim Thomas or are there other factors at play here? You have one point in the series, are you disappointed in your series personally so far? RYAN KESLER: First part, I think Thomas has something to do with it. Obviously we're playing a team that didn't get here by chance. They're a very good team and they play a very good defensive system. For us, we just need to keep gettin' shots, I liked what our power play did last game and we continue to improve on that. So, second part, at one point, obviously, you want to score, help the team win, but, you know, tomorrow is all that matters. Everything in the past is in the past. If we win tomorrow, we become legends and I don't think anybody worries about that I have one point in six games. Q. Ryan, last February or in 2010, you played for a gold medal in this building now for the Stanley Cup in this building. Can you compare the situations? Similarities or is it different because it's a team sport versus a tournament and a country sport? RYAN KESLER: It's tough to compare the two, but I think one difference is I think I got 18,000 on my side this time, an entire city and country (laughter). It's going to be a little different that way. It's going to be fun. Obviously the Olympics was a great experience but I've seen what these guys have worked so hard for all year and as a team, as a family, we want this really bad. THE MODERATOR: Thank you, gentlemen. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
About ASAP Sports •
FastScripts Archive •
Recent Interviews •
Captioning •
Upcoming Events •
Contact Us
FastScripts | Events Covered | Our Clients | Other Services | ASAP in the News | Site Map | Job Opportunities | Links |
|
ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297
|