|
|||
|
|||
|
 |
|
|
NHL AWARDS CEREMONYJune 22, 2011Zdeno CharaLAS VEGAS, NEVADA MARK MESSIER NHL LEADERSHIP AWARD Q. (No microphone.) ZDENO CHARA: Have to catch up on that, home in July and that's basically the end. I'm going to have to sit back and watch it and prepare for the things I'm going to -- (Away from mic.) Q. (No microphone.) ZDENO CHARA: Well, I think that we had a chance to share it with the Boston fans and during the games back home and get to go celebrate with the family, being part of my success and seeing all of my close friends back home, for sure I'm going to share it with everybody. Q. (No microphone.) ZDENO CHARA: Well, to be selected by somebody like Mark is an honor, you have to be a true leader and it doesn't happen over night and for myself coming to Boston my first year was great and I'm lucky to be surrounded by other players and I learned from veterans from previous years, and early in my career, but it just takes time. I'm at the point where I'm really myself and I know that to be a leader you need to have followers, and that's what I had in Boston and I'm thankful to offensively my teammates, obviously the coaching staff and the organization, they believed in me. They know that we as a group we can get a job done and it's a privilege, and I take it to heart to do a good job on and off the ice and be fair and be a hard worker. Q. (No microphone.) ZDENO CHARA: Yeah, obviously he deserves it. He's such an icon and one of the greatest defensemen if not the greatest, to play the game. I always -- not very many times it happens, I watch NHL games during the season but when there is a Detroit game I watch just because of him. I look up to him so much. He's done so much for the game and for hockey, for everything, and, you know, it's just the way that he acts and plays the game that makes it so I want to be like him. My style of game is different but, still, such an inspiration for everybody. Q. (No microphone.) ZDENO CHARA: You know, Timmy and I, we have actually similar stories or roads or, you know, bumps we had to overcome on those roads and I'm just happy for him. Obviously he had an unbelievable year and he won basically almost everything besides M.V.P. We know that without him it would be so much harder or maybe even impossible to win the ultimate prize. He's been working really hard, he's been very focused, since the beginning of training camp, really, and he's continued to get better and better and, you know, he's so competitive, we all know that. He just wants to win and that's what you need from a goalie. It's amaze and go happy for him. Q. (No microphone.) ZDENO CHARA: Yeah, it is a little bit. Obviously when you get that close you want to be closer and be the winner, but -- and I know you can probably recall there are so many things happening during the season with Montreal and even other areas happening, New York area. (Away from mic.) Throughout the whole season and, again, I know that my game is a little different and I bring different aspects to the mix, but he was really strong throughout the whole season. A lot of people said, hey, he is a -- (Away from mic.) Player but, yeah, most points, what can I say? You know, I was happy to be selected, but I knew that it would be a long shot because it was probably the closest in voting for all three of us, I'm guessing, than any others before. Q. (No microphone.) ZDENO CHARA: Of course, of course. You know, I'm happy, it's a privilege, and I'm so honored to be again here and selected and obviously very thankful. Q. (No microphone.) ZDENO CHARA: Yeah, yeah, he is. I will always be there for my team. That's always my first priority, to share the responsibility, to share the captainship. I was the captain for the team and I was taught to be modest and humble and I had so much help from other guys and support that this is not just me but even a lot of times I worked with others and -- (Away from mic.) Q. (No microphone.) ZDENO CHARA: (Away from mic.) Q. (No microphone.) ZDENO CHARA: (Away from mic.) Change, you know, the style. He changed the game with his play. He wouldn't be -- (Away from mic.) That's not easy, because you can bury yourself with a comment like that, but he believed he could do it and he was sure of it. Q. (No microphone.) ZDENO CHARA: Unbelievable. So exciting, everybody was so happy and it made us happy when we saw all these generations of people, not just the people in the crowd but the old-timers coming out into the streets and from the windows, so happy. That's just making us really happy, making somebody else happy like that is all you need to see. THE MODERATOR: Thank you. 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
|