NHL WESTERN CONFERENCE FINALS: AVALANCHE v RED WINGS

May 20, 2002

Scotty Bowman

COACH BOWMAN: The Maltby goal was shorthanded, and Boyd's been working hard. I thought they had a good game.

COACH BOWMAN: Well, you know, we got kind of a lucky break, I guess, on the one. But I think overall, we -- you know, there is probably nothing -- there was a few more tonight. I think each team had five, but I don't know. We had some shots that I thought we passed up. But that happens from time to time. If anything, like, Nick just shot the puck, and it was missing the net, just put it near the net. A lot of things can happen. So on that power play goal, it wasn't by design; just a shot at the net.

COACH BOWMAN: Well, you know, it was a funny game, there was a lot of fewer chances. There was a lot of fewer chances tonight. We knew coming in there is two lines you have to stop, and one plays on the power play all the time sort of, Sakic and Tanguay and Hejduk. He's done on the first power play, but we would like to have gone longer in the overtime. Obviously they were playing with four defensemen and our strategy wasn't to give them scoring chances like we did early in the overtime, because, you know, there is a fine line between the teams, and there is no time-outs in the overtime, no more TV time-outs, and that could have worked to our advantage, but we weren't able to extend, you know, the overtime.

COACH BOWMAN: They warned both teams before the series, the supervisor of the series, that they're not going to take any contact with the goalies. I don't know. There was -- you know, you can't stop the people from going to the net, if they don't make contact with the goalie, I don't think it's going to be an issue. I don't think either team is prepared to take that chance, and I don't think it bothered him really on the plays. I would really have to look at it a lot closer, but I didn't see anything obvious tall really on the goaltender interference. I'm pretty sure they'll clamp down on that if there is some.

COACH BOWMAN: You know, our big guys got to get going. It's a tight series, and, you know, there is not much room out there, and, obviously, you know, we got the three from McCarty the other night, the one from Boyd tonight and Maltby on the shorthanded one. It was kind of a night where they came up big again. It's 1-1. Now you're going into their rink for the next two. You don't think about the fourth game before the third, but, I think that we just have to play with a lot of patience and a lot of control, just got to be -- you know, the penalties weren't a big factor, because maybe there was five each, and just the same thing, try to stay away from any easy calls for -- make them make some tough calls. That's what we've got to do, don't make anything obvious, and go from there.