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NHL EASTERN CONFERENCE FINALS: DEVILS v RANGERSMay 25, 2012Martin BrodeurAdam HenriqueZach PariseNEWARK, NEW JERSEY: Game Six Devils – 3 Q. Marty, do you remember when you beat the Rangers four straight couple of years ago? How does this win over them compare to that one, and why? MARTIN BRODEUR: At the time it was fun. This is a lot more fun. This is to go to the big dance, you know, go to what we do all year. When you're a kid and you're dreaming to have a chance to win the Stanley Cup. So for us, winning today, gives us the opportunity to compete for it. And along the way, we beat a big rival that, especially for me, 18 years ago, everybody's been talking about it. So now it's at least‑‑ I don't know if they're going to give us credit, but it's 1‑1. Q. Marty, there's been a lot of expectations put on groups of years past, players like Parise and Clarkson. How does it feel to see these guys finally accomplish this? MARTIN BRODEUR: For me, the stage of my career where I'm at, I think this the beauty of still playing hockey, is watching these guys grow into superstars. And got one right here beside me that won, that scored some big goals for us and another big one today. But it's great for me to‑‑ just to see everything unfold for these guys. Makes it a lot fun. Makes it worth coming to the rink every day, seeing how they are how and how they're enjoying themselves and the ride we're having right now. Q. Adam, can you talk about how you're feeling when you scored that winner? ADAM HENRIQUE: It was exciting. That was Johnny on the spot for that one, I guess. Kovalchuk and (indiscernible) did a good job in front. I was sitting there. I couldn't see the puck. I knew it was down, and I was just praying it was going to come under his pad. It's a big one. It's one you dream about. Q. Marty, would you consider the ghost of 1994 exorcised at this point? MARTIN BRODEUR: Well, I don't know about that. I think we've won three Stanley Cups since then. But I think winning against them on the big stage, not just for me, but I think for the fans of New Jersey, the people that are supporting us and always taking a second seat to these guys for whatever reason, now they gotta be pretty happy going to work and going to school and doing all their things that they do. And I know from some of the messages I got throughout this playoff series, we made a lot of people real happy right now by beating them. Q. Marty, can you talk about, from your perspective on this side of the ice, what you saw on the game‑winning goal and what you were feeling the moment you realized you saw the red light? MARTIN BRODEUR: Well, I took about one step back. I took one step back. I wasn't sure if it was in or not. When I saw everybody celebrating, it was just a big relief. We played really hard this playoff series, and this was an emotional series against the Rangers. And to pull it off in that fashion, it's even sweeter. Q. After all that talk about'94, that's obviously over now, but is there a team that you've been on that this team compares to one of the teams that's been to the finals? MARTIN BRODEUR: Every team writes their own stories. I was fortunate to be part of great teams that had success, and I was part of great teams that didn't have success. Right now, we're having a lot of fun doing what we're doing. The success is coming with it right now. We have a lot of guys contributing, and I think that's what's making a winning team. It's not just a one‑man show out there. A lot of guys are contributing, and there's a good feeling. But until you finish out these Playoffs, we'll see then. Q. Marty, can you describe what that third period was like for you with the saves, with the poke checks. Just looked like you were having a blast out there in the third period. MARTIN BRODEUR: I don't know about a blast, but‑‑ actually, it was fun. But at the end of the day, we were in a position that the next goal is going to win. So in my head, the overtime started in the third period. And that's the way I approached the third period coming in. So every save was important. Every shot that we took on Lundqvist was important. And we won. So that was great. Q. Marty, how fast did you skate to the pile? And, Adam, what did it feel like to be under the pile? MARTIN BRODEUR: That was pretty quick. ADAM HENRIQUE: It was a good feeling to see everybody come off the bench. And I think Zach, he gets the most excited of anybody. And it gets tiring when everybody keeps coming and hitting you after a little while. Q. Marty, talk about how at this stage of your career, it's exciting for you to watch guys like Adam grow. But what about for you personally to win the series, to outplay a guy like Lundqvist who is going to win the Vezina and just what it means for you? MARTIN BRODEUR: It's been a lot of fun this season, playing on a really good team, and I'm enjoying this ride. And I know what I can do, try to compete as hard as I can every night and try to give these guys a chance to win hockey games. And there's been scoring a lot of goals for me in the Playoffs so far. And it's been great, regardless of beating Lundqvist. I mean, it's definitely nice to compete against the top goalies. But again, I'm not playing against any goalies. I'm playing for my team and against the opponent that we're playing against. Q. Zach and Adam, can you just address how well you guys feel like Marty played, been playing throughout this playoff, even at the age of 40. ZACH PARISE: He's been playing great for us. As he said, they're giving us a chance to win every game. And even when they put their pressure on and people get a little antsy and you've got a guy back there that's been through this all before and makes big saves at the right time, has the ability to calm a bench down. So that goes a long way for us. Been playing great for us. The numbers don't lie. And he's a huge, huge reason why we're still playing. ADAM HENRIQUE: I completely agree there. He's the reason why we're in the position we are. He was there for us all year. He's the reason why he's the best goalie to play the game. And he gives us that extra confidence every night when we got him back there. He's going to give us the chance to win no matter what, even if we're not playing our best.  He seems to make those big saves night in, night out, and he did it again tonight. Q. Adam, you're, what, 22? Now you have two overtime series‑winning goals. I'm just wondering if there's any part of you that is wondering: Where do I go from here with my life? ADAM HENRIQUE: Well, there's still more things to accomplish. Try to take in as much as I can this whole year. And obviously those are two huge goals, and then probably two of the biggest goals ever scored. There's still more ahead. We're not done yet. We haven't really won anything. It's a long ride. And this is‑‑ every kid dreams of playing in the Stanley Cup Finals. And we have a chance to win. And I'm excited. I'm ready to get started. Q. Zach, can you talk about how far this team has come from where you guys were about a year or a little bit more than a year ago when you guys didn't even make the Playoffs, and now how it's kind of come full circle back to where this franchise used to be? ZACH PARISE: I think with the way we ended last season, I think that was more of the type of team that we were. For whatever reason, we got off to a pretty tough start and put ourselves in a pretty big hole. Couldn't really climb out of it. We had a great second half. But it was a little too much for us to overcome to get into the Playoffs. And with a couple of coaching changes since then, I think we've really got‑‑ we've got a coach we believe in and really put in a system that works for us, that really kind of accommodates to the way‑‑ to our players and the way that works for us. So it's been‑‑ I mean, you go from not making the Playoffs to all of a sudden you're in the Stanley Cup Finals. It doesn't get higher or lower than that in the span of a year. Q. Zach, kind of a similar question. Marty's got three. Adam just got here. But you've been around for a little while. You've never made it this far. Can you talk about the sense of accomplishment, maturing in this organization, and how it feels to get to this plateau, although you're not done, but close? ZACH PARISE: Well, it feels great to get to where we are. As Adam said, we have still got a lot of work ahead of us. But we put ourselves in a pretty good position right now, and we got a chance. I mean, we'll see what we can do. But we like the way that we've been playing, and we're playing with confidence. We're playing well. And we're getting great contributions from different guys at important times, and that's gone such a long way for us. Q. One for Zach, one for Marty. Zach, did you get any advice on what to do with the Prince of Wales trophy, what was your thinking on not touching it? And, Marty, have you ever leaped into a pile like that before? ZACH PARISE: I didn't want to talk about it. I didn't want the ask anyone about it before the game. Just you don't want to get too far ahead of yourself. I tried to do a quick survey after we won the game, between that and the time that they presented the trophy, asked a couple of guys around. Some guys said do what you want. Some guys said no. I felt the majority said no, don't touch it. So I figured not touch it. Let's just get a picture around it. And I mean, I wanted to touch it, but the majority said no. So that's fine with me. MARTIN BRODEUR: I don't know about that question. I jumped high, I guess. I was pretty happy. Q. This goes to all three of you. A year ago, Zach, you played very few games because you hurt your knee. Marty, you were banged up a little bit because you were injured. Adam, you weren't even here. The coach wasn't even here. How remarkable is it the way you focused on a little bit, didn't even make the Playoffs last year, now you're going to the Stanley Cup Finals? Is that‑‑ and when you started training camp in late September, did you feel that was absolutely a possibility? Zach, we'll start with you. ZACH PARISE: You always believe with your team, you always believe in your team, that you can make it and that you've got a great team in there. Then I think all of a sudden‑‑ we've had great teams in the years past coming up to this season. Just weren't playing as well at the right time. And I think this year, going to the Playoffs, I think we won seven in a row. And all of a sudden we find ourselves beating Philly pretty well, too. And as you gain momentum, you believe more. You believe more. And all of a sudden we're in the finals. So it's pretty exciting. MARTIN BRODEUR: I think we definitely had a tough year last year. I think where the credit is due, I think the coaching staff that was put in place. I think Lou, the moves that he made, the depth that we were able to get through our minor league guys that came in on tryouts or trades we made with getting Poni and getting Carts, bringing up Gio, calling up Bernie, you know, (indiscernible). Give the chances to young guys to do what they do. And I think when you're successful year in, year out, it's tough to learn your system, the depth of your organization. And I think a lot of credit has to be done with the coaches and Lou to put this team together and made them work the way he did. And after that, it's all a credit to us to work hard and believe in each other. ADAM HENRIQUE: It's a great feeling, obviously. I think last year playing in Albany, it was good for my development. I think it was needed. And it gave me that‑‑ obviously I wanted to be here and felt like I had a great year in Albany. My development came a long way, and my game came a long way from that point, and just tried to prepare myself throughout the summer to be ready for whatever was going to come up in camp. And obviously, through a few injuries, I got an opportunity. And I just tried to take advantage of that best I could and really just went from there. And the staff did an unbelievable job of bringing in the right pieces throughout the year. And really, getting Trav back was probably one of the biggest acquisitions we could have had, without making a trade. And they called up the right guys and bring in the right pieces that we needed to make our team deeper, and that's a big reason why we're here. Q. Zach, from the time you were drafted, you were made aware how proud this organization is. How much does it mean to you to get this organization where it believes that it belongs every year? ZACH PARISE: The year I got drafted, after the draft, we went down and they had the Stanley Cup there, and all the scouts and everyone was having a big party. And you get the sense that you were going into something pretty special. And unfortunately, we didn't have great playoff success since then. But you're playing for an organization that takes a lot of pride in winning and doing the right things and playing the right way. And as these guys said, they do a great job of building a team, a team that works and a team that's tough to play against. Now everything‑‑ I mean, it might have taken a little while. All of a sudden you play seven, eight years, and you haven't made it past the second round, but it's definitely worth it. It was worth the wait to get here. Q. Marty, you mentioned Lou. You guys have been together for a long time. How happy are you for him? I mean, he won three Cups, you won three Cups with him. But some people are saying: Can Lou adapt to the new NHL? And he again has you guys back where you were before. MARTIN BRODEUR: I think we have humongous amount of respect for him. He's our boss. He kind of is the one that controls your destiny, so I have to say something really nice about him. But I think at the end of the day, like I explained, there was a lot of different pieces that were put together, and without him thinking about it and consulting the people around him within the cap era, to be able to put a team like this together, you have to be happy about‑‑ I'm sure he's happy about it. Q. Zach, a year ago your head coach is out of work and now he's going to the Stanley Cup Finals along with your team. And I'm just wondering if you could characterize his influence on your locker room and what he's meant to the team? ZACH PARISE: We've talked about it all along, throughout this whole Playoffs. But really, we all can't say enough about what he's done for us and how well he's made us prepared for every game and every series. And all the coaches, Larry and O.T. and Dave Barr, they've done a great job. But we're all really happy. We believe in what Pete wants us to do. And that goes a long way. But like I said, we can't say enough about the job that he's done with us, and we all love playing for him. And it's a lot easier to play like that. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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