“We've been a resilient group all year, but we need five or six guys to get going here,” Tocchet said near the beginning of his painfully-honest, post-game press conference. “I mean, it's the Stanley Cup playoffs. Some guys, I don't know if they thought it was the playoffs. We can't play with 12 guys. We've got to figure it out quick.
“It's 2-2. Obviously, (this) is a tough one. Edmonton came to play; they wanted it more early. The second goal, at the end of the period, was a killer. Another couple of mistakes, and then the last goal. You can't do that.”...
Responsible more than anyone for the resurrection and rebranding of the Canucks this season, Tocchet, the coach-of-the-year favourite, publicly outed one-third of his players for either not understanding the magnitude of the opportunity in front of them or being unwilling so far to fully sacrifice themselves for it.
Reporters tried to steer the coach towards positive comments to suit their narratives of another impressive comeback and near-miss against the mighty Oilers. But Tocchet was having none if it.
Since ink-stained, cigarette-smelling, booze-soaked newspaper reporters first invaded NHL dressing rooms a century or so ago, coaches have tried to spin positivity. But what Tocchet was selling Tuesday was not negativity; it was reality.
A Stanley Cup winner as a player and assistant coach, Tocchet understands what some of his players do not: that this might be the best opportunity they ever have to win, and to attack it with anything less than their best is unforgivable.
Watch the highlights below.