from Greg Wyshynski of ESPN,
ESPN: With the benefit of hindsight, do you have any regrets in going for it like you did at the trade deadline?
Jarmo Kekalainen: Not at all. It was a decision that we made as an organization, from the ownership all the way down to the management. Let's have this group together, for the last time, and let's see what we can do. It was a calculated risk. It had a price that we felt we could endure with the depth of our prospects. We beat Tampa Bay, one of the all-time best teams in the regular season. We gave Boston a hell of a run. It was a close series. The better team wins the series, and we lost, but we were right there with them. I think we showed everybody that we did have a chance to go all the way and win the Cup. That was our goal.
We weighed the risks. It wasn't just us swinging [at] something because we felt it at the time. We talked about it. We weren't going to trade Panarin and Bobrovsky for just picks and prospects. Now, if someone came along and gave us a package that was just too good to pass up, we might have made a different decision. But it wasn't there. So we decided to go all-in. There are no regrets.
ESPN: Joonas Korpisalo and Elvis Merzlikins have potential. But is this a situation where you're looking at a certain time period for this to work out before you explore other options? Was there any thought in doing that before the season?
Kekalainen: We're going to have an open mind. We're going to give the guys a proper chance to show that they belong. They're going to have that opportunity and we're not going to be in any rush. We're going to be patient....
more on the 2nd question above plus more Q & A...
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