Darryl Sutter after practice today, the play in Edmonton tonight...
from Jon Rosen of LA Kings Insider,
On whether heavy minutes by several players last night places an emphasis on rolling four lines tonight:
No, we’re looking to win, not playing favorites, I’m not looking at last night. Other than Kopi, who did? Nobody. Other than Kopi, nobody played over their [minutes], and he had to because he was a lefthander who could win every faceoff, and he was dominant, so he went off for every backhand faceoff in his zone. And, obviously with overtime, if you figure that in, that’s 65, so there’s guys who get a couple more minutes. There was nobody that was over there. In fact, some guys were under it. Some guys were half speed and couldn’t play last night. They were just along for the ride.
more from Sutter...
Q. You're a pretty intense guy on game days. A day like this torture for you?
COACH SUTTER: No, it's not at all actually. 8:00 start is a little bit of a stretch. But I told the players this morning I was going after a practice goal in MSG. That's pretty good.
Q. When you're in the middle of one of these runs, do you have contact with your brothers or do they just leave you alone?
COACH SUTTER: I talk to all of them a lot either via phone or text, more to see what's going on. They're at home. Them checking to see how we're doing. I mean, they're pretty smart hockey guys. They can see how you're playing and how certain guys are playing. They can offer you that.
Q. You used the word 'unique' yesterday with Justin Williams. What is unique about him and do you have a comparison?
COACH SUTTER: What's unique is he's a consistent player every night home and road and he scores big goals and he understands his role. A lot of times, players like that don't understand their role.
I've said this before, I really didn't know Justin as a player that well till he came here because basically he was Carolina, Philadelphia. You don't see those teams very often other than on TV. For someone to learn by video or learn by watching... You need to know the person.
I think 'unique' is another way of saying very consistent, very solid, understanding your role on a good hockey team.
Q. You mentioned yesterday that the organization learned a lot from going through this two years ago, 3-0. Did you do something different this time in terms of tickets and families?
COACH SUTTER: We were at home. Now we're on the road.
Q. Do you feel Jeff Carter has helped elevate the game of Toffoli and Pearson?
COACH SUTTER: I think a lot. Jeff Carter's a top player in the National Hockey League. Anytime you get to play with a top player, either you elevate your game or you don't play with them.
Q. It was asked yesterday if you could compare Justin Williams to anybody.
COACH SUTTER: The only player I could come up with that was real similar in terms of big games and veteran experience and consistency, playing for a long time, playing on championships, was Martin Gelinas.
Create an Account
In order to leave a comment, please create an account.