Transcripts and audio Courtesy of the NHL Communications Department

Post game comments from Montreal Canadiens Head Coach Jacques Martin, Roman Hamrlik, Scott Gomez, Jaroslav Spacek

Comments from Roman Hamrlik

Q.  A lot of people obviously make a big deal about the fact that you’ve been in this situation before.  Does it really help or does it seem to be a new world in this Series?

ROMAN HAMRLIK:  Washington and a little bit of Pittsburgh, but this is a totally different team, and Philly showed every game they have more desperation.
But we have to go get them game by game, and focus on our game.  And I think if we played the first game at home, we’d have a very good chance.

Q.  Is it disappointing when you can’t follow that up – when you don’t take advantage of what you did in Game 3 and Philadelphia does what they did in Game 4 – is it hard not to be disappointed?

ROMAN HAMRLIK:  Yeah, we are disappointed, obviously, especially with the effort last game we played.  It’s unacceptable because we played at home in front of our fans, lots of people watching, especially in the dressing room.
We know we haven’t played our best, and we have to step up and compete and be more desperate and win battles one‑on‑one and finish our checks and do the things that we did before, in the Series against Pittsburgh and Washington.

Q.  Are you surprised that in both games, both ways, the margins of victory really haven’t been that close?

ROMAN HAMRLIK:  Yeah, I mean, obviously it’s tough whoever scores the first goal.  I think it’s a big advantage.  Our focus is to just go over there and score the first goal and get some confidence.  We know we’re going to play against Philly when the building is very tough.  But we have to get some shots at the net and get some traffic in front of their goalie.

Q.  When you’re on the road and score the first goal, it gives you guys confidence.  What does it do to the opponent?

ROMAN HAMRLIK:  We don’t really care about the opponent.

Q.  But if you scored first at home, what then do you guys do?

ROMAN HAMRLIK:  You know, we stopped playing, and that’s not our game.  We have to stick with our plan.  Good example, last night they outworked us.  They were more desperate.  They win battles and they were first on the puck.  They showed more desperation.  You know, we have to show some enthusiasm and play with a little bit of heart.

Q.  Why do you think that is?  People always talk about the importance of the first goal of the Playoffs, and obviously it is important.  But why do you think it is in this Series it has made such a difference that the winning team ‑‑ the team that’s wound up winning has taken so much spirit from it, and the team that hasn’t has fallen back?

ROMAN HAMRLIK:  I wish I could give you answers.  We talked about it in the dressing room, you know.  One game, the third game, we played a hell of a game.  I think it was our biggest game so far in all three Series, and last night we showed up and we were not ready. So I don’t know. We were not mentally ready or we were not moving our feet, there’s a lot of things we have to be better.  We have to do better to get the puck, play simple, and get the puck at the net.

Q.  Do you think there is anything to it in this Series that both of these teams in the season were so up‑and‑down, so inconsistent?  Is there anything that maybe in the Playoffs that inconsistency has come back maybe for you guys and a little bit for them?

ROMAN HAMRLIK:  Yeah, it did come, obviously against these guys in the first two games and last night.  I thought it was those three games, you know, like up‑and‑down.  But those three games… that was not our team.  Especially in the Playoffs, you can’t play like that.  You give Philly a chance to put the puck at the net, and we were taking penalties.  We have to play five‑on‑five and have a chance.

Q.  Is it the nature of the Playoffs that teams can have such a fabulous effort like you guys had in Game 3, and then come back in Game 4 and it just isn’t there.  Is that peculiar to the Playoffs?

ROMAN HAMRLIK:  You know what, I can’t find an answer.  It’s tough.  I mean, it’s really disappointing.  We have to play better.  Like I said many times, we don’t have any superstars, we don’t have any Joe Sakic or Mario Lemieux.
We’ve got 20 guys together and that’s the way we’re going to beat any team.  Unfortunately, last night it was the toughest night for us.

Q.  At this point would there be anything that you guys have to say to each other?  I mean, this is the sixth game that you’ll play with your backs against the wall.  Is there now just an understanding what you have to do and you don’t have to talk about it?

ROMAN HAMRLIK:  No, we had a meeting, obviously, and we talked about it.  We watched some videos.  We switched the plan what we did wrong.  But we have been there, and tomorrow night we have to play this game like we would play the 7th game in a Series.  That’s what we have to look for.  That’s our mindset just to win tomorrow night.

Q.  The last couple of games you’ve been paired up with PK as opposed to with Jaroslav Spacek.  What’s that like not just to play the position, but to help settle PK down?

ROMAN HAMRLIK:  You know, we have very good games together.  And last night I don’t think it was just me or PK.  I think everybody was a little bit down.  And Spacek and I played all season together and have great chemistry. PK’s a great skater, like I said.  He’s got a good first pass and good shot and on the power play.  I like to play with both of them.

Q.  Tough position for him?  I mean, not a lot of guys with that level of experience get thrown right in this role in this kind of Series where making one mistake can really cost you.

ROMAN HAMRLIK:  You know, he’s young.  He’s going to learn.  I think he takes the role pretty well, especially in the Playoffs.  He showed up and he’s given to us quality minutes.

Q.  Roman, the U.S. TV networks are accusing the Canadiens of laying down sand in the hallway to dull the skate blades.  Have you ever heard of such a thing, or are you worried about anything they may try to do to mess with you guys in Game 5?

ROMAN HAMRLIK:  No, but like I said, we worry about ourselves.  We know they’re going to come hard and they’re going to finish checks like they do always.  You know, we just have to battle.  We haven’t touched the goalie last night.  We gave him a little bit of a break.  But tomorrow’s going to be a different night.

Q.  Did you guys have any skate problems in Game 4?  Any skate problems?  Because I think Mike Richards had to get his skates resharpened five times?

ROMAN HAMRLIK:  I think the first goal, Gorges did.

Q.  The guards, yeah

ROMAN HAMRLIK:  And he was losing the strap or something.  That’s why he stepped on it.

Q.  But that’s about it that you guys had?

ROMAN HAMRLIK:  Yeah, that’s what I know.  I don’t know anything about that.

Q.  You had to work very hard during the three months of Andrei Markov’s absence during the season.  Has that taken a physical toll on you?  You’ve been playing hockey a long time.  You get into the Playoffs and you’ve had two seven‑game series and could be headed to another long one.  How much does it take a toll on you?

ROMAN HAMRLIK:  No, I feel good.  I know we miss Markov badly, and I have to step up and I have to play my best game tomorrow.  I feel good out there.

Comments from Scott Gomez

Q. Scott, one of the burning issues of the day, Pierre McGuire on NBC reported there was some sand down and that affected Flyers’ skates.  Were you having trouble with your skates too yesterday, or is that a bizarre issue as far as you’re concerned?

SCOTT GOMEZ:  It’s the first I’ve heard of it.  Yeah, kind of caught me off guard.  I don’t even know, no.

Q.  I think Jacques said this morning in Brossard that you and Moore both needed skates sharpened during the course of the game at some point?

SCOTT GOMEZ:  Yeah, true, but ‑‑

Q.  Is that fairly standard?

SCOTT GOMEZ:  Yeah, that happens a lot during the game. For two guys at the same time… it’s probably unusual, but, no.

Q.  This kind of the first time you’ve heard of something like this in the Playoffs, sabotage or espionage?

SCOTT GOMEZ:  Yeah, it truly is.  I’m more shocked with that or what Spacek’s wearing, so…

Q.  You wouldn’t be worried about any kind of tricks tomorrow at Wachovia Center?

SCOTT GOMEZ:  No, no.  I mean, and if there are, good for them.  I mean, it’s the Playoffs, and, hey, do whatever you can.  But I don’t think ‑‑ yeah, that’s really stretching it.

Q.  Nobody’s ever –

SCOTT GOMEZ:  No (laughing).

Q.  Sawed into your skates?

SCOTT GOMEZ:  No, but I think –

Q.  It’s the wildest thing you’ve ever pulled on anybody in Pee Wee or Bantam or anything?  Have you ever pulled off anything?

SCOTT GOMEZ:  The best at getting guys ‑‑ I’ve seen some good card jokes. I’ve heard some great stories, but um…

Q.  It’s never you, right?  It’s always somebody else?

SCOTT GOMEZ:  No, it’s never me, you know (laughing).  Yeah, I mean, if it was me, I wouldn’t tell.

Q.  You’ve got to keep some stuff to yourself?

SCOTT GOMEZ:  Yeah, exactly, too sensitive these days.

Q.  For your skates, was it because you got– why did you have to have them sharpened?  Was it you stepped on sticks?

SCOTT GOMEZ:  I don’t know.  I think right in the start of the second, just it’s one of those things.  The game’s so fast out there.  I think I hit someone’s stick or something.

But you kind of have a feeling, and then you get back to the bench.  Right away you can tell from the trainer from his look.  If it’s not bad, he’ll just say all right.  And then he gave me the look, looked up at the clock and said we can do it now or want to wait for the timeout.  Usually when they say that, it’s an indication you better get off.  And I came off, and Moorsy came off and yeah.

Q.  But you weren’t –

SCOTT GOMEZ:  That’s really searching for stories.

Q.  Actually where it comes from is that Mike Richards had to go in four or five times?

SCOTT GOMEZ:  Is that right?  I noticed a couple of guys.  You’re kind of hoping.

Q.  Kimmo Timonen?

SCOTT GOMEZ:  Yeah, they had some big names going, you’re kind of hoping they don’t come back.  But that must have been what it was.  I saw Richards go over, and, yeah, you’re kind of hoping in the back of your mind, hoping it’s an injury.

But he’s skating all right.  So, that’s just Playoffs.  But now it’s coming — yeah, I did notice a couple of guys that that happened to.

Q.  More importantly, being on the brink now, you guys have done nothing but win in this position.  Why does that happen?  Can you talk about it?

SCOTT GOMEZ:  Well, I mean, the good thing is you can’t really say we’ve not been in this situation.  There’s no secret.  We have to win.

You know, I don’t know if that’s been the attitude we’ve had or gone to, but, hey, it’s just one — basically, when you’re put in this situation, it’s really one shift, one period. I mean, you can’t even look too far ahead.  Just take the challenges set in front of us.

People have been making a huge deal about the Bell Centre and stuff.  This arena here is pretty neat.  They’ve got the atmosphere and the people in Philly. So it’s going to be a big challenge for us.  But, at the same time, we’ve had our backs against the wall a lot this year, and we’ve found a way, so why not again?

Q.  Is there a memory bank that you dip into in a case like this, the fact that you’ve been there before?

SCOTT GOMEZ:  Yeah.

Q.  Is it all the same thing, like “here we are again”?

SCOTT GOMEZ:  Yeah, here we are again.  And it seems ten years ago I was in the same situation.  But I mean, it’s a different ‑‑ it’s a different league; it’s a different time.  Experience helps, but at the same time, we have to go out there and put the effort out.  It’s not going to be handed to us.  It’s a great club over there and they’re in the situation where I think everyone felt that Philly ‑‑ look at their roster, I mean, they’re well‑coached, and, hey, it’s going to be tough for us.

But we love the challenge.  We’ve loved it all year.  And here we go.  I don’t know what else to say, but we’ll be ready.  Yeah, you can look back at the past what we did, build whatever you want to build off that.  But at the same time, it’s a total different team, total different times, so we’ve got to ‑‑ it’s a new challenge for us.

Q.  Given the way the first four games have gone?

SCOTT GOMEZ:  Yeah, it’s one of those Series that I think for both sides you get that first one the way this Series is, you don’t want to say maybe it loosens up, but maybe just a sigh of breath. But, especially for us.
But it’s one of those series, that whoever jumps out first gets the upper hand.  It’s going to be important.  But we’re fighting for our lives, literally. So, yeah, whatever.  I mean, whoever scores first, it shouldn’t matter to us.  We’ve almost got to go there and stick with our game plan and do whatever it takes to get a win out.

Comments from Canadiens Head Coach Jaques Martin

Q:  Another comeback?

COACH MARTIN: We have shown resiliency. At this point all that matters is our preparation for tomorrow. I know we’ll be prepared and ready to compete.

Q:  Scoring goals?

COACH MARTIN: That was one area we discussed at length today. We need to bring forth our execution and level of play from Game 3. Every game is different as the series moves on. But we took a step back. Now it’s up to us to regain our edge and be prepared.

Q:  Joueurs fatigués?

COACH MARTIN: La fatigue ressentie est la même pour tout le monde. C’est la même chose pour les Flyers. En séries, tu joues à tous les deux jours et tu dois pleinement profiter de la journée de congé pour te reposer.

Q:  Remontée

COACH MARTIN: Tu dois faire face à différentes situations au cours des séries et je travaille avec les ressources disponibles. On a démontré le caractère de notre groupe, la détermination et l’habileté de pouvoir remonter, de gagner ces matchs importants ».

Afternoon Press Availability at the Four Seasons Hotel in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Q.  Scott Gomez was just saying he’s finally heard about the Flyers complaining about the skate issues and the sand traps allegedly in the hallway or whatever the heck it is, the crazy complaints in the Stanley Cup Playoffs?

COACH MARTIN:  I’m not sure it was the Flyers, because my head equipment individual mentioned to me today that the Flyers head equipment guy said it wasn’t that.

I think what it is is the level of competition and because of the new sticks.  Guys step on sticks and just it affects the blade.  I know one time we had two centers, both Scott and Dominic Moore, who were in the dressing room getting their skates re-sharpened.

Q.  Do you sometimes long for the return to wooden sticks?  You’ve seen them explode when guys are taking slapshots and they break on passes when they’re barely tapped and you get slashing penalties called.

COACH MARTIN:  Yeah, it’s unfortunate, but I won’t hold my breath going back.  They’re so light and players like that.  But definitely, as you mentioned, at times it’s frustrating because of how easily they break at key times.

Q.  One of the things the Flyers did yesterday was put a bunch of towels between the bench and the locker room.  You guys make sure you got towels down and keep an eye on where they’re stepping?

COACH MARTIN:  No, I don’t think that’s an issue.

Q.  In the Pittsburgh Series we talked a little about the element of fear when you go into a Game 7.  You guys have been in now this will be your sixth elimination game.  Do you worry about that sort of fear and nervousness?  Do you mind that they have a little bit of it?  Where do you think this team’s at given their experience?

COACH MARTIN:  Well, I think the nervousness is a good nervousness.  I think that we’re well aware of what’s going on in this Series, and I think we know what we need to do; and it’s about us doing the things that we need to do to have some success.

Q.  Why do you think the first goal in the Series has had such a dramatic impact?  It’s always important in the Playoffs, but in this Series it seems the first goal has really dramatically changed every game?

COACH MARTIN:  You know, I think you always go into the game with the intention of scoring the first goal.  But, you know, it just happens that the team who scores first has been able to stay in the lead.  First of all, there hasn’t been a lot of power plays in this Series; and second of all, at this time of the year in the Playoffs at this stage both teams check well, and I think it’s that kind of games.

Q.  Do you expect to have Pyatt tomorrow?

COACH MARTIN:  It will be a game time decision.  I don’t know how he will be.

Q.  The message you’d impart to your team tomorrow, will it be more philosophy or Xs and Os?  At this point in the season, is it just reminding guys they have to do the little things or is it a lot of technical things that need to be addressed at this point?

COACH MARTIN:  No, I think the things that need to be addressed were addressed in the off days as far as the X and Os.  I think we know what’s at stake.  Players don’t need much.  I mean, we’ve been there before.  We know how we have to compete, and just be prepared and enjoy the moment.

Q.  Is there a little bit of a “here we go again” for you?  I mean, it’s one thing for the players to be in a do‑or‑die situation the sixth time in a row.  But how is it for the coach?  Do you approach it the same way?

COACH MARTIN:  Yeah, the same way.  You’re part of the team.  You’re part of the group.  We know what our strengths are, and we just have to go out and play.

Q.  Do you get nervous before a game like this, or do you get nervous before every game?

COACH MARTIN:  Oh, you get a little nervous, but the more you’ve been around, I guess, the less nervous you get.  But I think it’s been exciting.  It’s been really enjoyable.  You know, you just want to continue the journey.

Comments from Jaroslav Spacek

Q. (No microphone).

JAROSLAV SPACEK:  It’s always nice when your home country wins the gold medal.  So many times they don’t show up for the World Championships, so lots of the guys would probably never make it.  That’s even better for them.

Q.  It’s only because of you guys that Russia got as far as they did because you sent them Ovechkin and Malkin.

JAROSLAV SPACEK:  Well, actually, yeah.  But the Czechs lost a couple times to bad teams too.  And I was surprised that, you know, they beat twice Sweden.  I think they’re one of the best teams now in the world.  You know, they get rewarded for it.

Q.  Here we go again with another do or die, the sixth one.  Do you approach all of them exactly the same way?

JAROSLAV SPACEK:  You know what, I played just the last two of them.  I didn’t play in the first round.  It’s a tough situation, but we are still here.

They have to beat us four times.  They did three times.  I think we beat ourselves last night a little bit, and that’s the situation where we are right now.  I hope we can do better and step up and bring the A‑game tomorrow and bring the 6th game home.

Q.  What have you learned about the character of this team since the Playoffs began?

JAROSLAV SPACEK:  I think lots of guys stepped up.  Start to play a different role and show real character.  The guys care about what’s going on right now, and it’s shown in the first two Series.

Q.  You heard about the Flyers having the problems with the skates, getting some skates –

JAROSLAV SPACEK:  I was worried.  I thought they had diarrhea or something.  Like they were going back and forth from the locker room (laughing).  Actually, I heard the guys talking on the plane. What happened?  Was it on the bench?

Q.  Sand apparently or something, sprinkled in between the locker room and the bench?

JAROSLAV SPACEK:  Oh, was it?  I don’t know about that.  It wasn’t me, you know.

Q.  You didn’t put it down there?

JAROSLAV SPACEK:  I didn’t put it. I steer away from the sand traps and the golf season, so I don’t think it was us.

Q.  Was that the goofiest thing you’ve heard in your years of playing hockey?

JAROSLAV SPACEK:  No, if they have problem, maybe they can wear those skate protectors like the figure skaters, and they can go and jump on the ice and never will it happen again.

Q.  You bringing the beach towel tomorrow?

JAROSLAV SPACEK:  No, no, no.  I want to bring my A‑game, and I want to be there with all other 19 guys.

Q.  Are you worried that you guys might be sabotaged?  This is Philly.  Patrick had his license plate stolen and his tires slashed.

JAROSLAV SPACEK:  Well, that’s the thing.  Our bench and even locker room is on the other side, so it’s far away to go with the sand across the ice and throw it there; so it’s Playoffs and anything is possible to happen.

Q.  We asked Gomez this:  Have you ever done anything crazy to another team or at any level of hockey?  It could have been minor hockey like when you were ten years old.

JAROSLAV SPACEK:  No, no, I never think about that.  I just want to beat them on the ice, and that’s my mindset.