Transcripts Courtesy of the NHL Communications Department

Comments from Blackhawks Head Coach Joel Quenneville, Blackhawks players Duncan Keith and Jonathan Toews

Comments from Head Coach Joel Quenneville

Q. Coach, what was the mistake, if any, on the line change in overtime?

COACH QUENNEVILLE: I think maybe we could have just had one guy change on the play instead of two. Which gave them a little extra man on the rush.

Q. Joel, can you talk a bit about the impact that Pronger has had in this Series against your top players? And the second part is, Dustin showed a bit of frustration last night. Do you think he’s feeling it?

COACH QUENNEVILLE: No, I think Buff is not an easy guy to play against as well. I think one thing about Prongs, he’s played in some hockey and he played in some big games. I think that it’s a good challenge for Buff to make sure you make it as tough and as rough as you can on Prongs. Make it hard minutes on him.

I still think he’s battling in the right area. I know he gets rewarded when he gets there. I think it don’t take much of a loose puck for him to finish, and haven’t found it yet, but certainly he’s going to get a chance as we go along here. I thought that line was more effective in each and every game as we progressed here. Kaner’s game as well progressed yesterday.

Q. Joel, is Ladd going in, and if so, who comes out?

COACH QUENNEVILLE: Laddy situation we’ll talk about it in the morning. He skated today. We’ll assess that after he skates tomorrow.

Q. How much — obviously there’s two great defensive pairings on each side and two very good second defensive pairings. When one line starts getting hotter than the other, how difficult is it to pick your poison when to throw one set against a different line?

COACH QUENNEVILLE: It’s a good question. I think that matchups kind of changed as you go along in the course of the games and the course of Series. One line gets a little hotter. Maybe you get away from that and the other side — that line might get hot again. Sometimes it’s a give and take. Sometimes it’s — might take the matchups that’s out there. But, certainly, Bolly’s line is trying to work the one situation. They are doing a decent job. The other times sometimes you are looking for the D matchups. We’ll look at what we can do to slow down one of the other lines, and hopefully get more consistency in that area.

Q. The success of their penalty kill goes back a couple of rounds now. They’re on a nice run. What have they been able to do out there?

COACH QUENNEVILLE: Our power-play, we didn’t get many opportunities here as we’ve gone along here. I think last night was probably the chance to make an imprint on our power-play. Make it more effective.
But we can be better on it, for sure. And that’s something we’re talking about to improve upon going into tomorrow’s game.

Q. Joel, if Andrew is healthy enough to play, is the inclination to do something different following a loss to shake things up, knowing how effective he’s been? And are you concerned about having lost him wanting to do something different? Or are you looking at maybe status quo because it is just one loss?

COACH QUENNEVILLE: It is just one loss. And at the same time we said at the top of the Series that Laddy is day-to-day. We expect him to play over the course of the Series. When he’s ready to play, he’ll play.

Q. Coach, when you have a long winning streak in the Playoffs, does the team get a sense of invincibility, and has that eroded at all when you have one loss, especially in overtime? And is there any sense of doubt in player’s head they’re thinking if we lose tomorrow it’s even again and the pressure is back on us?

COACH QUENNEVILLE: No, you have to like the disposition of our team and their approach. We have gone along here seven in a row. You feel good going into games. You feel good when the games are on the line. You feel good in the third period. You feel good in overtime. It’s a tough loss. Certainly we’re disappointed. Should create an appetite for us going into tomorrow’s game. And we’re looking for a response.

Q. Joel, going back to the line change, you explained should have been one guy instead of two. Where does the responsibility lie for that? Is it a player’s call? Is it a coach’s call? Who exactly was where they shouldn’t have been?

COACH QUENNEVILLE: I don’t want to get too technical. We don’t want to point fingers. When you are trying to match lines, sometimes you’re going to be vulnerable to a tough change. Sometimes there’s too many men. Sometimes a guy gets a late change coming off the bench as well. So that’s all part of it. In a situation like that, I’ll take the hit for it.

Q. Joel, we know Jonathan has pretty high expectations of himself. What do you think of his play so far in the Series and kind of getting on the board last night that can carry over?

COACH QUENNEVILLE: I think Johnny’s line has gotten better each game of the Series. They were more dangerous last night be it off the rush. Had more puck time. I would expect them to continue to improve the way he has throughout his career.

Q. Going back to the power-plays, is it your best guess a work-ethic thing, X’s and O’s, combination?

COACH QUENNEVILLE: Yeah, I think there’s some ideas we can look at. More puck possession and more simplicity.

Q. Coach, have you thought about shuffling the first line a bit, maybe trying to get Byfuglien or Toews, Kane away from Pronger?

COACH QUENNEVILLE: He’s out there for more than half the game. So that’s easier said than done. If you are looking for that matchup to be avoided. Whether your change — Benny has been on that line a couple of times, they scored both times — maybe he’s been on it a few other times than that. Sometimes you mix and match. Sometimes based on — sometimes the guy is missing a skate or he needs a blow or something. He’s too tired to go. I think, at the same time, you can mix your lines up as best you can. But at the same time, we’re pretty comfortable with the success that the lines have had. And the rotation that we do have with our lines.

Q. Joel, some of your guys expressed a little surprise at some of the things that Pronger gets away with without being penalized. What’s your take on that?

COACH QUENNEVILLE: We’ll talk about it. I know there’s forms and there’s mechanisms for us to get our messages across. I think there’s a couple for sure late in the game, there was one that got my attention, whether it’s a stick use or obstruction, I think we’ll keep an eye on it.

Q. What was the play?

COACH QUENNEVILLE: Whether it’s a dump or a chip, I think how he makes you take the long way.

Comments from Duncan Keith

Q. Duncan, can you just talk about how important it is to tighten up the special teams?

DUNCAN KEITH: Yeah, I think last night was a close game, and looking back on the game, a big part of it was special teams. I think they scored a couple of goals on the power-play. I think they got a couple, anyway. And we had our chances. We didn’t capitalize.

I think moving forward here, definitely we want to improve on our power-play. I think our penalty kill has been good for the most part. Sometimes, you know, just tightening it up here and there.

But I think moving forward here, that’s definitely something that next game we want to concentrate on being better at.

Q. Duncan, I think people a lot of players were talking about last night, the overtime goal was in part because there was a line change. Talk about exactly what happened and how often that does happen in key moments of a game like that.

DUNCAN KEITH: Well, it shouldn’t happen. But, you know, I think — I’m not really sure what happened or why there was a change there. Sometimes whether it’s matchups, or guys are tired or, you know, I think we just need to be a little bit smarter when we’re changing, whether it’s defensemen or forwards, and that might have helped out on that play.

I don’t know, at the same time, they made a nice play. I think their D joined the rush there and really created it all.

Q. Duncan, just the GM’s from around the League were in town, and Dale Tallon was here. What did it mean to the younger players in that team and how happy are you guys that he landed another job in the NHL?

DUNCAN KEITH: It’s great for Dale. I remember, personally, when I was drafted by Chicago, I remember he was the guy doing all the interviewing. I’m not exactly sure what his title was at the time, but I got the feeling that he really pushed for them to draft me. I could tell that he was pushing for them to pick me.

I’m thankful for him for that. And a lot of guys have stories like that where he’s behind the players and he really cares for his players and believes in them. That’s the type of guy he is. It’s great to see him being able to get that opportunity with Florida. I wish him all the best.

Q. The special teams, does it almost feel like those go in cycles even though they’re both down at one point it’s a trend maybe they’ll both go back up again. Do you feel fortunate that you have the Series lead, even though they have dominated on both special teams?

DUNCAN KEITH: Yeah, I mean, special teams sometimes it can go in slumps and you can get real hot. A lot of times sometimes it’s just a bounce here and there and a lucky bounce or you’re doing the right things, you’re getting chances, you’re not scoring. Other times you’re not doing much and you get a goal.

So that’s the kind of hockey for you sometimes. Having said that, there’s no question we can — we feel we can be better at special teams. Whether it’s penalty killing or power-play, just moving forward, I think next game, we definitely want to — when we get those opportunities, try to capitalize on them.

Q. Duncan, the last two games at least the Flyers it seemed like in the third period a lot more aggressive, a lot more chances. Why is that? And how important is it for you guys to play better in the third as the Series moves on?

DUNCAN KEITH: It’s huge. I just think it comes down to us moving our feet and using our speed and — for whatever reason, I don’t know why, but I just think that we’re capable of — we’ve played good third periods all year long.

I think, as a team we have a lot of confidence in ourselves and in our ability in the next game and going forward that we want to — that’s something we’re going to focus on, is finishing strong. I thought we had a good start to last game. Unfortunately, our finish wasn’t as good as our start.

Comments from Jonathan Toews

Q. Jonathan, when you have a long winning streak in the Playoffs, does the team almost get a sense of invincibility and has that cracked at all when you lose a game, especially in overtime?

JONATHAN TOEWS: Not really. We’ve never planned on a winning streak like that. The reality is in the Playoffs that doesn’t happen very often. So we’re happy that we’ve been able to put something like that together.
But, you know, we came into this Series knowing it was going to be a dogfight. That’s what you saw last night. It was a tough one to lose. Doesn’t matter what point of the Series it is.

I think we’re pretty upbeat today and ready to regroup and get back on the horse and play a better game tomorrow. We did a lot of things better last night. Both teams played quite a bit better than the first two games. Just a lot of little things we can improve on. It’s not about streaks or road wins for us. Every single game we go into we want to give ourselves the best chance to win.

Q. Jonathan, the NHL GM’s were in town yesterday and Dale Tallon was here. I wonder if you can go back, how tough was it to see a GM that had drafted you guys and helped put the core together to go? And secondly, how excited and happy are you for the guy to get another chance at the NHL?

JONATHAN TOEWS: It’s great for him. A lot of guys in the locker room talked to him and sent him a word of congratulations. We heard about that. It was tough to see that happen to a guy — to a person like Dale, the same way with Denis Savard.

Sometimes it’s the reality of the business. You realize as a young player that not everything stays the same over time. But especially when somebody puts a lot of faith in you and they give you the opportunities that Dale did, it’s tough. You feel kind of personally responsible sometimes too. It’s tough to see a person like that go. Great to see him get a second chance. Keep in touch whenever we can.

Q. Jonathan, I’m sure going into this Series, you expected it to be difficult to play Pronger. Is it even tougher than you imagined to play against him, and how hard is it not to get frustrated?

JONATHAN TOEWS: We’ll give him credit. We’ll give their players credit for playing well defensively against some of our top players. But it’s always been about us and been about how we can play better. That doesn’t change this Series. So we’ve played against some tough defensive players in the past in previous Series before coming into this one. It’s all about overcoming that adversity, overcoming the obstacles that are in front of you and just finding a way.

We’re fortunate, we’re very happy about being up two games to one after three games. We look at the situation as one that there’s a lot of things to be optimistic about.

Myself personally, so many more things I want to do, I want to accomplish and ways I want to contribute. Keep working hard and knowing that nothing is going to be easy. It will be much more enjoyable when things go your way knowing you worked extra hard for it.

Q. Jonathan, as you say, you are in a good spot. That said, would you like to see the special teams tighten up a little bit?

JONATHAN TOEWS: Yeah, that’s another thing that can put us over the top, I think. A lot of things have been going well for us. Especially in Games 1 and 2. But again, when things get really tough, when you see tight game like last night, maybe that’s one of those little details you want to work on, make sure that it could be a difference-maker in a game like that.

Q. Jonathan, you finally get on the board last night with the assist. How would you judge your own play in this Series both ways? How do you think you’ve been playing?

JONATHAN TOEWS: At this time of year, there’s always that doubt in your mind you always think there’s got to be a little something more you can give every single game. You try to bring that the next time around. I feel I’ve gotten better and better as each game has gone on.

As a captain, obviously, whether it’s on the score sheet or any other way, you want to be giving something that your teammates are going to recognize and respond to. So that’s what I’ve been trying to do.

Obviously, I know there’s still more that I got to do out there. Just trying to stay positive and bring that tomorrow, I guess.

Q. Jonathan, would you say the Flyers are the most physical team you’ve played so far in the Playoffs?

JONATHAN TOEWS: We’ve had some tough Series. Obviously, it feels like ages ago, but the Series against Nashville was pretty tough, a lot of teams that can hit and can skate.

You know, I think we’ve brought our physical play up a notch as well. It’s going to be a natural thing, especially — doesn’t matter who you playing, if you’re playing for the Cup, it’s going to be tough. It’s going to be a battle. You saw that last night, that both teams more and more know what’s on the line as we get closer.

And so yeah, we know they’re going to be even more physical as we go along. We’re going to try to do the same.

Q. For people who have been through the Olympic process this year, this is Game 100 and something for some of you guys, and a lot of it really intense hockey. How has your body held up through a very long season?

JONATHAN TOEWS: Well, I guess it’s not about what your body is going through. It’s about what you got in your head and how bad you want it, I guess. How many guys are lucky enough to be in this situation where they can play some important games like some of the guys on our team have this year. It’s just — it’s been a lot of fun.
It’s one of those years that you got to really appreciate and make the best of, because you don’t know when it’s going to happen again, to make it this far in the Playoffs, it’s incredible. It’s not about the amount of games that you play.

You just keep pushing because you know what’s on the line and you know how special it could be if you are lucky enough to win a Stanley Cup or something like that. So a lot of stuff you have to play through. But it’s worth it in the end.

Q. Jonathan, bizarre twist last night, two replays in your game, and a near-perfect game in baseball where it could have saved it was not use. How do you feel about replay in your sport and why does it work?

JONATHAN TOEWS: I think it’s a necessary thing. Why not? You have the technology to get the play right. Obviously, to get the fair outcome it’s what everyone wants. So why not? I think it’s a big part of it. And you need it for sure.

Q. Jonathan, at your best you guys usually bring waves of offense. Do you think you’ve had enough shifts in the row in the offensive zone at times? You’ve scored a lot of five-on-five goals. Do you think you’ve found that consistency in enough stretches in these three games?

JONATHAN TOEWS: Yeah. I mean, it’s going to be tough to keep things going like that. It’s the type of team whenever you throw something at them, they’re going to try and take that momentum away and come right back at you.

So it’s really tough. As four lines, we’ve talked to each other saying that we really want one line get a great shift, it’s always a great thing that the next shift goes out and follows that lead. Fortunately, when we scored that goal in the third period it’s not a fun thing when they come back and get a break like that in their zone. It’s one of those things you need to respond to the way you’re teammates are playing. When things are rolling for you, you have to try to ride it out as long as you can.

Q. Jonathan, I think you guys have seen a lot of the Briere line. They think they’ve seen a lot of you. What’s been challenging about keeping them under wraps with the chemistry they seem to have at this point?

JONATHAN TOEWS: They’re playing really loose. Things are clicking for them. We just need to be a little more aware, because they’re supporting each other, they’re working hard. Obviously, you watch the way they’re playing, they’re working hard to create plays. They’re also taking advantage of their opportunities. Sometimes not everything is going to go as planned when you’re out there playing.

But pucks will pop loose and they’ll land on your stick and things will bounce your way sometimes. That seems to be what’s happening for that line. So we have to try our best to try and take that confidence away from that line. We know they’ve been a big part of that team’s success in their offense in the last three games. Maybe we’ll have to focus on them a little bit more. More than we have.

Q. John, is Chris Pronger the toughest defensemen you’ve gone up against in these Playoffs? And do you think he’s getting away with some stuff on the ice?

JONATHAN TOEWS: Yeah, I mean, again that’s debatable. It is what it is. He’s going to go out there and be physical. It doesn’t matter how many whacks you’re going to take from a guy like that in front of their net, the second you turn around and give him one, you have to be careful, because that’s what they’re looking for is retaliation.

It’s that type of thing where you have to try and accept and take from him, because it’s the way he plays. It just seems like, you know, it doesn’t go as noticed as it would for another player. That’s just the way it is. He’s done his job. We can still do more to try and take him off his game.

Q. Some of the Flyers’ players were saying they did feel that Pronger was getting inside some of the Blackhawks’ heads. When we asked some of your teammates, basically everyone wanted to change the subject. Why do you think that is?

JONATHAN TOEWS: I don’t know. I don’t know how he would be getting into our heads, whether it’s vocally or what not. He’s not talking a lot out there. He’s playing. He’s doing his job the way he knows he can do it. So I mean, he’s just one player. I don’t think it’s that big of a deal.