Last hour we posted notes and quotes from Dustin Brown and Simon Gagne. Now, here’s some thoughts from the blueline…
Q. From the outside it would appear this is the most adversity this team has faced in the last couple months. Fair to say?
DREW DOUGHTY: No. Played the first place, second place, third place teams in our conference. Going into those matchups, you can’t say we didn’t face adversity at that point. We did a good job of dealing with it in those three series. Now it’s just another point where we have to do it again.
Q. How do you avoid being discouraged having two chances?
DREW DOUGHTY: I don’t think we’re discouraged. We knew it was going to be a long series. Before the series started, I don’t think we ever expected to be up 3-0. I think one of the games we clearly deserved to win, the third one. The first two could have gone either way. I don’t think we’re discouraged at all. They won two in a row. We had some good times last night and some bad times.
Q. They seem to be playing much better the last couple games. Are they showing you anything different?
DREW DOUGHTY: I don’t think they’re doing anything different. I think they’re just executing better. Whether they have the puck or they don’t, they’re doing a good job of playing their team system and it’s making it tough on us. We have to make adjustments and be a lot better.
Q. The puck luck seems to be favoring them a little bit more the last few games. Is that something that gets frustrating, hitting the posts?
DREW DOUGHTY: I think it’s a good thing. We’re hitting posts, we’re creating chances. Eventually those are going to go in. Marty is playing well. We have to find ways, crashing the nets. It’s not going to be the pretty ones that go in. It’s going to be the dirty ones that win us the game.
Q. You’ve had a couple runs at this thing, some adversity. Does it get approached in any way differently than Game 4 was approached?
DREW DOUGHTY: Yeah, we don’t want any distractions. I think a lot of us before Game 4 were distracted with family members and friends, the Cup coming in the building. A lot of things we have to put aside. Family always comes first for everyone, but at this point of the year, the team has to come first. We’re a family in the room, on the ice. Right now we’re number one in everyone’s mind.
Q. Is that a lesson learned?
DREW DOUGHTY: Yeah, I think that’s a lesson learned. We realize a lot of us didn’t play at our potential in Game 4. We were nervous, worried about other things. All of us in the room were kind of frustrated that we were thinking about things ahead of time. Darryl made sure that wasn’t going to happen this time. We’ll be well-prepared for Game 6.
Q. Darryl plays you pretty aggressively.
DREW DOUGHTY: I think it’s a matter of doing a lot of things. We know he’s an aggressive goalie. Maybe that means faking the shot, hoping he goes for that two-pad stacking walking around him, or it’s getting in front so he can’t see the puck. He gets a lot of rebounds right in front of him. We have to crash the nets and get those rebounds. He’s a great goalie. I think right now we’re making him look a lot better than he should be.
Q. What is the biggest challenge in trying to get a little extra physical or emotional energy when you and your teammates are maybe physically and mentally tired right now?
DREW DOUGHTY: I think we’re fine. We’ve lost a few in a row, but we could have easily won those two games, too. The Cup is going to be in the building again tomorrow night. I think that’s enough motivation. At this point of the year, you don’t feel the bumps and bruises, you don’t get tired. You have so much adrenaline running through your body, you want it so bad that you just put it all aside.
Q. What has Rob Scuderi done to improve your game?
DREW DOUGHTY: I love playing with Rob. He’s a great player, great guy. We like to communicate a lot, know where we’re going to be on the ice. If we feel like there’s a play on the ice that we didn’t play well or do the right things, we’re going to talk about it. We’re both the first to admit it’s our fault. We have a great relationship on and off the ice. That’s a big reason why we’re successful.
More notes from other players to follow shortly.
Also, we posted pre and post-game videos last night, please see the ‘Recent Posts’ section near the top right corner of this page for links.
About John Hoven
Kings dominated last night, very unlucky to not get a W. But all the Devils’ luck was expunged, and LAK gets it done tomorrow night.