Sunday, March 30, 2003
Quotes from Laredo-Odessa (game story at In the Crease).
Eric Schneider
How many games in how many nights are you gonna end up playing?
I guess tonight is two-in-two, tomorrow will be three in three, then Tuesday in Odessa, Wednesday in Houston and three next weekend. I'm a busy hockey player right now, but I wouldn't want it any other way and I'm excited to get the win tonight.
Any indication from Florida that they might send guys to San Antonio that would put you back with Laredo permanently?
Well yeah, obviously I'm not on the playoff roster there, I'm an emergency call-up, so for sure next Sunday I'll be back until the season's over.
When you come down from the AHL does it feel easier, after playing with the big boys, or is it hard to get into rhythm?.
The pace is a little bit different. It takes a little bit to adjust but I adjusted a whole lot better tonight then I did last weekend. I'll be ready to go Tuesday in Odessa.
What was the mood on the bench when Odessa came back to tie it up?
You know what, I think we were still pretty confident that we were gonna win. We were at home in our own building, and like they say, the fans are the seventh player out there. That was definitely the case tonight. It was just great to see, when Andy scored the goal the bench erupted. We need more of that going down the stretch.
Andy Lundbohm
on Schneider and Periard
They're very good players, to say that we didn't miss them, that'd be lying. When you have Schneid on the ice and see how hard he works and how many chances he gets, it puts a spark in everyone.
on the winner
Finally, I got one on Gorman in the playoffs, I've had a few chances. I just hammered...I hit that one as hard as I could. I found a seam, I got in behind a guy and it was just so fortunate the [rebound] went on my stick.
on Game 5
It's back down to one game, and if we put our hearts into it like we did tonight I think we can win it.
Terry Ruskowski
on the game in general
...back against the wall, last breath of air that we had, no tomorrow, all the cliches you could put together, this was it. We came out and we played a pretty strong game. I thought we moved the puck as well as we've moved it in the series, and that's what we have to do, we have to control the play, get the puck, make the passes that we want to make, not when they force us into making passes... sometimes I think we overmove it instead of shooting and going for the rebound like the first goal, we try to make that perfect pass. It's playoff time, perfect pases and perfect plays come once in a while. You've got to go down and get those goals any way you can, and you've got to shoot the puck on net.
on Mike Gorman
He's one heck of a good goalie. He's actually brilliant. The shots, the quality of plays that we had -- he just comes up with saves. I don't know how he does it but he does.
on the importance of a full roster
It was a must. Even though Eric didn't score tonight his presence was kind of a relief, everybody else kind of said ok, now I can kind of relax, they could just go out there and play the game they play and let the chances come. Just his presence and his whereabouts, Schneider and Grenville and Morten Ask, that line can do a lot of damage. They pay special attention to him, and that gives the other two lines opportunities to create some offense.
Have you learned different ways to win without them?
We have, but not on a regular basis. There's times we did win without them, but there's times we could have done better with them. We have to have those guys in the line-up, it's a must. When that line's not doing it (other teams) focus on the Gilmore line and nullify our scoring altogether. And Periard, he runs the power play. He's good with the puck, he's good dishing when he has the puck, he finds the openings. Those two guys are pretty important.
Who's in net Tuesday?
I don't know. I really don't know. I thought the kid [Marc-Andre LeClerc] played very well today. You know what, I'm just gonna take tonight and go home and relax, go to church tomorrow and thank the good Lord for blessing us today, take one day at a time and God willing, we'll leave here Monday morning and be ready to play.
Scott Green
Did you feel like the game was gonna go your way at 2-2?
We tied it up, the pressure was on them, I thought maybe they'd be a little tighter, but I got to give them credit. They've got a great hockey team and they came back and got the go-ahead goal.
Have you guys grown accustomed to being outshot two-to-one but still being in the game?
Absolutely. I've never seen a better goalie at this level than Gormie. He comes to play every night, he's a big reason for keeping us in games night in and night out. We have a defensive style, but these guys shoot from everywhere, that's their strategy. They know how good he is so they're just trying to get pucks on him, get traffic.
What's the difference with Periard and Schneider in the line-up?
They add so much more depth, and their power play is significantly more dangerous. We've got to be aware of them at all times. Periard controls the power play, and Schneider's got so much speed, so we really have to close the gap on him. I thought we did a fairly good job shutting him down, but they've got so many weapons.
Are the Bucks underrated defensively?
Top to bottom they've got a great line-up. They skate well, they move the puck extremely well, they're not really deficient in any one area. They have the second best overall point total in the league and best home record in the league for a reason. We're back at home Tuesday, so we can't ask for more than that, we just gotta come out and get a victory.
