Ottawa Senators head coach Travis Green addressed the media after a 4-0 win over the Maple Leafs in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinal playoff series.
On where the game ranks among the more “mature” performances by his team this season:
I am not sure where it ranks, but obviously, at this time of year, it is the most important. We just played a really good road game tonight, top to bottom.
On Linus Ullmark’s improving performance level as the series wears on:
Not surprising. I feel like I have been talking about Linus a lot in this series. We have a lot of confidence in him, and rightfully so. He was sharp again tonight.
On what the team has done well to turn it around in the last couple of games and “tighten the screws” on the Leafs:
It has been a tight-checking series. It hasn’t just been the last two games. We played pretty well before that.
I do think our individual and collective game has gotten better. Part of it is just from not playing in the playoffs before and feeling a little more comfortable.
On the decision to send Dylan Cozens out on the penalty kill in the third period:
[Ridly Greig] was in the box. We need another killer. [Gaudette] has not done a lot of killing, either, so [Cozens] is our next guy up. Obviously, it is a huge goal.
On the turnaround on the Senators’ penalty kill (five goals against in the first three games; zero in the last two, plus two shorthanded goals):
It has been a big part of the series. They have an extremely skilled team and a really good power play. They were on fire at the beginning. [Nolan Baumgartner] has done a great job with our penalty kill.
As far as the specifics, I don’t want to get into that, but he and the penalty killers have done a good job of getting it done in the last few games. It is a big part of the playoffs. Again, they have a lot of good players.
On the growing belief amongst his players:
I think our comfort level playing in the playoffs has gotten better. I have also said throughout the series that our group has a lot of confidence in themselves.
I don’t think a lot of people gave us much of a chance in this series, and rightfully so — they have a really good team over there — but there is a lot of belief in our team. If we can play our game and get to our game for 60 minutes, we have belief.
On the Senators’ defending of the middle of the ice against the Leafs:
I think we have checked well. It is a tight-checking series right now. It is something our team has talked about from the beginning of the season. The pace of our checking has been solid — the details within our checking. Against a team like Toronto, you have to be on top of that part of your game, for sure.
On whether the second consecutive win to stave off elimination might plant a seed of doubt in the Leafs‘ minds:
It gives our team belief. I can’t speak for how they feel or the pressure that is on their team. I don’t think our group has really felt pressure from the beginning.
We talk about playing game-to-game, resetting, and getting ready to play the next game. That really hasn’t changed from the start of the series.
On the rollercoaster of alternating belief and doubt in the playoffs:
It can change fast. You can feel great about yourself. You can feel shitty about yourself as well, or your team, or where you’re at. Those are the types of things we have talked to our team about throughout the season, really. I think it is paying dividends now.
Again, we have won two games. We are going to enjoy it now for a couple of hours, and then tomorrow, we will reset. We are going to have to play our asses off and play better in Game 6 to get another game [in Toronto].
On the anticipation for the atmosphere at the Canadian Tire Centre in Game 6:
The home crowd is big in the playoffs, obviously. You hear the crowd a lot.
Both buildings have been great. I don’t know if I have coached in a louder building than those two games in Ottawa. I expect it to be another great atmosphere.
