After a practice day on Tuesday, head coach Craig Berube discussed the lack of supplementary discipline for Sam Bennett, the appropriate response in Game 2, the team’s fast start in Game 1, and the areas for improvement on the power play.
The league has decided not to discipline Sam Bennett…
Berube: I don’t want to talk about it. It’s over.
How do you want your players to handle Bennett moving forward as he continues to go to the net?
Berube: Play hockey. We have to play hard and physically. They do what they do. It is up to the refs and the league. We are going to play disciplined.
Retribution can be a part of this sport. Do you talk to the players about this?
Berube: I talk to my players about focusing on the game, playing the game hard, and playing it the right way. If there is an opportunity to take the body on someone, I don’t care who it is. You go through them.
You aren’t going to go out, think you are going to get back at Bennett, and end up in the penalty box. We don’t need that. It is the focus. We have to focus on the game and play the game the way we need to play it.
How much has the culture and mindset around retribution changed from the days when you were playing in the league?
Berube: When I played, somebody would’ve done something right away. Probably me, if I were out there.
What is your level of faith in Joseph Woll if he has to start Game 2?
Berube: Well, you have seen him this year. He has played a lot of good games and a lot of good hockey for us this year. Stoly was out for something like two months — I can’t remember the timeline — and he was in there holding the fort for us. We have a ton of faith in him.
Are you preparing for Woll to start Game 2, or is there still a chance Anthony Stolarz could play?
Berube: Yeah, I don’t know that yet. I’ll probably find out today at some point. I am not sure yet.
What is your perspective on how Woll has handled the long time between starts?
Berube: He is a worker. The one thing about Wollsy is that he is very dedicated to what he is doing off the ice and on the ice. He is one of the most dedicated guys I have been around in that aspect. He works on his game constantly. He is a great teammate who does what he needs to do to be ready to play.
What has allowed Max Pacioretty to jump into the lineup and make such a big impact?
Berube: Max has had a pretty good career as a player in all facets — scoring goals, and he is a big, strong guy who is physical. He has the ability to make plays and put the puck in the net at the same time. He has been a good National Hockey League player for a long time, and he is playing some good hockey for us right now.
He has had a tough couple of years with injuries. His dedication when he is injured to work, get back, and do what he did — with the work he put in with the people in the organization when he was out — gives him the opportunity to come back and play good hockey.
With the physical element that Pacioretty has brought in this playoff, what change have you seen in Pacioretty’s game in that respect?
Berube: I think he was doing that before his injury. He was a very physical player for us. He is one of the guys who gets on the forecheck, understands what we want with our system, and he goes through people.
How close was the first period of Game 1 to exactly the type of hockey you want to see from your team?
Berube: Well, it was a good period. I thought we were very aggressive and on our toes. If you look at the gaps and reloads by our guys, they’re crucial. We were getting pucks to the net and attacking.
We kind of backed off a little bit too much later on, but at the start of the game, the first period was very good.
What did you see from the power play with the 0-for-5 Game 1? Are there any adjustments needed there?
Berube: There are always things that we want to do a little bit better after watching. We know how their penalty kill works. It is highly aggressive. It is about doing things quickly, passing the puck quickly, moving it, and getting it to the net. If you think you are going to come up with other ideas, it is not going to work.
When you have an aggressive PK like that, you have to move it quickly, and you have to shoot. When there are scrums, we have to attack off of them because they are out of position. We did a few things like that where we had some good looks, but it didn’t go in, and we have to look at it. We’ll be better.
What was behind the decision to put Morgan Rielly on the power play for the last power play in the third? Was it about safety with the lead?
Berube: Yeah, you are up by a goal. That has always been in the plan. It is all a feel thing. It is designed that way.
With the Panthers’ playoff pedigree, what kind of response are you expecting in Game 2?
Berube: It is going to be a tough game. We know that. It is going to be a tougher game than the first game. Against the Senators, after Game 1, the second game was a lot tougher. That is what I expect: a hard, physical game. They play the way they play. They are not changing anything. We know that.
