Ron Wilson Game Quotations

Obviously it's great for Cheech, but the key is to win the game and he ends up with another game-winner.

We've done really well against Dallas. That would be a great match-up. Almost every game goes to overtime.

He was on top of his game in all five. Last season, if you look, he had a lot of points but he had them in 3-4 games. This time it's been spread out and he's been a dominant player just about every shift. He's on the right side of the puck all the time.

We looked like we didn't have much energy tonight. As the game wore on, they maintained their energy, and ours had been sapped about halfway through the game.

He didn't look at all like it was his second game in the NHL.

I will not win a game tonight to lose the next eight games. I will lose a game tonight to win the next eight games, if that makes any sense.

Our goalie kept us in the game early. We started out a little slow in the first period, but once we got our legs, we were OK. It's a wake-up call when your goalie has to constantly bail you out.

Our goal is to run the table here. The toughest game is always the next one you're going to play.

We just didn't have the energy level we needed to do the job and it was pretty obvious early on. The only thing I was hoping for was their energy level would sink because it was their third game in four nights, too.

We dominated the game for 35 minutes and we should have been up 4-, 5-, or 6-0. We talked before the game if we hit a bump in the road, we'd just bury it and move on.

That was not a good call. . . . That's what (expletive) you off. You've got a great hockey game going and you get put down on a questionable call.

We didn't want to tempt fate and have a close game because we thought they would come at us. We seemed to have a lot more jump, more air in our tires than they did.

We had some guys were probably already sitting on the plane ready to go home and that's not what we needed in a game like this. Now we've got to find a way to get back points we absolutely need.

We were sharp right from the get-go. We talked about that at length before the game about being ready and keeping it simple.

We've got, I think, a very potent power play. All indications are it (the calls) should stay the same -- and we'll get five or six opportunities a game and we're going to have to score at least one.

We're in pretty good shape. We want to finish as high as we can. Our goal is to run the table here. The hardest game is always the next one that you play. My job is to keep everybody focused and in the moment and not get too carried away with ourselves.

We've had now for us kind of turning points where we could have put the other team down two halfway through the game and we just missed. At some point something bad happens and we don't really seem to respond.

Thornton, even though he's not getting points, is totally controlling the game on the ice. He's very dedicated right now. It's almost like there's a beast out there and you're not going to take the puck from him.

That's as loud an opening night as I've ever heard, anywhere. I think they're really going to enjoy the new NHL with the speed and the emphasis on offense. I think it's going to be a more fun game to watch. It's a fun game to coach, especially with the weapons we have.

He's a horse. The more you play him, the better he gets. If we were in first place, it would be a different story, but we're not. I'll do everything I can to get ourselves in position to make the playoffs and, according to how the game goes, manage his ice time that way.

They were red-faced at the pace we were trying to play the game at.

It was looking for awhile like the way the game started that we weren't going to get anything and once we battled back it's hard in a game like that to keep your foot on the gas without risking anything and I think in the future we've got to keep on pushing.

It's a hard game for him because the first half of the game, he only had a couple situations, but really he didn't face any rubber. That's hard for a goalie to maintain his focus and composure, but he did.

You have a game plan. Not like a football game, but an idea of how you want to play, you establish it, and that's always the test when you fall behind early, to see if you can sustain what's been successful. That's kind of a test for us, to play as well as we did for 60 minutes.

It was a tight-checking game and they should never have got a 5-on-3, it's as simple as that. It's not a good call.

This was the fastest exhibition game I've ever seen. It was faster than some regular-season and even some playoff games. That doesn't always translate into goals, but the transition, the up and back, is fun.

This was their third game in four nights. It's not like we're spring chickens right now -- we've been playing a lot of hockey -- but they didn't have the same zip that they normally have. And that's why I think we were able to carry the play.

I don't think that's a big part of the game right now. It's about power plays and penalty kills, it's not about fighting. And it's a little different if the tough guy can play. ... I'm not going to knock some of these other guys who can play only three minutes and if you ignore them they're totally useless.