On the loss:
Well, I think it comes down to having to play a full 60 minutes, and we didn’t do that. We had a few breakdowns defensively, and we can’t have that, especially in the third period against a hockey club like that. This is a battle here in the west to make the playoffs, and everyone’s jockeying for spots. We’ve got to sharpen up.
On scoring and feeling more “confident”:
Well, I think I might just be a benefactor of other guys making good plays. I’ve just been trying to get a lot of shots to the net, and fortunately they’ve been going in. But obviously I would’ve much rather gotten the win tonight.
On Alex Ovechkin and Washington visiting Los Angeles on Thursday:
He’s obviously one of the top players in the league. He’s got 45 goals or something. He’s a really good player, and they’ve got a good high-powered offense. They have for the past few years. We’ve got to play strong defensively and clean things up on our end and take a focus on our game.
On Phoenix’s desperation in the third period:
Like I said, things are really tight, especially in the west. Everyone’s fighting ot get in the playoffs these last 15 or so games here. I say7 it all the time, but it’s been like this ever since I’ve been here. They were a desperate hockey club tonight, and we didn’t match it. [Reporter: Are you surprised at that?] I don’t think we’re really satisfied with the way that we’re playing right now. It’s just a matter of that. It’s not being ‘surprised’ or not.
On the four-point swing game:
Yeah, like I said, these are an important two points here, and I think they’re just a few points behind us. These are big points at the end of the year here. It’s crunch time, and we’ve got to start winning games.
On taking penalties:
Yeah. It’s something that we try to focus on, is not taking too many penalties. You can’t give other teams the opportunities to go on special teams, because that’s often times the difference in the hockey game.
On any turning point that led to a change in third period momentum:
I think it was just a matter of us having a couple breakdowns. I don’t think that there was a specific turning point, no. But we’ve got to play better.
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