December 13 practice quotes: Darryl Sutter

On the team currently being out of a playoff spot:
Probably last year at this point it’s about where we were, too. I haven’t really looked. You know what, I don’t get too caught up in the analysis part of it. We just stay in the game-to-game part of it and how we’re playing, and that’s it.

On an aspect of the team’s play that he’d like to see improved:
Probably just scoring the big goal, if you look at the last little bit. We lost at home, what was it at home, two-one, in Buffalo one-nothing. Even in the game we won in Ottawa, it’s about scoring the big goal. I know it gets talked about lots about who isn’t or who is or who’s hot, who’s cold, but most of it comes down to being able to score that goal, especially on the road. Score the goal, it makes a difference.

On shootouts:
If they were so important than they’d have them in the playoffs. I don’t have the time of day for ‘em other than trying to score on ‘em. It’s unfair for your goalies, quite honest, because they feel like when they get beat, they feel like they’ve lost the game. At the end of the day, with the imbalance – I’ve said this lots – with the imbalance in conferences, meaning 16 teams and 14 teams – when teams are able to get into the playoffs because somebody’s good in a shootout, it doesn’t really make much sense to me. [Reporter: Would you like to see it go to three-on-three?] Absolutely. I’ve said that all along. When I was in on those meetings, I always said that if we were to going to go to four-on-four, why wouldn’t we go to three-on-three? I said that all the time.

On Jamie McLennan:
Noodles? He’s a good team guy. He was a good broadcaster then, too. [Reporter: What do you think of him now?] He’s awesome. We had a great relationship. That was part of a really good team. He should be wearing a ring, too. [Reporter: What’s his nickname?] Noodles. [Reporter: Do you know the story behind the ‘Noodles’?] No. [Reporter: Apparently he would go on the road trips in junior, and he’d always want a bowl of pasta with him, so they started nicknaming him Noodles because he wouldn’t eat the team food.] You know the year we lost in the finals? We made the playoffs that year because Kipper got hurt and missed about six weeks, and Noodles played – if you look, he played about 10 straight games. He played the last couple with a broken collarbone, and he was the reason we made the playoffs. Nobody talks about that that year. [Reporter: You know he’s still suspended, right?] Is he? [Reporter: Yeah. It was in that Detroit game.] Two games? [Reporter: I think it was four, actually, and then he retired, and that’s it.] …He’s a good guy, Noodles.