January 8 practice quotes: Darryl Sutter

On Marian Gaborik’s energy on Thursday:
He’s been moving really good. We’re trying to get him off the walls and find open ice more, which allows him to use his ability more. He’s had a lot of good opportunities, and he’s getting shots. That’s a key for guys like that, because when they’re getting shots – and not just on goal, but attempts – that means that he’s involved in the game, and that’s the strength of his game.

On Jeff Carter’s return:
You know what? We used four lines, and I don’t even know what Carts ended up last night. Was he a 13, 14-minute guy? He hasn’t played – everyone says it was 26th, but he really hasn’t played since the 22nd of December, so you had to really manage it and watch it, so he was able to manage it. I think he did a good job of it, and when the goalie was out, I wanted him out there at some point because Kopi was running out of gas a little bit. Jeff made a really strong play in front of the net in terms of the physical part of it with the goalie out, and that’s a thing that I watch and appreciate.

On Luke Schenn’s presence in a late-game opportunity:
That’s one of the strengths of his game, is he’s sticking around the net, for sure, and he made a really good play at the end, too. It’s just one of his strengths. We’re going to use him in those situations. That’s what his job is, to kill penalties and be in those situations like that.

On Vincent Lecavalier’s play along the boards on Jake Muzzin’s goal:
I think we made a lot of good plays. Against a team like Toronto, they check like us. There’s five guys involved and in the work part of it all the time, and you have to be able to put guys on your back and make plays that are hard plays to make. Some guys will make ‘em, some guys won’t because there’s a little bit of courage involved in that. That’s always been a strength of Vinny, so it was good for him to do that.