October 21 postgame quotes: Brown, Laich

Dustin Brown, on finding a way to win:
Yeah, I mean we did some good things, but we weren’t nearly as clean as we needed to be and as a result I think we gave up four. And it was a lot of battles around our net that we don’t normally—those are chances that we normally don’t give up. And I think at least two were right in the crease. But we found a way to win. Try to learn from the first day on the road and getting our legs under us, time change and that sort of thing. You’ve got to find ways to win.

Brown, on his assist to Anze Kopitar’s goal:
A.I. (Alex Iafallo) really made the play happen quite honestly. Getting in on the forecheck. And kept the play alive while we were changing. I mean I came all the way from the bench. He kept the play alive for a good five seconds to allow us to get on the ice and I kind of snuck in behind coverage. I knew Kopi was coming in off the bench behind me so I just kind of waited. And I knew I had a little bit of time and he just went back side.

Brown, on whether he envisioned a 6-0-1 start:
I don’t think ever. I mean it’s not necessarily, you don’t expect to come out. I mean it’s definitely the goal, to try to rack up as many points. I think the last three years we’ve started 0-and-3. As a team I think we talked about having a good start because these are the types of games that add up, make a big difference towards the end of the year. Last year, when everyone talked about down the stretch how the season was over because of how we performed at the beginning part of the season.

Brooks Laich, on being able to help the team get a win:
Yeah, very exciting. Really excited to win. First period was a bit of a project. Second period was as well. And then third period I started to feel more like myself and was able to contribute more in the third period. Work to do, but always happy, never satisfied. So, happy with the win and moving on.

Laich, on whether playing in a regular season game was like getting back on a bike:
Nah, it’s a process and I was prepared coming in that not everything’s going to go the way you want it. I mean it had been 18, 19 months. However long it had been since I had played a regular season game and only had one exhibition game as well. So a little behind the eight ball there. Wanted to survive the first period. Wanted to get the legs under me. Wanted to get as many touches as I could. And then third period, started to feel like I found my game a little bit. Found some chemistry with the linemates and was able to create a couple chances offensively and not give up much defense.

Laich, on John Stevens having the confidence to give him ice time late in the third:
Yep, yep. Nice really. And I want to reward him for putting me out on the ice. And something that I want to do is build that. I want to build my role on the team. Take the minutes he gives me, the assignments he gives me, execute them and try to grow that. With Jeff being out, that’s a big hole in the middle, so for myself I look at it as a big opportunity. I’m thankful for the opportunity tonight. Build on it, be better on Monday.

Laich, on excitement from the team being 6-0-1 to start the season:
Yeah, the locker room was pretty excited. I played in this building a lot, being in the East for 12 years whatever it was. It’s a tough building to play in. Traveling from west to east is tough, but there were no excuses. I like that about the team. There’s no excuses even when they pushed ahead a goal and pushed ahead a goal. A lot of resilience in our team. You can tell the veteran group has won before. There’s no panic. You play the same way. There’s a lot of parts of our game that make us a very good hockey team and it starts with the veteran guys. And Kopi gets the big goal at the big moment. Just fun to be part of the group. And figure it out as we go here, but fun to be part of the group.

Laich, on the upcoming game in Toronto and what kind of reception he expects:
To be honest I’m not too worried about a reception or anything like that. I’m worried about our hockey team. I’ve put those days behind me. I’m excited to be part of this organization. We’re off to a good start. We have a good thing going. The road trip is tough. Getting the first win gives us a little momentum. Now we’re going in to play a very, very good hockey team.