Lombardi, on team attitude

Question: What should the reaction be to this season? You made the playoffs again but you didn’t go deeper, the way you wanted to…

LOMBARDI: “I want guys pissed off. I’ve said it before. You know you’re turning the corner when guys go home and they’re pissed off. I sense that. Versus, I’ve seen it before. We went through it in San Jose. Fergy [John Ferguson] would sit there and we would say, you can tell when they [players] are legitimately pissed off, versus, `Yeah, I would have liked to win,’ or, `Yeah, I’m ticked off, but it was pretty good.’ And we actually got there quicker than I thought. You know what? They really thought they could win this thing. They kind of liked the fact that nobody gave them any chance. `Their best scorer was out and their other player is coming back from a shoulder injury and they’ve got no chance.’ They took (the Sharks) to overtime three times and essentially had them. I think that’s the thing that they get disappointed at, at this time. At critical moments, not only to know that you had a chance, but you actually had them. I think the feeling was, if we get them to Game 7, it’s going to be our edge. That’s the thing, from the players I’ve talked to so far. It’s not only that, but it’s almost an opportunity lost when nobody thought you had an opportunity. That’s the way it should be.”

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