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Silver Nuggets

Silver Nuggets: End-of-season player interviews

In case you missed it, yesterday was the annual player locker cleanout day. It was clear that every player was shocked at how fast the run came to an end, speaking to the confidence that they had in themselves. It was also clear that many were playing through injuries - most of which are identified below (except Erik Karlsson's). I tried to capture all of the media bits from each player and linked the player interviews if they were up on SensTV. Anything in the player's own words are in quotation marks, with things unquoted being my interpretation/thoughts. Hope this helps!

In addition, feel free to discuss Bryan Murray and Dave Cameron's media availability in the comments.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>We&#39;ll have Cameron (10 a.m.) and Murray&#39;s (10:30 a.m.) media availability LIVE from <a href="https://twitter.com/CdnTireCtr">@CdnTireCtr</a> shortly.&#10;&#10;WATCH: <a href="http://t.co/Ckn6yV7edN">http://t.co/Ckn6yV7edN</a></p>&mdash; Ottawa Senators (@Senators) <a href="https://twitter.com/Senators/status/593412016896909314">April 29, 2015</a></blockquote>

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Jared Cowen

Patrick Wiercioch

Marc Methot

Methot Interview

  • On Karlsson: "Even with all the added responsibility by being Captain, Erik handled it great"
  • "I'm going to be getting some minor surgery this week on my elbow. I broke it two months ago - a bone chip. I have a bit of a hip flexor issue and a foot issue but those things are just normal in the playoffs. The hip and foot will heal over time"/

Chris Phillips

Phillips Interview

  • "The doctors said they repaired what needed to be repaired [similar to what Alfie had a couple years back; pressure on the nerve that needed to be relieved; affecting my left leg]. Happy to figure out what was wrong, get it done, and have a full summer to get ready to be back for next year"
  • "I tried to do a couple things to help it out and get back skating but I wasn't able to do it consistently enough to be able to perform at the NHL level"
  • "I've had a lot of time to rest up, so now it's just the slow process of rehabbing the back and then jumping right into training"/

Mark Borowiecki

Borowiecki Interview

  • "Nothing is just going to happen next year. It's a lot of hard work. Can't get complacent and have to put the work in"
  • On Wiercioch: "What he went through, being out of the lineup, is so hard... The game he plays, you need a lot of confidence for that"
  • "We have a lot of positive energy in here" - I wonder if it's from having a happy go lucky Captain? ;) /

Erik Karlsson

Karlsson Interview

  • "I think we've grown tremendously as a team and as individuals, and whatever happens to this team in the summer, we're going to push to be a better team from the start so that we don't have to go on a run like this for a very long time"
  • "As of Christmas, we started playing better, even though we didn't get the results we wanted at times"
  • "We took it a day at a time and the turning point for us was the West Coast swing where we were playing some of the best teams in the league and played really well"
  • I don't really think [my responsibilities have] changed that much as a Captain. I think I'm getting great help from everybody in this room and I think everyone has really stepped up their own individual game on the ice and off the ice. It's been easy for me to adjust to the position that I'm in and I think my teammates are the key to that"
  • On Wiercioch: "I'm really happy for him. We were drafted in the same year so I've known him for a really long time, and he's been one of the guys that really evolved his game and helped us get to where we are today. We needed him to step up and he did in the times we needed it the most"; "He's going to be a big piece for us next year" <3
  • "You're never 100% at the end of the year, but I was fortunate to have nothing major and was able to play in all of the games"/

Craig Anderson

Anderson Interview

  • re: leaving, Anderson said that he's not bothered by not having an NTC in the contract. "let fate handle it; I'm very confident in my abilities and the way I've played"
  • Anderson also said that he "found himself" in Ottawa, and that it's his "hockey home." By that, he learned to be a consistent pro night-in, night-out and deliver in a spot that was a great fit for him/

Andrew Hammond


Hammond Interview

  • "Whole group took a lot of pride in proving people wrong" - spoke about how the team felt comfortable under pressure and this is the first team that's been like this; "character through the roof"
  • He was able to build confidence through the two weeks of practice; started to figure things out and translated it into on-ice performance
  • "I'd love to come back, but time will tell" - not that I expected anything else for a player to say.. /

Mika Zibanejad

Zibanejad Interview

  • Hurt his left knee (bruise on kneecap) in Game 1; not comfortable to play through as he bumps it a lot in the corners
  • "It was a really big year for me experience-wise and I take a lot of pride in it"/

Bobby Ryan

Ryan Interview

  • [What bothered you?] "The way I played... That's what I'm going to spend the entire summer on, the last 15-20 game stretch"
  • "You're only as good as your last game, and nobody scored in our last game. I've watched it four times now" - It's clear that Bobby took the loss hard as a goalscorer relied upon to score, though if I had a word of advice for him, it'd be to "let go" of the stretch and especially the last game (which was just bad puck luck) and focus on how you can channel that energy into motivation.
  • On the mindset going into the summer: "Obviously you get healthy, you go back to square one. For me, I have to put some weight and size back on; worried about that down the stretch. I'm going to watch that game all summer long, and try to find little ways to get better. I'm going to work on my shot more than I ever have"
  • "I think I took leaps and bounds this year in the room... I learned a lot about how to be a leader, especially down the stretch."/

Jean-Gabriel Pageau

Mark Stone

Stone Interview

  • "We had a lot of confidence going into the playoffs and were comfortable with the way we were playing"
  • "This summer, guys will be looking for any way to improve. We have to come into camp ready to push to be one of the better teams in the league"
  • "Going to try to get a step quicker this summer. It's what I've been doing for the past three summers"
  • "We're all excited with where we're going, but not yet satisfied"/

Curtis Lazar

Clarke MacArthur

MacArthur Interview

  • Hip flexor - nothing major; will be 100% next year
  • "Everyone's found their role and bought-in"
  • "We want to make a push in the next two to three years. We know it's hard because of the cap, but with the young guys we have, we have to try for that"
  • On the coaching change: "It was a fresh start. He worked us hard that first month. Things changed, and once we all got a grip on what was going how and how we were going to play, it was amazing the run we went on. Everyone can buy into their role and enjoy the role"
  • On Dave Cameron identifying roles: "[Identifying the correct roles is] huge, I mean look at the Pageau line, their work ethic, their penalty killing, every role helped us be tough to beat"/

Kyle Turris

Turris Interview

  • "We liked our matchup against Montreal. We obviously dug ourselves a hole going down 3-0 but we were confident we could come back" - me too Kyle, me too
  • "We have a real good group of guys in here that work for each other and have a lot of potential"
  • "Everybody stepped up at different times. I was just happy trying to be one of those guys contributing when I got the chance."
  • On Cameron: "he did a great job on a bunch of things. He gave us the amount of rest we needed when we needed it... defining roles, putting the right combos together. Davey has a real good feel for the team"
  • On Wiercioch (Ary note: as soon as Turris started talking about him, there was a huge smile on his face): "... I think you saw in the last two months and especially in the playoff series, what he's capable of. I've been lucky enough to know that for a very long time"/

Erik Condra

Sens Links

  • Your final game recaps of the season. Let's start with a dominant game five victory. [Silver Seven, Rank the Performances, Email Hotstove, Ottawa Citizen, SensChirp, SenShot]
  • Unfortunately, the recaps from the game six defeat. [Silver Seven, Rank the Performances, Email Hotstove, Ottawa Citizen, SensChirp, SenShot]
  • Most of the discussion following game six focused on the refereeing, so here's a bunch of articles with different takes/perspectives on that. [Silver Seven, TSN, Ottawa Citizen]
  • Nichols, Jack, and the WTYKY have end-of-season posts on the 2014-15 Senators season. Read them this morning and they capture my feelings perfectly. [6th Sens, SenShot, WTYKY]
  • After a fantastic run, will there be changes for 2015-16? Surely. But who will be gone? [Ottawa Citizen]
  • Trevor, Jay, and Bruce Deachman look at the fan perspective of the Senators defeat. Hope is surely there. [SenShot, SenShot II, Ottawa Citizen]
  • The Citizen also has a top 10 of season highlights. [Ottawa Citizen]
  • POSITIVE NEWS: Erik Karlsson will be joining teammate Mark Stone in Vegas as he was named a Norris finalist along with P.K. Subban and Drew Doughty. [Silver Seven, 6th Sens, Ottawa Citizen]
  • SOME MORE POSITIVE NEWS: Patrick Wiercioch will be joining Team Canada at the World Championships in Prague (lucky). It signifies the amazing turnaround in Wiercioch's perception around the league, seeing as it was hard to trade him at the deadline. We always believed in you, buddy. From Bob McKenzie: "sometimes the moves you don't make are the most important ones of all" [6th Sens, Ottawa Citizen]
  • Kevin Lee has a piece over at SensNation on the "young and hungry" slogan and what it exemplifies. [SensNation]
  • For more on the Senators new identity, read this wonderful piece by Shannon Proudfoot. [Sportsnet]
  • Daniel Alfredsson attended both Game 5 and 6 with GM Bryan Murray. He still remains a bit uncertain about his future, although Dave Cameron thinks he'll be with Ottawa eventually. [Ottawa Citizen]
  • The Senators are chasing BU goalie Matt O'Connor, promising to trade a goalie if they sign him. The TSN1200 link has audio from Ian Mendes on how Ottawa doesn't want another Ben Bishop situation on their hands. O'Connor likely won't make a decision until the weekend; he's visited OTT, EDM, VAN, and NYR. [SensChirp, 6th Sens, TSN 1200]
  • In case you missed anything over the past week, Eldrinson has a Twitter round-up that's always a must-read for me! [SenShot]
  • Jeff has a great piece on the BSens free agents and who he thinks should be re-signed. [Silver Seven]

Hockey Links

  • Of course, the Senators weren't the only team to bite the bucket over the weekend. Sean McIndoe has a recap of the other series for us. [Grantland]
  • Ever wanted a team in Seattle? I always thought Phoenix was going to move there, so when they didn't, I started to lose hope. The buyers in Seattle haven't though. [Yahoo! Sports]
  • A wonderful, but tragic piece on former enforcer Mike Peluso. There has been a lot of (needed) discussion on the lives former players lead after they retire, and what it means re: mental illness. Enforcers have it tough when you consider the added brain injuries. [The Globe & Mail]
  • Some people wanted Peter Chiarelli has Ottawa's GM after Bryan Murray, but he went to Edmonton after they won the McDavid lottery. Here's a piece on how he rebuilt Boston's defense right away, thanks to former Sens D Zdeno Chara, and the task he has ahead of him in Edmonton. [Edmonton Journal]
  • The Pittsburgh Penguins were eliminated before the Senators, and were really hampered by injuries down the stretch. GM Jim Rutherford and Coach Mike Johnston will be back for another year, and have identified their group of core players. [ESPN]
  • Speaking of referees, James Mirtle has a piece on how the number of powerplays in the playoffs have dropped dramatically. [The Globe & Mail]/

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