Maple Leafs Media Availability | Pregame vs. Boston Bruins | March 4, 2024

Maple Leafs Media Availability | Pregame vs. Boston Bruins | March 4, 2024

What was Saturday like is there such anticipation in the building how did you see a player from your perspective honestly I mean I feel like the media hyped it up so much that it was you know the first period it was almost like okay let’s just get it out

Of the way and then uh you know he said no which is completely fine um you know game didn’t really call for it um you know so he left it alone and then obviously he buries bu in the I think it in the third period there second period

Whatever it was so um you know I thought that was an appropriate time to ask and uh you know good on him for doing it uh he’s a big boy where does he rank in terms of the guys that you you fac in terms of the challenge he’s definitely

The longest I’ve ever fought for sure he’s uh he’s like 69ine or something he’s he’s just really lanky um yeah for sure sure the biggest guy I’ve ever fought what was it I mean what was your strategy you try to let let him go first and then you try to counter because of

His reach uh a little bit of that but um you know a lot of it had to do at the beginning I think you know the beginning of the fight I didn’t throw a lot because I had to to make sure I was holding where I wanted to make sure uh I

Positioned him in the right spot um you know at first I think he had me strung out a little bit so I had to be patient and kind of um you know get his grip off of that um and then once I was comfortable I started throwing bit of a

Conversation in the Box as well yeah you know he’s a really nice kid he uh you know he he talked about how the media pumped it up so much and he’s like you know his original six uh two original six teams going at and you all everybody

Was talking about was a fight but um no it was cool you know it honestly it it was it was almost cool to see because uh it shows that H uh fighting’s Not Dead in this sport U you know people still kind of get amped up for it and and

Enjoy that part so um yeah he he was uh seems to be a really nice humble kid talked to him in the Box a little bit so he’s uh he’s going to be a menace in this league he was looking at the bench a little bit before the fight was your

Sense he needed kind of a yeah I would assume yeah he probably his coach probably wanted him to take a break yeah what’s the importance of tonight’s game right wow team where we’re you know chasing a couple points back and um you know they they took points off us a

Couple times this year already so um yeah know it’s it’s a huge game I think probably uh and you know it’s going to set the tone for the game in their building in a couple days so um yeah this is uh you know probably the

Biggest game of the week does it set the tone also if it’s a potential playoff kind of preview do you let that ENT your mind well every every game uh with playoff teams set stone I don’t think this division is set yet uh there’s there’s going to be some movement I

Think um and so you can potentially play any of these teams that are in the playoffs right now so um you know you have to put your best foot forward uh you got to you got to set the tone you got to play physical you got to make

Sure it’s uh you’re playing like a playoff atmosphere how are you feeling coming off the hit on Saturday good how did you see that play yeah I S he’s coming but I doesn’t have a time to like protected myself it’s it’s okay you know it’s it’s high it’s happen

Sometimes he’s like what 6’8 is it difference getting hit by someone that size pretty much same like for everyone but yeah he’s just tall so tall yeah was there any concern did you know Saturday yeah I think I feel normal like yesterday and yeah prior to the hit how

Did you feel overall playing excuse me prior to the hit how did you feel overall if your game was I I feel good good yeah and super nice to be where with Jersey again you know super excited and pump sorry I was leaving early just a case about making sure everything is

Good you know it’s uh like protocol and nothing we can do what’s it mean to you that Ryan drops the gloves with it’s uh so nice for him he’s good guy good teammates you know uh it’s I feel good but we with him in this team you know

How important is tonight’s game it’s every game so important you know like every game how different is is it a similar system from the last time you’re were here like has it been easy you haven’t had a a full practice yet to to get up to speed with what the Leafs are doing

Here yeah I think it’s pretty much uh same system like play aggressive play Fast yeah actually it’s uh a lot of help me from Morgan because we play together we still spoke each other yeah it’s easy to join for me what do you like the most about playing with

Morgan he’s unbelievable player you know like and good partner he’s so skilled so smart and try to help me a lot bit a bit of relief from your end Obviously the’s good to go here yeah for sure uh was feeling good after the game the other night and feeling good again yesterday

Feeling good again today all the protocols he was unable to get through on Saturday he was able to to get through yesterday and today as well so uh if he responds continues to respond well after this skate here today then then uh he’ll be he’ll be good to go um

I guess as it turn as it turned out as a lot of the discomfort he was feeling was coming from some neck and shoulder issues that were causing some some discomfort in the head but uh they seem to got that settled down you didn’t see

A full game of it but when he was there what did you like about what you saw from your defense with him slotted in yeah I just it just uh looked like it was flowing well you know and talking to Mike Ben Ryan is he felt good just about

All three pairs being able to you know basically play against anybody and and being able to to just let the guys uh flow out the door and that the the Lefty righty pieces for Brody and Riley uh as partners seemed to help help them having right-handed Partners

So uh it was very encouraging from what we saw for sure and then Bush himself I thought despite the fact that he was working on four or five hours sleep and you know three-hour time change and uh big trade and all these kind of things that had happened that uh and no

Practice with us that he stepped in and looked very comfortable whether it’s the Rangers Saturday or couple against Boston this week what are you hoping to learn about your team or what are you going to be looking for against these tougher opponents here uh I mean we’re

Just no different for me whoever the opponent is we’re just we’re seeking consistency in our game and our detail our habits and um that has certainly improved no matter who our opponent has been like a lot about our game the other night uh so regardless of who the

Opponent is that’s what you want to see uh but you know obviously when you’re playing against top opponents there’s all those details are that much more important but um I think as we’ve seen over time games against these types of teams don’t don’t uh seem to be issues

For us in terms of being ready and being prepared and having those detail it’s these those details we want to have it consistently all the way through uh it’s a good challenge a good team you know uh played them twice this week so all these kind of things uh um are unique we’ve

Been playing whether it was Arizona or Vegas like you’ve been you know another team now this week we’ll play twice in the in the same uh short time period I think that’s that in itself is good for this this time of year there’s a lot of talk about Boston struggling but when

You look at what they did last year and first part of this year obviously you have to be wary of them yeah I mean yeah they’re in elag team you know Boston uh Boston struggling is you know teams barely being able to beat them in overtime shootouts or whatever I mean

They they are in every single game they make it very hard U to play against them so never an easy night the other night you guys got a power power play with six or seven seconds left because in overtime because of were too many men call my understanding is the referees

Would have had the discretion to call a penalty shot um do you have any thoughts on whether you you prefer penalty shot in such situations with so little time left in overtime or do I prefer penalty shot over a 7c power play co a coach’s decision at that point

Rather than the referee’s discretion which we I just wondering about from a rules I don’t know there are certainly scenarios I think where sometimes you go the other way sometimes you get a penalty shot in a situation because a guy’s pulled down and you may prefer a two-minute power play depending on

What’s going on in the game um I don’t know that you’d ever take it uh take it the other way in such a situation my understanding of thatle Ru and I’m clearly not an a referee or an official so it’s a question for them or the league but my understanding of that rule

As it pertains to the Too Many Men the ice is a you know it’s not not a line change but it’s more so they just throw a six guy out there to get an advantage I don’t think that scenario necessarily is exactly what that how the rule is

Reads in terms of being deliberate I see it more as you know we have the we have a a very clear advantage and they just send a guy out even when nobody’s even attempting to get off the ice and that was that was a line change situation

That they jumped a little bit early on so I didn’t even think of it as a penalty shot scenario in that case Sam and W both coming off strong starts what was the conversation like when it came to tonight’s starter uh you know really for us it’s

Just look we got four games and six nights this week here and uh we’re going to need both goenda playing the calendar and and where the games fall and all that so uh we got two guys that we trust and two guys while walls played one really good

Game I guess two if you include as Marley’s game and then you got samoff that’s been building some great momentum and playing very well and then you got wall who got to continue to build starts and don’t want them sitting for too long so you really it’s just a decision for

US based on the based on the calendar more so you know the opponent or What’s Happening Here Russ had to bench Willie in the past or or call him out in the past is it the same conversation these time you have to change your message with him depending on the situation when

It comes to that every every situation is different and you know it’s so I probably wouldn’t have been as sensitive to it the other day if it weren’t the fact that we had the meeting just theight the day before um but uh you know we’re trying to as we talked about different times

We’re we’re increasing the accountability for all of our players in these situations uh each situation is different each mistake is different some are some are well-intentioned and and uh you know you don’t you don’t the play doesn’t execute the way you want it to and and something goes wrong in some

Cases it’s it’s uh uh it’s purposely stepping outside of the structure in the system and that’s to me what it was the other night to me that’s different than a lot of other situations so you’re just kind of managing managing that um as you go but you know in general there’s

There’s less tolerance um from my from my end on on on mistakes such just that one with William whether it’s him or anyone else um but uh like I said a little more sensitive to it given that I was I met specifically with that line about those types of things

Players and Coach address the media ahead of Monday’s game against the Boston Bruins.

0:00 Ryan Reaves
2:49 Ilya Lyubushkin
4:42 Sheldon Keefe

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