Don Granato After Practice Interview (12/29/2023)

Don Granato After Practice Interview (12/29/2023)

Coach I right now you only have 60 I know things can change from day to day might we see Ryan back before you start playing games again to have yeah there’s a definite chance of that so and you’re right things change and it’s it is dayto

Day so today you know was a roster situation that uh um we will be uh potentially out of uh soon as well Z back tomor uh he he looked good and I do I think there’s a good CH he’ll be in tomorrow what do miss with out of action

Uh compete energy just direct hard direct game that makes room for other you know makes room for your skill uh you’ve got to work and compete first to open up Lanes you got to wear on another team a little bit to open up Lanes um you know where we’ve got ourself in

Trouble is thinking we can play skill first and not wear a bit on another team and uh zamus uh absolutely helps us in that regard in the wake of the Boston game what was the message and the objective of all the power play work today uh well it needs work pretty simple I

Think it’s more than the Boston game but yeah it it uh you know we need we need to uh be a lot more intense on it and a lot more attack and direct and have a shot mentality much like we talk about our five on five game when we’re

Shooting a puck we’re willing to retrieve it when we’re not shooting we don’t want to retrieve we don’t want to compete hard enough so you know the the real uh the real work was the real focus on the power play was to work and to generate shots not to

Look for a fancy or pretty play when you talk about intense just how much for lack of a better word how much uncertainty do you see in guys on there that just don’t seem to have a lot of jam with it a lot of confidence how do

You instill that and find that again well just today simple you know we we only gave them 10 15 seconds on it so you have nothing you have no time you have to attack or you’re off it you’re you’re it’s done so you know you do you

There’s things you do to to help get that that attack but you know when you when you struggle um you get conscious you start thinking oh we need to do this or we need to do that or and you forget the foundation of oh maybe I’m not working hard enough maybe I’m not

Playing a direct game enough of a direct game a competitive game you know it’s always and you guys can you guys can attest to it you know the lots of teams that you guys have covered if have answers when they’re not winning and it really comes down to when you got

Answers you’re not working hard enough you’re just not working hard enough you’re not competing hard enough and the power play exemplifies that to this point for us we need to compete harder I know it’s just practice but what can switching dolene and power um I guess

Change the the makeup of two groups uh changed the mindset a bit um definitely um you know I think our our younger group you know and when you guys have watched uh Quinn come back in that energy that you know that cousins Quinn and petka have uh you know Benson is on

That group that energy is something that’s really good and and uh um you know it just felt uh why not why not shift dolls there uh dolls is is we know he is our most competitive guy day in and day out um I have no hesitation

Saying that he he’s he competes at an extremely high level and um you know I think that second group has been good they haven’t had ideal situations really they’re coming on late in power plays and uh but I think they’ve been good and obviously Jack Quinn’s just been back so

Four games in you know it’s uh he he is uh you guys know what I think of him and that power play is uh you know in need of talent like he has are you planning on using that younger group more than you have yeah yeah I

Do you know he was in a Groove and then he got sick and he hasn’t quite been the same since he came back but what’s I mean seems like he played pretty well against the Rangers what signs have you seen that he’s getting back to what he

Had as well I think just a couple practices will help um with time you know just time he he he he uses time well he he’s in here he’s a very regimen very routine um studies film studies his position uh out early stays out late so

Just I think uh you know time and I I don’t think he’ll get back I think he’s just gonna keep getting better he’s pretty pretty talented young guy still so I think for him it’s about getting better after the game the other night Alex talked about the home situation and

We’ve talked about it in here a lot this year but you’re coming up in the last home game of the year for an entire year you’ve been one of the worst teams in the league in multiple categories at home I mean it’s essentially killing you in the stand

How do you what do you look at over the last few months how do you get out of this situation where you know a lot of the games that have been quote unquote good games have been on the road and have not been in the bu yeah I mean it’s

It’s you know you’re around the guys every day they they do and we do get in our own head when we’re at home we overthink things we press we squeeze we uh you know call it what you want um but we’re tight we’re tight and it’s hard to

Repls and sometimes you don’t move your legs and sometimes you don’t work when you’re trying to you know and and we get on the road and you know you let all that go and you just compete um and you know for we’ve gotta push through this and you

Know to me it’s just that simple compete and does the first goal really get magnified the first goal does at at home it’s uh it’s um you can you can feel it with the guys in the bench and you’re trying to to not you know to to get guys

Back up and not uh dwell and get frustrated on it and we’ve seen you know the first goal lead to a second goal or a second chance right away because you’re you know they’re deflated um and that’s a bit different than on on the

Road I don’t see that as much out of the group on the road I don’t see that at all on the road actually they tend to get more pissed off um but you know as things as this has happened uh you know at home obviously uh with some you you know

Um frequency I guess you you you you know you fight the oh here we go again you’re in the back of your mind and um you know so you know we’re we’re healthier than we’ve been we’ve had a couple good days of practice you know

You’d think we would be you we in a different situation we hope it’s a better situation so with two days to prepare for this game you just mentioned about being mad do you think they will have in the back of their minds the last game against Columbus this as they

Prepare for this one yes I think they do uh you know when you speak of the two days of practice for us it was what I keep saying in here every day compete we had more battle and more compete in practice we have not had practices uh in

A month that we could do that in uh so the last two days were a little bit longer and a lot more compete in those practices which is exactly what we need and to Mike’s uh question is to hopefully pull them out of their head um

You know the solution is is here in your leg and your lungs it’s not it’s not up here it’s it’s going it’s competing hard and battling it’s it’s no secret that Jacob Bryson and Tyson are really well liked in that room so what’s done to the group

That just through the nature of the business to have a couple of guys I mean we still have an hour here two hours here till waivers but to have a couple guys you know leave the group you know and go on waivers you know in the middle

Of the Season just giv everything that everybody’s gone through the last few months yeah never never easy um I mean each guy could speak to the to their own but those guys I know are very well liked they very well liked by us as coaches it’s not easy it’s um it’s

You’re you’re limited on roster spots so um you know and I do I do think Bryce is uh he’s he’s become better and better and you know when when we need a spot I know he’ll be ready

Don Granato After Practice Interview (12/29/2023)

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