“He’s Doing the Right Things” | Don Granato On Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen

“He’s Doing the Right Things” | Don Granato On Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen

You had a lot of shots in the first period but you leave z0 did the team just stick with it is that why they were able to yeah I thought we had a very good start I mean we’ve been we’ve talked about starts in lots of games

There hasn’t been a good start tonight was a very good start after what was a different uh couple of days with with cancellations and not even practicing um so yeah I was happy with the start stayed with it big goal by zus in the second obviously going to the right area

And he’s uh he’s obviously a leader for us it was nice to see that that goal and how he scored does that show why why you chose to structure the lines way the way that you did to have somebody on somebody with that typ type of skill set

On each line to compliment your other guys it did he plays very direct and we wanted that you know I mean today we’re missing cousins we’re missing Skinner obviously missing Samuelson and just that directness uh you know with each line they you’re missing pieces that are

Chemistry on lines and uh I wanted to make sure we didn’t compromise uh uh playing the way we needed to play which is direct and and uh and hard and you know zus on one line aoso on another line I thought uh and and Greenway he put Greenway in there three guys that

Play very direct and hard and uh as I said we that’s what we need what did you notice about the way that the group handled the fact that it was a it was a z00 game going to the second period despite the fact that you had you controlled play you know through the

First half of the game essentially yeah this is you know this is a challenging game because we just you know what yesterday in the last couple days we had a day off and then yesterday we had a game that you’re getting ready for so you don’t really don’t practice and then

It’s canceled and then you really didn’t have a practice and you got to wait another day for a game so it was uh a bit uneasy for for you know from the coaching standpoint of how your guys would come out uh I know it’s a challenge when you have a day off and

You come to practice the next day after a day off they’re usually not very good and um so so the start was was was real good for us and um you know anytime you can get two points uh in this league it’s a good day the has been outstanding

But I mean the guys around him they’ve been obviously Tighter and smarter just what’s changed with you know the guys around him I think there’s a you know it’s a it’s it’s evolved I guess is probably the best way or what goes through my mind I mean he’s a young goalie that uh

And a young guy that’s that continues to get better every day um through the right practices he’s he he’s he’s very adamant about making himself better he’s using every experience that he’s been given every opportunity he’s had over the last year to find ways to become

Better he’s he’ll be in here right early in the morning he’ll be with our uh with Mike Bells our goalie coach wanting more Clips he’ll go on the ice early tomorrow wanting more drills uh and he’ll ask players to shoot on him more whether that be Thompson or tuck or anybody so

He he’s doing the right things to make himself better I just think we’re seeing you know the accumulation of him doing the right things over a long period of time now are just his teammates playing better defense around him though they are again I think it’s more consistent

Um you know our Challenge on on on defending is is much like everyone else in the league is teams teams know how to defend real well it’s tough when you get turnovers or you botch a play uh you know where it’s an individual botch and and we’ve limited those quite a bit the

Last few games which is good guys are playing with a little more confidence in Poise uh and yes they’re defending uh better I think in unison where it’s easier for the goenda goenda is defending better it’s a clear picture for him and we have seen that

Yes how much of that do you think is like a symbiotic relationship between UK’s success and the defense because both of them when we talk to the guys players and we talk to uko they both say each other’s confidence makes each other feel comfortable yeah and it and that’s how it should be

And that’s that’s the that’s what happened so uh I think they’re both you know respectful that the other guys the other part is doing their job the right way uh you know obviously O’s making the saves um and and they recognize that and I think oie recognized that he’s they’re

Giving him more consistency with shot selection or pressure to pucks um and you know we’ve missed samelson a couple games now and that’s big he’s a big part of that he’s a big part of the penalty kill so guys have had to step up and that’s been nice how was Eric Johnson uh

Eric Johnson is gonna be sore it’s going to be sore and we’ll find out tomorrow I so I can’t give you a report because um he’s sore now but tomorrow we’ll we’ll have more put a lot of time in on the power play and made a few changes after

That first one tonight did you want to see more movement did you think they were too stationary it seemed like there was more movement after you know we literally just went through the video of it and we had five or six opportunities we just didn’t see and that’s part of it

You know we’ve had we’ve been in our own head we’ve been tense and tight and uh but there there wasn’t a power play where we didn’t generate chances tonight so that’s that’s what you’re looking at probably a little bit still a little bit too tight I think we’re still going to

Be a little clunky there um as we you know put more attention to it I don’t want to say more pressure on it but um guys are got to kind of learn to breathe again and and we’ve been so tight with it that again you missing opportunities

Are right there that that so four or five that we could have had created Point Blank chance and we didn’t see it uh and then we had four five where we actually made nice plays and just didn’t convert how big example was this game of

Just just throw the puck at the net and anything can happen I’m sorry the first part of that joke how much of this game is just throw just an example of throwing the puck of the net and just anything can happen just just don’t be

Afraid to do it well the first goal was exe you know uh is just what you’re saying a very nice tip by Zam Gus but that’s the game of hockey you know it is lots of teams strategies just get it to the net you’re down a goal you’re saying

That you know throughout the entire league anybody that’s trailing is is saying throw throw it to the net be willing to score an ugly goal tip and you know Del’s goal was off of uh their player but you had traffic Benson was going to the net and that created that

You know chaos that you want so yes that’s a huge huge part of the game uh we’ve been guilty of of false sense of confidence almost uh attempting to score a pretty pretty goal uh in lie of scoring more goals uh the way you mentioned it’s the second time JJ has

Scored from below the goal line banking a Pucket is he trying to do that or is he just absolutely yeah he’s no question he’s he sees that it’s hard to hard to make that save when you’re you know you bank shot and he’s he’s good at it he is good at it

Head coach Don Granato speaks to the media following a 3-0 win over the Chicago Blackhawks. This was goaltender, Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen’s third shutout of the year and second in a row. Granato touches on the play of the team and the success on the penalty kill.

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