BRUINS POSTGAME QUOTES VS ST. LOUIS BLUES Thursday, June 6, 2019

BOSTON BRUINS HEAD COACH BRUCE CASSIDY POSTGAME On the officiating tonight… Well those are the hits they want to get out of the game, correct? Those are the hits that I hear a lot about, clearly they missed a couple tonight. It’s a fast game. I sat here two days ago or whatever it was and said I believe these officials are at this level because they earned the right to be here and you should be getting the best. The narrative changed after Game 3, there was a complaint or whatever put forth by the opposition and it just seemed to change everything. The non-call on [Noel] Acciari, their player is on his way to the box, it’s right in front of the official, it’s a slew foot. Our guy is gone. The spotter took him out of the game for a possible concussion. I mean it’s blatant and a big effect on the game. I mean this has happened and I’m a fan of the game, this is the and they’re getting a black eye with their officiating in the and here’s another one that is going to be talked about. I thought it was a great hockey game. That call probably, and there’s time, but it really made it difficult for us to get the win tonight. So I’m disappointed. So I guess to answer your original question, it was egregious. But we’re moving on and getting ready for Game 6.

On the toughness of Zdeno Chara and hockey players in general for playing through injury… Well he’s a great example of that. He even came out and said it, he’s not the only guy. They’ve got guys, we’ve got guys, other teams I’m sure, Carolina, San Jose had guys that played hurt. That’s what you do this time of year. His injury is a little more serious than some. He was medically cleared with some warnings and he made the decision to play. Inspirational for us, good player for us, we knew he wouldn’t be 100% so we were happy to have him out there. But it just speaks a lot to his character and his will to play. Unfortunately [Matt] Grzelcyk was not cleared or he would have played too. But it didn’t happen so we weren’t able to use him.

On what was being said on the bench after the missed call on Noel Accari… What was being said on the bench was that you missed an F’n call is what was being said on the bench for obvious reasons. After that we had to settle down and play. Listen we thought we got screwed but you got to keep playing and we did. We scored the next and gave ourselves a chance to win. We tried to rally around that moving forward. There wasn’t a lot of, you’re in the moment so of course you’re upset but I think players once they get back on the ice they’re not too concerned about that so that’s the way it finished. I thought that we responded well. We pushed to score, we did. We pushed again and gave up some odd man rushes as a result and Tuukka [Rask] made the next save to keep us in it but unfortunately we couldn’t get it by them in the end.

On if there was any explanation for the non-call… No. I don’t expect an explanation for a non-call and I get that. They want to keep the game moving. Typically you’ll get, seldom you get an explanation unless maybe there is one of those challenges that the puck maybe was in, why are they reviewing it, something like that but typically they keep it moving.

On if the extra defenseman is something that they’ll continue with going forward… Listen the reason we did that is that we weren’t sure on Zee [Zdeno Chara]. How much was he going to be able to play? How was the injury going to affect his breathing etc.? So we covered ourselves. I’m not going to get into every detail about our injuries but we felt that 7 [defensemen] was the best way to go to make sure that we were covered in case one of our defenseman wasn’t able to continue throughout the game. Up front 11, we lose David Backes’ presence, he’s a physical presence, we thought we could move some guys up with Krech [David Krejci] maybe use [David] Pastrnak a little more, [Marcus] Johansson so we thought we’d be ok there. That was the thinking behind it.

On how the seven defensemen and 11 forwards affected the bench during the game… Well up front I thought that we were fine. I think one time that we did it, we got called for too many men as the forward group because we moved [Marcus] Johansson from right wing to left wing and two guys jumped once. Other than that it didn’t affect the forward group for the most part. Noel [Acciari] left for awhile so now you’re down to 10 so that’s even easier to sub one guy in and out. On the back end, I’ll talk to Kevin [Dean] about it to see how that rotation went. For the most part up front, I don’t think it’s that difficult, we’ve shortened our bench in the past, the players are used to it, we’re not a typical four-line team, we juggle lines a lot so guys are used to moving around. We don’t call lines, we call three names anyway so typically that works out for us.

On how hard it is for the Bruins to not retaliate after seeing the Blues get away with penalties… Yeah I mean they’ll have to answer that. Clearly they get frustrated. They play a physical game and we expect to get hit. We’re not sitting here saying that we’re not going to get hit but there’s some that I think are calls that haven’t been made recently and that’s the only thing that will frustrate us. I thought we had some great hits tonight, clean, they may disagree. I thought it was a good, hard hockey game. We came to play, we were ready early but couldn’t score early on, might have been the difference in the game if we were able to get one, able to get the lead. I mean it’s always easier to play in the lead especially against a good defensive team like St. Louis, didn’t happen. I think our guys were more frustrated that we weren’t able to get the lead, more than worrying about what was called and what wasn’t, other than like I said, the obvious one that results in a goal. It’s a little different end.

BOSTON BRUINS TUUKKA RASK On his initial reflections on Game 5… We played good. Good enough to win. Just kind of a tough two minutes there and they got the lead. But we battled back. Yeah, played good enough to win.

On his thoughts on the Noel Acciari non-call… What’d you think about it? Yeah it looked like a tripping, probably. Things happen quick, but it doesn’t help to complain about it afterwards. But, you know, I mean it sucks it was kind of a deciding play of the game. So, it is what it is.

On if he saw the Acciari situation happen… Yeah. I saw it and he went down hard. The guy kind of came from behind and took his legs out and he was laying there for a second. So, just trying to focus on the play that’s going to happen and then you know they get a quick 2-on-1 there. Torey makes a play, bounce back their stick and it’s in the net. So, just a really really quick event there, but definitely just kind of shocked everybody.

On what makes him confident about this team going into Game 6 to turn it around… Yeah, I think we’ve done a good job with that over the course of the year. We stay in the moment and we focus on the next game ahead. That’s always just the biggest thing that matters to us. Doesn’t matter if you win or lose, you focus on the next one and try to play good enough to win and now it’s, season’s on the line again, so we got to go out there and play our best.

On if he figured it was going to be the type of series where you have to battle till the end… Oh definitely. Always have to battle till the end. You want to make it as easy as possible, but you’re in the finals so definitely not going to be easy.

On what it meant having Zee out there tonight… Oh it was great. It shows his character. It takes a lot for him not to play. Yeah, he’s got some big balls.

On if Zee was able to communicate much on the ice… Not a whole lot.

BOSTON BRUINS FORWARD PATRICE BERGERON On how frustrating the game was… Yeah it is frustrating. Especially with what’s at stake. Bottom line you have to be ready for game six. That’s all we can focus on.

On the non-call against Acciari on the third period… I think we all have the same opinion about it. I think I don’t need to expand more except it is what it is, you know.

On if he thinks this series has been officiated differently after Craig Berube said something about it… I hope not. I hope not, because that shouldn’t change anything.

On the team’s effort… Yeah, it was a good effort. I thought we had a lot of looks. We played well to the end, but we need some results at this time, doesn’t matter how it happens.

On going to St. Louis down 3-2… We’ve been in that situation before, so we got to lean on our experience and be ready for game six and leave it all on the line.

On if they feel the pressure on the power play… No, I think we have done it all playoffs and it doesn’t change anything. I think we got a couple good looks there. Bottom line you got to finish.

BOSTON BRUINS DEFENSEMAN BRANDON CARLO On his thoughts on the Blues 2nd goal… After that we were just trying to work pucks out. Overall, you know, but whether we like it or not, that’s what happened, so we got to move on from that and focus on the next game.

On after an obvious penalty like that, is it human nature to naturally slow down… You can definitely get pissed off, but overall you got to take a deep breath, reset your mind, and continue to move forward from there. We put the pressure on. I feel like JD and Torey had a really nice play there, ultimately resulting in a goal and we had a push there. So, we took a deep breath, continued to move on, and unfortunately didn’t get the result we wanted.

On if the team has to do the same thing to bounce back from this game… Yeah, absolutely. You know I’m trying to look at the situation of being down, you just focus on the next game, focus on the next shift, and like I said, we’re just going to take a deep breath and move on.

On if this team is good at that… Absolutely. We’ve done it a lot this year through different situations including the playoffs. The series is a big example of that. So, yeah. We’re going to try and do that.

On what the difference was for the team tonight even though they were generating chances… Yeah. I feel like we definitely had our opportunities, it just didn’t end up in the back of the net. We were getting pucks to the net. They didn’t do anything special. When we recognized their forecheck, I think we did a pretty good job at, most times, getting the puck up. But, overall just not getting those pucks in the net.

On if the refs were letting them play a little tonight as far as not calling a lot… Yeah, for sure. Yeah, I would say so, but there’s penalties that you do need to call.

BOSTON BRUINS DEFENSMAN TOREY KRUG On if this was a frustrating game for Boston… Frustrated for sure. I thought we had a great first period. We have to find a way to get one in the first, so they [the St. Louis Blues] aren’t feeling good about weathering the storm and coming out in the second [period] and getting one early on the first shift. We have to do better job of being ready in that second period. Ultimately, that’s what hurt us.

On the penalty not being called during St. Louis’ second goal… That’s a penalty every time. There’s no ifs, ands, or buts about it. I’m all for letting us play, but when it leads to scoring chances and the opposing team ends up with the puck, it should be going our way. It should be a penalty. They [the officials] missed one there, I think.

On the no-call… It’s tough, but we’ve got a good group here that doesn’t hang their heads and we’re just going to continue to try to move forward. We had chances to tie the game. We had a couple of good looks there at the end. We don’t let those things bother us. Obviously, we’ve got a big task ahead of us.

On being down 3-2 in the series and having to come back… We’ve done it before, for sure. There’s a lot of different ways we’ve won series, won hockey games and it’s just another test for this group. We haven’t done anything easy this year. We’ve put ourselves against the wall a lot this season, so it’ll be another test. I think we will be ready to go.

BOSTON BRUINS FORWARD NOEL ACCIARI On how he feels physically… Good. Ready for game 6.

On how tough a loss like this is… It’s behind us now, but it’s tough. Tough pill to swallow. It’s a must-win from here-on-out.

On what the mindset is like with a must-win mentality… I think as a group, we played well tonight. We had our chances. I think we keep playing the way we did. I think game 6 is going to be a different story.

On if he could believe the official missed the tripping call during St. Louis’ second goal… I get it. It’s a missed call. It’s the biggest stage of hockey right now. I don’t know what else I can say about it.

On if the Bruins will use the missed call to motivate them to win the series, like the Blues did during the Western Conference Finals… Yeah. I know everyone will be ready for give 6. Everyone is fired up. That’s the thing about this team. We never give up, so it will be a good game 6.

BOSTON BRUINS FORWARD JAKE DEBRUSK On if he was surprised by some of the calls or lack of calls made by the referees… Um, I think that they did enough to win tonight, it wasn’t just because of that certain play or certain call, I guess, or non-call. Um, but the fans sure let them know.

On how the team responded after the no-call against the trip on Noel Acciari… Um, yeah, well it puts us in a two-nothing whole there and obviously with the way they played it makes it a little more tough, but I think there was about 10 minutes left and we were just over that so we were just saying that there’s still enough time just need the first one and that’s just kinda what our mindset was. Um, I thought that we weren’t as urgent as we needed to be at times and I thought we found it a little towards the end, but obviously it wasn’t good enough.

On what happened to their momentum after the first period… Um, I’m not sure to be honest. I think it’s more so a fact of, um, you know, I think that we did have a lot of chances and pucks just weren’t bouncing our way and then they started bouncing their way and they capitalized. It was one of those things where they just got the first goal and we tried to move on from that and respond but you know they got on their game pretty quick.

On how Zdeno Chara’s perseverance impacted the team… Yeah, I think it’s pretty special, even the crowd at the start of the game, how loud it got in here. And obviously he’s [Zdeno Chara] playing through something pretty major, so you know to put in a gutsy effort like that it’s a morale boost, but at the same we didn’t win so it’s one of those things you wanna do it for a guy but saying that they got the result.

On this goal will start a goal streak for Debrusk, like he tended to do in the regular season… Um, not looking too far into it to be honest. The playoffs have been different for me, so hopefully it does and obviously that’s what I’m telling myself in my head is to keep shooting more and to keep going in those areas, but, um, you know I’m not going to sit here and say I’m red hot.

BOSTON BRUINS FORWARD MARCUS JOHANSSON On Chara playing and what his presence does for the team psyche… A lot. It shows the character that he’s got. He leads the team and everybody follows. Wish we could have got the win for him, going to have to do that next game.

On whether his mere presence was bigger than the game itself… It wasn’t bigger to the game to us…. It’s huge that he can play and that he goes in there and plays. It shows what kind of leader that he is. We’re going to take advantage of that next game.

On everyone being banged up at this time of year… Yeah definitely. You have to pay the price. We have a lot of guys that have done that, just got to go out and win the last two games of the year.

On if it feels like they did everything but score tonight… For the most part, yeah. I think for a while in the second period we got away from our game a little bit. We had plenty of situations to win the game but we’ll have to keep doing the same thing we did for the most part of this game next game and bury a few more.

On if St. Louis has made changes to their penalty kill since Boston went … I’m sure they did something after that night. It’s not always going to click, you’re not always going to go four out of four. I think the last power play we had we had some good puck movement and the puck just didn’t find the net.

On how he’s feeling after being hit in the head by Ivan Barbashev… Good.

On whether he was surprised by a lack of a penalty call… A little bit, but it is what is.

On what he thought of the hit… Not much.

ST. LOUIS BLUES HEAD COACH CRAIG BERUBE POSTGAME On Bruce Cassidy’s comments about the officiating changing the narrative of the game and whether he has any comment on that… My comments changed? I don’t agree with it, but that doesn’t matter. I’m not here to judge the officials and calls that could have been or couldn’t have been. They go both ways. I mean, there’s calls the other way that could have been called and they weren’t, so I don’t know what to say about that. I really don’t want to say anything about it.

On how much he sees his own style of play in his team and toeing the line of hits that may or may not be called a penalty… We play a hard game. We’re a physical team. We forecheck hard. I’ll say it again. We’re the least penalized team in the playoffs. End of story. I don’t need to talk anymore about it.

On whether this was as good as he’s seen Jordan Binnington play and how he “weathered the storm” in the first period… Yeah, he was excellent all game and did a great job in the first period for sure. They came hard, Boston. You know, we were tested in the first for sure, and Binner stood tall. Big reason why we won the game.

On whether Zdeno Chara’s presence despite his injury reminded people what it takes to win at this level… Yeah, you know, he’s… you guys all know how tough and a warrior mentality Chara has, so him playing tonight just shows that, you know, broken jaw or whatever he’s got and out there playing, you know, that’s… obviously I think it gave their team momentum in the first period for sure having him out there, but you know, our team had a win there, but we pulled out a gutsy win. That’s the way I look at it. Our team was gutsy tonight. Our goalie was good and our team was gutsy.

On whether it was important to get that secondary scoring in the second period and Zach Sanford’s impact on that line… Yeah he is for sure. I think since we’ve moved him there that line’s been scoring, so it’s been good. I thought they were very good tonight, that line overall, and you know, he’s been a real good player since he’s come back in.

On what he’s seeing from Ryan O’Reilly that has been different the last two games… Yeah, I think he looks more… he looks energized to me a little bit more. More jump in his stride out there and he’s finishing. You know, I think that’s, you know, he gets chances all the time, but I think that he’s finishing right now, and I think since we moved Zach Sanford there that line’s had some chemistry which helps too.

On Jordan Binnington tying or breaking more rookie records and whether he sees any similarities to Ron Hextall’s play… Well they’re different. They’re a lot… they’re different people for sure. So I can’t compare them that way, but just, you know, I can compare, though, just the outstanding play from a rookie goalie, you know, in the National Hockey League in the playoffs. Obviously I was part of that team back then with Ron. Hextall was our goalie and now seeing Binner, you know, takes a different approach to the game but getting the same results.

On whether Sanford is back in the lineup if doesn’t get a suspension and what his play says about the importance of staying ready… Well yeah, I mean, yeah he got back in there, but I mean he could have got back in there, who knows like how things go, but the importance of staying ready is huge, and that’s a lot… that’s on him working hard. You know, our guys that are strength coaches in our system, our coaching staff, keep the guys ready working them, you know, and he’s jumped in there and he’s been great. Looks strong, fresh, you know, skating well, so that’s good on him and good on our staff.

On what it feels like to be one win away from a … Well, I don’t think it feels any different than the other, like, you know, coming into game five for me personally. We’ve got a big job ahead of us still. That’s the way I look at it, but you know, I hope our team looks at it that way. We’re gonna get, you know, a real good Boston Bruins team again. I thought they were really good tonight, and you know, I said we gutted that win out, which is great, but we’re gonna get, you know, a great performance from them and we need to be good. We need to be ready, so I don’t look at it that way to be honest with you, and I mean, I try to keep everything in perspective and calm and cool as much as I can, and it’s hard and it’s hard for the players too, but it’s important that we keep our heads and keep level headed and know that we’ve got a big job ahead of us for game six.

ST. LOUIS BLUES GOALTENDER JORDAN BINNINGTON On getting the win and being one game away from winning the Stanley Cup... We knew they were going to come hard and the first period was huge and we just battled it out and we trust each other and stayed with it and got better as the game went on. And yeah, we’re one game away, so that first period is huge so we’ve got to prepare and stay composed and be disciplined.

On maintaining composure in the hostile road environments... Yeah, you know, the rest is just noise and I just want play hard for teammates and just do my job and that’s what I try and focus on and let the rest take care of itself.

On if tonight’s game was his best performance... I don’t really keep tabs. I felt good tonight and the boys battled hard, and you know, it’s a big win. So hopefully we can carry that momentum into next game.

On if he was aware of where the puck was during David Krejci’s wraparound chance... Yeah, that was the wraparound, right? Yeah, I just got to the post and tried to hold my ground there, and I don’t know, it was an aggressive play, right? It’s the playoffs; he’s going to try and score, and you know, I was pretty confident that it wasn’t going to count and moved on.

ST. LOUIS BLUES FORWARD RYAN O’REILLY On getting the win and being one game away from winning the Stanley Cup... Yeah, well I think it was obviously this guy right here. Binner [Jordan Binnington] I think played unbelievable in the first when we didn’t really have our legs and were caught on our heels a little bit and you know, we were able to get through, and they had some, obviously some really grade- A chances, made some huge saves, and we just hung on. Obviously it was huge to come out in the second and respond to kind of get a little momentum our way.

On how much the team is a reflection of Craig Berube... Yeah, I think from the first day Chief came in and kind of took over, it was getting us to play hard. He wanted us hard on every play and I think with the personnel that we have, if we’re doing that, things are going to be – more often than not we’re going to put ourselves in a good spot, and I think that helped us find an identity, really, when the change happened, and helped us grow into be more consistent with that hard-nose playing, being tough to play against.

On the impact Zach Sanford has made in the lineup... Yeah, I think since he’s been in he’s made an impact. As you can see, not only on the score sheet with making big plays and getting points, but just overall wearing teams down, whether it’s being physical at the right time or making plays, having that puck possession. He’s been a huge piece and finding a way for us to create against this team.

On finding chemistry with Zach Sanford... Yeah I think earlier in the year I think we had a lot of success together. I think at times we show great chemistry – you can see when we get the puck, we forecheck well and get the puck back, you know, these guys are making great plays and possessing it and just like on that goal, you know, I’m coming in late but these guys are working, protecting the puck, and then obviously he’s got outstanding vision that’s able to find it and we were able to put it in. But we’re just – we work well together. From earlier in the year, we’ve found a way to – we all kind of complement each other well.

ST. LOUIS BLUES FORWARD ZACH SANFORD On how much the team is a reflection of Craig Berube... Yeah, I definitely think that’s become our identity, and you know, we’ve done a pretty good job of finding that fine line and when we can play on that line and stay disciplined too, that’s what makes us most successful.

On the team effort and everyone contributing... Yeah, I mean our depth has been key for us all year. It starts with the top guys and goes all the way down, all the way through the D, all the way to the back end. When we can keep it five-on-five and roll four lines like that, we’re pretty tough to play with – especially when we’re playing physical and playing hard like that. Like I said before, that’s what makes us successful.

On what this series has been like as a local kid... Yeah, it’s been fun. I mean, it’s a fun ride when you’re a part of the team and then to get in some games is pretty awesome, but at the same time it’s been all business and we’re just looking forward to the next game.

On his assist in tonight’s game... Yeah, I mean, it started with an awesome play by [David] Perron there to hold the puck and keep that alive while we were finishing a change and we’re always talking on the ice. O’Ry’s [Ryan O’Reilly] letting me know where he is, same thing with DP [] and I was just able to find him there and it was a pretty sweet finish by him.

On what his dad might think about him coming up big in such an important game... Yeah, it was my first game here. Yeah, you know, I think about him a lot. Every day, every game, practice even. It’s been a little different not having him, but I know he’s watching. He’s definitely pretty psyched up there and my whole family has been with me for this whole ride, too. So, it’s been awesome to have them and my teammates and my friends and everyone along for this ride.

ST. LOUIS BLUES FORWARD DAVID PERRON On being one win away from a Stanley Cup win… Cool feeling, a little bit different than last year for me. They had a good game tonight, they pushed really hard and it was a gutsy effort. We found a way to win, Binnington was excellent like always. I think we’re going to have to be better to close it off, but yeah huge win.

On Jordan Binnington’s performance… Unbelievable, he’s dialed in, he’s focused, he wants more and it’s bringing a lot of confidence to our group. Even at the end, the buzzer ends and everyone’s excited, he’s moved on already it seems like so it’s awesome.

On his goal… Yeah I know there’s something I guess that the fans weren’t too happy with, I don’t know. From talking quickly to Bozak [Tyler Bozak] I guess the puck was in his skates, he’s playing the puck and there was an opening that O’Reilly [Ryan O’Reilly] created by being really strong on the puck and he poked it to me. I had Bozak back door I tried for him and I tried again and it went in so good goal for sure, big goal.

On playing to whistle… Yeah I think that’s O’Reilly’s [Ryan O’Reilly] biggest quality, never stops, then he created a loose puck for me and I’m happy he saw me because I felt like there was an opening that was going to be created if he gets it to me and sure enough he did.

On playing for Stanley Cup in next game… Yeah it feels good. The way that we’ll have success is by playing our game and not listening to the noise the next couple days here and really be dialed in and focused to provide a better effort than tonight for sure, similar to last game and maybe some more. They’re going to be extremely desperate and they’re going to look to play their best game and it had to be close to that tonight. Again, gutsy effort by us tonight and we’ll be excited for sure.

ST. LOUIS BLUES DEFENSEMAN On how good Jordan Binnington played tonight… He was unbelievable. I mean that first period they threw everything at the net. I mean they threw a lot of stuff from tough angles, but he was good at clearing those rebounds. He did everything he needed to do tonight.

On Zach Sanford’s pass… He was great again. It’s not easy to come in the Stanley Cup Final and play that way, but he’s been lights out these last couple games for us.

On why the team was able to pull off the win away… Well, it wasn’t our best game of the series, but sometimes your goalie has to make big saves, especially to change the momentum. He [Binnington] did that and I thought we played a lot better in the second period there. We had some good looks. They controlled a lot of the third, but we did a good job clearing away in the second half.

On if tonight was Binnington’s best game… It was pretty impressive. On this stage, rookie goaltender… I’ll tell you what, that’s pretty impressive.

On the goal in the beginning of the second period being a momentum changer… Yeah, especially after the way the first started. I thought it was good to get one early there. It kind of got us moving our feet a little bit.

ST. LOUIS BLUES FORWARD OSKAR SUNDQVIST On what makes Boston different on the penalty kill than other teams you’ve played this year… They’re moving the puck real well. They’re playing quick and I think we just need to keep staying tight and not run around. If we do that, we know we got a good PK.

On the adjustments you made to the penalty kill… Well I think we’re staying tight. We’re not letting them pass through the seams and shoot from the top and stuff like that. We’re making it harder on them and keeping them on the outside, so we just need to keep doing the same thing and we’re probably going to be fine if we do that.

On Zach Sanford… He’s been really good for us. I mean his pass today was unreal. He’s been playing great and since he’s came into this series, he’s been really good every shift and I’m sure he’s just going to keep going.

On finishing every check and wearing out the Bruins… I mean, I think as I said, after a while you don’t want to get hit anymore and we’re going to have an advantage to get the puck back. I think that’s just how we’ve been playing all season long and that’s what we’re good at. We’re good at forechecking, hitting them, getting the puck back and start our cycling game. And that’s what we need to continue to do in Game 6.

On Sandford getting to play this series and setting up three key goals… That’s what happens sometimes. You get one chance, you get to take it and he really took his chance in Game 3 and he’s been playing great ever since.

ST. LOUIS BLUES FORWARD BRAYDEN SCHENN On the perfect recipe for a road win… You know, probably not as pretty as we’d like it to be but we got the job done. Binner [Jordan Binnington] played unbelievable for us, we got some big goals at key times.

On pretty not counting… Yeah, I mean, they took it to us for most of that game and we sat back maybe a little bit too much and we’re going to have a to change that for game 6.

On how the team deals with needing one more win… Uhm, it’s obviously a lot of emotion that goes through your head and stuff like that but, we’ve been battling all year so we know obviously what’s at stake and we have a bunch of guys in the locker room to help us through this.

On Jordan Binnington’s performance… Yeah, he made a lot of good saves tonight at key times. Tip saves, screen saves, you know, he was battling tonight so we’re going to need him next game as well.

On if the second goal was a perfect example of playing until the whistle.. I haven’t seen the replay but what we’ve been told is that the puck was in the guy’s feet and someone tried to fish it out and yeah – mini two-on-one, [David] Perron in front of the net and got a bounce.

ST. LOUIS BLUES DEFENSEMAN VINCE DUNN On being one win away from the title… Yeah, I mean, it’s exciting, but we don’t want to get too far ahead. We’re looking forward to that first shift that everyone’s got to get into. You know, it’s something that we’ve been thinking about since the start of the playoffs, is holding up that trophy, so not to think too much about it now, it’s just making sure that we start the game right.

On the no-call… I didn't really see it. I can’t really comment on it. You know, it’s a fast game. The refs are going to see some stuff, and then they’re not going to see some stuff, so that’s just the way it goes sometimes.

On if they got tips on how to hit Zdeno Chara… Not really, I mean, we know he’s very effective when he’s out there, so as much as we can, we try to make him make plays under pressure. You know, he’s definitely a big part of their defense, so as much as we can, we need to, you know, keep the puck away from him.

On if Chara talked to him before the game… I don’t think he could talk much. I couldn’t either, at the start, so just let him be. I’m not really talking to the other team.

On Chara’s influence… Yeah, I mean, he’s a beast. He’s tall, he’s a big part of their team. I’m sure even playing the little minutes that he did tonight, it’s not something that he usually does, but I think that really gets the other guys going.

On staying focused… We didn’t get frustrated. I think we didn’t get the start that we wanted, but you know, we stuck to it, we didn’t panic when they got the goal there, so it’s just about caring for each other on the ice, being supportive and trying to simplify our game when things maybe aren’t going so well.

ST. LOUIS BLUES DEFENSEMAN COLTON PARAYKO On how much the team thrives on finishing every check… Yeah, I think it’s big for us. It’s kind of what we work on, it’s one of the things that we do thrive on. It’s important throughout a series obviously, we continue to go game by game and I think it makes it hard on them as the series goes on.

On Binnington’s performance tonight… Unbelievable. Obviously he won one for us here. A huge game by him, very impressive and I mean, I don’t really know, I could talk about that performance all day, it was unreal. So good for him and that was awesome.

On if Ryan O’Reilly fuels the team… Yeah, he’s the player that continues to battle and a guy that we rely on to show work ethic and just rely on in all situations. He’s confident in all situations and he continues to show that and do that.

On the Stanley Cup being in the building next game… It’s exciting for us obviously. It’s huge for our group, we’ve had quite the season so far, we’ve been through quite a lot but we continued to battle, we never gave up on each other, we almost – well it put us closer together especially now at this point. So we’re obviously going to expect their best game in the whole series from them so we’re going to have to match it and just give ourselves the best chance to win that one.

On the scene in St. Louis while the fans wait for game 6… Yeah, we’re excited. Even game 3 and 4 were crazy but game 6, I can only imagine how exciting it’s going to be. The building has been rocking and this is going to be a lot of fun.

ST. LOUIS BLUES FORWARD TYLER BOZAK On the play with Noel Acciari... Yeah, just a puck came around, and it was a little puck battle. I just went for the puck with my stick, and it kind of got caught in his feet, I don't know, and then we just got the puck back deep. He tried to pass it, and it kind of banked in off [Tuukka] Rask and went in.

On facing an onslaught in the first period and Jordan Binnington stepping up… I mean, what can be said about Binner tonight? He kept us in the game. They came hard. They're a great team, they play well at home. You know, they could've had a few goals in the first, and Binner really bailed us out, just like he has all year and gave us a chance to win. We're lucky enough that we were able to pull it off for him.

On the ice getting littered with garbage... I mean, I've seen that a bunch of times in my career. I mean, it happens. Obviously, when people expect things to go a certain way, and it doesn’t, you know, stuff happens. It happened when I was in Toronto quite a bit. It happened in St. Louis before, so it’s just part of the game. Obviously, emotions run high, especially at this time of year and these types of games. That stuff happens.

On Ryan O’Reilly… Yeah, I mean, I just said, he’s obviously an unbelievable player on all three zones of the ice. Like I said, a lot of the stuff he does goes unnoticed, and you know, it doesn’t go unnoticed in our room. His defensive play, what he does in the neutral zone, the little puck battles he wins, obviously coming up huge for us the last two games, so he’s been a rock for us all year and kind of drove the bus for us the whole time, and he’s doing it in the huge moments too, so it’s awesome.

On Zach Sanford... I think he's been great. He's made great plays. His assist tonight was fantastic. He’s been hard on the forecheck laying hits. Obviously, he’s a guy from Boston, probably means a lot to him playing in these games, and he’s done a really good job for us.

On playing through calls going for and against the team… Yeah, I mean, never quit. I think, you know, throughout the playoffs, we’ve seen things go our way, things go the other way, and that’s just the way it goes. That’s sports, that’s hockey, and you just keep playing and hope for the best.

On enjoying the win… Yeah, we’re going to enjoy it tonight, for sure. Obviously, you know, we’ve got to refocus and get ready for the next game. That’s the most important thing, so we can enjoy it for the time being, but once tomorrow comes, we’ve really got to dial it in and get ready. They’re going to come hard.

BOSTON BRUINS HEAD COACH BRUCE CASSIDY PREGAME On if Zdeno Chara and Matt Grzelcyk will play tonight… They’ll be game-time decisions. They’re on the ice now. That’s a good sign. We’ve always said, once they get out there, they’re that much closer.

On if they will be taking warmups and what he needs to see in order for them to play… Like I said, they’ll be game-time decisions, so they’re out there now. See how they feel at 7 or so tonight.

On if playing seven defensemen is still on the table… Yup, it is. I mean, depends who’s in there. There’s different reasons that go into that; I don’t want to go through them all right now. I thought we went through some of that yesterday. Depending on which guys are in, how much experience there is, what roles need to be divided, so we could play seven.

On if they play seven defensemen, what it says about David Pastrnak being able to double shift… Well, if we go seven D, someone has to come out, obviously, up front. It won’t be Pasta. So, he’s moved around a lot. He doesn’t kill penalties, so you don’t expend a lot of energy there, so there’s opportunity there to move him around coming out of penalty kills. Marchy [Brad Marchand] does kill so it’s a little tougher for him to get those double shifts. JoJo [Marcus Johansson] doesn’t kill, so we can move a right winger around; we can move a left winger around. [Danton] Heinen’s played both sides, so we’re comfortable with a guy getting a few extra minutes. It gets taxing obviously if you get into extended time. We can’t worry about overtimes and this and that, we’re just going to play the guys that deserve to get a little extra time if we go that route.

On how to get more production from the second line… Well, they had a little bit of a session yesterday to try to kind of revisit why they were successful at times against Columbus or Toronto, previous opponents. How they get them to be more effective against how St. Louis plays also matters. I mean, I think when they’re supporting the puck originally against St. Louis, because they’re long, they get there in a hurry, so you have to outnumber them in a hurry then. Try to spread out, not the opposite, that’s what we’ve found anyway. We can’t get too far. Our spacing has to be good, tight early, then start spacing once you separate to start making those east-west plays in the O-zone, but I think just to have more of an attack mentality coming out through the neutral zone supporting one another and how to find common ground with each other. They’ve been a line, but they haven’t played together all year. Krech [David Krejci] and Jake [DeBrusk] have; obviously David’s moved around – Backes – a lot. So, at the end of the day, it’s a little bit about an attack mentality as well, get skating. I thought Jake found his legs Game 4 late in the game, actually had some opportunities to attack, so it’s attack, second effort, and that’s generally how we scored our goals, going to the net, getting rebounds. The other night, Coyle got one, Carlo got one even though it was shorthanded. So, it does take a little bit of that mindset; you’ve got to be willing to go there.

On if it is Chara’s call or the doctor’s call… Well, the doctor has to give him the green light, then it will be his call. If the doctor doesn’t, then he has no say in the matter.

On the black aces… Well, they’ve been involved in a few of our practices. When we had an optional the other day in St. Louis, I thought it was real good for them to be out with, I think we had seven or eight of our guys, so they’re a part of it. By the same token, you’ve got to be careful with – I think we’ve done a good job of trying to stay in our own little bubble as a team, and they’re the plan B guys, so to speak, for lack of a better term without being disrespectful, so you want them on their schedule as well. So, we’ve tried to kind of blend that. I think it’s important for those guys to live it, to see what these guys are going through, how hard it is to get to this level, the pain you go through, physically, mentally. So, I was a part of a group years ago when they won in ’11; I thought it was invaluable for me, so I guess like anything in life, you take what you want from it. Hopefully, they’re not just here punching the clock enjoying the city of Boston. That’s good if they do on their downtime, but hopefully game days are soaking it in, what’s required, hopefully dreaming that they’ll be the next one that it’d be their opportunity down the road while still preparing for that opportunity. It might come. We talked about [Urho] Vaakanainen for example the other day, whether he may be in or not, so it’s closer than you think sometimes. So, part of it is staying in the moment yet learning from the process. Teams do it differently. We had to have about 10 of them that year; ’11 they had five, so it kind of depends on the situation, maybe how many young guys you want – who do you feel needs it.

On seeing the game similarly to Torey Krug… Yeah, I mean I’ve joked about it; I peaked at 18 unfortunately, but that’s what I was. I was a puck- moving offensive defenseman. I liked the power play; it was something I was good at, so I see the game – certain situations in the game I can relate to. I think, as a head coach, you need to be able to see every part of the game; that’s part of the job, but that’s just one that I enjoy more than others maybe. So, with Torey, it’s an easy discussion. We have talks about the power play or breakouts, that sort of thing. I think it’s a little easier for me to have a conversation with him than maybe with Bergy [Patrice Bergeron] about faceoffs about Brad Marchand to get a puck out on the wall. That’s not something I lived. I understand the structure of all of those things, but to me, this is a little more personal and something I have a little more experience in.

On when he knew it was a possibility for Chara to play… Well, he was never ruled out, even the other night in St. Louis. He was ruled out for that third period; we talked about that. After that, he was going to be day to day. First thing you worry about is a concussion, because then you’re in the protocol, so we avoided that – or Zee avoided that – so that was good news, and then it’s a matter of, well what’s next? So, I guess yesterday we got a better idea, and then this morning he’s here, obviously, he’s on the ice skating, so now it’s real. So, that was kind of the timeline if that helps.

ST. LOUIS BLUES HEAD COACH CRAIG BERUBE PREGAME On Zdeno Chara and Matt Grzelcyk… Yeah I’m not sure, in [or] out if it really changes to be honest with you. That’s our game, that’s when we’re successful, so we got to do it no matter what. We expect them to play, that’s the way we look at it. Either way that’s our game, that’s how we got to have success or we will have success.

On playing in tough environments… I honestly believe it goes back to January and February if you look at the schedule we had, we were basically on the road for two months, we had to be good on the road. Considering where we were at that time in the standings, obviously we needed wins. We did a real good job of going on the road and being a real good team and winning hockey games. I think just our team play overall and that team first mentality enables us to be successful on the road.

On Robert Bortuzzo and Vince Dunn… Well like I said the other day we got a lot of good depth back there and we like to use our guys quite a bit. We took Bortz [Robert Bortuzzo] out and put Dunner in [Vince Dunn]. When we looked at that with Dunner we weren’t sure him coming in first game so we kept another lefty in there, thought he had a real good game Dunner. If we can have a righty-lefty combo it’s nice so put Bortz back in.

#06/06/19#