The #1 Gopher Hockey team held their weekly press conference at Mariucci Arena this afternoon. Head Coach Don Lucia met with the media, as did Adam Wilcox. The team takes on Ohio State this weekend in a Friday-Saturday matchup, with Friday nights meeting being the much anticipated Hockey City Classic outdoor game.
Head Coach Don Lucia:
Regarding the outdoor game… “We’ll see how the elements are on Friday. It should be a lot of fun, we’ll have a great crowd, and it’s great that we’re doing it in our state. First outdoor game. I think it’s exciting certainly for our players, I’m sure Ohio State, our girls team and Mankato are excited to play the game too, and I think the fans are gonna have a good time on Friday night. And that’s really kind of what it is. It’s as much as an event as it is a game, although there are three points riding on it in conference play. This week I haven’t even looked at the forecast. I was kind of looking at it last week. We’re just trying to get ready for Ohio State. The weather’s gonna be what it is. The most important thing is that as long as it’s not snowing too hard. The wind is more of an issue than anything else. If it’s five above, you just dress for it. The guys playing, I don’t think they’ll notice it as much. For coaches, it might be a little bit colder on the bench. And fans, they’ll probably be warmed up on the inside, but I don’t know about the outside. But they’ll have a good time with that as well. Once the puck gets dropped and their playing, like last year, I don’t think the guys felt he cold at all. We didn’t talk about the outdoor game at all until today. I wanted to make sure that as we headed to Penn State, that the priority was that series, and not looking ahead to the following week. It was great that we had an opportunity to charter out to Penn State. So we got home after the game on Monday night, even though it was a little bit late. But at least the guys felt like they had a day off on Tuesday, and it wasn’t an eight hour travel day. So I think we came back and had a really good practice today. It’s not like we have to work a lot on systems. We’re into January, we’ve been working on that for three months. So it’s about keeping them fresh and excited to play in the game. And I think they are. It’s like anything. If you’re a football player, and it’s a little bit cold and rainy, you just have to brave the elements. And who’s a little bit tougher, obviously helps in that situation. I’m ok with the fact that we get to experience it, and our fans get to experience it. Ticket sales have been good. I think we expect about 45,000. It should be a fun environment. Is it an event? Yeah, it’s an event. But I think if you ask the players, when this is all said and done, that it’s going to be a positive experience. And I think for our fans, they’ll say the same thing, that’s it’s a positive experience. First time outdoors in Minnesota, and we’re just really glad to be a part of it. When the game begins, and you come out before the national anthem, I think you soak in the environment. I think every player does, every coach does. I think that’s always a special time. I mean, when you’re at a football game, and the games about to begin, it’s almost the buildup almost becomes more enjoyable as a fan than anything else. So you get to experience that. Then once the puck drops, and the game begins, your still playing inside the boards, and it’s two hundred by eighty five. You know, the hardest thing, as much as anything, is the quick turnaround and coming back on Saturday. We play at eight o’clock, don’t get out of their until late, and then have a five o’clock game on Saturday”
Regarding what he learned playing outside last year in Chicago… “Well, the one thing I can glean, if you don’t win, it’s no fun. I mean, so obviously, that’s the priority. We had the option to skate outside today, but we want to, because of the short practice week coming off our trip to Penn State, we wanted to make sure we got a good quality practice in today. And then just kind of go through the elements tomorrow, and get a feel for what we need to wear, and just get used to the ice a little bit tomorrow, because you won’t get a lot of quality work out there tomorrow. I haven’t been out on the ice at all. The feedback from the high school games were, the ice held up pretty good, and it was warm. It’s obviously going to be a lot colder for the game on Friday, and there won’t be any sun on the ice. So it should be hard. As far as does it chip, or anything else? I don’t know until the game begins. You look back to Chicago, it got pretty slushy, especially that first game. It held up a little better for us. They had to do a lot of stoppages and work on the ice. It seemed like it happened at Fenway Park, the same deal. Because of the temperature that it’s supposed to be on Friday, I think the ice will probably hold up really well. It will be nice because, although we did have a few Gopher fans that came down to Soldier Field, I think this is going to be a little bit more of an intimate setting. The field is a little bit closer to what Soldier Field was. And then you had fans from the first game, that are not necessarily going to stick around for our game. Whereas now, the focus will be on the Gophers men and women. And that will make it very enjoyable. I don’t think you learn anything, other than you just have to simplify your game if the ice conditions aren’t great. If you think you’re going to make fluid passes up and down the rink, it’s just not going to happen. So, you gotta play a little more patient game and bide your time”
Regarding Ohio State… “Well, they’ve got a good team. If you look at their lineup, they’ve got a lot of Juniors and Seniors on their team. We’ve still got a lot of young players. Interesting that, you know, Penn State just beginning their program, we had eight Freshman playing, they had five in the games this weekend. We are young, we can’t lose sight of that fact. Sometimes we get a little bit frustrated because the guys make some mistakes, but we have to bear in mind that we are a very young hockey team. They’ve played great. We’re excited about where we’re at right now, but we’re going to see a team that has good size, has experience and can score goals. So maybe some of the mistakes we made on Sunday and Monday, we give up an odd man rush to the right guys, and their going to put the puck in the back of the net. They’re the second or third highest scoring team in the country right now. I saw Ohio State play last year at Ohio State when I was watching Notre Dame play them on an off weekend. I was impressed by their team. I’m not surprised that they’re off to the start they’re off to now. But, when you play teams you haven’t seen, you can watch a team on video, but until you’re on ice level, and get a better nuance of how individuals play, that’s when you have a better feel for what the opposing team is all about”
Regarding the former Gopher Olympians… “We’re excited about four Olympians. It’s great for our program. I’m sure there are a couple of kids that are disappointed that they weren’t selected that were close. Maybe with an injury they’re going to be put back in. But certainly for Phil (Kessel), for Thomas (Vanek), for Blake (Wheeler) and Paul Martin, it’s a special thrill. Especially for Paul, who was so disappointed last time. He got hurt, but he was selected to be on the team. And then Blake was one of those kids that was a bubble guy, so I’m sure he’s excited to be a part of it. They’re all great players, and great teammates, and deserving of their spot. It’s a proud moment any time you can put on the jersey of your country, especially in a big event, and a moment like the Olympics. They all bring different elements. Thomas is a goal scorer, and Phil Kessel is the same thing. I mean, they’re both going to be thrust into a real scoring roll. I think Blake is a little bit more of a utility guy that can play up and down the lineup. His skating and size I think is a big reason why he made the team. It’s going to be on an Olympic sized sheet of ice, which is important. Paul Martin is probably going to play with his partner in Pittsburgh, Brooks Orpik. They both play for the coach, so he’ll know how to utilize them. They’ll probably be in a top four roll, shut down roll, playing against other teams top lines. But Paul’s ability to defend with his stick, and be able to move the puck out of the zone, are the things that make him so special“
Regarding the health of the team… “We’re in as good of shape as we’ve been. We had a couple of guys nicked up that we nursed through the Penn State weekend. They’re doing well. Jake Parenteau has started practicing. He’s cleared to practice full go with us. Obviously he’s not cleared to play this weekend, but he’ll get an X-ray on monday, and hopefully at that point in time, six weeks, he’ll be cleared for the following weekend. So, it’s great to have him back. It was hard to practice for a while. When you only have five defenseman for a while, we had to throw some forwards back on Defense, just so we can have a quality practice. So, it’s nice to have Jake back, especially for him. As a Senior, it’s awfully difficult to be a Senior and get hurt, and miss the back half of the year”
Regarding the Penn State series… “The thing that was critical for me on Monday was Sam Warning and Nate Condon scored. It had been a long time for either of them, and their both in the top six positions . We need them scoring. Not necessarily every game, but they need to get on the board pretty much every weekend. And when you go from October until January without scoring a goal… That’s the great thing about our team, somebody different steps up. We don’t have a ten goal scorer. There’s a lot of teams with ten goal scorers at this point of the season. We don’t have any. And I’m not necessarily surprised. I think I said that at the beginning of the season, our success this year was not going to be through one or two guys, it was going to be by committee. And it seems like a new guys scores a big goal for us at different stages. All of a sudden, Travis Boyd has been hot. A couple of other guys dried up. Now, hopefully with Nate and Sam scoring, that’s going to keep going. Our D corp has scored a lot of goals this year. I think that’s probably been one of one of our saving graces, that they’ve been able to average a goal a game”
Regarding Adam Wilcox… “Well, he’s been steady. He’s been the one guy on our team that you can count on every night. He gives us a chance to win. You know, he gives up a lot of one’s and two’s, and our team, I think, is capable of getting to three. And that’s the real key for us, getting to three goals, and getting off to a good start. As we go from here to the end of the year, we’ve gotta make sure that we continue to get better defensively, know what our identity is as a team, and I think we understand that”
Adam Wilcox:
Regarding the outdoor game… “Yeah, it’s exciting. It’s kind of a weird week. We didn’t have our Monday-Tuesday practice, because we had the Sunday-Monday games. So, it’s a little different week for us. But I think the guys are getting up for it. It’s kind of exciting just jumping right into it. I think everyone knows, it’s going to be a really fun experience, especially being at home. Obviously there’s three points on the line, so that’s the thing we’re most focused on. Last year, the ice had a huge effect. It was a little bit warmer last year. A couple of the shots on the ice actually deflected up from the ice itself. So that’s one thing I have to focus on is watching the ice, and bounces, and stuff like that, because anything can happen. It’s a little bit different, especially when the puck goes up in the crowd, you lose it, especially with that much distance behind the boards. You’re not really used to that. So, I think I’m going to work on that in practice and maybe flip some pucks up, and see how that looks. It’s going to be darker at night, and some might get caught in the lights, so just kind of getting used to that feel. I’ve had a rink in my backyard since I was a Pee Wee. We should have good weather. It should be crisp ice. It’s just fun being outdoors. I’ve grown up around it my whole life. We had three rinks in South St. Paul, where I played. We actually had a couple of games in Squirts and Pee Wee’s outside every year, and that was fun for me. So it’s nice to keep the tradition going for me. I’ve got some wool socks. I hate having sweaty feet, but… I’d rather freeze than have too much stuff on, so I think I’m going to keep it light. It’s going to be cool. I think it’s sold out. Hopefully, even with the weather, all the people decide to come. That’d be huge. It’s always fun when you have an atmosphere like that. If we can get that many people in that building, I think it would have a huge effect on the game, and make the atmosphere that much better”
Regarding his Hobey Baker nomination… “It’s pretty exciting. I actually had no idea, because I don’t have a Twitter or Facebook account, or anything like that. Usually I find out all of my information from my Mom. She’s usually up to date on that stuff. But it’s exciting. There’s just so many good players. Coming to college is something you always hope for, and I feel really honored to know that I’m even being nominated. It’s such a good feeling”
Regarding the teams success so far this season… “I think, coming in, not a lot of people expected this. Any time a team has only two losses halfway through the season, you’re doing something right. And even games we’re not playing well in, we’re finding ways to squeak a last minute goal in, like against Wisconsin to get that lead. I think throughout the lineup, we’ve got depth. We’re getting goals from the Defense and the Forwards. I think that’s the biggest reason our record is so good, is everyone is scoring, throughout the Defense and Forwards”
Regarding the Penn State series… “They were fourth in the nation going into the game, with over thirty shots a game. So we expected that. They’re a good team, they played hard, and they had such a good atmosphere there too. Nice rink. And it was their Big Ten opener, so we expected them to play hard. It was six points that we needed to get, and we went their and got em. The fans had a couple of funny signs that I was looking at (laughing). Yeah, they were fun. It was a good experience. And then their new Football coach came down during the game, that was pretty cool. I think that was the loudest they cheered during the game. They’re probably so used to football, the most they cheered during the game was when there was a big hit, and stuff like that. It was exciting. It was fun. I thought the rink was the perfect size for that school. Obviously it’s nothing like Mariucci, filling ten thousand seats in the home barn. But I thought it was pretty cool. Kind of reminded me of a Junior atmosphere. Kind of felt like being back in Juniors. We had a long walk in the first period, all the way to the other side. That was our tour (smiling)”
Regarding Ohio State… “Most likely we’ll just try to get used to the rink. We’ve had so many high scoring teams that we’ve played this year that you prepare for every game the same. They have some high scoring forwards, some of the top in the Big Ten. I think it’s just getting used to the rink, and used to the boards is the biggest thing in getting ready for the game, especially outdoors”
Head Coach Don Lucia:
Regarding the outdoor game… “We’ll see how the elements are on Friday. It should be a lot of fun, we’ll have a great crowd, and it’s great that we’re doing it in our state. First outdoor game. I think it’s exciting certainly for our players, I’m sure Ohio State, our girls team and Mankato are excited to play the game too, and I think the fans are gonna have a good time on Friday night. And that’s really kind of what it is. It’s as much as an event as it is a game, although there are three points riding on it in conference play. This week I haven’t even looked at the forecast. I was kind of looking at it last week. We’re just trying to get ready for Ohio State. The weather’s gonna be what it is. The most important thing is that as long as it’s not snowing too hard. The wind is more of an issue than anything else. If it’s five above, you just dress for it. The guys playing, I don’t think they’ll notice it as much. For coaches, it might be a little bit colder on the bench. And fans, they’ll probably be warmed up on the inside, but I don’t know about the outside. But they’ll have a good time with that as well. Once the puck gets dropped and their playing, like last year, I don’t think the guys felt he cold at all. We didn’t talk about the outdoor game at all until today. I wanted to make sure that as we headed to Penn State, that the priority was that series, and not looking ahead to the following week. It was great that we had an opportunity to charter out to Penn State. So we got home after the game on Monday night, even though it was a little bit late. But at least the guys felt like they had a day off on Tuesday, and it wasn’t an eight hour travel day. So I think we came back and had a really good practice today. It’s not like we have to work a lot on systems. We’re into January, we’ve been working on that for three months. So it’s about keeping them fresh and excited to play in the game. And I think they are. It’s like anything. If you’re a football player, and it’s a little bit cold and rainy, you just have to brave the elements. And who’s a little bit tougher, obviously helps in that situation. I’m ok with the fact that we get to experience it, and our fans get to experience it. Ticket sales have been good. I think we expect about 45,000. It should be a fun environment. Is it an event? Yeah, it’s an event. But I think if you ask the players, when this is all said and done, that it’s going to be a positive experience. And I think for our fans, they’ll say the same thing, that’s it’s a positive experience. First time outdoors in Minnesota, and we’re just really glad to be a part of it. When the game begins, and you come out before the national anthem, I think you soak in the environment. I think every player does, every coach does. I think that’s always a special time. I mean, when you’re at a football game, and the games about to begin, it’s almost the buildup almost becomes more enjoyable as a fan than anything else. So you get to experience that. Then once the puck drops, and the game begins, your still playing inside the boards, and it’s two hundred by eighty five. You know, the hardest thing, as much as anything, is the quick turnaround and coming back on Saturday. We play at eight o’clock, don’t get out of their until late, and then have a five o’clock game on Saturday”
Regarding what he learned playing outside last year in Chicago… “Well, the one thing I can glean, if you don’t win, it’s no fun. I mean, so obviously, that’s the priority. We had the option to skate outside today, but we want to, because of the short practice week coming off our trip to Penn State, we wanted to make sure we got a good quality practice in today. And then just kind of go through the elements tomorrow, and get a feel for what we need to wear, and just get used to the ice a little bit tomorrow, because you won’t get a lot of quality work out there tomorrow. I haven’t been out on the ice at all. The feedback from the high school games were, the ice held up pretty good, and it was warm. It’s obviously going to be a lot colder for the game on Friday, and there won’t be any sun on the ice. So it should be hard. As far as does it chip, or anything else? I don’t know until the game begins. You look back to Chicago, it got pretty slushy, especially that first game. It held up a little better for us. They had to do a lot of stoppages and work on the ice. It seemed like it happened at Fenway Park, the same deal. Because of the temperature that it’s supposed to be on Friday, I think the ice will probably hold up really well. It will be nice because, although we did have a few Gopher fans that came down to Soldier Field, I think this is going to be a little bit more of an intimate setting. The field is a little bit closer to what Soldier Field was. And then you had fans from the first game, that are not necessarily going to stick around for our game. Whereas now, the focus will be on the Gophers men and women. And that will make it very enjoyable. I don’t think you learn anything, other than you just have to simplify your game if the ice conditions aren’t great. If you think you’re going to make fluid passes up and down the rink, it’s just not going to happen. So, you gotta play a little more patient game and bide your time”
Regarding Ohio State… “Well, they’ve got a good team. If you look at their lineup, they’ve got a lot of Juniors and Seniors on their team. We’ve still got a lot of young players. Interesting that, you know, Penn State just beginning their program, we had eight Freshman playing, they had five in the games this weekend. We are young, we can’t lose sight of that fact. Sometimes we get a little bit frustrated because the guys make some mistakes, but we have to bear in mind that we are a very young hockey team. They’ve played great. We’re excited about where we’re at right now, but we’re going to see a team that has good size, has experience and can score goals. So maybe some of the mistakes we made on Sunday and Monday, we give up an odd man rush to the right guys, and their going to put the puck in the back of the net. They’re the second or third highest scoring team in the country right now. I saw Ohio State play last year at Ohio State when I was watching Notre Dame play them on an off weekend. I was impressed by their team. I’m not surprised that they’re off to the start they’re off to now. But, when you play teams you haven’t seen, you can watch a team on video, but until you’re on ice level, and get a better nuance of how individuals play, that’s when you have a better feel for what the opposing team is all about”
Regarding the former Gopher Olympians… “We’re excited about four Olympians. It’s great for our program. I’m sure there are a couple of kids that are disappointed that they weren’t selected that were close. Maybe with an injury they’re going to be put back in. But certainly for Phil (Kessel), for Thomas (Vanek), for Blake (Wheeler) and Paul Martin, it’s a special thrill. Especially for Paul, who was so disappointed last time. He got hurt, but he was selected to be on the team. And then Blake was one of those kids that was a bubble guy, so I’m sure he’s excited to be a part of it. They’re all great players, and great teammates, and deserving of their spot. It’s a proud moment any time you can put on the jersey of your country, especially in a big event, and a moment like the Olympics. They all bring different elements. Thomas is a goal scorer, and Phil Kessel is the same thing. I mean, they’re both going to be thrust into a real scoring roll. I think Blake is a little bit more of a utility guy that can play up and down the lineup. His skating and size I think is a big reason why he made the team. It’s going to be on an Olympic sized sheet of ice, which is important. Paul Martin is probably going to play with his partner in Pittsburgh, Brooks Orpik. They both play for the coach, so he’ll know how to utilize them. They’ll probably be in a top four roll, shut down roll, playing against other teams top lines. But Paul’s ability to defend with his stick, and be able to move the puck out of the zone, are the things that make him so special“
Regarding the health of the team… “We’re in as good of shape as we’ve been. We had a couple of guys nicked up that we nursed through the Penn State weekend. They’re doing well. Jake Parenteau has started practicing. He’s cleared to practice full go with us. Obviously he’s not cleared to play this weekend, but he’ll get an X-ray on monday, and hopefully at that point in time, six weeks, he’ll be cleared for the following weekend. So, it’s great to have him back. It was hard to practice for a while. When you only have five defenseman for a while, we had to throw some forwards back on Defense, just so we can have a quality practice. So, it’s nice to have Jake back, especially for him. As a Senior, it’s awfully difficult to be a Senior and get hurt, and miss the back half of the year”
Regarding the Penn State series… “The thing that was critical for me on Monday was Sam Warning and Nate Condon scored. It had been a long time for either of them, and their both in the top six positions . We need them scoring. Not necessarily every game, but they need to get on the board pretty much every weekend. And when you go from October until January without scoring a goal… That’s the great thing about our team, somebody different steps up. We don’t have a ten goal scorer. There’s a lot of teams with ten goal scorers at this point of the season. We don’t have any. And I’m not necessarily surprised. I think I said that at the beginning of the season, our success this year was not going to be through one or two guys, it was going to be by committee. And it seems like a new guys scores a big goal for us at different stages. All of a sudden, Travis Boyd has been hot. A couple of other guys dried up. Now, hopefully with Nate and Sam scoring, that’s going to keep going. Our D corp has scored a lot of goals this year. I think that’s probably been one of one of our saving graces, that they’ve been able to average a goal a game”
Regarding Adam Wilcox… “Well, he’s been steady. He’s been the one guy on our team that you can count on every night. He gives us a chance to win. You know, he gives up a lot of one’s and two’s, and our team, I think, is capable of getting to three. And that’s the real key for us, getting to three goals, and getting off to a good start. As we go from here to the end of the year, we’ve gotta make sure that we continue to get better defensively, know what our identity is as a team, and I think we understand that”
Adam Wilcox:
Regarding the outdoor game… “Yeah, it’s exciting. It’s kind of a weird week. We didn’t have our Monday-Tuesday practice, because we had the Sunday-Monday games. So, it’s a little different week for us. But I think the guys are getting up for it. It’s kind of exciting just jumping right into it. I think everyone knows, it’s going to be a really fun experience, especially being at home. Obviously there’s three points on the line, so that’s the thing we’re most focused on. Last year, the ice had a huge effect. It was a little bit warmer last year. A couple of the shots on the ice actually deflected up from the ice itself. So that’s one thing I have to focus on is watching the ice, and bounces, and stuff like that, because anything can happen. It’s a little bit different, especially when the puck goes up in the crowd, you lose it, especially with that much distance behind the boards. You’re not really used to that. So, I think I’m going to work on that in practice and maybe flip some pucks up, and see how that looks. It’s going to be darker at night, and some might get caught in the lights, so just kind of getting used to that feel. I’ve had a rink in my backyard since I was a Pee Wee. We should have good weather. It should be crisp ice. It’s just fun being outdoors. I’ve grown up around it my whole life. We had three rinks in South St. Paul, where I played. We actually had a couple of games in Squirts and Pee Wee’s outside every year, and that was fun for me. So it’s nice to keep the tradition going for me. I’ve got some wool socks. I hate having sweaty feet, but… I’d rather freeze than have too much stuff on, so I think I’m going to keep it light. It’s going to be cool. I think it’s sold out. Hopefully, even with the weather, all the people decide to come. That’d be huge. It’s always fun when you have an atmosphere like that. If we can get that many people in that building, I think it would have a huge effect on the game, and make the atmosphere that much better”
Regarding his Hobey Baker nomination… “It’s pretty exciting. I actually had no idea, because I don’t have a Twitter or Facebook account, or anything like that. Usually I find out all of my information from my Mom. She’s usually up to date on that stuff. But it’s exciting. There’s just so many good players. Coming to college is something you always hope for, and I feel really honored to know that I’m even being nominated. It’s such a good feeling”
Regarding the teams success so far this season… “I think, coming in, not a lot of people expected this. Any time a team has only two losses halfway through the season, you’re doing something right. And even games we’re not playing well in, we’re finding ways to squeak a last minute goal in, like against Wisconsin to get that lead. I think throughout the lineup, we’ve got depth. We’re getting goals from the Defense and the Forwards. I think that’s the biggest reason our record is so good, is everyone is scoring, throughout the Defense and Forwards”
Regarding the Penn State series… “They were fourth in the nation going into the game, with over thirty shots a game. So we expected that. They’re a good team, they played hard, and they had such a good atmosphere there too. Nice rink. And it was their Big Ten opener, so we expected them to play hard. It was six points that we needed to get, and we went their and got em. The fans had a couple of funny signs that I was looking at (laughing). Yeah, they were fun. It was a good experience. And then their new Football coach came down during the game, that was pretty cool. I think that was the loudest they cheered during the game. They’re probably so used to football, the most they cheered during the game was when there was a big hit, and stuff like that. It was exciting. It was fun. I thought the rink was the perfect size for that school. Obviously it’s nothing like Mariucci, filling ten thousand seats in the home barn. But I thought it was pretty cool. Kind of reminded me of a Junior atmosphere. Kind of felt like being back in Juniors. We had a long walk in the first period, all the way to the other side. That was our tour (smiling)”
Regarding Ohio State… “Most likely we’ll just try to get used to the rink. We’ve had so many high scoring teams that we’ve played this year that you prepare for every game the same. They have some high scoring forwards, some of the top in the Big Ten. I think it’s just getting used to the rink, and used to the boards is the biggest thing in getting ready for the game, especially outdoors”