The Flyers picked up a big 4-win over the Capitals last night, and it sure was an exciting one. Wade Allison picked up two goals, and Joel Farabee and Sean Couturier both had one apiece. Cam York made his NHL debut and looked sharp. And overall, the team just brought good energy and played a solid game.
And afterwards, Alain Vigneault, Allison, and York met with the media to talk about the win, and here’s what they all had to say:
Alain Vigneault
On the energy in the locker room with the young players called up: I’m not in the locker room all that much, so that would be a question to ask some of the players. But there’s no doubt that, you know, guys have been very positive and very good with the young players that we’ve brought in here lately. And tonight I thought our whole group skated well on the ice. The only time we got ourselves in trouble, and it’s funny, but it’s when we won faceoffs in our own zone, and they’re a quick pressure team and we just couldn’t make the play to get the puck out. But I like the energy we brought, and hopefully we can do the same thing tomorrow.
On Wade Allison, shooting more, creating space: Well, if you look at tonight’s game, I mean, he got in on that cross-corner dump in and took a real good shot on net that got in the back of the net. And on the other one, he does what most of the guys that like to score goals [do], he went to the front of the net, and he stopped and stayed there. That’s where you score goals in today’s game, when you’re close to the net, when you’re taking shots and you’re jumping on second opportunities. So good for the young man to be doing that.
On York’s poise: There’s no doubt, you could tell right from the beginning that the young man is a very good skater, smooth on his feet. Had the ability to beat the first forechecker and make a good pass, so good for him, and it’s just one game there but good for our team.
On pairing Braun with York: I thought they played well tonight, both those guys. Just felt that giving him an experienced defenseman, a guy that does more defensive oriented, and Cam is supposed to be more of a puck mover that likes to jump up in the play, thought Brauner would be the ideal guy to be there for him at the moment and, you know, for the most part I thought those guys played well tonight.
On only taking one penalty: There’s no doubt, they were missing their top scorer tonight, but discipline was a big part of this game. Discipline in the way we played but also disciplined in staying out of the box. A power play even without Ovechkin is one of the top power plays in the league.
Cam York
On family making it to the game: Yeah, I believe my parents were here. We’re not allowed to see them at the rink, unfortunately, but I’m sure at the hotel I’ll be able to see them. The flew out from California this morning and were in attendance, so that was really special for me.
On nerves: Yeah I’d probably say the same thing [nerves going away after a few shifts]. On the first shift you’ve got some shaky boots, but after that they feel good, and once you get into the game, you’re in it, and it’s just another hockey game. So it was nice to get the first one out of the way.
On the biggest difference between AHL and NHL levels: I think the biggest difference is the guys are extremely strong, and they can really skate, and they can really make plays. It felt like their fourth line felt like their first, just because they were making plays that you’re not really used to seeing. So that was a little bit of an adjustment for me, but it was just another hockey game and it was really fun to be out there and help the guys get a W.
On being paired with Braun: Having a veteran like him next to me is huge. He’s a really good communicator, letting me know what plays are to be made out there, and you know, he makes the game pretty easy out there for me. So having a veteran like that’s huge, especially on your first game.
Wade Allison
On York, the young players and the vibe in the locker room: First off, congrats to him, this is the first of a long career, this guy’s gonna play a lot of games because, as you can tell from tonight, he’s a really special player. I mean, we’ve got a good amount of young guys out there and in the locker room, but we’re just working hard, we’re trying to do the best we can, and take it one game at a time.
On his goal scored off the bank pass off the boards: Yeah we work on that a little in practice, it just bypassed their D, it was a perfect pass, I could ask for much more than that.
On his second goal: I just went to the net and parked myself in front, and the puck just bounced up and I took a swing at it, and luckily it went in.
