May 30, 2000
EAST RUTHERFORD, NEW JERSEY: Game One
Q. How about your line of Arnott, Elias and Sykora tonight they were just dominant
again?
COACH ROBINSON: I don't know if I'd say they were dominant. They moved the puck around
pretty well, they were skating as good as we have seen them and when they are skating and
moving the puck and getting chances like that they can play well, yes.
Q. The number of goals tonight and the margin of victory will come as a surprise to lot
people; are you among them?
COACH ROBINSON: I don't look at it. When you get into the Playoffs, scores don't mean
too much. It is nice for some of our guys to start scoring some goals because they have
been hard to come by. So far we have been hitting a lot of posts and missing the net so it
is nice to see a few pucks go in.
Q. Ken Daneyko's goal really seemed to ignite the rally. It must be nice?
COACH ROBINSON: Dan doesn't get a lot of goals so it is always nice when guys that work
hard like that are able to get some celebration out of a game like tonight and Ken Daneyko
has been playing exceptionally well. He had had some really good chances. It is very happy
for him? Yes.
Q. Odds of your team winning, Scott Stevens and Daneyko score in the same game?
COACH ROBINSON: When it rains it pours. Like I said it is really rewarding for guys
that seldom are on the score sheet. Although Scotty scored some big points for us, but
guys like that that work hard, you know, even they get to cheer once in a while and get to
raise there arms for a goal.
Q. What elements of that line make it work? You put it back together what makes it
work?
COACH ROBINSON: Well, they read off of each other really well. Both Sykora and Elias
seem to feed off of each other. I don't know if they -- I think they have played together
before probably over in Czech. And then Arnott seems to compliment them as well. They
don't have to look sometimes or they just have a feeling where each other is and that is
one line that also has had the luxury of playing together for quite a while. That usually
helps a lot as well.
Q. I think everybody was expecting a low-scoring, tight defensive game. What happened
tonight to change that?
COACH ROBINSON: We had some squeaky goals that went in. A couple of bounces that
finally went our way. I thought our guys were skating pretty well tonight. In the end I
don't look at it as a 7-3 game. All it is is one game that we were fortunate enough to
win. Now I have seen this Dallas team down before. They are going to come back stronger, I
am sure.
Q. Scotty's team seemed unusually low. Was that as a result you were trying to match
him up against Modano shift for shift?
COACH ROBINSON: We were trying to do that. We were trying to get Scotty and Rafalski
against Modano but it wasn't solely that. I mean if they didn't want to get that matchup I
feel pretty comfortable matching any one of our pairings up because you are going to have
to at some point, especially when we get back to Dallas, try to make some adjustments as
well, so --
Q. Did John Madden hurt the same knee again?
COACH ROBINSON: Yeah, but he is fine. He is wearing a brace that prevents him from
injuring it. I think it is just more a little twinge.
Q. What did you see on the Brodeur save on Brett Hull. How big was that?
COACH ROBINSON: Huge.
Q. They turn around and you get a goal right after that that would have tied the game?
COACH ROBINSON: Yeah, that is usually how it goes. One team goes down, has a great
chance and the other team turns around, comes back scores the other end. You see that
quite a bit in hockey. No doubt Marty made some huge and big timely saves for us.
Q. Will you keep the Arnott-Sykora-Elias line against Modano or do you not prefer have
no preference?
COACH ROBINSON: It's not that I don't have a preference if I am able to get that
matchup I will, but a lot depends on how often they are playing and just how successful
they are against them. No sense putting them out there if Modano is in our end all the
time. So I have confidence in the number of my lines to play against a lot of their
players. I think I try to balance out the lines with guys that are capable of doing that.
End of FastScripts
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