Hot damn Hitch!

Lots of great quotes from the Jackets media day yesterday which I'll address but no quote was better than this one from the head coach:

"I don't want to just stay in the (playoff) mix," Hitchcock said. "I want to go and chase Detroit (atop the Central Division). I'm tired of watching Detroit in first place. I'd like to chase them.

"I mean, somewhere along the line, somebody's got to make them bleed, and it might as well be us."

I read that and all that came to my mind was "hell yeah Hitch!!"... "screw those guys and their pompous ass fans who think they are gods gift to hockey!!"...

That of course is the fan in me who has had to deal with these self righteous Wings fans (exhibit A) flooding Nationwide the past 8 years touting their winning percentages and cup banners and think they can do whatever they want without repercussions.

This quote of course was not from a fan but was a calculated move by a master motivator.

In some ways Hitch is like the rest of us in that I'm sure that heading into his 4th season he is sick and tired of the Wings domination and wants to be the team to take them down a couple of notches.

In other ways it's a signal to the the city, the players and its fans that the bar has been raised. It's just not good enough to make the playoffs anymore. It's not good enough to concede anything to anyone. These aren't the big bad Wings.. Who cares about these guys? To us they are just another opponent standing in our way as we keep climbing that ladder towards the ultimate goal.

If I'm a player I love to hear that kind of confidence from my coach. That willingness to lay his ass on the line publicly.

As a fan there isn't much better than to hear the coach of my squad talk a little smack to those boys up north.

Here are some more quotes:

Rusty Klesla:

"It was a tough season for injuries but making the playoffs and playing in the playoffs, it all kind of evened out that feeling."

...and Rusty played like he'd been waiting 8 years for that chance in the playoffs as well. Let's hope that intense play carries over into the regular season and that he can remain healthy.

Sammy Pahlsson:

"I play a team game, I play to win.... I don't standout a lot."

I think it was Jacques Lemaire who termed it best when he referred to his checking line center Wes Walz back a few years ago. He called him a 50 goal scorer. Said he only may score 15 a year but he keeps 35 out of our net with his defensive play. I expect something similar with Pahlsson.
Steve Mason:

"My next goal is to bring home that Vezina trophy."

By all accounts there was a lot of confidence flowing from our star netminder yesterday. Confidence is good but year 2 is always a challenge for young goaltenders as the league starts to figure them out. There is a lot of work to do.

-LTL