Quotes of the day: Edmundson, Evans & Julien

EDMONTON - The Canadiens practiced at Rogers Place on Sunday.

Following the on-ice session, defenseman Joel Edmundson and forward Jake Evans met the media.
They were followed by head coach Claude Julien.
Here are a few highlights from their Zoom-based Q&A with reporters:
Edmundson has relished the opportunity to defend against some of the top snipers in the NHL through two games, including Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl:
Those are the matchups you get excited for, some of best players in the League, and we're playing against them every night. For us new guys, we're just coming to the rink every day open-minded, trying to learn something new. There are a lot of new things. The system's a bit different than we're used to, so I'm just getting used to that. Last night, we were better than the first game and then we've just got to keep building.

Asked about how the group is spending their downtime given how unconventional road life is this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Edmundson responded:
This whole season's a lot different than every other year. Usually you land in a city and you go out for a nice meal. You get to see a city. I don't think I've been outside in over two days. We just spend a lot of time in the lounge together, playing cards, watching hockey, football, just team bonding. It's been great so far. It gives us a chance to get to know each other even closer.
As for playing alongside fellow veteran Jeff Petry on the back end, Edmundson couldn't be happier with the progress they've made:
It's been great so far. It's taken us a while to get used to each other, but it takes some time to familiarize yourself with new D partners. Last night, we played better than our first game and then we just have to build off that. But he's such a smooth-skating defenseman. He's a 200-foot player. He's good offensively and good defensively, so just a lot of communication out there is helping us, and it's nice to see him get a couple of goals.

Evans, meanwhile, was questioned regarding the Canadiens' penalty kill, which went a perfect 3-for-3 against Edmonton on Saturday night:
I think the biggest thing is just being smart as a group. We all have to be on the same page, knowing when we're going to force guys and when we're going to sit back. The biggest thing when you're playing these top guys is you don't want to give them too much time and you don't want to make them feel comfortable. With the added depth this year, there's a lot of guys that can PK, so we're going to be going all out when we're out there and we can change quick and get some fresh guys out there, too.

The 24-year-old centerman is also thoroughly enjoying playing in between Paul Byron and Artturi Lehkonen:
It's great. They've both been in the League for a while now and I just think they're such strong players. They're easy to play with and they're great guys off the ice. They're helping me out a lot. We're staying really positive. I don't think I had the best of games in the first one and they were still very positive afterwards the next day and back at practice. I think that really helped me out.

When it was his turn at the microphone, Julien evaluated the line of Tyler Toffoli, Jesperi Kotkaniemi and Joel Armia through two games:
They've generated some scoring chances. I remember that Kotkaniemi set up Toffoli for a really good scoring chance in Toronto. They're all getting to know each other better and better every shift. We're seeing the potential there. They just have to bury their chances and put up results.

The veteran bench boss also compared Evans' play against the Oilers to his work versus the Maple Leafs:
He was good. He was more confident and he seemed less nervous. That's completely normal for a player like him. He's a smart player. He has a good head for the game. He understands things. I didn't have a problem with Jake's play in Toronto. He was just a bit nervous out there.