Say What - 'Need Everyone's Best'

Jonathan Huberdeau on Ryan Huska's pre-skate speech:

"It was about acknowledging Naz for his 700 points. We had a pep talk this morning in the room; I think it’s just pretty incredible the milestone he hit - you know - 700 points, 300 goals, 400 assists. That’s a cool stat to get at the same time."

On rallying after two difficult games:

"We knew it was going to be tough. A point slipped away the other night in Edmonton - we needed to have these two points - now we’re focusing on tonight. Every game matters, we’ve got to catch up with the games in hand we have. We have to win and get the two points every game."

On facing another star in Nathan MacKinnon tonight:

"We respected a little bit too much - Draisaitl - last game, we can’t do the same tonight against MacKinnon. Obviously, he’s a fast guy so you need to slow him down as much as possible. It’s going to be tough for 60 minutes, but I think most of the game, we have to slow him down. Makar as well. Play in their zone as much as we did, I think that last third period we played against them we were good, so we’ve got to do that for a full 60."

Joel Hanley on keys against the Avalanche:

"I think we did a good job with our discipline, as far as staying out of the box, we’re going to have to do that. They have a great powerplay, they have great skill. I think the biggest thing with skill players with a lot of speed is staying above them, not letting them get going in the neutral zone. Obviously it’s tough with guys like MacKinnon and Makar, but that’s the challenge that we have tonight."

On the need for everyone to step up:

"We’re going to need everyone’s best. It was an OK performance (in Edmonton) but I don’t think we brought our best. Just a few little mistakes here and there, taking care of the puck is obviously going to be big; they’re great in transition and great speed. I think it’s just sticking to our game, and hopefully we can get the win."

On Nazem Kadri's 700 career points:

"It’s amazing, the career he’s had. I remember watching him in Toronto - looking up to him - it’s pretty cool to be his teammate now. 700 points is pretty crazy. He’s in great company there, he’s just a great teammate and player."

Ryan Huska on Kadri's recent run of form:

"He’s been excellent for us. There’s a few players on our team that, the greater the stakes are in a game, they raise their level. Naz is one of those guys, and we’ve seen that probably since the break, where every night you seem to know what you’re getting from him. One, there’s always the compete side to his game, but now he’s been scoring and kinda doing everything for us. He’s been really good, we need other guys to make sure they’re kinda following him tonight."

On trying to shut down MacKinnon tonight:

"We have to do a better job against those superstars, like we didn’t in Edmonton. As a team, I think we have to be much more aware of where they are and when they’re on the ice, and I think we have to do a good job of five guys, all the time, trying to work together to slow them down. They’re going to get chances, they’re good players for a reason, but I think we can do a better job checking tonight than we did in Edmonton."

On Brayden Pachal's return to the lineup Saturday:

"I thought he was good, he kept his game simple for us. I thought he was back to his physical ways. Whenever you get a guy that comes back in, and generates offence for you, it’s a good thing. His identity is a hard guy to play against, so that’s what we look for in him all the time. Make a good first pass, and make sure people know that you’re on the ice."