It's pretty cool to be here. Look at this room where they are having media day, so many people, all these pictures of the players who have won the Cup before, all the media, all the attention. This is what everyone dreams of, getting to this point. Obviously, we are so close, but the job is not done.
When you get this close, it makes it a bit harder to stay focused, but I think that all these guys pictured in these banners that have won it remained focused. They remained focused on the job at hand, and I think you don't get there unless you have that mindset.
All this time off between games, an eight-day layoff, I think it has been good. We've all had that conversation of rust vs. rest, but we have made the most of our time off. We've practiced hard, stayed focused, stayed dialed in and we've done a lot to get and stay ready and made the most of the rest. I think we are refreshed going into this series and that is going to be huge.
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My mom, my dad, my sister and my grandmother are coming to Denver tomorrow. I'm excited to share this with them. They have done so much to get me to this point. To have them around is going to be pretty special. Everyone's flying out from Newfoundland. It's a long trip but they'll all be here, so it will be pretty cool.
And, it's been such a long trip for me in my hockey career to get to this point -- St. John's, junior hockey in Ontario and British Columbia, then to Boston to go to Boston College, and now in Denver -- I've learned a lot and I have been really fortunate to be in some great spots. Every spot has been a piece of the puzzle in getting me here and a piece of my development as a person and a player. I have to thank everyone for my journey and for getting me to this point.
With all the time off between beating the Oilers and now, I've spent some time reflecting on the journey to get here. It's definitely been a good time to reflect on all the things that have happened in my career to get to this point and how fortunate I am to be here. At the same time, it would all mean that much more if we can win this thing, so I'm trying to stay focused.
For me, the playoffs have been a challenge at times. Not playing in the first six games, against the Minnesota Wild in the first round, was tough. I think that was up to a month of not playing. After playing that many games in the regular season, you want to be involved at this time of the year. I just tried to stay ready, tried to do everything I could, on the ice, off the ice, mentally, just tried to stay in it. I knew my time would come and it has recently. I've tried to make the most of it and help this team and I think I have done a good job of it so far.
Playoff hockey is fast. It's a different beast from the regular season. But, at the end of the day, it's still hockey. I've played it my whole life and we have played a lot of it throughout the season.
I remember the Stanley Cup coming home to Newfoundland when Daniel Cleary won it with the Detroit Red Wings in 2008 and that's something I've dreamed of ever since that moment. Seeing him and Michael Ryder, with the Boston Bruins in 2011, bring that Cup home, I'm honored to be here as one of the few Newfoundlanders that have gotten to this point.
I'm just going to do everything I can to take that next step and bring it home again. Those guys have done it before and they have paved the way for other Newfoundlanders.
