Quote Roundup: Game 4 (Capitals)
By
Pens writing staff @PensInsideScoop
ON STICKING TO THEIR GAME PLAN DESPITE MISSING CROSBY
Sullivan: "I don't think we're going to change our game plan because someone is in or out of our lineup. We're going to play the type of game that plays to our strengths and gives us the best chance to win. I think we have capable guys. We're going to put a lineup on the ice we know we can win a game with. And we're just going to go out and we're going to try and be committed and make sure we have a readiness to us and we're focused on playing the game the right way. And when we do that, regardless of who's in our lineup, I believe this group of players has a chance to win any game against any opponent. That's our approach. We're focused on winning one hockey game and that's tonight."
Rust: "I think we've got guys in this room who have been around here a while and who know that if you try and change your game, things probably won't go very well. Guys are going to try and stick to their game, maybe play a little bit harder and try to ramp it up a little bit."
Kessel: "I'm just going to go out there and do the same thing I do all the time and hopefully it works out."
ON THEIR EXPERIENCE WITH INJURIES TO KEY PLAYERS
Sullivan: "Based on the history, they have hard evidence they can have success. I think that should provide a certain level of confidence and belief and trust that this group of players is very capable regardless of who's in our lineup. We're not so much focused on who's not in our lineup tonight. We're focused on who's in our lineup tonight and those guys are going to help us win a game."
Kessel: "Yeah, I think we've had this before. We seem to get some injuries once in a while and we keep going."
Cole: "We seemingly have a lot of young guys on this team, but I think they are all very mature and very professional in a sense that when there is a vacancy when someone does go down because of injuries, we have had numerous guys step up and fill those voids. Last year, this year, during the regular season and hopefully come playoff time, we can do the same thing. There are huge voids on this team. The ability for us to step up and try to fill those by committee is key. We have done a good job with that, so hopefully we continue to do that."
ON THE POWER PLAY IMPROVING AND ADJUSTING WITHOUT CROSBY
Schultz: "He's a huge part of our power play and it's tough without him there. but we have guys who are more than capable of stepping up and filling in for that role. We've got Geno, Phil, a lot of power on that first unit still. I think it'll be alright. We want to be creating momentum if we're not scoring and didn't really do a good job of that last game. We had some good looks, but not enough and we have to be sharper than that."
Hornqvist: "I think our power play was not very good (Monday) night. I think we had three, four, five opportunities there and we have to find a way to score goals. It is something we have to work to get better and we will be better too."
