What were they saying?
“It’s heartbreaking. Really tight series, give credit to them, they’re a great team. They play hard, don’t give you much. I think everybody in this room gave absolutely everything they had to extend this series. It’s tough.” — Brady Tkachuk on the raw emotions after the loss
“You play a team that goes a long way every year, and it’s about sticking with it, the way they played. Yes, you can say that they got a lot of bounces going their way, but [I’m a] big believer you create those bounces, and there’s a reason why they have so much success every year. No, it sucks, it’s frustrating, there’s a million words that come to mind, but you know, they’re a hell of a hockey team, and it still hurts right now for sure.” — Thomas Chabot on what he will take away from the series, and from Carolina’s playstyle in particular
“He was fantastic. He showed us exactly what he’s capable of. Exactly what we’ve envisioned all year, since he came here. And I’m really proud of him. He’s gone through a lot this year, and he’s played phenomenal, not just the playoffs, but the last couple months. And in this playoffs, even down the stretch, he looked like a goalie that you envision winning Vezina [Trophies], that you envision that you can win a Stanley Cup with, he was exceptional." — Travis Green on Linus Ullmark’s play in April
“I thought that they were being physical, and that’s part of my game, is being physical. We had a hit earlier in the series where Sandy got caught up high. Sometimes that needs to be addressed. I saw a play where he had possession of the puck, and I just tried to take the puck away from him, basically… unfortunate to see him go down like that, but we also had guys go down.” — Tyler Kleven on his hit on Canes defender Alexander Nikishin that led to him leaving the game in the second period
“I think it’s the character, it’s the friendship, it’s the tightness of the group, and I think that’s what makes it sting the most right now, the way it all ended. I know this group wanted it bad for this city, for these fans, for this support we’ve had all year. Through all the doubts everybody had on us all year, I know how bad guys want it so that’s why it stings right now for sure.” — Thomas Chabot on why the loss hurts so bad
