What they're saying: Stars discuss Game 4 rout of Predators

Stars head coach Jim Montgomery

On the play of Roope Hintz:
"He's generating chances and in game one I thought he was the one that dictated our drive play to their net. Game two he wasn't as dominant but last game he was very effective and tonight the puck goes in. It's good for your confidence but we know what he brings to our team, he's a legitimate top six and he's made our team have two lines."
On what he told the team when they had a lead:
"We told them to just keep initiating and keep skating. They have to cheat on offense because they're behind and if we check really well, we'll get odd-man rushes and frustrate them."
On the play of Mats Zuccarello:
"I think there's another level in him. It's the first time he's played four games in a row in two months. Let him get in a rhythm and get his hockey legs. We're talking about a guy that's basically done nothing for two months and now he's already producing like this. I think in the months between the All-Star break and when we got him he was one of the top five scorers in the NHL in that span so there is another level in him."
On getting time to play the third and fourth lines:
"You want to spread the minutes around and you don't want to extend anybody. Everyone was playing well, everybody was on board and everyone was executing with great effort."
On the key to a quick start:
"I thought it was two things. I thought it was Seggy's (Tyler Seguin) line and Jamie (Benn) and Rads (Alexander Radulov). I thought they started us really well, were physical and then I thought our first power play set the tone."
On being 2-2 in the series versus down 3-1:
"It's huge. There is no other way to see it. 3-1, there is such a small margin of error but now we get to play aggressively and play on our toes and hopefully push the series."
On whether there will be carryover from the Stars' scoring outburst:
"That's never held true for our team. We've got to get back to playing to our identity and we did that tonight. The power play came through and I think people forget that we finished tenth in the league in power play. Because of the last two games people don't realize how effective our power play has been in the league in general. We have to maintain our focus playing to identity and that's what gives us success."
On what it will take in Nashville on Saturday:
"We've got to keep getting better. They're going to be better so we've got to be better. It's 2-out-of-3 now and it's probably the closest series that's out there in the first round."

Stars goaltender Ben Bishop

On scoring five goals tonight:
"I think it's a great feeling to see that. It's kind of nice to see when we got one, then two, we kept pushing to get the third and fourth one, and even the fifth one. It's a good sign and obviously we'll take this win, take a couple of days off and get ready for Game 5."
On the team's defensive effort:
"I thought we did a good job at dictating play again and taking it to them. Obviously getting the lead and keeping our foot on the gas. We were just taking it to them. I thought all four lines did a good job coming back on the defensive side, back-checking hard and blocking shots and doing all the small things it takes to win."
On bouncing back after the loss in Game 3:
"It's nice. Obviously, the guys did a nice job in front of me getting that lead in the first 15 minutes. It made it a little easier on me. I thought everybody top to bottom played a good game and did all the small things it takes to win."
On if tonight's win changes the complexion of the series:
"You just take the win. It's a 2-2 series now and obviously it's going to be a best of three. You just get ready for Game 5 and we know they are going to come out hard in their building."

Stars defenseman John Klingberg

On the power play working well tonight:
"We changed it up a little, we talked about it and, obviously, had video meetings and saw what tweaks we could make. It was just an unbelievable shot by Roope [Hintz] to get a goal and we got momentum from that, got some confidence and kept rolling from that."
On how much fun a game like tonight is:
"I don't think it's as easy as it looks. If they scored a couple goals there and created momentum, they're suddenly back in the game. That's where I think we did a really good job today, we closed it down and kept playing our game."
On needing to play desperate hockey tonight:
"I think we've been playing pretty desperate throughout all of the games, but I think what we talked about before this one was coming out jumping right from the start and that was something we did today. I think we played desperate from the start, we didn't wait and see how the game was going to play out, we came out and set the pace right away."
On if a 4-0 lead in the first period was surprising:
"I don't know if it surprises me. I thought we created a lot of momentum and they were on their heels, we just kept coming and goals went in. It helps a lot, but we would just focus on the next shift throughout the whole game. We kept playing the way we wanted to and did a really good job."
On goaltender Ben Bishop responding after last game:
"No one in this room is worried about that. We knew he was going to come back and be really good; he's been good all year and [Anton Khudobin] has been good all year. We've got a lot of confidence in our goalies."

Stars forward Roope Hintz

On the fast start to the first period:
"I thought we skated hard today and got the puck deep. We didn't mess around and took the puck to the net."
On converting on the power play chances:
"We changed the lines a little bit, but no big differences."
On his two goals during the game:
"The first one there was a really good screen and the goalie didn't see anything. The second one it was a nice pass from [John Klingberg]."
On the Nashville penalties and the physicality of the game:
"I think tonight we had a really good start and then we had a good power play at the beginning. It was big."
On getting some breathing room with the early goals:
"Yeah, that was a big thing to score here at home and get the crowd with us. They did a great job tonight, so it was nice."