Mike Babcock Work Quotations

It's not like we hadn't had tons of chances, we just weren't finishing. The big thing we wanted to do was not panic and just keep doing what you are doing, get people to the net, work hard at it and let's not be pressing. I thought we managed the puck well and made great plays in the middle of the ice and really came at them with some speed.

I think everybody realizes that we had a great opportunity. But you find out quickly that last year was last year. There are now nice pictures of the playoffs hung up around the locker room, and people were saying nice things about us and patting us on the back all summer. But now we are trying to reestablish work habits, foundation and identity. I think it makes you more hungry, because we all know how hard it is to get there. It will be a huge battle for us and we are excited about the opportunity to try to get back there.

We need to reestablish our work ethic and get back the fire we need to win games. As far as I'm concerned, the playoff race starts Oct. 8 in Dallas. You can't make the playoffs in the first 20 games, but you can be out of it after 20 games. So for me, it's all about establishing that work ethic again in a hurry. I just keep telling the guys that, too -- so much that they think the record is stuck.

We just rolled (the lines) one, two, three, four. It didn't matter. We let our guys go, and it kind of worked out well.

We want him to feel good and be an important part of our team. He told me the other day that he feels he's skating well, and that his leg doesn't hurt. Well that's great news for us. He's dominant in the face-off circle, his brain works all the time; he knows how to play in all situations.

Edmonton is quick, and it works hard, ... Edmonton just squashed Nashville (Tuesday), so it'll be a good test for us.