Mike Babcock Players Quotations

I thought the goalie was real good early when the rest of us weren't. He'll be real humble here tonight and he'll say the players played real well in front of him and all that stuff. If you set a record ... you should be proud of yourself. At least for a few minutes until we start yelling at him tomorrow.

That's why we wanted him back. He showed why a lot of people think he's one of the top young players in the NHL.

To be passing Gordie Howe - holy mackerel! That's unbelievable. That's how good you've been and that's how long you've played. And that's how good of players you played with.

We weren't ready. Between the players and myself, we didn't get the job done to get out and get started and get after them and set the tone. We hung on good enough defensively, and Manny was good enough to give us a chance to get ourselves going and then I think we took over.

I've coached some real good players -- he's the best player I ever coached. He's classy as they come, as humble as they come. This guy just makes people around him better, and that's the key to having a successful team. He's the easiest person I've ever coached.

We'll see where he's at, ... I'm hopeful of the positive side of things. You're always concerned about good players being hurt.

It's like a lifetime. You just think about it. The season is long. We're at game (65) and it seems like forever. Think about coming, and putting on your skates, and how many coaches have gotten on your nerves, and how many players you've seen. You've seen them all 100 times.

Hank's been outstanding for us. There's nothing wrong with players putting some pressure on themselves to perform.

They have really good players in Edmonton, they really do. I've got to tell you, I'm surprised we're playing them.