Randy Cunneyworth Quotations

Unquestionably he's a guy we need back. I feel strongly that he's a guy who can help this team move forward.

Like any young player, there was a period of inconsistency. He can be average and then he can be Clarke MacArthur. Average isn't good enough, but he possesses the ability to be above average.

If we had done this 20 games ago, we wouldn't be in this predicament. This was a heck of a weekend and these guys deserve a lot of credit. They're sticking together like glue. Mess with one, mess with all of them.

But that's what happens when they sense that pressure. We got a lot of sticks on many of those shots. The ones they did get to were bouncing; we hurried them, we rushed them.

I can't remember the last entry (into the offensive zone) where he had a step on a guy and drove to the net. There's been too much one-on-one. For him it's more about finding the help, putting the puck there, and getting it back. He needs to compete for the puck, take the body when he has to, then make himself available to get the puck back.

He's battling, he's fighting for everything, and the guys are doing a pretty good job in front of him.

He has hit everything in sight in camp, he's got a great shot and he skates strong.

He made plenty of tough saves, but he has to be more focused on the easier saves.

We've been trying to find the answer and sticking with the same guys. But we owe it to ourselves to try something different. We've got a lot of hockey left.

We took a couple lazy penalties. Maybe they embellished a couple better than we did, but we were lazy a couple times and it cost us.

He's been sitting long enough. We need a contribution from him.

He's being utilized as a power-play specialist. We've had him at the point because of his vision and also at the half-wall as well. He's a guy that can quarterback the power play.

He was good enough long enough to let us get in the game and we didn't take advantage.

He (Leighton) made a (one-) glove save through a lot of traffic. Even though he might not have seen the shot, the key was positioning himself.

There are teams that have got in on the last game. It's about pride and professionalism. In this situation, the fact that we have to make up some points, some ground, if we can't muster up a desire to compete, then we don't deserve to be in the playoffs.

Just when you think you have it under control and that they won't pull that off again, they pulled it off. It's a very crafty team. It comes down to being aware in the lane and being on top of people, not so much on the long end but the short end, and not allowing that pass. If you give a guy like that room to make that play, that's the risk.

I thought we were well on our way on the weekend.

Our leadership has to step forward, and not just by being vocal in the room.

We need a game where we compete in all situations. Even if we lost 6-0 but competed in all areas, gave everything we could give, you can deal with it.

That's the kind of desperation we have to have.

That's the key word right there, desperation. It was used this morning and it was used tonight. It was obvious it was talked about by the players and they took it to heart.

I was quite impressed at that training camp. He caught your eye every time he's out there on the ice. He made things happen.

We played hard for 55 minutes and then I thought we kind of let them off the hook.

You allow a guy at this level more time, more space, and he'll be able to make a play. That's the whole thing: don't give that guy the time.

We had a lot of jam, some physical play we wish we'd brought forth on other nights. It certainly made it difficult for them.

We have the utmost confidence in the group we have here. You have to seize the day and take care of your own opportunities when they're presented. We don't have enough guys doing that.

We have nowhere to go but up at this point.

When a big effort has been needed, he has risen to the occasion recently.

Those were huge saves at critical times. We were playing pretty well and he came up big.

We gave them life quickly after our inspiring goals and that's when you want to shut a team down and take away any confidence they might have.

When our work ethic is up a notch we ought to be rewarded but I don't think it was up to their caliber. They worked very hard, they were very efficient and they hit everything that moved. We made every effort to match that intensity but we fell a little bit short.

We certainly are able to match that type of play but we didn't do it with enough consistency. Too often we're worried about reaching in. Sometimes hits are the easier play to make.

We didn't match their intensity. Any night we don't compete, I'm disappointed. They played awfully physical and took advantage of a couple of our miscues.

At times we're five individuals out there trying to do things. There were opportunities (against Peoria) where we clearly could have shot the puck but we wanted to try a prettier play or a prettier pass.

A lot of good things seem to occur when he's out there on the ice. He's near the puck at all times and just makes things happen.

They protected well and deserve a lot of credit, but when you're not skating, it's a lot easier for them to do.

The night when he goes in, we're not expecting a lot of offense from him, but everyone else scored.

It just seemed like we had to work a lot harder for our goals (by Brandon Smith and Jiri Novotny) and their goals came too easy.

It's difficult enough in this league to get the lead, but you have to do the necessary work to protect it.

It was not a conventional win but certainly one we can remember. Guys stuck together.

It takes the heart right out of guys when you don't get that big save.

The last thing anyone wants to do is roll over.

Their confidence and good play up there should help us here.

If one element isn't there, it makes for a tough night. We need all people going at once, and there can't be any letdowns. We have nowhere to go but up at this point.

But he's lacking some confidence right now. He just has to believe in the ability he has. He has to keep it simple and move in straight lines.

He's right there on the doorstep and I think he's had a long conversation with Jimmy (Corsi) about that. The way he fills the net is very Miller and Biron-like. We point to the level of compete that Ryan Miller has, where he never gives up on a shot, and that's where Michael Leighton has to go.

Generally I was pleased with the effort. It basically came down to our second shift (of the game).

He's in a funk, and he's got to figure out a way to get out of it.

He played very well and did good work at both ends, there were no negative comments. Is the work done? By no means. He had an excellent opportunity to show himself where he is (in terms of career development) and what he can do.

The key was we moved the puck around well, and any time you can execute like that, you get rewarded.

The emotion, the desperation all over the ice in every situation, it's exciting, the fans appreciate it and it also gets results. There's no better way to play than like that. To have that kind of fun is invigorating.

The guys were very good and they had to be. When it counted ? with the game on the line ? they played a real smart game. There was a lot of good growth tonight.