Rod Brind'Amour and K'Andre Miller break down a thrilling overtime victory, praising key players and the team's relentless fight.
The Carolina Hurricanes defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-3 in overtime Friday night at Scotiabank Arena.
Alexander Nikishin scored the overtime winner, with Jordan Staal, Eric Robinson and K'Andre Miller all notching goals as well.
After the game, Hurricanes coach Rod Brind'Amour spoke with the media in Toronto. Here's what he had to say:
Rod Brind'Amour
On the game: I thought we were okay tonight. If you look at the bulk of the game, we had the bulk of opportunities and just didn't cash in. Then I thought they got a couple that you'd like to have back obviously. But I liked the fact that we kept going even if there were some of those ones that shouldn't have happened. All in all, it's two points. We move on.
On Alexander Nikishin's OT winner: He had a couple of good looks earlier in the game. On the power play, he had a couple of bombs and obviously that one was not even really a bomb, but that's what happens. Made a nice little play and got a screened shot through. Good for him, good for us.
On headshots: It's always been part of the game. Guys are getting bigger and faster and stronger. It's probably a tough thing to really police and manage because... we could talk all day about it, but I think when there's intent, that's when you have to kind of crack down. But I think there's always going to be that because we're a physical sport.
On K'Andre Miller: We had some individual efforts that won us the game, in essence. Get a penalty shot goal out of Robbie and then K'Andre, I thought he was just phenomenal tonight. Just all over it. He's been a huge addition. We added him this summer and that's been a big plus for us.
On Eric Robinson: You can tell when he's out there. There's a speed element, got behind the D on that one and broke away to get the penalty shot. He's just a hard working guy. He's been a valuable, valuable asset that we added last year. He's always finding a way to contribute.
K'Andre Miller
On the team's resiliency: Just fighting until the last whistle and just doing our best to give ourselves a chance to win every night.
On his shorthanded goal: Honestly, the D-man just kind of fumbled it at the blueline and so I thought I could use my speed to kind of jump him and make him pressured a little bit. Thankfully he coughed the puck up and I just tried to make a move on the goalie and luckily it worked.
On Alexander Nikishin: Man, he can shoot the puck. I would not want to be a goalie trying to stop one of his shots. he can rip the puck and he's getting better each game, which is fun to watch. Obviously he has a ton of skill and we believe in him to keep growing and keep doing his thing. Lots of good things from him.
Recent Articles
Stay updated with the most interesting Carolina Hurricanes stories, analysis, breaking news and more! Tap the star to add us to your favorites on Google News to never miss a story.
For action-packed issues, access to the entire magazine archive and a free issue, subscribe to The Hockey News at THN.com/free. Get the latest news and trending stories by subscribing to our newsletter here. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com or creating your own post in our community forum.