Ron Vogel
Q: What made the difference tonight versus last Thursday’s game?
A: The guys came with determination. They knew what it took to win and they did it. They came through; they did all the little things better than Odessa did tonight. They worked hard and they earned everything they got. The score – pucks were going in because they worked hard and they earned it. The guys played unbelievably. They played our systems; everyone bought in. We had 18 guys out there on the ice tonight and guys in the stands. Everybody bought in to what we were talking about. They got the job done.
Q: You’ve put in a tremendous amount of work here since you’ve come on board and you’re a very well-regarded assistant coach here in the league. How do you feel personally about where you are now?
A: It’s unbelievable. I can’t thank Fonger enough for the opportunity to do this. You know, he’s worked hard and he’s a great guy to learn from. We’re excited. We’ve got four wins left to raise that cup. It’s going to be a long haul and it’s going to be a tough road ahead but we’re up for the challenge.
Tyler Skworchinski
Q: You had a tremendous performance tonight – how do you feel about it?
A: I’m pretty happy about it. I thought all of the guys played really well tonight. As a team, we came out and did what was necessary to get the job done.
Q: You set a great example with your work ethic, both on and off the ice. What are your thoughts on your own work ethic and the reality of having that to get to where you are now?
A: It’s like I’ve told you before, I developed that ethic in college. In order to play, I had to work hard the entire time and it just carries over. When I go out there, I just try to work as hard as I can. I’m not the most talented guy. We have some talented players. I just try to earn everything I get and just try to go out there and lead by example by my work ethic and never giving up on anything.
Q: Two seasons in to your pro career and you’re going to a championship series. How do you feel about it?
A: Oh, just excited. You know, we were so close last year and we’ve been thinking about it all year, in the back of our minds. We wanted to get back there. Going in, I think we played a good game tonight. Hopefully we’ll be able to carry it over to the next series. I think we’re excited to have the chance to get that cup. I think you’ll see the guys put everything out there for the next series.
Q: There are two different Brahmas teams that we’ve seen. There’s the one we’ve seen in the last two games in Odessa and the one we saw here tonight. The one we saw tonight has really been around most of the season. This is a team that can win a championship; it probably doesn’t matter who you play. How do you feel about these guys?
A: That’s a tough question. Sometimes we don’t show up and when you don’t come out to work, we lose hockey games, plain and simple. We’re a very talented team, like tonight, when guys come out and are committed to what they’re doing, we’re a tough team to beat. I think now, guys kind of realize we got lucky a couple of times here and we got a win or two that we shouldn’t have gotten. I think now that we’re going for it in the finals, hopefully we won’t see guys take games off and I think you’ll see a pretty determined team.
Scott Sheppard
Q: How do you feel about tonight’s game?
A: Well, you know, it’s what we played for all year. I think everyone stepped up tonight. Still, I think it was the first time in this series where we played a full 60 minutes and look at the outcome.
Q: It was definitely a big difference from what we saw on Thursday night in Odessa, a 180-degree change. What made the difference?
A: You know, were back on home ice. We played well here all year. The main thing was to come out and get the first goal. We knew that Toivonen has been battling a knee problem. We just wanted to get under him and we did that and we got the win.
Photo Credits: Robert Keith
1 comment:
Thanks Robert. Those are good questions, and gave good insight.
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