Men's Hockey October 30, 2015

Transcript: Arizona State postgame quotes

Thoughts from Eaves, Hughes, Jurusik, and Wagner

Postgame Quotes
Wisconsin vs. Arizona State University
Oct. 30, 2015
Kohl Center - Madison, Wis.

Mike Eaves
On the power play advantage and how it's been doing recently:

"The man-advantage has been pretty good for us all season. I mean our scoring percentage is pretty good, but we're creating chances, we're entering the zone well, we're recovering pucks, and with, maybe a third of the game being especially a team game, it's good to have that thing going. On the other side of the coin, the penalty killers have been doing a good job, so our special teams have been a bright thing for us along the way here."

On ASU scoring first:

"Yeah, looking back on it you almost wonder if that was what we needed—a slap in the face. They scored right away and it was like, 'holy smokes', and then we turn it right around into an opportunity—an odd-man rush into a goal—and then [Ryan Wagner] gets back-to-back goals, so that really kind of jump-started the offense. It's been the second time this year we've scored four goals in the second period, and it'd be a nice tradition to get going."

On why Wagner is a good fit for the line he plays with:

"He's got a little bit of everything. He's not the biggest guy in stature, but he led our team in hits last year. Last year his offensive numbers didn't get off the ground, it's almost as if he was smitten last year—he couldn't get the offensive game feel going. He's a very offensive player, and he was that way when we recruited him when he played in AAA midget hockey in Chicago, and his team won a national championship and he was the catalyst offensively for that team. So, I think he was looking for a fresh start this year, and he's done a nice job in front of the net on that one power play group, where he's found his goals. So although he's not big in stature, he's tough and he sticks his nose right in there. He reminds me a little bit—in terms of his net front presence—of like a Brian Gionta who played at Boston College and now plays in Buffalo. He plays right there on the power play at that level. And he's got that toughness and grit, he's got a quick stick, and it's going well for him. I'm really happy to see him get that offensive confidence going."

On what this win can do for this team:

"You get a level of confidence in practice—you go out, you work hard, you feel good about the way you work, you do things the way you want them—but that confidence gets solidified when you finally do it in a game. So, our confidence level will rise because of this. We get a chance to work at that again tomorrow by playing the same team, and they're gonna come back and they're gonna be a little angry, and we're gonna have to go out and prove it again and take a step in solidifying the way we want to play."

Thoughts on ASU as a first-year program:

"Well first of all, their young goalie did a nice job. He faced a lot of shots, made a lot of saves, and they did not give up until the last whistle. They competed their fannies off and they're not just going to concede. There was emotion even after the whistle near the end of the game, so we know they're going to be ready to play tomorrow. And that's how you build a program—you want to be competitive and you want to take strides at getting better every chance you play."

On whether he thought about taking the power play instead of the penalty shot to work on it:

"No. You might not get a scoring chance on a power play and here you've got a breakaway so you're gonna take that overtime, take that one really good chance."

Cameron Hughes
On his line's offensive production:

"Getting the production is nice, that goes throughout the lineup. I think we're happy and we're just creating chances and eventually they're going to go in. I know we had a couple games there where we weren't getting anything but the chances. That was a good sign, and it's nice to get a few tonight."

On the importance of finishing during the game:

"It's huge, to close games out. That's what winning teams do. We talked about that last week, that was one of our focus points at intermission. For us to be able to close that one out, and I think we got a goal on the power play too. It was good to stay on the gas and get the win."

On his last converted penalty shot:

"I had a couple in juniors I missed, but that was my first penalty shot goal."

Matt Jurusik
On getting his first win:

"The comfort level has been growing this whole season, but it's really nice to get the first one under my belt, and hopefully there's a lot to come."

Ryan Wagner
On how the win will affect the team moving forward:

"Coming off last year, it was obviously tough, we didn't get very many wins, I believe it was only four. Getting a win tonight is definitely going to boost our team and kind of get us rolling a little bit. We get the chance to get the sweep tomorrow and then we head to North Dakota next week, but all we're thinking about is winning the game tomorrow."

On whether the team needed a "slap in the face" to start scoring:

"I don't think we have to be pushed or slapped in the face to kind of get going, I think our team just needs to learn how to start the game off strong and continue that through the whole game."

On his two goals:

"Jarod Zirbel made a great pass to Jason Ford, who took it to the net, drove wide, and made a great saucer pass to me and I ended up drawing a penalty and scoring the goal.
Then, Seamus Malone got it up to Kevin Schulze, who made a great shot the got through the defenders and I was lucky enough to whack it in there and get that second one."

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Players Mentioned

#21 Jason Ford: F; 6' 0"; Sophomore

#19 Cameron Hughes: F; 6' 0"; Sophomore

#30 Matt Jurusik: G; 6' 2"; Freshman

#18 Seamus Malone: F; 5' 10"; Freshman

#28 Kevin Schulze: D; 5' 10"; Senior

#13 Ryan Wagner: F; 5' 8"; Sophomore

#8 Jarod Zirbel: F; 5' 11"; Freshman

Players Mentioned

#21 Jason Ford
: 6' 0"; Sophomore
: F

#19 Cameron Hughes
: 6' 0"; Sophomore
: F

#30 Matt Jurusik
: 6' 2"; Freshman
: G

#18 Seamus Malone
: 5' 10"; Freshman
: F

#28 Kevin Schulze
: 5' 10"; Senior
: D

#13 Ryan Wagner
: 5' 8"; Sophomore
: F

#8 Jarod Zirbel
: 5' 11"; Freshman
: F

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