|
 |   |
|
EVENTS Fantasy Central Inside Game Multimedia Central Statitudes Your Turn Message Boards Email Newsletters Golf Guide Cities Work in Sports
CNNSI.com GROUP
COMMERCE |  |
Ray Bourque Press Conference from Jan. 28, 2000
Posted: Wednesday February 02, 2000 01:52 PM
Question: Looking back at the 1988 and 1990 Stanley Cup finals when you lost to Edmonton, how disappointed were you? Did you think: Well, I will get back again and we will get another shot at it? Ray Bourque: At that time we were having pretty good runs in the playoffs and we figured that we would get another shot. But it took me a while to get there the first time and you realize that you really don't know if there will be a next time. I haven't been there since, and I thought that year we really had a good opportunity, a good shot and we just, you know, didn't get it done. We had a tough first game and second game and fell behind early in the series and could really never get it going again. But just getting there was -- when I talk about the best times and most memorable moments I have had playing the game were probably those two runs I had going to the Cup. So it is really a special run that you have with a bunch of guys that you battle all year with and I would certainly hope to have another run and another opportunity to get there, but it hasn't happened yet. Question: The first, I guess, 14 years in the league, Boston was always one of the top five or six teams in the league, you always had a playoff run. The last couple of years obviously have been tough. I was wondering what kind of adjustment that has been for you? Ray Bourque: Well, you still go about your business the same way. You are still really optimistic when you go into camp and you hope that it's a team put together that will give you an opportunity to compete and go out and win a lot of hockey games. As a player, you just go out and make sure that you are ready and prepared and do the things you need to do to be at your best and it is really no adjustment. You just hope that you can play well enough to do your job and along with the others on your team to have a good run and to have fun and win some hockey games and get into the playoffs. Actually it hasn't been all that bad. We haven't had any major runs, but other than that one season that we didn't make the playoffs and finished last overall, that was just a dreadful season. Other than that, we have been pretty competitive and had teams that went out and competed, worked hard and made the playoffs and, you know, had some good series where we might not have gone too far, but competed pretty good. Question: Last year Wayne Gretzky went into the All-Star Game wanting to win the car because he figured it might be his last. Are you looking for a pair of keys this time? Ray Bourque: Well, I think I had my opportunity. I was very fortunate to win it in Boston and it was very special. But I'm not kidding myself, I'm not going to be the next defenseman to win the MVP; it would be a shocker, believe me. But who knows, it might be some other defenseman. There are some pretty good players that are going to be there, but these games aren't particularly a game for defensemen or goalies. Forwards kind of light it up and put on the show. So as defensemen, you want to survive the game to go along with the goalies and not look embarrassed or kind of just put on a good show and not be on for too many goals-against. Question: Are you at a stage at this point in going into the last part of the season where you are thinking of retirement? It seems to be a question to have followed you all year. Have you started to address that personally? Ray Bourque: No, not really. I am really trying to hold off on any really major thoughts that way. I am just trying to get playing good hockey. I think I could be playing better and I want to get there and just want to have a nice run here and try to get things going and really try and focus on that. I have said all year long that once it is all said and done with this year, I will probably take some time to really think about it and, you know, try to figure out exactly what is in store for me next year. But that is a fact. It may very well be my last year. I really don't know. So I mean, the question, I know it is out there and it will continue to be, but I really don't have an answer. Question: It is hard though not to -- everywhere you go people must sort of ask you and ask you; is it hard to escape that thought -- not escape it, but it seems to be staring you in the face every rink you go into. Ray Bourque: No, it hasn't been like that, really. The odd time it comes up, but you just answer it and I am answering it honestly. I really don't know what is there. So it hasn't been a major problem. Question: I am just wondering going back to the way it has been there the last five or six years, with your team, do you have any regrets in your career about staying in Boston? Seems as though it looked like things were coming together very, very nicely for this team last year and then all of a sudden in the off-season several moves that a lot of people were questioning and you are back fighting again just to make the playoffs. Any regrets about not maybe going with another organization to maybe have that run to the Stanley Cup that you want to have? Ray Bourque: No, not really. I think that you are right on the direction of this team, last couple of years we were going in the right direction. We had a good crop of young players and, you know, it seemed like things were coming together pretty well and, you know, the loss of a couple of guys certainly has affected us this year and we are in a battle again for just one of those playoff spots. It has obviously been tougher this year than the last couple of years just because we have been inconsistent and really had a hard time getting some things together. I have had a lot of good times here in Boston. We have had some great runs and it has been mostly good than bad. It has been my choice. Obviously I could have gone in there and tried to force the issue maybe possibly going somewhere else, but Boston is really a special place. It is a great town. It is a great place to raise your family and kids and this is home now for us. With all that said, that has had a lot to do with why I haven't gone anywhere else or attempted to go anywhere else. Obviously for us to do something, the playoffs would probably be a big surprise to a lot of people. But you always kind of hope that some way, somehow things will improve and you will find a way to get something done. That is the way I have kind of looked at it. Question: Ever consulted at all about some of the moves that were made, were you ever consulted at all about -- as being the captain and being there for a long time, did Mike or Harry ever talk to you about what -- the moves that they are making and the direction that they are going in, do you give input or do you wish you would have given them a little bit more input on some of the moves they made only recently? Ray Bourque: Well, a lot of those moves were made in the off-season and no, they don't consult with me. I think that being a player I know my job and them being management, you know, I don't think they have had a history really of consulting with players. The conversations that I have with Mike or Harry, it does happen where we might talk about certain things, but it is not like they consult me on very many moves, that's for sure. Question: I had a question about your team this year. You guys are currently tied for eighth. You had a good run in the beginning of the year, especially November when you peaked and have kind of struggled since mid-December. I think you would agree there is still time to turn it around. What do you have to do? What does your team have to do specifically to get back in the thick of things? Ray Bourque: Well, I think we definitely got to start winning at home. We haven't won here since, I think mid-December and that just stares you right in the face, that's just unacceptable. I think, of late, the attitude and the way we have been playing has been a lot better. We have been in every game the last few weeks and we went out on a three-game trip and came back with five points and really seem to be getting something going here. But a lot of these games have been ties, where some of them we have lost in overtime and we just got to find a way to win some of those games. And some of these games -- a lot of these games are at home where we are tying, we should be finding ways to win. So we have changed things up a little bit on how we are going about our business and system-wise a little bit and tweaked a little bit here and there and trying to mix things up and it seems to be going somewhat better for us and the attitude has been a lot better. When you get into a slide and start losing some games, sometimes it really hurts the psyche and confidence. We went through that for a while, but that seems not to be a problem right now. The attitude has been good and we have been going out and playing with a lot more emotion and confidence and I think it is showing by our play lately. Hopefully it is going to continue and we keep working as hard as we have been. We are going to start winning some games. Question: Is that what keeps you going knowing that if you do get into the playoffs, much like Buffalo last year, anything can happen? Ray Bourque: Well, there is a possibility. In the East, obviously you got a couple of teams that are doing really well in Toronto, New Jersey and Philly. You probably look at those teams as being the elite of our Conference, but even though you know that things happen, and for us, we just want to get to the dance. Hopefully we get a good run going here where we hold our position or try to improve on our position. And the only way to do that is by winning hockey games. So I think everybody is aware of that and we know the situation, so, we hope to get to the dance and hopefully get something done once we get there. Question: You have been a star in this league for two decades. I am wondering what changes that you have seen in the game since you have been in here and also what concerns do you have about today's game? Ray Bourque: Well, I think a few of the things obviously, you know, you are six-foot now and you are considered not even average. The guys are a lot bigger and they train so well that guys are really strong and faster now. I just think you got more guys that are faster. There used to be a few guys on every team that were able to speed it up and skate really well. Now you have some that are really fast, up and down the whole lineup. I think that is a little different. Obviously, players coming from all over the world now compared to 20 years ago where you had mostly Canadians and Americans playing and a few European players. Now you have got a higher percentage of European players from all over the place. So it is really a world League now, and the pool of players you have to pick from has really grown. I think that is probably the biggest change. Obviously the business side of the game has changed a lot in terms of what people are making now, and so that is pretty much the major changes that I have seen. Question: I am wondering also if you share some of the same concerns as Brett Hull and Mario Lemieux about the clutching and grabbing and how the game maybe is not as exciting as it was in the '80s? Ray Bourque: I think there is less clutching and grabbing now. I watched some old footage of games that were played back then and, you know, there was a lot of clutching and grabbing going on there that wasn't being called. I think the referees now are told to really look out for that and I think they call that a lot more consistent now. So I don't know what you could do to really -- the rules have to be enforced, obviously, but I think they are being enforced for the most part. Question: I had a couple of questions for you. One, just an All-Star related question. Kind of curious if you can take us back to your first All-Star Game maybe give us a quick highlight of what you remember and if there was anything special that particular game? Ray Bourque: Well, I remember it being in L.A. and All-Star Games in the past were you'd come in the day before; that night you would have kind of a big dinner, a gala, they introduce both teams, and then you'd have some entertainment and dinner all that kind of stuff and I remember Bob Hope was the entertainment that night in L.A., so I was really star-struck and it was kind of an affair being in L.A.. The game, I remember Scotty Bowman he was the coach, I remember growing up in Montreal where Scotty was coaching the Canadiens and winning Cup after Cup there. I remember meeting him and shaking his hand and meeting him for the first time and he had a pin on his jacket from my hometown, that was St-Laurent so I thought that was pretty odd. But he was -- Montreal used to practice in my hometown a lot so that is probably how he got it. He was wearing it that night, it was pretty weird. But as well playing with a guy like Larry Robinson and some of the Canadiens that were there that night was pretty special just by, you know, watching these guys play as I was growing up and being a kid from Montreal. When you are looking at these guys, and say wow, what am I doing in this room, it was pretty neat. Question: You got a chance to know Bobby Francis for a few years in Boston. I was wondering if you had any kind of comments on him, what you think he is able to do in Phoenix this year given some interesting situations with trade rumors and ownership changes, obviously, a hot Western Conference and a race in the Pacific, but just from what you know about Bobby Francis, any thoughts about the job he is doing? Ray Bourque: He seems to be doing a very good job. Phoenix has done well and really gotten it going pretty well in some situations where they were really on top of their Division and battling for one of the top spots in that Conference. Bobby did a great job here as an assistant and he really knows his thing. He is a smart hockey man. He was fun to play for here. He was only an assistant here, but he had some input and ran things pretty well and he was a good guy. I enjoyed being around him and spending a few years to get to know him a little bit. Question: You talked earlier you didn't think you were playing as well this year as you have in the past but you have been sick, too, haven't you? Ray Bourque: Well, yeah, for about a month there I had a virus. Then I felt a little better for a few days and then came down with it again and really didn't feel up to par. When you don't feel 100%, it is tough, just energy-wise, but that is long gone now. I have been feeling a lot better for over a month now and still, you know, thinking that I should be playing better and I know I could play better. So I am just trying to get there. But yeah, I did not feel good for a while. Question: In your own mind what are you not doing that you have been before or is this just the calendar catching up to you? Ray Bourque: No, I think I got to focus better. I don't think I have been as sharp mentally. When that is the case you tend to make little mistakes and the puck ends up in your net. I play against the best lines every night and when you come out on the minus side, you are not doing as well as a job as you should be and in my case where you want to come out even or better and if you keep the top lines off the board that you are playing against that night then your team has a good chance to win hockey games. So I don't think I have done that as well as I should and that is what I got to make sure I am doing every night is going out and being focused and being sharp. So we are working on that. Question: I was wondering you have been in hockey for 20 years. It is the 10th anniversary of the Russians entering the NHL. Can you tell us what they have brought to the league specifically? Ray Bourque: Well, a lot of skill and a lot of headaches for a lot of people playing against them. But they are very skilled players, most that come out of there, we have one on our team Sergei Samsonov that is scary skill-wise and really is a tough player to contain. You have got a lot of those guys that come here with speed, talent and size and strength, so, they are really quality players. A lot of them make it tough to play against. Question: What is it going to be like not having Gretzky in the game? Ray Bourque: Well, it will be different, that is for sure and he will be missed. I just was kind of in awe of him last year with the game he played. It was just so much fun being part of that and watching him just go out there and play the game he did. He was fantastic and really put on a great show. Wayne could still be around if he still had the desire to do it, but that is how good a player he is and was. So it will be different, but there will be plenty of other great players to watch.
| ||||||||||||||||||||
