116 versus 143.
ThatB次元官网网址檚 the number of playoff games VancouverB次元官网网址檚 Ian Cole has participated in versus the combined total of J.T. Miller, Quinn Hughes, Elias Pettersson, Brock Boeser and Thatcher Demko entering this post-season.
Take Miller and his 78 games out of the equation and thatB次元官网网址檚 116 games versus 55.
When it comes to playoff experience, Cole is the dean of the Canucks dressing room.
The 35-year-old native of Ann Arbor, Michigan was part of back-to-back Stanley Cup championships with the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2016 and 2017 and has been part of playoff runs with Colorado and Carolina.
For Cole, the playoffs are familiar territory.
While most of his teammates were soaking in the rabid atmosphere at Rogers Arena on Sunday night when Vancouver defeated Nashville 4-2 in game one of their first round series, Cole didnB次元官网网址檛 let the moment get too big.
Although he appreciated the fan support, the veteran defenseman didnB次元官网网址檛 try to soak it all in.
B次元官网网址淣o, not really to be honest. All that stuff is awesome and you can feel the energy but personally for me I do better when I block out all the external stuff,B次元官网网址� stated Cole.
He admits that having experience in that type of environment does help in terms of focusing on the task at hand.
B次元官网网址淲hen you go and you step out here, itB次元官网网址檚 your fans and the atmosphere is so great. ItB次元官网网址檚 like B次元官网网址榳ow, this is amazing.B次元官网网址� Then you go to Nashville, and youB次元官网网址檙e like, B次元官网网址榳ow, this is so intimidating.B次元官网网址� Well, itB次元官网网址檚 neither. ItB次元官网网址檚 great here. Yeah, I feel the energy and use it. And there? ItB次元官网网址檚 going be loud. ItB次元官网网址檚 not intimidating - feel the energy use it,B次元官网网址� explained Cole.
B次元官网网址淚t all should be the same mindset right? It shouldnB次元官网网址檛 matter where youB次元官网网址檙e playing, thereB次元官网网址檚 going to be energy everywhere at this point of the year. The fans were great. They were awesome and you could definitely feel that but I donB次元官网网址檛 think focusing on it is beneficial.B次元官网网址�
As a veteran on the team, Cole picks his spots when to say things and is always open to helping out teammates when asked.
B次元官网网址淵ou try to say some things here and there but I also donB次元官网网址檛 want to stand up here and pontificate B次元官网网址榦h, IB次元官网网址檝e done this and this is what we need to do.B次元官网网址� No one really appreciates that either. When guys come to you and ask questions, you answer them. If you see things that you think you can add some insight to or fix, you do that when the time is right. But again, I donB次元官网网址檛 think standing up and telling people what to do or how to playB次元官网网址e got here for a reason.
B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檝e got a great hockey team. WeB次元官网网址檙e deep. WeB次元官网网址檙e skilled. We have elite players from our goaltending all the way through our B次元官网网址楧B次元官网网址� all the way through our forwards. So let guys do their job and let guys experience it for themselves and grow and learn.B次元官网网址�
Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet recognizes that ColeB次元官网网址檚 experience is valuable and pointed out and example of it from earlier in the year.
B次元官网网址淭hereB次元官网网址檚 been times this year I felt our team get a little antsy and ColerB次元官网网址檚 demeanor after the game has helped our team. IB次元官网网址檝e seen it. ItB次元官网网址檚 easier when it comes from the player or their peers than the coach when you have that player that can settle guys down,B次元官网网址� said Tocchet, referring to a four-game late-February swoon that was snapped with a 3-2 win over Boston at Rogers Arena. B次元官网网址淚 think we lost four in a row one time and Coler talked to the guys. The next night we played we had a good night. Some of the older guys I think won us that game.B次元官网网址�
Cole is the epitome of what Tocchet and the organization want from players in terms of a mental approach.
Now in his 14th NHL season, Cole has seen it all yet he doesnB次元官网网址檛 get too high after success or too low after failure.
B次元官网网址淚 mean, listen, weB次元官网网址檝e talked about this many times over the course of the year, which essentially is B次元官网网址榟ey, we win a couple games everyoneB次元官网网址檚 riding high. TheyB次元官网网址檙e amazing! Or weB次元官网网址檙e gonna win the cup!B次元官网网址� Well, itB次元官网网址檚 not true. We got to win a heck of a lot more hockey games.
B次元官网网址淥r just like if we had lost the first game and got blown out 8-1. B次元官网网址極h man! TheyB次元官网网址檙e a phony - theyB次元官网网址檙e a fake. TheyB次元官网网址檙e not there.B次元官网网址� ThatB次元官网网址檚 not true either.
B次元官网网址淟etB次元官网网址檚 try to stay level-headed through this whole thing. LetB次元官网网址檚 try to stay even-keel. We have a lot more hockey games to win. They (Nashville) are going to push back. TheyB次元官网网址檙e going to come back even better. And we need to be ready for them.B次元官网网址�
OVERTIME
* The discussions have already started about the B次元官网网址榗oaching adjustmentsB次元官网网址� that take place in a series but donB次元官网网址檛 kid yourselves. You donB次元官网网址檛 change the foundation of what got you to the post-season. The adjustments are more like B次元官网网址榯weaksB次元官网网址� according to Tocchet. B次元官网网址淟etB次元官网网址檚 face it. They know us. We know them. There might be some stuff they might adjust to and we have to be ready for it and vice versa. A lot of times there are in-game adjustments too whether you take a guy off a line or try different things. You canB次元官网网址檛 be afraid to do that in-game. I think thatB次元官网网址檚 important,B次元官网网址� stated Tocchet.
* Asked if he learns anything more about his team after watching game video, Tocchet said it reinforces what he sees from the bench during the course of a game more so than any eye-opening revelations. B次元官网网址淔or me in real time I kind of know. I donB次元官网网址檛 need the next day to validate it. There is the odd time where I may have misread (what occurred in the game) but I kind of know what I thought last night is what I watched today.B次元官网网址�
* Tocchet believes the main purpose of looking back at games is to use the video as a tool to help players moving forward. B次元官网网址淭o me, good coaching is how do you present it to the players without being negative or even too positive. I think itB次元官网网址檚 important you tell the story. Whatever our story is today with the players is going to help us tomorrow. I think thatB次元官网网址檚 what I look at video for B次元官网网址� creating your narrative to the players. What can we do to get better?B次元官网网址� he explained.
Veteran B.C. sports personality Bob B次元官网网址渢he MojB次元官网网址� Marjanovich writes twice weekly for Black Press Media.
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