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PREGAME: Head Coach Lane Lambert speaks to Mike Benton before the Kraken/Wild game (1/8) · Seattle Kraken Audio Network

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: All right, Crack and getting set here for a while
• 0:01
  Speaker 1: back now with Crack and head coach Lane Lambert and
• 0:04
  Speaker 1: Lane just touching back here on Tuesday. One effect we
• 0:06
  Speaker 1: saw in that seven goal outburst the power play they
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: went three or four and they're continuing to produce right now.
• 0:13
  Speaker 1: So what kind of work have Chris Taylor and the
• 0:15
  Speaker 1: two units been doing to get this far now?
• 0:18
  Speaker 2: Well, I think it starts with, you know, just the
• 0:20
  Speaker 2: structure and the understanding. Certainly pre scouts are important to
• 0:24
  Speaker 2: know exactly what the other team's doing on the penalty kill.
• 0:26
  Speaker 2: I think he's done an outstanding job of providing the
• 0:29
  Speaker 2: players with the knowledge they need heading into the games.
• 0:33
  Speaker 2: And what he's done a really good job of, in
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  Speaker 2: my opinion, is he lets the players use their instincts.
• 0:40
  Speaker 2: These are guys that are on the power play for
• 0:41
  Speaker 2: a reason, and you know, if you become too robotic,
• 0:47
  Speaker 2: that's when things start to slow down. So there's a
• 0:50
  Speaker 2: structure there, there's a plan, and then the players are
• 0:54
  Speaker 2: going out and executing the plan. So it's worked out
• 0:56
  Speaker 2: pretty well so far.
• 0:57
  Speaker 1: One of the players has scored those goals, Berkeley Cat.
• 1:00
  Speaker 1: He'd gotten not just one but two, and it was
• 1:02
  Speaker 1: a thing of beauty back in period three, and he
• 1:04
  Speaker 1: said that first goal was a big weight off his shoulders,
• 1:06
  Speaker 1: and perhaps maybe it was a long time coming for him.
• 1:09
  Speaker 1: But what can you take away about that night as
• 1:11
  Speaker 1: far as the kind of game that he wants to
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  Speaker 1: bring here a game after.
• 1:14
  Speaker 2: Game, Well, he's just been working and doing the right things.
• 1:17
  Speaker 2: And I've talked all year long about him getting better
• 1:20
  Speaker 2: in certain areas that he needs to improve, you know,
• 1:23
  Speaker 2: and defensively or whatever you have. You know, he wants
• 1:28
  Speaker 2: the puck, He's not afraid to make plays. He through
• 1:32
  Speaker 2: this stretch hasn't lost confidence at least not to the
• 1:36
  Speaker 2: you know, not to the eye. Maybe inside he was
• 1:39
  Speaker 2: a little fight in it, but certainly this goal for
• 1:41
  Speaker 2: him and then the second one will be a weight
• 1:45
  Speaker 2: off his shoulders, and we look forward to seeing him
• 1:47
  Speaker 2: continue from there.
• 1:48
  Speaker 1: At the halfway point of the season, we talk about
• 1:51
  Speaker 1: what matters mean most as far as getting in the
• 1:53
  Speaker 1: playoff door, and it's still very much a fluid picture
• 1:55
  Speaker 1: as far as this entire Western Conference. But what are
• 1:57
  Speaker 1: you see just from the core values principles as far
• 2:00
  Speaker 1: as accountability, discipline, structure that have really you know, helped
• 2:04
  Speaker 1: this team pick itself up, as compared to the saying,
• 2:06
  Speaker 1: you know the first you know, three months ago when
• 2:07
  Speaker 1: they were just learning here about this whole thing.
• 2:09
  Speaker 2: Yeah, well, it's been a process, you know, it will
• 2:13
  Speaker 2: continue to be a process. I mean, we had a
• 2:16
  Speaker 2: meeting this morning and giving some reminders and some of
• 2:19
  Speaker 2: the things that we learned rate from day one, because
• 2:21
  Speaker 2: we don't feel like maybe we're quite as good in
• 2:24
  Speaker 2: that area in the last couple of games as we
• 2:26
  Speaker 2: had been, and potentially we've been outscoring our problems and
• 2:29
  Speaker 2: that's not a formula for success. So we love to
• 2:32
  Speaker 2: continue scoring. We've got to make sure that we take
• 2:34
  Speaker 2: care of our own zone. But certainly, I think you know,
• 2:38
  Speaker 2: right now, each and every individual knows, exceptable what's expected
• 2:42
  Speaker 2: of them, and now it's just about them taking ownership
• 2:44
  Speaker 2: of that and accountability to each other to get that
• 2:47
  Speaker 2: job done.
• 2:48
  Speaker 1: We have talked a lot about Matt eveniers in the
• 2:50
  Speaker 1: recent weeks and the points are certainly coming, especially ever
• 2:52
  Speaker 1: since around Christmas time here. But of course, this game
• 2:55
  Speaker 1: we all know, it's basically it's I'm going to give
• 2:58
  Speaker 1: you a full two hundred feet each here, But where
• 3:00
  Speaker 1: have you seen the biggest growth from him this season.
• 3:04
  Speaker 2: I think, you know what, I think there's been a
• 3:06
  Speaker 2: growth in every area, to be honest, and his defensive
• 3:10
  Speaker 2: game has improved. His his you know, understanding of where
• 3:14
  Speaker 2: to be. He's quick on pucks defensively. But one thing
• 3:18
  Speaker 2: I would say for me anyway, and I think that
• 3:22
  Speaker 2: Chris Taylor and Justin Ry have done a great job
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  Speaker 2: with him from an offensive standpoint through the neutral zone
• 3:27
  Speaker 2: on the rush. He has a direct and clear understanding
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  Speaker 2: now of who to attack to put not only himself
• 3:35
  Speaker 2: in a better position on the rush, but also his teammates.
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  Speaker 2: So there's been some real improvement there from my standpoint,
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  Speaker 2: when he gets the puck, say inside our blue line,
• 3:45
  Speaker 2: and transports it through to the other teams far and
• 3:51
  Speaker 2: or the other team's blue line, and the decisions that
• 3:54
  Speaker 2: he's making in those situations I think have been outstanding.
• 3:56
  Speaker 1: How different does this wild team look now with Quinn
• 3:59
  Speaker 1: he was on the back and what do you make
• 4:00
  Speaker 1: out of what they can bring here for tonight?
• 4:02
  Speaker 2: Well, they're the same hockey team that they've got an
• 4:04
  Speaker 2: extremely dynamic defenseman who's one of the top five defensemen
• 4:08
  Speaker 2: in the world. So you know, I mean their expected
• 4:13
  Speaker 2: goals has gone from nineteenth to fifth now since he's
• 4:17
  Speaker 2: been there, he creates and certainly generates. We're gonna have
• 4:22
  Speaker 2: to obviously pay special attention to him. I don't think
• 4:25
  Speaker 2: you can completely stop this guy in terms of him
• 4:28
  Speaker 2: getting opportunities. We just have to try and limit those,
• 4:31
  Speaker 2: and try and limit the percentages of the opportunities that
• 4:34
  Speaker 2: he creates.