Quotes

"You spend your whole life playing hockey and loving the game and just wanting to play and make the NHL. One thousand points later, playing for 10 years, it's pretty special."

"I was not very good all night. All that was going through my mind was keep going. I struggled all night, but these guys played great and we just found a way."

"My expectations on myself exceed any of those put on me."

"I never felt pressure, or like I had to be somebody. I was just discovering who I was and who I wanted to be. And I think somewhere along the way, shooting pucks into the plywood of our garage and making long drives for games, I realized that I just wanted to be the best version of myself — to see what I could become."

"I obviously said I was committed to winning here and I meant that ... Lenny is not going to go hungry with that money, so we'll be fine."

"We lost to a really good team. Nobody quit, nobody threw the towel in, but they're a heck of a team. They're back-to-back Stanley Cup champions for a reason."

"I can't have that reaction. I know that. Everyone knows that. Not the reaction I'm proud of or that anyone wants to see out of me."

"It's been kind of an up-and-down year for us, honestly. We still feel like our best hockey is ahead of us. We're kind of finding it right now, which is a good time to do it."

"I don't think there's any question that Connor's the best 19-year-old hockey player I've ever seen, and I saw Messier, I saw Lemieux, I saw Lafleur. This kid is special."

"He sees the ice extremely well. He has an explosive acceleration to get to another gear that other guys don't have. And most importantly, you can tell he loves to play and he loves to win."

"When you guys do win — and you will win a Stanley Cup — the feeling is just over the top. You will lift it one day because you're too good."

"It is a special moment. This is legendary stuff. To witness that and to be a part of it and to have seen him grow up from when he was 18 and we first met him, it is pretty cool, pretty amazing to be a part of."

"He's got a ton of pressure on him. There's a lot of expectations. If anyone can relate to that, I think it's me."

"He's the best player in the league and he's also the fastest, so if you don't really slow him down or get in his way, he's just gonna skate by you. It's simple as that."

"You can't throw around the best player in the world easily, and you can debate all you want, but he is most definitely up there."