NEW YORK – It is interesting when you actually “hear” something said over and over again. During his meeting with the media on Thursday Rangers head coach John Tortorella responded to a question about the youth of his team.
One forgets this Rangers team is young. It is not the Rangers team so many fans and media have followed in the past years. In the not so distant past, Rangers benches were pre-retirement, geriatric lounges for players whose best days were behind them.
At some point, New York general manager Glen Sather had an epiphany of sorts and began building his club from the inside and stocked his minor system with young, youthful talent.
Then by happenstance, he demoted veterans to the American Hockey League Wade Redden who seemingly embraced the move and earned the “C” for their club. Redden has been something of a teacher one might argue for the younger players and has been a model to target.
Once viciously booed on the Garden ice, players like Redden ought to be cheered if only from a distance. Players like Redden are the ones building the current crop of talent on the Garden ice.
But Tortorella sees learning opportunities on the ice and these 2012 playoff games.
“Well, this is all really good stuff for our team as you go through. This is how you gain experiences by going through it,” Tortorella said yesterday. “We’ve played a number of games, a number of playoff games. Some guys have thrived in it, some guys haven’t. These are all situations you look at as an organization as far as what guys are in these types of situations. So the more you’re in it, the more situations that you go through, the better. That’s how you gain experience.”
Tortorella has preached getting better with each game this post season. Regardless of circumstance he sees the club needing to improve, gain the experience, learn from it and integrate it into the game plan and commit to it long-term.
“I think as you keep on going through here, you need to get better. That’s why we’ve gone back and forth. I don’t think we’ve been consistent there. I think the most important thing that happened last night after a pretty screwy start is that I thought our mindset changed. I think that’s really important for our team. I think we were us last night for a lot of the game,” the head coach said. “I still think we have to elevate. Some guys played really good last night. I think they’re going to have to play better. Some guys didn’t play well, and they’ll have to try to find their game.”
And to listen to Tortorella is to understand his commitment to his team and respect he has for the players.
“I don’t have to motivate the team. I think our team is motivated. I don’t look at it as overcoming a 3-2 deficit. We need to win a hockey game. We’re preparing to try to win one hockey game, and we’ll see after that,” Tortorella said of preparing for game six.
“So we prepare as we always do. There’s no magic. There are no special speakers coming in. There is none of that,” Tortorella said referring to the aura of the 1994 team that hangs around the Garden. “I think we found our game last night, and I think that was mostly a mindset. We played more on our toes. We played to who we are. We have to do that tomorrow.”
Win tonight and the club starts its own memories. Lose and the Rangers can learn from the on ice lessons. Either way, Tortorella exudes the confidence of a head coach in his squad.
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