How do you look at a game like this? You guys did have more chances and all that, but the final score is what it is.
I thought we had the puck a lot. Within the chances, I think we have to create more quality on some of those. There was opportunities there, just some of our execution, making plays into the right area, I didn’t think our execution was there on a number of them. And then the chances we’re giving up there, they’re just too loud. They’re too big. And so, I think it’s both sides of it. You look at a game like that, I think the chances are going to end up probably being in our favor. But at the end of the day, it’s about the score, and I think our execution there can be better. I think we can still create more quality. I thought there was times we had the puck in the offensive zone for good stretches, but then you look back on it, like, what are we creating? We need to create more. And on the flip side of it, the ones we gave up were just too loud.
This is the second consecutive game you’ve pulled Arturs early. What’s fair in critiquing him? Is there something specifically not working for him right now, or do you just lump up his performance with the team’s performances in these two games?
Again, I think some of the chances we’re giving up, though – like, you can prevent those. You don’t need to put him in those spots. Yes, I understand the last two games there, I’ve made that decision to make a change. But he’s been really good this year, and so, you got to go back to that. We’re going to keep working with him, and we also have to be better in front of him. A lot of those are preventable. There’s going to be breakdowns in the game. But a lot of what you saw there today, a lot of that is preventable. We can be tighter. We can make it harder. It was too easy for them on a couple of those looks that they had early on.
You finished November with more losses than wins after a really strong October. In October, you were much healthier, but did you see any reason or characteristic why the second month wasn’t as strong as the first month?
I think it’s consistency. You go through this month, some of those losses… I think we’ve been pretty honest with ourselves as a group. I think we’ll look at it and say, okay, there was some there, especially early in the month, where we got to get the points, but the process was good. And then there was others that it wasn’t good at all. There’s been some games this month, too, that we came out with a point or two where I didn’t feel like it was there. But the consistency is the big part. And I’ve said it before, it’s so tight right now, every point matters. And so, at the end, we got to make sure that we’re working to get those points. But in order to do that, we have to play better defensively than we did tonight, and we have to build to where our game is sustainable. It’s a sustainable game, night in, night out, we know what we’re going to be bringing within those things that we can control. So, we’re in this schedule right now, though, where the games are coming here. And so, we’ll look at it, we’ll meet, we’ll work to get better, and it’s going to be a quick turnaround here before Philly.