[united]

Treliving and Ward today, with Wills hosting.

First time hearing Ward speak for me - he's very well spoken and articulate.

- Q for Treliving: Who starts tomorrow? A: Well I can announce we've finally narrowed it down to either Cam Talbot or David Rittich.
- Q: for Ward: How have you prepared the top line for physicality of playoffs and what needs to change from last year. A: The line did a lot themselves, recognizing they have to play differently than they did last year. Don't need to make big changes - a bit more committed defensively which goes for all lines. Make sure to backcheck and focus on being in the right spots in our own zone. Understand and remember that good defence generates offensive opportunities.
- Ward says he was impressed with how Gaudreau came into camp. Very prepared and had a lot of jump. Feel like he's ready for a breakout playoffs. Treliving echoes that and adds that Gaudreau is very hungry for success and knows he needs to prove it on the ice.
- Q for both: What was learned last year - sometimes you need to lose before you win? A (Treliving): Every play matters in the playoffs which sometimes you learn the hard way. Also the Flames are still a young and developing team. Look at the Capitals failures before success.
- Q for Ward: What did your time with the Bruins teach you about a winning team's learning and developing. A: Echoes what Treliving said - lots of disappointment before success. Won the Presidents Trophy and lost four games in a row to Philly after being up 3-0 to get bounced in the first round. The next year we won the Cup. Learned a lot from that as hard as it was. Cup was the result of five years of learning. The year they won the cup, they were down 2-0 in the first round to Montreal but the group had learned from adversity to power through - Mark Recchi was a big leader voicing that. Even in the cup year they went to overtime in game 7 in the first round.
Q for Treliving: You've been here for a number of years - do you feel like the team is finally ready to win? A: I think the team has gone through a lot of the steps in building toward winning. That said, there are 24 teams saying that same thing. Right now we are just focused on the first period of the first game against the Jets tomorrow. We can say all the right things but ultimately we need to do the right things on the ice. Like the team and the businesslike mindset the guys have, but interested to see how they perform on the ice. Very impressed with how the guys have approached this and they all bond well.
Q for Ward: Which black ace stood out to you? A: All of them. Simple answer but the truthful one. No issues putting any of them in. Mentions Quine, Czarnik, and Froese as NHL veterans who are black aces which speaks to the depth of the team.