Hughes, Willander, Räty, Tolopilo & Adam Foote Post-Game Media | Canucks vs. Wild (Dec 6, 2025)

Hughes, Willander, Räty, Tolopilo & Adam Foote Post-Game Media | Canucks vs. Wild (Dec 6, 2025)

Yeah, happy for them. Obviously, um Willie with his first goal, it’s a special moment for him and um really nice shot and yeah, just happy for him obviously. Uh that’s that’s one he’ll remember. So, what does it mean to you guys with all the injuries you faced and losing in this one tonight to find a way to gut out a win when things haven’t been going your way? Yeah, I mean it was a good win. Obviously, a good team win. Happy for our group and uh happy for Willie and Junior to get on the board. Was it important for you guys to get this result? You talked about how you like the way your game was trending, but to actually see the the reward for the work you’ve been putting. Yeah, I mean I think for the most part it’s been close games. Uh yeah, I mean it was nice to get the win tonight. Do you have a sense that wouldn’t be able to go when you stepped out on the ice for warmups? I mean that’s not really my business. Um, I’m trying to get myself ready to play back to back. I think that’s something he would probably talk to the medical staff about and um, probably found out at the same time around everyone else when that happens, especially right before game after warmups just in terms of how this group reacted to it. Is there any challenge in that, especially in a position you’re already? I don’t think so. I just think you have to be professional and it’s next man up and uh and obviously Rat’s had a you know really good game and um you know obviously you don’t want anyone to go down especially him but you know at at this what are you going to do the point first yeah I mean he’s a really good player steady um you know the more and more he plays, he gets 80, 100, 140 games in the league, he’s going to continue to develop and get better and better, more confident. Just seeing more reps in different situations. Um, obviously I remember scoring my first goal and how excited I was. So, I’m sure he’s feeling that right now. And, um, probably nice to get off his back, too. What can you say about the performance that gave that first goal? I mean, yeah, he’s been great. He I don’t remember when his last game was, I think Anaheim. played great in Anaheim, too. Um, yeah, so it’s really nice to have have that in the system and for him to come up and um, you know, be an NHL goalie more, but I know I’m putting you on the spot, but do you have any sort of reaction to those sorts of rumors? I mean, no. I mean, I I’m doing what I can. Like you said, I’m on the ice. It wasn’t like uh if there was a call, me, Jim, and Fitzy hopped on hopped on the call. You know, I wasn’t a part of that. Um, but obviously, I’m aware that, you know, things like that could happen for sure. Your teammates have been dealing with a fair bit of sort of rumors in there. Do you hope that a win tonight quiets some of that stuff down? Uh the trade rumors um I mean yeah it was nice to get the win. I’m not getting the win so that the media can stop talking or whatever you guys are saying. I I really don’t know. Um, you know, it was just nice to get a win. We obviously desperately needed it and, uh, it was a good team win and I was glad and happy for some of the young guys that got on the board. And I just leave it at that. Everything was amazing. You know, big personal achievement, but helping, you know, chip into the team, you know, getting one of these very important victories, it’s great. What uh happened on the play? How did you see it develop? Um, Carlson did a good job kind of slowing it down and I I stopped off for a second and I found a passing lane and I just tried to get it off as quickly as possible. You haven’t necessarily been known as an offensive defenseman, Tom, but you’ve had some success, you know, registering some points here. Have you surprised yourself with the offense you’ve put up so far? Um, maybe, maybe not. I I don’t see that that way as much. Uh, I try to play play a complete game and I think uh I’m surrounded by a lot of good good players that make it easier for me, too. So, how special is it to have Elias on the ice with you uh during that goal? It’s amazing. I think it’s fun. Um and he gets his goal right after. So, couldn’t believe it. We had a slow-mo video of the celebration on your goal. Looks like Elias came in pretty hard into He did. Yeah. Yeah, he crashed in hard. What does it mean to you guys to get this result as a group, especially with the way things have been going of late, even though you guys have liked a lot about your Um, well, I think it’s I think it’s good that we finally, you know, get some get some pucks in and that we um get a get a win. Um, we’ve had a bit of a rough rough run. Uh, and I think the maybe the results haven’t really reflected how we play. So, being on, you know, actually a good end of that feels good. Tom, I’m sure you would have taken your first goal, however it came, but to make a shot like that on a goalender who’s played as well as cross the last month. Does that add a little mustard on it? I don’t know. I just try to just try to shoot as hard as possible and I guess it hit a good spot. So, yeah. Thomas, you’ve been starting to make your way through your first season here. What have you learned about playing in the NHL every day that maybe is not what you expected? Um, I don’t know honestly. Uh, it’s a lot of fun. I can say that much. But, uh, this a lot of games. Like, it’s definitely is taxing, but um, I think it feels good, though. Are you learning how to manage the schedule in terms of that taxing? For sure. Definitely different from from, you know, coming from college. What are the keys to, you know, sort of managing things on a night toight basis to be able to um Well, you got to be you got to be uh dialed in, you know, like around around the ring. You know, you eat, how much you sleep, and all that stuff. But, um I feel like sometimes in college, you could um you know, practice a lot more um without, you know, facing any real consequences. Whereas here, I think, uh sometimes you should hold yourself back a little bit. What did the crowd reaction mean to you, Tom? I didn’t even I I couldn’t I couldn’t It was just loud, you know, and I I like that. I guess it’s good. Yeah, it means a lot. Obviously, I think I mean what we’ve been talking about. I think we played better than the scoreboard showing in the last last few whatever games, but obviously it’s a it’s a game of wins and and and we got one today, so that’s great. When you guys see that Pety isn’t going to play, especially playing down the middle, is that sort of like a motivational moment for you to to step into that role and and help the group out without him in the lineup? I mean, I didn’t really think about it. Obviously, it sucks because he’s he’s one of our better players and and and and you know, I was assistant captain and everything, but but like it’s it was so close to the game, you can’t really think about it. Just, you know, new lines and and and say a couple things with the Lmates, go over something and then just go to the game, but but yeah, obviously hope hope he’s okay. But how rewarding is it for you to chip in offensively in a game like this where you are under man down the middle? Yeah, it’s it’s it’s huge. Obviously, I try to try to score every game and and and play as best as I can, but but you know, you never never hurts to get a couple extra shifts. Should you have had a hat-tick? Did you kick that puck in? Didn’t look like Yeah, I don’t know that that Yeah, I feel like they they’ve been pretty lenient with the with the goals that they they’ve allowed. So, I was I was pretty surprised that that that was disallowed, but yeah, I don’t know. with that one one against LA too and felt felt a little down but but good thing we were able to as as a team score almost almost maybe the next shift almost or a couple shifts after and and then get get another one too so that that felt good when you do score after you think you have one and it gets rolled out does it feel a little bit extra good like is it like yeah but I instantly like oh that was probably offside or whatever like it’s no but in this league I feel like every time you score you don’t want to sell it too hard if it’s not like a full ice breakaway and and you don’t touch the goalies I feel always feels like it’s going the other way. And with the uh sort of steel on the on the 4-1 goal, can you sort of walk us through how you saw that and how you thought you had the time to maybe get that puck? Yeah, I think I think I think Woody to the goalie uh leave it. So, I’m pretty sure. So, I think he he uh he he messed their break out there a little bit and then obviously just just a bad bounce. I think I don’t even the goalie sticks so big. I don’t know how I can even bounce over that, but just just so unlucky on their goalie and uh yeah, just get that. But I mean those those moments they’re they’re so quick, but you always like you have that split second to think like I’m hopefully someone doesn’t have a stick in there. And they they were pretty close to get that away from me, but good thing I was able to score. Uh yeah, I think another strong game from us and uh a little bit tough start. Uh get a goal in the beginning, but then like I think from second period they play by better. pretty quiet week for you. Yeah. Yeah. It’s been it’s been it’s been fun and same time tough week, but yeah, it’s I’m so happy to have my daughter now. And u I’m so proud of my wife. She did a great job. She she let me get some rest before the game so I can sleep at the hotel so she take care of the other. And I’m I’m really appreciate it because I know how hard is that like to be alone right now for her. You’ve got two wins since having the daughter. Is she a good luck charm for you now? Yeah. Yeah, for sure. Now I have more to play for. It’s It’s great. It’s I feel so thankful. Yeah. What did it take for you to reset your game after that that early goal? Oh, no. I think I don’t need I need to reset something. It’s it’s a game. Sometimes the PS go in, sometimes not. So, it’s just have to keep playing, keep focusing on the next one, next pack, and that’s it. I I don’t think I I reset after that goal. Yeah. You have a sense of how much this win meant to this group after the way some of the results have been going lately? Yeah, I think I think like even yesterday, we deserve a win. I think we guys play good like some unlucky bounces like you know, pucks don’t go our way. And yeah, I’m happy that we get a win today. one of the best goal scorers in the league on a breakaway on you with Kelzov. Can you walk us through what’s going through your mind? Nothing. Nothing. I I played against him uh in Kel a little bit when he was there too. So uh nothing. Just try to stop the puck. I don’t I don’t really think who is going there, you know, like and yeah, just just focus and stop the pucks. Yeah. But you didn’t you didn’t bite on his fake. You kind of fake it first, right? You didn’t bite on that. I mean like I think guys like love to go five hole. They think it’d be goalie. It’s hard to go down. So I’m that’s the kind of option I have in my mind always when the guys go on breakaway. So yeah. Well Adam uh how pleased were you with the performance of your group tonight to get this result? It’s good especially after the first made a mistake on that power play with 15 seconds 17 seconds left. One four’s got to come off. Get a D out there. That’s not how we want to think or uh start a game, but we were able to sustain get more pressure and we played we played a prettier game. How pleased are you in particular that some of your young players stepped up to provide the offense you need? Well, you always like to see that. Um, you know, they’ve been doing a lot of great things with structure and things like that and you know, sometimes your confidence, you get one or something goes your way, your confidence boosts up. You saw that with a few players. They played with a little more zip, but give them all credit. I mean, they played gritty. They played in the dirt and that was probably the part that was missing consistently. And uh once you It was a great team to play against tonight, you know, challenging them a little bit to play more of a not not dirty as a cheap shot, but play more of a gritty game. um playing the hard areas with more snap, more grit, more gristle. I mean, you look at some of the guys, you’re looking over there, they’ve got the full beards and things like that, and you got a 20-year-old. Um you just have to get in the get in the dirt and uh realize you’ll survive it. Toll Pilo makes 28 saves in his first career game against Minnesota. What do you see from your goalender tonight to step up in this one? I thought he was solid. I I I mean, he he didn’t look rattled at all. They got the the early one and uh the guys around him were good. He was when rebounds dropped at him. He he didn’t panic. He was calm, it seemed. Uh so I think he gave the guys some confidence there. When it comes to Phil Heronic, his game doesn’t always show in numbers on the scoreboard, but just when it comes to him being a reliable player, what do you see from him? Every shift’s the same. He’s, you know, he just plays in the hard areas. He he’s there to go to battle and uh great leader and he continues to do it no matter who he’s playing against and what night it is. And you know, We everyone everyone makes mistakes here and there, but uh he just brings it. So, it’s nice to see him have success. The word next man up is used a lot in this game, but you get the two goals from Ratu maybe could have been a third. Uh given Person’s absence, how what can you say about his performance tonight and how much your team needed it? It was great. Um, you know, he got more of an opportunity for sure, but I think even if he had less opportunity, if Patterson played, I think he would have saw a ratty maybe not get the two goals, but he would have played with more urgency, more zip. Um, he really, you know, stepped it up as far as like he keep he played he played chippy. He played more in your face and it was, you know, not just him, but Carly did it. Carly was always a guy that gets to the net, but he got to the net tonight. Even if you go back and look at some of the film, guys were getting the net with more like urgency, more conviction. Um pushing pushing getting into guys bodies before the puck got there, getting position, you know, you up for a basketball, you get position on the way up for those rebounds. And and that’s kind of what we’re trying to talk about with our young guys a lot. And not just our young guys, but everybody. It’s you know, it’s it doesn’t hurt as much when you get into someone earlier or or or first. So, I I really like the way, you know, you have structure. You want to hold confidence for the young guys and show them they can pull it off. And then you want to keep the older guys with all these injuries and morale up and then, you know, maybe the stage three is let’s get dirtier and grittier. That’s probably what we’re missing a little bit. Um, but tonight it was nice to see, especially against this is a this is a tough team we played. They uh a lot of big guys and and we didn’t back down and I’m I’m real proud of the guys for that. Is it meaningful for your group? Not not that you’d been on some sort of extended losing streak, but you have that really good performance and can’t quite get there last night. Um, is it a sigh of relief to just come away from the rink with a with a dub tonight? Well, you know, you can feel it’s coming. You can just feel it’s coming. I mean, it was right there that like they were they were generating chances. It’s just it’s it looked like at times they they might have been getting frustrated. Um it wasn’t going in or things like that, but they forced it to go in tonight, which is what I liked. I mean, I would have even been happy. I thought we were going to take a lot more penalties because I knew they were going to play grittier. I knew they were going to get in guys faces and um I was going to be okay with that. Uh because we needed to get we needed to go to the net the way we went to the net. But you saw that was probably the most we’ve had scrums after a whistle. Um, you know, when we’re up in a game two or three nothing, we want to have less scrums. We don’t want to go four on four, especially against potent guys like 14 and 12 and, you know, 97. But, um, we were okay with that tonight. We want to go to the next level and that is um, understanding that it doesn’t hurt as much. It’s okay to get gritty and and go hard in those areas. And, you know, it was a big big night for us. We just have to make sure that next one we continue to do the same thing. You mentioned uh morale and confidence earlier and and just for an individual like Ati Ratu to win that many faceoffs tonight, get the three points first time in his career. Like as an individual, what do you think tonight does for him moving forward? Well, probably a lot of comments, but I like the way he wasn’t the only one challenged. Our whole group was challenged as far as can we play a grittier game. And he’s I love the way he decided he was going to do it. I mean, he was involved with Begoian and um you know, we don’t want him we don’t want him fighting Begoian anything like that, but we want him not being discouraged to go to an area. I’m not saying he has in the past. I’m just saying in general everybody not to be discouraged. Let’s get in there. Let’s get in the dirt. It’s fun. And uh I think he he got rewarded for it. You saw Tom Wanderer get that much space uh kind of in the slot there. Did you know he was getting his first goal? No, I did not know that. today. Um, you know what, Carly had a heads up play, saw that one of their players lost their stick, so he he held up and, you know, he he he made time and space. It just shows you Carly reads the game well. Adam, um, young players, coaches have to learn how to trust players. After what you saw from some of the younger players tonight, do you sense that trust developing a little bit more? Yeah, I mean, yeah, for sure. But I mean, you you give them an extra two minutes, an extra three, an extra four, or um once they show consistency and reliability, like for example, don’t lose it at your blue line, don’t lose it at their blue line. Get it deep, be predictable. Um um you know, most of our guys are pretty good predictable that way, for sure. So, I wouldn’t say the trust factor for me isn’t there. It’s just, you know, you’ve got certain situations to close a game. guys just haven’t had the reps or the experience and they’re going to gradually get pieces of that as we go. Some of the young guys are getting more than they probably ready for, but it’s a good thing too when we get healthy that they’ll be further along. Um, but you know, you got to be careful how how you disperse that ice time and it’s it’s gradual because you also could break confidence. You know what I mean? If you do it the wrong way, which I think a lot of people don’t think about, you can really hurt a kid. You can hurt you set them back if they get put in positions where they really lose a lot of confidence. And and sometimes it’s not necessarily that it was their fault or they made a huge mistake, but they could be on for a quick two or three then they they go down, but it’s a great question by you. Yeah, you will gain confidence as well. How fine line is that in terms of, you know, you’re trying to at one point develop players at the same time the ultimate goal is to win hockey games, right? Yeah. Hey, you got to win a game and you and you also have, you know, you’ve been there. We’ve all been there where you give pieces at a time and and you also don’t want to you have you have older players there. It’s their job to shut it down, shut the game down, you know, and um that’ll never change. Uh as they’re ready, if he’s young guy, if he’s ready, then we’ll put him in there. And uh you know, Ratty got more tonight, but I give a lot of credit to his linemates, too. I mean, they gave him a lot of space. Uh Kainer played with a lot of grit. So, you know, so did Woody and it gave him Ratty some room. Um you know, Kane and Woody are the type of guys that the team though they’re tough and the defense are tough, they’re still looking over their shoulder. They’re looking back to see where he is and uh then Ratty’s not getting hunted. Adam, can you just walk us through the day for Elias Patterson or the decision that leads to him not playing and provide sort of a basic update given that you’re in the middle of a three and four stretch? Yeah, we found out this morning that he had something upper body and um we thought he’d be okay. He got checked out and um then when he went out tonight for warm up, it didn’t it didn’t it wasn’t a go for him. So, we had to adjust and um we did adjust and you know he’ll have further um medical we’ll look at some more things tomorrow, get an MRI uh and we’ll we’ll see where he’s

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