For portions of this season, we’ve seen Nikishin with Shayne Gostisbehere. Despite missing a few chunks of time with injuries, Gostisbehere’s been one of the most productive offensive defensemen in the game this season. From your purview, what makes him so elite with the puck?
Tulsky: “He’s incredibly elusive and deceptive. He has an ability that not a lot of defensemen have, to sort of defy expectations and create opportunities that the defender didn’t expect him to create. Whether that’s a little shake at the blueline or a sudden burst of speed, or a pass to a guy at the side of the net who people weren’t expecting him to pass to, he has the ability to make plays that I think aren’t just the routine, simple play. He’s looking for ways to create something that wasn’t just handed to him.”
We’re about a month from the NHL’s trade deadline. I know you discussed in your Q&A with Cory Lavalette you discussed that there’s no clear need right now, but we know you’re always trying to improve the team. With this roster freeze during the break, did the attempts at making moves heat up just before?
To read Tulsky’s two-part Q&A with Cory Lavalette of the North State Journal, click here.
Tulsky: “This time of year, it’s every day I’m on the phone. There are two things we need: We need players to be available, and we need the price to be something that we can do. I’m calling every day to see who is available and what the price is, and I’m trying to get it to where we something we can get done. You never know what’s going to happen; it takes both sides. It’s hard to control the market. But, we are shopping very aggressively, trying to find ways to bring in the pieces that will help us take steps forward.”
Is that enjoyable or stressful?
Tulsky: “It’s not stressful. I think the opportunity to look for ways to make the team better is fun. The challenge I have is that, as the team gets better and better, it gets harder and harder to find ways to get better. If we had four guys on the team who stunk, the trade deadline would be easy; you just replace those guys with average NHLers, and we’re fine. When everyone on the team is already really good, it’s hard to find those next steps. I use the line a lot about wanting to have the 20 best players in the world, but if you already have the 18 best players, it’s really hard to get the other two. We’re not quite there, obviously, but it does get harder and harder to find real upgrades as the team gets deeper and deeper and stronger and stronger.”