Ken Holland Quotes (84 Quotes)

We wanted to be one of the top three seeds. We knew Nashville was going to be a real good team, and after the first 45-50 games they were ahead of us, but our guys have really stuck to it.

We'd like to add some depth. We've identified some teams that may be willing to trade. We'll see if there's a fit.

He still has the passion and the desire to play, and he's going to help this hockey team.

I just felt that it was appropriate to wait until the end of the season with Manny. Obviously, our hopes and expectations are to go all the way this spring. But when the season's over, I'll sit down and evaluate.

Obviously it's a disappointing loss. We were really counting on him.

There's a lot more moves than I thought and that people thought there was going to be. I think a lot of teams in the West made themselves better over the last 48 hours.

Go find a house. You made the hockey team.

He's really just coming into the prime of his career. I'd like to think his confidence level, and with the way they're going to call the game, which is going to be an advantage to a skill player ... he's a great addition. A great addition. I think for us, Pavel can make a play or do something that can create a scoring chance in a few moments.

Our feeling is, he'll be out for a period of time. Certainly, I don't anticipate him playing Thursday, for sure.

We're obviously very happy that we got Pavel back. He's a talented young player that had a very good year for us two years ago, and we're hoping for more of the same. With the new rules, I think skilled players like Pavel are really going to be helped.

To have the opportunity to represent my country again is something that I could not pass up.

Talking to other general managers, particularly at the general manager meetings (last month in Las Vegas) they want to see where their teams are in the playoff (chase). I expect there will be teams selling, and players will be moved. But there are quite a few teams still in the (playoff) hunt.

It's like getting a quality player at the trade deadline.

I want Steve to play this year. I still think he's got some great hockey in him.

They're both good young players with a lot of ability, but they're not finished products,

Jamie hasn't really had an opportunity, and when he did have an opportunity, he didn't play nearly as well this year as he did in 2003-04 (before the lockout). We felt it was a little bit of an opportunity, maybe, for an upgrade.

Chris brings a great deal of experience and passion to the rink every day. He's been a great Red Wing, he's in excellent shape, and no matter what his age, you know he can play at a very high level.

My hope is that he can play similar to where he was a couple of years ago, ... I don't know that that's a realistic expectation starting this week.

You hope nobody's involved. I don't know much.

We're very happy to have Chris return to the Red Wings. He's a veteran goaltender who knows what it takes to compete and win championships in a great hockey city like Detroit.

Coming into the new cap world, it seemed like it was the right time to change, to bring in a coach who had new ideas, ... wasn't similar to Dave Lewis (in style). Players had to win this new coach over.

One thing we can carry into the playoffs is the fact we've been so consistent. This team should feel good about what it accomplished.

Given our recent history with groin injuries, they tend to take a little longer than you think. We've had players come back, feel OK, and then re-injure themselves.

We start from scratch, but the history between Detroit and Edmonton is we've always had close games. Both teams are really built on speed and skill.

Our scouts feel he is ready to play in the NHL. He established himself in the Swedish Elite League and their national program and we felt it was time to bring him over.

Mike Babcock is going to make everybody accountable every day because none of them have a track record with him. He's going to respect the resumes, but he also wants to see what they bring to the table now because that's what is most important.

If some of our older players can play close to the level they were at two years ago, we've got a chance to have a good team,

It's been a tough 12 hours for our organization. The great news is that Jiri Fischer is doing very, very well.

I'm very pleased to have Steve re-sign for another season with the Red Wings. I'm confident that he has a lot of great hockey left to play.

We've had great success, and Europeans have been a big part of that. When Scotty put together the Russian Five, that was really the start of the Red Wings we see today. I think it even had an impact on how we developed our drafting philosophy and scouting philosophy.

We think we have some good young legs. I think it's going to be more of a younger team. We're trying to find some veteran leadership and hopefully we can find that at the conclusion of the first round.

He put a lot of thought into this decision, and I'm glad he decided to return,

If we have to wait, and it means we're going to get Pavel in our lineup -- I'll wait.

For us, it's one step on the journey.

We're very, very concerned heading into the new season, ... but I think it's a natural reaction. We haven't played hockey for a year. The standards and expectations remain very high.

Chris has been a No. 1 goaltender wherever he's been while Manny has never been given that opportunity. In 2001, when they were teammates, Manny made a great case to be the next No. 1 guy, but we ended up signing Dominik Hasek and later Curtis Joseph . This is a great opportunity for both Manny and Chris, and they've had a good rapport in the past, so I'm sure it will be a healthy competition.

Pavel signed a contract with Omsk, ... and then another team, Moscow Dynamo, matched it. His agent has told me ... there's no out clause in the contract. Obviously, it's a matter now of Pavel negotiating ... to see if there's a way that he can get out.

I spoke to Pavel this morning. It's all confirmed. He's coming back. We certainly feel like we've won the lottery.

When we got home today, we assessed his injury. We'll reassess him in seven to 10 days. Obviously, we'll only bring him back in the regular season if he is 100.

Throughout his career, Steve has found ways to make a big play at a critical point,

We weren't looking to do anything significant. Why do something significant I think we've got five, six, seven players on our team that can play better. ... I still think as a team and individually, we can raise our game. So, again, why look to make a major overhaul at this stage of the game

To stay on a minute-and-a-half of every penalty kill at his age, it goes to show his determination and commitment to training and competitiveness. He's had a tremendous year for us.

Dave's relationship with half our team -- and it was the core half -- had really been cemented as the assistant coach. I thought it was important to bring in someone with a different type of personality.

He has always had good game after good game while he has been there. But he's always been looked at as the No. 2 guy. He had never been given the opportunity to be the No. 1 guy.

This time of year everybody gets anxious to know who your opponent is. Now we know who our opponent is, and we can go about the process of preparing for them. It gives both teams an extra couple of days to prepare for your opposition. We've been watching them. I'm sure they've been watching us live and on tape.

Even though they're older players, if they can play like they did two years ago, they're going to help us a lot.

Cory is a real good person and he'll be good for our team chemistry. It's an opportunity for Cory. I can't tell you whether he'll be the sixth, or seventh or eighth defenseman, I can't tell you. That'll be decided over the next 20 games.

We've probably lost about five key players from the teams we were successful with, but we still have a lot of our nucleus together, ... I think teams like Nashville and Columbus are going to be closer to us with the new CBA. But I still think we have the potential to compete for the conference title and if you're doing that, you've got a chance to reach the goals everyone around here has for this franchise.

We're near the cap. That limits the things you can do.

We've got some more people at training camp we're looking at, but nobody major.