Well, that didn’t take long. Teams usually wait until a couple of games into a series before going back-and-forth with each other. I wasn’t there so I don’t know the exact tone used by Montreal center Tomas Plekanec when speaking with La Presse, a French-language newspaper in Quebec, among other outlets earlier this week.
“It’s not as though we are facing (Martin) Brodeur or (Ryan) Miller,” Plekanec told La Presse. “[The Caps] don’t have a dominant goaltender. When you look at the goaltending matchup in this series it favors our team. I just believe that our goaltending is more solid than theirs.”
Now, there are plenty of people around the league who agree with that statement. Just might not be the best idea to break it off two days before the game. Innocent remark? Subtle mind games with the opposing goalie? Who knows. Believe Plekanec — a Czech Republic native and, briefly, a teammate of Jose Theodore in Montreal — gave the interview in English and it was translated into French. Theodore responded in kind with some nice sarcasm when asked about the remarks.
“Tomas who? Jagr? Tomas Plekanec, okay. I thought you meant Jagr. No, I’m not. They are two of the best goalies in the league. They got the edge. I like (Jaroslav) Halak, (Carey) Price. They are two solid goalies. I’m just lucky to be part of a good team, you know, so that’s pretty much it.”
For fans and media this is the fun stuff. And it won’t be the last time the two teams trade barbs, either. Just wait until the coaches take aim at the officials for calls — and non-calls — during the actual games. For now, this sets a nice tone for what should be a fun series. More on Theodore in tomorrow’s print edition of the Examiner as he prepares to face his hometown team.
