Tuesday, December 19, 2017

Georgetown Welcomes Zetterberg to the team...

Q: Will you miss Sanibal?
A: Are you kidding?
The weather may be cold and gray outside, but the atmosphere inside the Georgetown Millers press room at the team's Cardome headquarters was bright and festive. GM Chris Kash and Head Coach Roy Sommer were joined by trade deadline acquisition Henrik Zetterberg for the forward's introductory press conference.

After Zetterberg made a few remarks, the GM opened the floor to questions.

Q: Will Zetterberg be re-signed?
CK: We don't discuss these things until after the season ends, per CCHL rules.

Q: Where will Zetterberg play?
CK: That's ultimately up to Coach Sommer, but we brought Hank in to play a top 6 role, so figure he'll be lining up at RW with either Carter or Bozak.

Q: You traded Anders Bjork, generally regarded as one of your top 5 prospects. Do you feel you've sacrificed too much of your future to make a championship push this season?
CK: Well flags fly forever, as they say. Windows of contention do not stay open long-term in this league. We have a solid core and needed players who can help now. We really like Anders but he can't help the team this year, and we have quite a few wingers under contract for next season, so we dealt from our depth.

Q: Where does Nash fit in when he returns?
CK: We'll have to see, but we are lucky to have players who can contribute in several ways throughout the lineup. I'm confident Nash will be back in a top 9 role, if not back to the top line, when he returns.

Q: Were you close to acquiring anyone else?
CK: Not really. We had a discussion or 2 about improving our depth at D, but what was offered was not truly an upgrade over what we already have.

Q: Were you surprised by Zack Smith's trade request?
CK: Yes and no. Yes because his agent made the request so late in the process. No because I know Zack is not happy playing 10 minutes a night. He could play 15 minutes a night on 15 other teams in this league. But we fill he fits best on our 4th line for now.

Q: Orlov, Teravainen and Pesce were all expected to play big roles this season, and all 3 have not been in the lineup for weeks. Are they unhappy?
CK: Yes they are unhappy - unhappy with their play and not performing to their own or to our standards. Orlov has been penalty prone, not moving his feet enough and getting himself out of position. He has a crap ton of hooking penalties this season. He's working with the coaching staff and looked pretty good when he covered for Josi a few weeks back. He's ready if needed and we expect him to have a role for us next season. Teuvo and Pesce just need to gain consistency and more strength. They are also being counted on to contribute more next year.

Q: Will you or Coach Sommer commit to a goalie for the stretch run?
CK: We'll commit to whoever gives us the best chance to win.

CK: Thank you all for attending. Please help yourself to the complimentary bourbon balls provided by Buffalo Trace.

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