O'Sullivan interview
Here's what Patrick O'Sullivan had to say. Keep in mind, I talked to him before I talked to Crawford, so I wasn't able to bring up some of the conditioning issues that Marc brought up in reference to O'Sullivan...
PATRICK O'SULLIVAN
Q: You're kind of a veteran among these guys. What do you hope to get out of the week here?
A: Yeah, I mean I played half the year here last year, so I'm looking at this as a week to get better. I've been to anywhere from 8 to 10 of these camps. I was drafted four years ago and I've played two years of pro. I think it's good to be here because we're working on things that you need to be good at in order to play in the NHL. For this organization to have all their top young players together and learning together, I think that's going to be really beneficial for everyone involved.
Q: Last season didn't start well for you but it seemed to finish a lot better. Is that the kind of momentum you can take into next season?
A: Definitely. It's weird. It's hard to know what to expect when you come into training camp, and like you said it didn't go as I would have liked in the first half. But when I came back I started to feel more comfortable, and I think the last 20 games was when I really kind of felt like I could play and play well and do the things I can do at this level. So that was really a huge confidence boost. I started scoring and putting some points on the board and playing a lot and playing in all situations. I was killing penalties and that's something I never thought I would do in the NHL, so it's pretty cool. It feels good to have someone like Marc Crawford, who has coached a lot of good players and had a lot of success, to have him have confidence in me and put me out there at the end of the year in key situations. That means you're doing something right.
Q: Lombardi has talked recently about the younger guys earning their spots on the team. Is that a challenge to you and do you enjoy that in some way?
A: Yeah. I don't know if it's necessarily a challenge. We've talked about it and I've talked about it with Marc. I'm looking at it as a chance to play with some good hockey players. Our team just got a lot better with the addition of those guys and I'm going to do everything in my power to get ready for training camp and have a really good camp and a really good start to the season. I think I've proved that I can play at this level and I'm just trying to get better. There's no doubt in my mind that I can play and be an important part of the team. I'm looking forward to the start of the year.
Q: You've proved yourself, a couple times over, at the AHL level. Do you think this is your time to take that big step forward?
A: Yeah. I mean, I don't think there's a whole lot for me to prove at that (AHL) level. So hopefully everything goes as planned. I really don't have a doubt in my mind that it won't, as long as I'm prepared and everything else. I think things will fall into place.
Q: This could be an interesting year, with the young talent coming up and the new additions...
A: Yeah, we've got three lines that can score and our fourth line is going to be physical, we know that. It's exciting.
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J.P. Hoornstra writes about NHL and IHL hockey for the Los Angeles Newspaper Group. He welcomes any and all dialogue on the finer points of hockey.
E-mail J.P. at jp.hoornstra@inlandnewspapers.com.
Jill Painter joined the Daily News in 2000 and during the last eight years she's covered the Dodgers, Cal State Northridge, UCLA, Kings, golf and everything in between. Even though she's from Colorado, she still freezes in the Staples Center press box but always manages to thaw her fingers in time to make deadline. E-mail Jill at jill.painter@dailynews
.com.
Vincent Bonsignore is a sports columnist for the Los Angeles Daily News. E-mail Vinny at vincent.bonsignore
@dailynews.com.
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I hope Patrick starts to bust his ass like Zeiler and Johnson. It is going to be his spot to lose and these guys are bringing more intensity than I have ever seen in Patrick's limited NHL career. This guy has all of the talent in the world. I think it is time he showed us a work ethic even he didn't know he was capable of.
We all have high expectations of him and hopefully he can deliver, if his ego doesn't get in the way. He came off in this interview as a bit arrogant to me, but if he comes into camp in shape with the right attitude, which apparently was a prior problem, and can show he belongs in the big show, then go Sully!
Sounds a bit like talk with no substance...comments like "I think things will fal into place" don't make you think he isgoing to go out and make them happen, rather that he's going to wait for it to come to him. Hope I'm wrong and he's in the line up when I see the Kings at the O2.
I think he's more confident than arrogant. I want to see him make the team. Bottom line, if he doesn't put in the work "things won't fall into place"!
Seems to me that everyone is blowing his comments way out of proportion due to his previous "attitude problems."
I love the fact that he doesn't think he has anything to prove in the AHL and that he feels he belongs on the big club. Tell me where he says "All I have to do is show up and I have a spot"?
He says that as long as he is prepared then there is no doubt in his mind that he will be here. Basically, he's saying if he plays like he did at the end of the season (which would involve him busting his ass out there like he was during his point streak) then he will be on this team.
I don't know about you guys, but I love for my snipers to be confident; goal scorers have to be.
I know people think it's Kopitar, but I think there is not a more talented offensive player on the Kings roster than Patrick O'Sullivan, and if he has a little swagger, all the better for him to become a young gun that the league can market in the future. He's from the USA and has a command of the language. He's a child, and as he matures into a man, he can help the Kings become a legit contender over the next few years.
I don't care much about what his detractors say. If you put him in a situation where he's got a chance to succeed, he most probably will.
If you send him away, you have 10-15 years to wonder why the hell the Kings dealt him, and like Larry Murphy, you'll see him flourish and eventually become a (potential) Hall Of Famer.
He is that good.
" I think I've proved that I can play at this level "
i think thats where alot of people have the problem. sure he did good at the end of the season, but we need more consistancy in his overall game. i'd say start him in LA, and even if he's not putting up points, he'd better be busting his ass in the corners. once he does that, things will fall into place.
I guess it depends on which part of the interview you want to emphasize. If you want to emphasize the part where he says, ``I think I've proved that I can play at this level,'' you're going to criticize him. If you want to emphasize the part, right before that, where he says, ``I'm going to do everything in my power to get ready for training camp,'' and the part right after that, where he says, ``I'm just trying to get better,'' then you're looking for something different. I suppose everyone takes away something different when they read it.
" I think I've proved that I can play at this level "
OK, so my take is... 100% YES. ABSOLUTELY. WITHOUT QUESTION.
That said, I will go so far as to say that he has NOT proven that he can play at a high skill level OVER AN ENTIRE NHL SEASON just yet. But he had his baptism under fire last year, and now, knowing that HE BELIEVES he's proved he can play in this league, he will... and succeed... IF he's given the opportunity to succeed, and I have no reason, nor have I been given any reason not to believe that management feels the same way.
The guy is an NHL player. There is NO QUESTION he's an NHL player. Now it's time to raise the game and be one of the best NHL players. I think he can do that. Just, as I have said before, don't throw the baby out with the bathwater.