Challenging someone is good. You need to do it. Sometimes they don't even realize you're doing it, like when you joke with a goalie, 'What's wrong today? You losing it?

People are going to have their opinions. Whether it's good or bad, I don't really think about it either way.

I look at it as a challenge, ... I'm not going to put too much added pressure on myself. I want to play in the NHL, and after that [happens], I can worry about things beyond that.

For me, I've learned that the best thing is to focus on the team you play for and yourself and what you need to do.

I think that everyone has an equal right to play and I think we've been supportive of that. With the Olympics and the controversy around that I think those decisions and those laws aren't necessarily something that I agree with personally ... their laws and their views.

I want to reward this city. Pittsburgh is a great hockey town.

It's tough, it's not the scenario that we wanted for sure. I thought our desperation was there, we worked hard, but it was one game, a lot can happen, they're a good team, and unfortunately we didn't win. We had some bad bounces, and in one game those make a big difference, and unfortunately it didn't go our way. But if we play hard like that, we play desperate like that and control the puck the way we did down low, I like our chances against any team.