Quotes of the day: Danault, Kotkaniemi & Julien

MONTREAL – The Canadiens skated at the Bell Sports Complex on Saturday.

Following the on-ice session, forwards Phillip Danault and Jesperi Kotkaniemi met the media.

They were followed at the podium by head coach Claude Julien.

Here are a few highlights from their Zoom-based Q&A with reporters:

Danault is prepared to assume a mentorship role for the youngsters playing up the middle this season, including Kotkaniemi, Nick Suzuki and Jake Evans:

Our young centers are all under 22 or 23 years old. Every team needs experience. I think that’s my role. I’ve faced stronger lines over the last couple of years. I think I’ve proved myself. I expect to be given some big responsibilities this season, but I really like what I’ve been seeing from the young guys. They’re solid. It’s tougher to evaluate in practices compared to games, though. It’ll be important to be ready for game situations. I’m not worried about the kids.

Video: Phillip Danault on his role this season

As far as the newcomers to the team are concerned, Danault has been impressed by every single one of them thus far:

They’ve all caught my attention. They’re great. Every player brings something different to the table. Anderson has a lot of speed. He’s also big, extremely fast and strong when he gets by the defensemen. He has a good shot as well. Toffoli is a natural scorer. Romanov is solid. Edmundson is big and he takes up a lot of space on the ice. Every player will contribute in their own way. Marc did good work.

For his part, Kotkaniemi believes his stellar play in the Toronto bubble in August wasn’t necessarily a byproduct of his effort alone:

I think our whole team played really good and that helped me a lot, too. I think the biggest step to my game was that the whole team’s game went forward in the bubble and I just felt really good over there.

Video: Kotkaniemi on Jake Allen’s reaction to his shot

He’s adamant, however, that suiting up for 10 games back home before returning to Montreal definitely helped him prepare for training camp and the season ahead:

I got a little feeling of the game in Finland and that helps me here. I feel I’m ready now when the games are starting. I had a couple of preseason games and now the real games start.

Julien believes Danault is a perfect teacher for Kotkaniemi and his fellow pivots going forward:

He’s the type of player who’ll share his knowledge and experience. Phillip is very good at both ends of the rink, but he’s also our best player in terms of faceoffs. He can help young players with that aspect of their game. He has the experience to share some tips with them. I think that Phil learned a lot from former teammates and it’s his turn to pass along that information.

Video: Claude Julien on Romanov’s adjustment so far

The veteran bench boss is also convinced that Evans and linemates Paul Byron and Artturi Lehkonen are trending in the right direction:

I really like what I’ve seen from that line since the start of training camp. Jake has gained a lot of confidence. He’s skating well. That line looks extremely quick. I like the way they forecheck. They’re creating scoring chances. It’s a good line up and down the ice. Jake can skate and make plays. I think that he’ll surprise a lot of people this season if his confidence continues to rise.