Any news on Braydon Coburn? Skate tomorrow?

“”No. Like I said, 'We'll see tomorrow.' I haven't seen him today or anything.”

You have had 3 guys get hurt in the middle of the game and yet finished the game? How?

“I don't know. They feel like they can finish the game, so they do. I don't know.”

Do they say they can continue?

“To be honest, I didn't know any of them were bothered or anything. None of them.”

How does Bellemare compare with Lecavailier, skill wise, body type, position wise?

“I think he'll be fine. He has real good speed. I think it should be a good line. With his speed in the middle of the ice, and with Simmonds and Schenn, it's a powerful line --- a good skating line, in my opinion. So I don't see any problem there.”

That line had been going well …

“Yeah, they had been.”

What do you like about Bellemare, and has he Bellemare adjusted to the league quickly?

“His speed and his smarts. He's a very smart player. He knows how to play the game. For a guy coming over here from over there, he adapted pretty quickly. He's good on faceoffs. He kills penalties. He does a lot of good things for us.”

What did you know about him before the Flyers signed him?

“Nothing. I knew he was a good skater. That was it.”

Had you ever seen him play?

“No. I watched tape on him. And our coaches watched tape of the world championship.”

Are you committed to Umberger-Read switch for the whole game?

“Well, we'll see. I don't see it being an issue. Both of them played either side before. So I don't think it makes a whole lot of difference, to be honest with you. Read is going to be able to the ice a little better --- a pretty good playmaker. So it might help from an offensive standpoint.”

Do you like it when players are pro-active that way?

“Yeah. I've got no problem with it. I like their input. I like to know what they are thinking. And I think it's good. I think they should be able to come to me at any time with whatever they need to talk to me about.”

Was there anything that you left the preseason concerned about, and that has come to fruition here, and if so, how do you correct it?

“I don't think so. I think, in our preseason, I said, 'The schedule is tough.' We couldn't get some of the lineups we wanted to get in. But overall, besides (Claude) Giroux, who never got much time, I think everybody got their time and what they needed. I look at these first three games and we could come out of there with points. We are making some mental mistakes at times, where we can't, and start cleaning that part of it up.”

Do you feel you are a much better team at this point than when you took over --- at this point last year?

“Yes, I do. Like I said, we could be sitting here not talking about this, but we are. So we deal with it, the adversity, like everything else, and we go forward. We'll go out tonight and see what happens.”