Ryan Pulock was the Islanders’ 1st round draft pick in 2013, selected 15th overall. He made his long awaited Isles debut February 26th at Edmonton. While he has not scored as of yet, the rookie has done a nice job on the backline in place of the injured Calvin de Haan. I got a chance to sit down with Pulock this morning at Islanders Iceworks, in an interview I did for Islanders’ Radio.
Ryan, what were your overall thoughts on the last two games?
Yeah I think the game against Pittsburgh the team played pretty well. I thought I was solid myself and then in Toronto obviously a back to back. I think we had spurts where we were pretty good but there’s times where we weren’t good enough. Sometimes those are going to happen, but we just have to regroup with a big game tomorrow.
Is it possible that you guys were just fatigued after the travel and back to back games?
I mean, it’s possible for sure. Played quite a bit of hockey coming off a long road trip. I mean that’s no excuse either. That’s just part of the schedule.
How have you adjusted to the NHL level so far?
I think it’s been good. It’s step by step here. Defensively I think I’ve been pretty solid. These last few games I have tried to create a little bit more offense, and down the stretch that is what I’m going to try and do a little bit more, just getting involved in the play. But overall I think I’ve held my own here.
Have the coaches or other players given you any feedback on your game?
Yeah, obviously you talk to them every once in a while. They are pretty happy with it, and I think for myself as long as I’m not giving up scoring chances then I’m doing my job. We have a lot of good d-men, guys that are offensive and those are the guys that will get up in the play. So, if I can hold my own in the defensive zone, be solid back there, get the puck up towards the forwards that’s kind of what I’m looking to do here.
Has anyone given you any advice in terms of how tight these games will be down the stretch?
I think I understand it. We are playing a lot of divisional games so there will be a lot of tight games. Teams are fighting for different rankings in the playoffs. So it will be tight, but you just have to be prepared for that and be ready to work every day.
Pulock and the Islanders’ next game is an afternoon affair against the Bruins tomorrow. The matinee starts at 1 PM at Boston’s TD Garden.
The post Insight Q & A – Islanders’ Defenseman Ryan Pulock appeared first on Islanders Insight.
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