Conference Call: Max Domi

MONTREAL - Forward Max Domi took some time on Thursday to chat with reporters.

Here are a few excerpts from his Q&A session.

Questions from Dave Stubbs, NHL.com

I want to ask you about your ALL IN Challenge. It sold for $17,000, and I wanted to ask you what the best part of a fan sitting beside your dad watching you play at the Bell Centre is going to be?

I think it's great. That whole challenge received a great response, and there are a lot of people involved with that. I think everyone really stepped up to the plate. My dad was nice enough to kind of include himself in what we were trying to raise money for. To be honest, I wouldn't pay any money to sit with my dad to watch a game, but I guess other people have different views on that. I think we raised a good amount of money, and they'll have lots of laughs. He's definitely a guy that you probably don't want to ask questions to during a hockey game. I'm sure if you guys ever "iso-cammed" him, you'd get a good shot of it. He's probably the most intense guy in the building, the players included, so I'm sure it'll be an interesting and unique experience that nobody has ever really experienced before. I wish them the best, and I hope they have fun with that.

What are you doing to stay fit through all of this? Without ice, how are you staying conditioned?

I'm sure everyone has different situations at home, what they have access to in terms of space, equipment and what not. But all you can really do is just move and try and stay as fit as possible. The whole skating thing, it's like riding a bike. I'm sure guys are a little concerned about it, but that being said, time off is time off from skating, and I think it'll all do us well in the long run. It's good for the mind, good for the hips, good for the body, and you can work out in much different ways. You can come back in even better shape and be ready to go, so just doing lots of little things at home. I've actually been adding to my gym here in my place in Toronto. Lots of little exercises, got some Pilates stuff on the go, just staying loose and trying to stay sharp. It's been a unique experience, but we're trying to make the most of this and everyone's staying ready. I'm definitely confident everyone in our locker room will be ready to go when that call comes.

Questions from Eric Engels, Rogers Sportsnet

After two years with the Montreal Canadiens, when you look back at your time with the team, what stands out as the key steps you took forward, and what stands out as things that you'd like to work on moving forward?

There's always stuff you can work on. I've got a long, long way to go. I've got two years under my belt of playing center. It's about trying to get in the playoffs, obviously. As a team, I think we're growing. We've been through some rough patches here, and we're sticking together, we're pushing through it. And we're excited. We're excited about the growth that we have in front of us. We're excited about the team we have. The group of guys we have in that locker room, we all love each other and we all push each other. On a personal level, I just want to do everything I can to get better every day. Whenever that next game is, whether it's sooner or later, I'm not sure, I want to make sure I'm doing everything on my end to be ready to go and help this team win in any way I can.

Have you had any conversations with the Canadiens regarding your next contract? It would be normal to assume that at this stage there would've been some talks throughout the year at some point.

As of right now, there hasn't been much discussed. But again, there are so many more important things going on in the world than just my contract. I understand. I guess all I can really tell you is I want to be with Montreal, I want to be here, I love playing in Montreal, I love my teammates, I love this team, and I love the city, so my hope is to play here for a long time. That never changed since I played my first game here, so that's that.

How much would an opportunity to play in the playoffs and show what kind of player you could be in that situation mean to you?

It's my dream to play in the playoffs. It's everyone's dream. It's very difficult to do, to get there. I can't imagine. I can't speak to what it's like. I haven't experienced that at this level. All I can really tell you, whether it's from the Junior level or even younger than that, or even watching on TV, or seeing my dad growing up around that, it's a whole other game. Everyone elevates their game to another level. It's night and day from the 82-game regular season schedule, and it's an absolute war out there. It's something that whenever we have the opportunity to do that, which we work towards every single day, I will definitely be ready to go. I'm excited for that opportunity whenever it comes.

Question from Luc Gelinas, RDS

The fact that you're living with diabetes, is it tougher for you to deal with that virus and the situation right now? And later when the League will resume, are you going to feel good if there's a vaccine to control that virus?

At the end of the day, we don't even know what the future has in store for us. All we can do is kind of just sit here, get ready to train, work out, and kind of go by that. The League, the NHLPA, some of the players involved in that, they're obviously coming to certain conclusions here and there, but it changes day to day, right? So until we have a better idea of where we're headed, it's tough to really comment on that. I think everyone is obviously a little on edge about this and worried about getting the disease or someone they know getting the disease. Obviously, it's scary. Being a Type 1 diabetic is something that raises some concern, but you really don't know how everyone is going to be affected by this disease, so just because I'm a Type 1 doesn't change much. I would handle myself the same way if I didn't have it, so I'm just trying to stay safe and stay healthy as much as I can.

Question from Pat Hickey, Montreal Gazette

Do you have any personal preference, do you want to play again this summer, or would you prefer being in a situation where you just get ready for next season?

It comes down to this, really. Everyone, not just hockey players, everyone wants to get back to normal and wants to get back to work, wants to get back on the football field or the soccer pitch or the ice rink, whatever it might be. But the unfortunate reality of everything right now is just there's so much unknown, and until we have a better idea of what's going on, our mind hasn't even gotten to that point yet. If it's safe, don't get me wrong, I'm sure everyone will jump on board, if they can guarantee not only the safety of just the players, but the training staff, the media guys, the coaching staff, the management, everyone. There are so many people involved, the on-ice officials, the off-ice officials, there's so much to really discuss. I'm very confident that the people in charge over at the NHL and the NHLPA, they're doing everything they possibly can to figure this out and move forward and progress in whatever way works and fits within the constraints the governments have provided us. As of right now, I haven't heard anything that has told me we're going to play tomorrow. Until then, it's not really worth talking about - 'Would you rather play?' Of course. Everyone wants to play hockey, but do you want to play if it's not safe? It's a topic of discussion. Nobody wants to be put in a position where they're in danger or you're putting others in danger, so it's really as simple as that. If it's safe, I'm sure every player would want to play. I'm very confident in that.

Question from Arpon Basu, The Athletic

Do you feel like your future is at center? Do you firmly believe that, because obviously you've been tried on the wing a couple of times and it didn't last very long? How do you feel about where you play going forward?

I think the coaching staff is in charge of that decision. As a professional hockey player, I'm asked to do whatever I'm asked to do to the best of my ability, and if that's playing left-wing, right-wing, center, I'll find a way to maximize that and do whatever I can, and if it means helping the team win by playing left or right or center, I'll be ready to go. I very much still enjoy playing center. I think it's something I never would've thought I'd enjoy as much as I do, since I've been a winger my entire pro career leading up to this, and then trying center I was like, 'Oh wow! This feels like a whole different game.' I really enjoyed it. I've had the privilege of playing with some great linemates, obviously learning a lot from the coaching staff, and watching lots of videos and trying to learn as fast as possible and grow as a centerman. Whatever I'm asked to play, I'll play. I certainly do like center, though.