Say What - 'He's Got Elite Finishing Skills'

Blake Coleman on Yegor Sharangovich’s hat-trick:

“Happy for him. He's a great guy. He's got elite finishing skills and it's starting to come in waves for him. I don't think it's a coincidence that No. 10 is really starting to turn it on and has looked really good for us. That line's been good and getting better every game.”

On scoring four goals in the first period:

“It was the key to the start of our last road trip. We talked about getting off to a good start here and for whatever reason - maybe it was the dads, maybe it was just the energy they've brought for us - but it was important to get the lead and obviously cemented it in the third and got the win.”

On the dads reading out the starting lineup before the game:

“They did a good job. They came in with a little fire and got the boys going. (Mikael) gets a breakaway 10 seconds in and gets the ball rolling, it was fun.”

On his dad, Rusty, coining the nickname Texas Tiger:

“I don't know where Texas Tiger came from. I got a lot of 'rawr!'s during the game, so maybe. It might stick around for a little bit (laughs).”

Sharangovich (aka Sharky) on closing it out in the third:

“Two goals between it's not a big distance. Just needed to play the same way we played in the first period. I think we played well in the third period, put the puck deep, good forecheck, making turnovers and scored two more goals.”

On how he’s feeling about his game these days:

“It's OK.”

On his chemistry with Coleman on the penalty kill:

“First thing on the PK is to defend and if we have a chance to make a play in the offensive zone, we will always take this chance. We just need to play it well in the d-zone on the PK first and after we will maybe make a couple chances.”

On his dad watching back home:

Sharky’s father was unable to attend the trip for travel-related reasons

“My dad is watching back home right now on TV. It's a hat-trick for him because he's not here. Now my parents are happy when they watch this game. 

“They always text me after the game. It's 10 hours difference, so they've already woken up. Early morning.

Mikael Backlund on Sharky’s great game:

“Sharky was really good tonight. That whole line was really solid for us, made some big plays and scored some big goals. I'm really happy for Sharky to get that hat-trick. It's always a special feeling and that third one was a big goal for us. Their line played really solid for us.”

On the dads giving the boys a jolt of energy:

“For sure. During the day, they kept things a little lighter for us. The guys weren't as uptight... Before puck drop, the guys came in here and presented the lineup, got the boys going as well. It's been good to have them around.”

On getting the win:

“Obviously, a big game in the standings, but also a big start for the trip. Everyone's super excited as you can hear right now. It's awesome to win with the dads here.”

Head Coach Ryan Huska on the four-goal first period:

“I loved it. Tonight, there was a lot of good that we did early on in the game. I think the lineup read that we used tonight probably put us over the top. But when you get a lead like that, it's hard for teams to come back on, so I was really pleased with it. We need more of those.”

On how the dads helped get the two points:

“You always want to play well for your dad, whether you're a young kid or an NHL player that makes a lot of money. When dad's around, the guys tend to play better. Probably so, when they watch on TV, I'm sure there's phone calls that they get after the game as well because they love their kids and they want to see them have success. It goes both ways when the players want to perform well when they're in the stands, for sure.”

On Sharangovich’s hat-trick:

“I think it's chemistry with his two linemates now. They're starting to make some plays together and that's one thing, for sure, that we've talked about all year is shot-release. He's putting himself in positions now where he's available and Jonathan and Elias are starting to find him.”