15 Quotes by Stephen Walkom

If we can free up the puck carrier, I think we can create the excitement that the fans have desired for some time.

I think the guys have done a real good job of maintaining our NHL standard from the season start to the end and now into the playoffs.

Our guys aren't perfect. They strive for excellence and calls do get missed. But I guess the difference is that some of those calls are missed because we're human beings, and previously they were missed because we picked and chose.

Our motto is to stay the course and the playoff intensity will still be there. I don't look at just one game. I'm very pleased at the way the guys have called it all year. The players dictate whether there will be a lot of calls or not.

We hope it accelerates the learning curve. That, coupled with the exhibition season each team plays, should alleviate some of the fears of the players come opening night.

We have to have awareness for the soap opera. It's a vicious circle, the way it works.

We've had a lot of guys put them on this season, anyway. That was kind of a wake-up call.

It's a big change for players, but it's a bigger change for the referees. They've grown up not being involved in the third period and overtime. But you can expect good things from our guys. Our mission is the same. There's always that mental side of officiating. We've worked hard to prepare our guys.

It's not just the players' culture and coaches' culture that needs to change. It's the officiating culture as well because accepted practices in the past will no longer be accepted.