Corey Locke on TEAM 990 this morning

[mikeg]

Hey,

I was driving in to work this morning and caught the team's interview with Corey.

They came up with the usual questions, of how did it feel to drafted in the fourth, what do you think of the fact that some scouts think you will never make it.. etc.

His answers seemed pretty... well crafted, as if he had answered those questions a million times.

Probably the most interesting thing they asked him was what the canadiens wanted him to improve. He said they wanted him to improve the following:

1. His skating, they want him to be quicker
2. His defensive play
3. They want him to bulk up

He said he's in the gym pretty much every morning, and that he is under no impression that he will be playing with the big team any time soon. He said he was fully commited to paying his dues in junior then a few years in the minor's.

I liked his attitude throughout the interview, but I couldn`t shake the feeling that he was a tad lazy.. just a gut reaction I guess. Hopefully he meant what he said and he'll be able to just work hard, do what's asked of him and eventually show his stuff of for the big team.

mike

[BCHab]

Thanks for the summary. I'm curious why you think he is a tad lazy. It seems to be contrary to everything I've heard and seen so far. Was it a certain nonchalance during the interview perhaps?

Correct me if I'm wrong but I believe he is the 67's captain and, to my limited knowledge, Brian Kilrea does not give that responsibility to just anyone. To have success as a small player, even in junior, he would have no choice but work harder than most against opponents that are already bigger and possibly faster than him. My two cents....

Cheers,

[M. Beaux-Eaux]

Having superior skills (in whatever field) *can* lead to a superiority complex. "I don't need to work as hard as the plebes right now to be successful, why should I ever?" I certainly hope this is not the case with Locke.

[montreal]

I tried to get an interview with Locke, but the team never got back to me. I personally think he's going to be a good one in 4-5 years, and can't wait to see what he can do. There's not a lot of hype around this kid, which I think is great for him. I hope he just works on the areas of his game that need it over the years.

I was going to go to the 67's game next week, but I chose to see the Dogs instead since I will be 10 mintues from Copps. But I have a friend who is going to tape it for me so I can report back what I see.

[Boston_Habs]

Locke may have Brian Gionta type upside. I saw Gionta play a lot when he was at Boston College and the fact that he's found a home in a place like NJ is amazing. Gionta makes up for his small size (5'7") with great quickness and agility in the offensive zone, good puck control, good vision and a great work ethic at both ends of the ice.

Locke may have more natural offensive ability than Gionta, but he will need to match Gionta's quickness and feistiness in order to make it to the show.

[mikeg]

BCHab said:

Thanks for the summary. I'm curious why you think he is a tad lazy. It seems to be contrary to everything I've heard and seen so far. Was it a certain nonchalance during the interview perhaps?

I don`t know, maybe it's just my always look for the bad first nature.

In his defense, he probably had just gotten up and was still a little groggy. He said all the right things though. And he was getting up to go to the gym pretty early..

mike

[Habs_fan_in_LA]

Players with tons of talent usually don't make great coaches when they retire. There, I've found fault with Locke too. I don't think it will hamper his NHL career as a player. He could be a great one.

[montreal]

I've never heard anything about Locke being lazy, but I have talked to 67's fans that say he has a very big head. I will get to watch him play next week which should be cool to see.