Jokinen Quotes and..

Before tonight's game between the Panthers and the Coyotes, you knew there were going to be some questions for Olli Jokinen on how it feels to go up against his former team.

If you want to read the full set of questions and answers (thanks to Steve Gorten of the Sun-Sentinel), go here. Otherwise, I'll pull a couple of quotes for you.

First, the not-so-harsh:

I was there for seven years, so it's going to be weird to face your former teammates, but it's a good thing we play only once against them. . . I'd rather them come in here winning five in a row. But we can't be too focused on what they're doing or what they're going through. . . I always wish the best for the Panthers. I had a good seven years there.

And then some other quotes..

There have always been so many changes, so half the guys on that team I don't even know. Every year, there are five, six new guys. . . They had to do everything possible to sell their season tickets. I was there to take the blame. I have no regrets. . . I knew after the year I was gone, but probably the most disappointing thing was I didn't really get a clear answer. I just heard everything, what was going on, behind the scenes. But I knew I was gone. I just didn't know where. . . I wanted to get out. I didn't want to stay there. . . I heard finally they have a good coach there, too, so that's good.

The whole of the Q&A isn't bad. If you aren't a fan of Jokinen, you'll be less of a fan after you read it. If you were a fan of his, you'll enjoy reading some of what he had to say. I thought it was pretty good, even with his little jab at the end. Actually, I laughed when I read that. Nothing against Jacques, of course.

Puck drops at 9PM.

As for the other thing, apparently I won the Puck Daddy contest for reasons why the Panthers are cool.