As Pascal Vincent settles in as an assistant with the Seattle Kraken, he’s also been doing some studying on the side - and the assignment says a lot about what he thinks it takes to go from hopeful to legitimate.
On The Sick Podcast with Tony Marinaro, Vincent said he has been digging into the last five Stanley Cup winners to see what connects them. His list starts at the front of the net.
“I’m studying if there’s a link between the last five Stanley Cup winners,” Vincent said on The Sick Podcast with Tony Marinaro. “Number one is attacking the netfront and defending the netfront, regardless of the style of the team that won the Cup.
Number two is key saves at key times. The other thing you need in the playoffs is special teams.
Whether it’s the power play or the PK, one unit has to be elite.”
Vincent also pointed to physical play as another common thread, and he said he saw that firsthand during his time coaching the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2023-24.
“Physicality is something not many teams can challenge. I remember playing against the Florida Panthers and we didn’t touch the puck because they were just banging us, finishing their hits, and we paid the price.
“Physicality is part of my research, but it’s more than that. It’s loose puck recovery.
So how do you do that? For Florida, it was to be physical and kill plays.
But you can get the puck back in different fashions. You can do it with your offensive zone forecheck, just being really quick with your pressure, putting the team that has the puck under pressure so much that they turn pucks over.”
He also said pressure was central to the Carolina Hurricanes’ path to the Cup in June.
“Carolina is not that physical overall, but they pressure so much.”
That same conversation around championship habits came up again through another familiar name to Kraken fans: Vince Dunn. The Seattle defenseman was part of the 2019 St.
Louis Blues team that climbed from last place in the NHL at midseason to win the franchise’s first title. Former Blues coach Craig Berube, speaking on Rob Simpson’s Simmer’s Morning Skate, revisited one of the decisions that helped shape that run.
Berube said he wanted a dependable line he could trust in all the biggest moments, and he found it by putting Alex Steen with Oskar Sundqvist and Ivan Barbeshev.
“I thought we were missing an ‘identity’ line more than anything - a dependable line you can use in all crucial situations. If I can get ‘Steener’ (Alex Steen) to play with (Oskar) Sundqvist and (Ivan) Barbeshev as that checking line, that identity line, I thought we’d be in really good shape.
I was talking with the coaches about it. They laughed and said, ‘Well, Steener might not accept that role.’
“I remember grabbing Steener. It was a five minute conversation.
I explained my thinking on it. He looked at me.
‘Great idea. Love it,’ and walked away.
When I look back, that line was incredible. They not only did all that stuff - D-zone faceoffs, penalty killing, checking, closing games out.
They scored goals in the playoffs for us. Big goals.”
Berube said he sees a familiar pattern in recent champions, too.
“Look at the last three Stanley Cup winners. What does Florida do? They dump pucks in and pound (the opposing) D and play hard, heavy.
“Carolina did the same thing. Look at Carolina this year (compared to) their previous years.
The opening faceoff (in the 1st round) against Ottawa. (Canes captain Jordan) Staal drops his gloves with Brady Tkachuk (since traded to the Panthers).
It says, ‘We’re not being pushed around.’ That was a key moment.
Their captain, he had that in his head already.”
Berube’s career has taken a few turns since his days in St. Louis. He was dismissed there in Dec., 2023, then spent two seasons with the Toronto Maple Leafs, including one alongside current Kraken coach Lane Lambert.
Berube had strong words for Lambert on the podcast, praising both his preparation and the energy he brings behind the bench.
“Lane’s a very detailed, prepared guy. Knows the game extremely well.
I learned a lot from him. Great to work with.
I think he brings a lot of emotion to the game, which is great, in the room, on the bench. I wish him all the best in Seattle.”
Berube’s interview also touched on the reasons for his firing in Toronto and on memorable moments from his 1,054-game playing career.
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