Pierre-Luc Dubois on Trade to Capitals

Pierre-Luc Dubois on Trade to Capitals

first question is a simple one I’ve seen it both ways do you prefer Pier Luke or P all right uh I mean I think Pier so Pier Luke is obviously my name but I think in the US a lot of times uh people just go Pierre um in the past people have called me Luke so uh P PL I’ve done PL before and then people spelled it peel so it comes out to peel so um you guys can just call me PL if just two letter is pretty simple awesome and then the real question is it’s been a week since the trade how are you feeling about it were you surprised by it and sort of what are your thoughts on everything yeah um it’s been a week already it’s been really quick but um obviously I was a little surprised um by everything but the moment that I found out was the Washington Capitals um I was extremely excited um you know they’re a team that growing up you were excited to watch on TV um you know they’re a good team every year and then when you grow up you hear it’s a great organization um with a great group there so um you know my my emotions went from surprised and and shocked to to just really excited and um once I talked to the coaching staff management a few players um you know I couldn’t be more excited to get there uh hopefully in August thanks thank you we’ll go to Tar El share with Monumental Sports network uh Pier Luke thanks for doing this um I probably don’t need to tell you this but Alex oetkin is 42 goals away from uh passing Wayne Gretzky I think you’re going to get an opportunity to play with him uh have you wrapped your mind around maybe being on the ice when when he achieved that uh no I haven’t to be honest um I was on the ice when he scored 802 I think um so that was uh that was pretty cool to be a part of and I was on the other team so I can’t imagine what it would be like to to to be on the ice maybe and um I mean it’s it’s to be able to play with you know the best goal scorer of of my generation and and you know hopefully one day soon um the best goal scorer in NHL history is uh is pretty crazy to think of um you know I’m excited but the first text that I got from my friends and family that was all pretty much the same thing um you know to be able to assist in a moment like that uh to be there I’m sure would be something incredibly special and not only in my career but in my life too thank you we go to Stephen wno with the Associated Press hey P L thanks thank you for doing this the past couple of times you’ve been traded is something you wanted this is not obviously not a trade you’d asked for does that motivate you at all the move like this and a fresh start in a place like Washington yeah of course um you know I think just over coming uh you know it wasn’t the season I necessarily wanted so already there I add the motivation and then when anything like this happens um I think any guy in the league will admit that there is an extra motivation behind it um you know you want to do well even more but it’s not like extra motivation was necessarily needed um but now that you have it you you can you know use it to your advantage and um I plan on having this the same good summer that that I is already going to have um now I just got to plan a few trips to Washington here and there but um yeah I mean you could look at it a lot of ways um for me I choose to look at it that this is exciting opportunity for me um to go to a team that you know talking to management um talking to the coaches really excited to to work with so I think think in my career it’ll be a really good thing uh Mike vogle with washingtoncaps.com IPL uh thanks thanks for doing this um going into your eth season in the league and and being at that age where you’re you’re heading into your prime years just wondering how you you see yourself as a player and and and and your Evolution over those seven years and and and how you’d like to carry that into the next seven here in Washington yeah I mean when you when say eight years like that makes me sound or makes me feel old at least um but uh yeah I mean I just turned 26 uh Monday um I still feel very young I still feel like I have a lot to learn in this league and to be able to work with the new coaching staff um you know that that will hopefully help me get to the next level and um you know I’m just really excited um you know when you get to a new team there’s different opportunities to to learn stuff about yourself not only off on the ice but off the ice too and um you know I think I still have a level to to to get to um you know I think as my career has gone on some years I’ve taken a big step on the ice some years I’ve taken a step off the ice um and I matured and you know now I think that next year um I’m really excited to see how it goes like I said I’ve heard nothing but good things about the training staff or about the coaching staff about the players um playing against the capitals was was always uh not fun to play against but fun to see them go they’re they’re good team um with a lot of talent so I think that with you know that mix of everything um I think everybody will be able to help and push me in the right direction thank Youk you Sammy Silber the hockey news Washington hi P thanks for doing this and welcome to DC uh just want to ask after the trade um McCullen kind of talked about you know how skilled you are and your potential on upside and the immense potential he sees but also the responsibility he sees you taking on is it also exciting to come to a where you can play a big role and maybe be a part of this core as you you know enter the prime of your career here yeah of course um it’s something that every player wants to be a part of and uh like I said the first call when I uh I learned about the trads on the plane when the first call when I landed was was uh GM and yeah I mean it was uh it was exactly what you want to hear as a player um how excited they are how you know I I I can help um in a lot of ways for this team and you know add just just add to the talent that’s already here and and and to the depth of the of the four group so um as a player that’s what you want right you you want to feel like you want to feel welcome you want to feel like you’re a part of it and um you know I got to earn a lot of that but just the conversations that I’ve had already um everything sounds really great so it’s exciting it’s it’s it’s going to be an exciting summer thank you and just to chase can I follow up real quick yep um and also I mean looking at a player like Dylan who similar to you right third overall pick and finds a home in DC is that also something that that’s encouraging to you to to see how stro has fit in so well in DC yeah yeah I mean it’s funny um me and him were roommates at uh my RO Juniors um so I I know him a little bit from from there and then you know there’s some guys that you always keep tabs on around the league and he was one of them just because I I i’ known him a little bit and to see his Evolution throughout his career and to where he is now um it’s it’s fun to see and it was fun to see from an outside perspective and that’ll be fun to see um on the inside I’m sure that uh you know we’ll push each other and and um you know he’ll he’ll teach me what he’s learned already and we’ll be able to have good conversations but um to be able to play with him again will be really fun um get to know him again obviously in different stages in life um will be exciting but you know his career the the way he’s progressed is is is uh is really fun to see and it’s exciting um to see that you know hopefully I can get there too thank you all right Katie Adler rmnb B thanks for doing this I appreciate it um you mentioned that you’ve had some discussions with other players and with the coaching staff since the trade what have those conversations been like so far yeah well the the ones with the coaching staff um you know was just uh excited to be a part of the team um excited to get to work with them um you know we uh like I said I was in the airport so we we kept it U we kept it to 10 15 minute conversation but everything you that I heard was everything you want to hear um from a from a coach um you know the the responsibility the job that you’re going to have um everything like that I think it sounds like it could be a perfect fit it sounds like uh you know everybody’s excited including myself so I mean you know my job now is to just get ready for training camp be in the best shape possible possible um arrive there in the right mindset which which I know I will so um you know it’s just it was really really fun to to receive those calls and and then from the players re seeed the text of Welcome to to the organization um you know it always feels good we’ll go back to Mike vogle with Washington caps.com P I was just wondering about your your power play history it seemed like like when you were with Columbus uh it seemed like you were more of a a setup guy on the power play and then those couple of years in Winnipeg you were lighting it up with your shot which which has always been uh excellent and then you know last year with the Kings your your PP time was down a bit I know Mack at the end of this past season said he was looking for a guy to play on the half wall who could shoot and make plays do you see yourself as that guy because you’ve done both of those things over the course of the seven years yeah yeah I mean um I played in pretty much every position on the power play um I think the master position um it helps to to stick to one to work with it um you know when practice video and games and all that um so I feel like I have a good base of of pretty much everywhere on the you know every spot on the power play um but you can always get better and if I’m there if I’m net front if I’m in the middle if I mean I know I’m not going to be on my on the on the you know my strong side weak side so that’s one less position to worry about but um you know whether wherever I fit um I can learn to to become an expert in that position um I’m somebody who’s passionate about the details and and what you can do better um so whether it’s there that front that middle it doesn’t really matter to me um I’ll I’ll do my best to adjust and and to learn as much as I can and work with the coaching staff to become the best player possible in that position and and then we’ll go from there that’s thank you thank you stepen wno AP here you I think it was a year ago tomorrow you signed that that eight-year contract with the Kings and I’m wondering a year later how much different of a perspective are you in now I’m sure you envisioned your life being in La for a long time and and how do you think that’s going to kind of affect you moving forward of of those visions and kind of what your new future looks like yeah I mean uh I I didn’t know it was a year ago tomorrow so um yeah time flies I mean I had I met some great people this year um I think I learned a lot um but I’m just really looking forward to to to next season um like I said every year you grow up every year um some years it’s more on the ice some years it’s more off the ice I think this year was was a mix of everything and um you know the hockey world it’s a business um you know teams do what they think is best for them and and that’s just the way it is and that’s the way it always will be so um I don’t think there’s there’s any time for anybody to feel sorry about themselves obviously I thought uh when I signed that a year ago that it was going to be here for a long time but you like I said like you Lear in the hockey world um teams will do what they think is better for their team and you know there’s no hard feeling so um for me I could take it multiple ways but I’m choosing to take it as extra motivation and to just get myself ready for for next season right back to Sammy sber AP just want to also ask where do you see your game fitting in with Washington what aspects of your game are you really looking forward to incorporating into the lineup in DC yeah I mean I think one of the things that I can do well is I can adapt um you know I could do a bit of everything out there I think um with any coaching staff any player wants kind of a a job to do and and to for it to be good communication and and all that so um you know I think I could for check well I could play defense I can could provide some offense um you know it’s a bit of everything and that’s why I think um you know the coaching staff will’ll decide where they put me and we’ll decide who they put me with and and then from there it’s my job um to do as best as I can but you know when there’s communication um when there’s clear communication black or white then I think that’s the best environment to to learn and to progress in and um from the conversations I’ve had with the coaching staff it sounds like that’s what it’s going to be like so um it’ll be exciting to to work with them right do we have any more questions in English before we potentially uh move to French all right uh go ahead Andre and andrean are you there go ahead Sal St the colus [Music] um for [Music] [Music] [Music] um yeah yeah mer chance all right Catherine Harvey Bernard EX um [Music] no for [Music] cap

Pierre-Luc Dubois speaks to the media for the first time since being traded to the Capitals.