Canadiens de Montréal

[mtlurb]

One on one with the Montreal Canadiens Tom Kostopoulos

 

 

Kevin Mio, CanWest News Service

 

Published: Sunday, November 11, 2007

 

MONTREAL- Tom Kostopoulos wasn't the big free-agent signing Montreal Canadiens fans had hoped for during the summer, but the hard-working forward quickly found his role on the team. In an interview this week, the Mississauga, Ont., native talked about how easy it was to sign with the Habs and the prank he pulled on head coach Marc Crawford while playing in Los Angeles.

 

Q: Have you found a local eatery for your supply of Greek food?

 

Kostopoulos: "We've been to a place, I took my Greek grandmother when she was in town, and we went to a place called Trinity and it was really good. We've also been to Mythos and Parthenon, and all of them were really good."

 

Q: Did Montreal's large Greek population have any role in you signing?

 

Kostopoulos: "I didn't really know how many Greek people were here. I was happy to come to the city just because of the history and the Canadiens. It was a pleasant surprise to have a lot of the Greek people come up to me on the street and wish me all the best. Everyone I met has welcomed me with open arms and said they are happy to have a Greek in town. I am sure they want me to perform like everyone else in this city, but they have been really nice."

 

Q: Being from the heart of Leafs Nation, how hard was it to sign with Montreal, and have you or your family taken any ribbing back home?

 

Kostopoulos: "It was easier than you think. Growing up watching the rivalry, just to be a part of it, it was exciting. Just growing up in Toronto, playing for a Canadian team is exciting and Montreal, the winningest franchise in history and all the history. I was really excited about it and my heart was set as soon as I heard they were interested."

 

Q: What was the first thing you bought after signing your first pro contract?

 

Kostopoulos: "I think just some clothes. All the guys my first year thought my clothes were pretty ugly and I was waiting for that first paycheque to go out and get some new clothes and a new suit to wear to the rink."

 

Q: What makes you successful?

 

Kostopoulos: "Just hard work. I pride myself on not taking a day off and coming to work every day. I am not the most skilled, but I think I work hard every day."

 

Q: Who was your idol growing up?

 

Kostopoulos: "Wendel Clark, definitely. My brother and I just idolized him. Growing up in Toronto and watching him play, just the heart he had, the leadership, the way he performed in the playoffs. We just loved him, he was great."

 

Q: Which player did you model your game after?

 

Kostopoulos: "I think a bunch of players. I grew up watching Clark, but I don't think I am at his level. I think I take pieces of his game, guys like Mike Keane, Rick Tocchet and Adam Deadmarsh. I don't think I am in their category, but I try to learn from guys like that and try to be a gritty player."

 

Q: What is the craziest prank you have seen?

 

Kostopoulos: "In Los Angeles, I used to switch the gel and the shampoo, and one day Marc Crawford went to gel his hair and used the shampoo. And the way he likes his hair perfect, it was pretty funny when he came out and it was all flat and he was pretty fired up about it. Marc Bergevin, when I was in Pittsburgh, he was crazy. He used to dress up like the other team's mascot before the games, wear wigs or dress up like a 1970s dancer and dance for everyone. He was probably the funniest prankster and craziest guy I have met."

 

Q: What was your welcome-to-the-NHL moment?

 

Kostopoulos: "I don't think it really happens like that. I think every day, you come to the rink and you work. I have always been a guy that you kind of have to check your stall for the longest time to see if you're still up and you're not sent down. So I don't think it's ever like that, you got to make sure you're still in the lineup day to day, so it could end at any minute."

 

Q: Besides the Stanley Cup, what is the professional sports trophy you covet the most?

 

Kostopoulos: "Just the Stanley Cup. I think that is why we play the game and what we are reaching for."

 

Q: What is your most embarrassing moment?

 

Kostopoulos: "Maybe coughing that puck up in Ottawa (earlier this season)."

 

Q: If you weren't an NHL player, what career do you think you would be best qualified for?

 

Kostopoulos: "I think I would have stayed in sports somehow. I am addicted to sports, so I would have tried another sport or stay involved in sports somehow."

 

Q: Who has been your best roommate?

 

Kostopoulos: "(Canadiens rookie Mikhail) Grabovski is pretty good right here. We have some laughs on the road. I've had some good roommates. Mike Weaver was a prankster in L.A., so he was pretty funny. He used to mess around with me all the time. But I am happy with Grabovski."

 

Q: And what about the worst?

 

Kostopoulos: "I haven't had a bad roommate. Only when you get stuck with no roommate, that sucks."

 

Q: What is the oddest nickname you have ever heard?

 

Kostopoulos: "Chris. Someone was getting my name confused and calling me Chris for a couple of months. I like Freddy Prinze for (Canadiens teammate Kyle) Chipchura."

 

Q: Who do you credit most with helping you make it to the NHL?

 

Kostopoulos: "My older brother. I grew up watching him and just tried to do everything he did. I still talk to him all the time and he tells me what I am doing right and wrong." (Chris Kostopoulos is an assistant coach with the men's hockey team at Robert Morris University in Pennsylvania, which plays in Division I of the NCAA.)

 

Q: Who has been your best coach?

 

Kostopoulos: "Jim Nicoletti with the Toronto Marlies, my bantam coach. Not just hockey-wise, but personality-wise and life-wise, he was a good teacher."

 

Q: How did it feel when you scored your first goal with the Canadiens in front of Bell Centre fans?

 

Kostopoulos: "It was exciting. I was feeling a little pressure to get one and get the monkey off my back. It was nice to get one, especially at home and hear the fans cheer. It was nice to be able to contribute."

 

Montreal Gazette

kmiothegazette.canwest.com

[ErickMontreal]

Habs have beat the fucking Laugh !!!!

[WestAust]

C'est passé proche de pas arriver, mais on les as eu!

 

Et quelle échappée de Komisarek

[mtlurb]

:highfive: :applause: :applause:

 

 

[MTLskyline]

Habs have beat the fucking Laugh !!!!

 

Wow you're intense!

 

Nice job there by Komisarek, did not expect him to put it past Raycroft.

[ErickMontreal]

Wow you're intense!

 

Nice job there by Komisarek, did not expect him to put it past Raycroft.

 

C`étais sur le coup de l`émotion... few time after komisarek closed the deal.

[Habsfan]

Ce n'était pas très beau à voir, mais l'important c'est qu'ils sortent de Toronto avec les 2 points.

[WestAust]

c'est la premiere etape pour battre le "toronto curse"

 

la prochaine affaire, c'est de gagner un match le 23 decembre

[Ornello Mastrocola]

Kotsopoulos will be playing on the first line with Koivu and Higgins, demoting Ryder to the third.

What in heavens is happening to Latendresse. He seems disinterested. He looks like he belongs in the AHL. No pep... fustrating to watch. Plekanic played awesome, Komisarek stepped up his game. Loved it when he decked Tucker.

Komisarek should grow a goatee and develop a mean streak...

[Habsfan]

I hope Carbo is just fooling around with his lines. I like kostopoulos, but he should stay on the 4th line with Chipchura and Bégin.

 

Latendresse is really starting to get me worried. He keeps falling all over the place!