On the issue of behavioral health and the like, the program we have in place has always been available to former players as well.

We encourage the growth of women's hockey.

Our franchises have never been healthier. Our league, in terms of its economic footing, has never been healthier.

Young people, particularly in their teens and 20s, are not consuming sports the way my generation did. They are doing lots of things; they are multitasking. They are getting downloads; they are getting alerts on their computers or on their cellphones, and they are consuming sports in a more real-time but less full-time basis.

I would hope there would be a greater appreciation by casual sports fans of the incredible skill and passion of our players.

We'll have clinics and educational events and conferences to get more and more young players developing as hockey players.

While players say they like the five-day break, they're also saying they don't like the compression that goes along with it, and that's something that is of great concern to us as well.

Obviously, we're focused on the Winter Classic.

None of our series are ever static in terms of the dates. We always have a range of flexibility to respond to whatever may or may not happen.

It's not about big markets or small markets. It's not about dominant teams or not. It's about the actual competition and how good the games are, how good the series turn out. That's what I think is the most important for fans.

When you're in other time zones in other places, you don't get quite as much attention; you don't get quite as much visibility for the game, and you give up a lot to do it.

Our sport probably has the best history and tradition of being engaged in international competition.

I was always a fan of the game, and I wouldn't have taken this job if I wasn't a fan of the game.

There is less fighting in the game than we had years ago. I mean, we penalize it.

I think the media world is adjusting to the digital age.

Having to respond to things that are made up or untrue tends to be a waste of time.

I never rule anything in or out; life can surprise you.

I view myself as a dealmaker.

If you're a sports fan, it is really cool when you see the best-on-best for hockey at the Olympics.

I know when you're in the business of cover sports, you look for 60-minute games and a result. It's never that simple.

When you look at the team that Jimmy Rutherford has put together and the players that he has, this is just a great story of excellent in professional sports.

The fact is, I view part of what I do is, if necessary, on difficult issues, be the lightning rod.

If you're thin-skinned, you don't belong doing what I do for a living.

There are always going to be critics... and I have always had a rule: no matter how good the commentary is, or how bad the commentary is, it's more important that you do what you think is right.

In '94, we made the deal during collective bargaining that wasn't the right deal, just to save the season. Allowing the 'in the crease' rule, the foot-in-the-crease rule, we should have not done.

We're not anti-Olympics, we're anti-disruption to the season.

We all know it's hard to have time to come in as a young player - maybe the club and the supporters give you seven, eight, nine games where you're rusty and not performing. It's difficult to do that.

For me, it's about consistently churning out performances and looking to improve at the same time.

It is easy to play well when things are going rosy.

The majority of Chelsea fans have been unbelievable, but there is maybe five per cent always thinking, 'Get the next best thing in.' I feel that.

I've enjoyed success and I feel like I've been a big part of success - not just involved in winning trophies but involved heavily.

The hardest thing is when things are not going so well and you have got to dig in and get results.

Frank Lampard was fantastic.

As a defence, we have to strive for that clean sheet while also giving the attacking players the licence to go and create.

I would never try to fill John Terry's boots. You can never fill that position.

It's easy to play football when everything is going well and you are winning games back to back, winning, winning, it's the best feeling ever, you can go out there and express yourself you feel like you are not going to make mistakes.

I am sure for every striker, scoring goals gives them confidence.

I want to play football out on the pitch. I am not different to anyone else and the ambition never changes.

I'd rather do my talking on the pitch.

When you are in a squad, you are looking around to make sure that everyone is focused and feels the same way.

Sometimes when you're at a club like Chelsea you feel sorry when you see a player move on, because naturally some progress and some don't. You don't hear about the ones that don't.

For myself it's about winning competitions.

When things are going well, everyone's coming into training, having a lot of banter and joking about and enjoying things, and when you are not, it's not that feeling, because the expectation level is to win.

I played for England off the back of playing for Bolton so I would like to thank the fans there for making me feel at home for the four years that I played there.

I was told 'you can't play for England, you're at Bolton.' I proved them wrong.

I came to Chelsea and it was 'oh you can't play Champions League, you can't do this, you can't do that' and I proved them wrong.

You want to achieve the most you can in the short period you have in your career as a professional footballer.

When a top club comes calling, who you know will be firing on all fronts with competitions and medals, that's ultimately what you want to be playing for.

When Chelsea came calling for me, it was an opportunity, it was a chance and looking from the outset you may not be sure how it's going to go. But it's one you can't turn down, you have to grab it with both hands. Then you have to work as hard as you can to make it work.

Whatever is going on off the pitch, players relish playing football.