Nottingham Panthers dominated Guildford Flames with a 6-1 victory, and Anthony Luciani played a significant role, scoring two goals in a game where he logged an impressive 21:10 minutes of ice time. I had the opportunity to catch up with him after the game.
Q: Anthony, how would you sum up that performance?
Luciani: ‘I think it was a good home win. We followed the game plan, and we’ve been rewarded with two points.’
Anthony provided a very modest review, considering his two-goal performance.
Q: How was it playing with Pare and Lunsjo today?
Luciani: ‘I think it’s great! The chemistry is getting there game after game. You know we like to joke around on and off the ice, and I feel like that’s huge in order to get the chemistry going.’
Referring to a video on the Panthers’ TikTok page, I mentioned how fans could go ‘on board’ with Anthony and see how he trains. The video provides insight into Luciani’s personality and the team’s camaraderie.
Luciani: ‘I like joshing around! Playing with these fellas is fun; you’ve got to keep it happy.’
Q: What were the changes made from the weekend to drastically change the result?
After suffering two defeats last weekend, Panthers turned things around with a 6-1 victory over Guildford Flames. Anthony shared his thoughts on the changes.
Luciani: ‘I think we tried to limit our turnovers at the bluelines and to get shots on net. Shoot, shoot, shoot, and create some offense.’
The Panthers amassed 35 shot attempts, with 27 hitting the target. Luciani personally had 3 shot attempts, with his 2 shots on goal both finding the back of the net.
Q: Was the physicality intentional, or a reaction to Guildford’s hard forecheck?
Luciani: ‘I feel like in order to be successful, you need to be aggressive; you need to throw the body around. Just play tough, and sometimes that wears on the opponent, and that’s what you need.’
Q: Recently, there has been a theme of consistency issues, how do you fix them?
Panthers were victim to another poor period as they only managed two shots in the middle period. Fortunately, they won the period 1-0 with Luciani getting the goal.
Luciani: ‘Yeah, that’s a good question. I think it’s back to being mentally tough, reading the game, knowing when the right thing is and what to do in the right moment. I think when we are on our game things just click but when we get a little up tight and nervous, we make mistakes.’
Q: The Motorpoint was close to a sell out tonight. How does playing in front of a packed crowd make a difference?
Luciani: ‘Since I’ve been here, the fans have been phenomenal. Outrageous. It definitely gets me going, and I’m sure it does the boys too. There is nothing like a crowd in Nottingham! Wednesday, Saturday, or Sunday, it doesn’t matter; it’s fantastic!’
Q: How have you settled in Nottingham?
Luciani signed for the Panthers in January and seems to have settled in perfectly. After 16 games, he has 7 goals and 4 assists.
Luciani: ‘I’m enjoying it, really enjoying it! I like that I can speak to people and understand what they’re saying; it’s great!’
Anthony left the States after the 2016/17 season and has since played in Slovakia, Germany, Czechia, Austria and Sweden. I can imagine how nice it must be to understand the native tongue.
Q: Awards night buzz
With the Panthers’ awards night just over a month away I asked Luciani if you could pick any award to win which one would it be?
Luciani: ‘Me?! Probably best style.’
I can confirm that Anthony was dressed immaculately from head to toe so he might already be a shoe in for that award!
Q: What’s the plan for the upcoming games?
Luciani: ‘I think we have to take it a game at a time. We will get to work on Friday, go over the game plan, and look to execute it on the weekend.’
A special thank you to Nottingham Sport, the Nottingham Panthers, and Anthony Luciani for making this interview possible.
*Article provided by Joe Maciag (Ice Hockey Correspondent).
*Main image @PanthersIHC Anthony Luciani has been in fine form recently for the Panthers.
