OTTAWA — Don’t tell Paul Coffey that Ottawa Senators captain Erik Karlsson needs to be better defensively.
A three-time winner of the Norris Trophy as the NHL’s top defenceman, the second-highest scoring career blue-liner with 1,561 points in his career and a four-time Stanley Cup champion Coffey doesn’t want to hear it.
Speaking with two Ottawa reporters after posing for pictures with the coveted mug at Rideau Hall on Thursday afternoon, Coffey said that, when he was a player, he heard all the same things being mentioned about Karlsson’s defensive game and believes his best bet is just to ignore the noise.