NHL Hockey thread

[viper37]

They have a anglo interm coach. I feel sorry for the guy

Had he won his first game, he would have been welcomed by the fan.  Now they'll hate him just as much as Martin.

[Barrister]

From Saturday's game.

Teemu Selanne still basking in afterglow of Jets game
PAUL WALDIE | Columnist profile | E-mail
Winnipeg— From Monday's Globe and Mail
Teemu Selanne knew he wanted to do something special to acknowledge the outpouring of affection he'd received all day in Winnipeg.

Hours before the Anaheim Ducks played the Winnipeg Jets at the MTS Centre on Saturday, Selanne decided that at the end of the game he'd throw a couple of sticks into the stands and make a point of circling the rink to say thank you to the fans.

Around the NHL It was the only gesture he could think of to cap off an emotional day that started at 3 a.m. with fans gathering at a downtown Winnipeg hotel to greet Selanne and the Ducks as they arrived from Chicago where they had played the night before.

From then on the tributes kept pouring in – during a morning news conference so crowded with onlookers it required a police presence, during warm-up before the game when his picture on the scoreboard elicited a standing ovation and during the game itself when he got cheered every time he touched the puck while each of his teammates got booed. And even after the game as he made his way to the team bus amid cheers, applause and a steady stream of handshaking, camera flashing and backslapping.

"It was unbelievable," Selanne said after the game, trying to contain his emotions. "I didn't really know what to expect. It was something I could never imagine, it was so special."

He hasn't played in Winnipeg since 1996, when the old Jets traded him to Anaheim just before heading to Phoenix. But the city still considers him a hero and fans still recount with reverence his rookie year with the Jets in 1992 when he scored 76 goals and piled up 132 points, both NHL records.

Selanne said he made a point of bringing his four young boys to Winnipeg just so they could see what real hockey fans are like. "My boys, they are growing up in California where hockey is not as big as here so that's why this was very special for them to come here and realize the passion that these people have here. They are going to remember this for sure the rest of their lives," he said.

He also wanted them to learn something else, too. "I've tried to teach them when you treat people well they are going to treat you well also."

Selanne said it was hard to focus on the game at first, with emotions running so high. It showed as the Ducks quickly fell behind 2-0 on goals by Kyle Wellwood and Blake Wheeler.

Anaheim coach Bruce Boudreau called a timeout to try to regroup his troops, but even he knew that wouldn't be easy with fans cheering Selanne and jeering every other Duck constantly. "I said, 'You guys are focusing on everything but the game and that's why we are down 2-0,' " Boudreau said after the game.

"It was pretty chilling," he said referring to the fans' ovations for Selanne. "It was pretty emotional. I was getting emotional."

The Ducks managed something of a comeback, scoring twice to tie the game before the first period ended. Selanne got an assist on one goal after he flipped the puck over the head of Jet defenceman Zach Bogosian and on to the stick of Niklas Hagman, who shot it past Winnipeg goalie Chris Mason.

But the Ducks' comeback never got much further. The Jets took the lead again just 31 seconds in the second period on a goal by Alexander Burmistrov. They added another one shortly afterward when Andrew Ladd redirected a shot by defenceman Dustin Byfuglien. And finally Bogosian fired a long slap shot that beat Duck goalie Dan Ellis to end whatever hopes Anaheim had.

There was one brief flurry for the Ducks and one last memory of Selanne for the fans. Duck forward Corey Perry scored the final goal of the game on a power play in the third period to make it 5-3 Jets. One assist went to Selanne. The fans stood and cheered.

It wasn't the end Selanne wanted to the game, at this stage in his career winning is far more important that piling up individual points.

But it gave the fans a chance to cheer once more, and it gave him a chance to acknowledge them once more.

Boudreau did his best after the game to play the part of the grouchy coach, complaining about goaltender interference on Ladd's goal, criticizing his own goalie for poor play and generally bemoaning his team's lost opportunities that have left the Ducks mired in the bottom of the standing.

But even he couldn't keep up the act when talking about Selanne. He couldn't criticize his star forward for spending so much of day caught up in tributes. "I didn't want to sit there and say 'Okay you can't enjoy this' because he deserved to get all the accolades that he got."

Many of the Jets felt the same.

"To be honest with you, it was hard to hear at the beginning of the game. [I was] trying to communicate with [my defencemen], but it was kind of pointless, because I could barely hear myself," Mason said. "It was pretty cool, though. You can just see what he means to the city and how high he holds Winnipeg."

Added Ladd: "He's done some special things in this league, the 76 goals he scored here. He's had an amazing career, so it's nice for him to be able to get acknowledged by the fans, and hopefully he enjoyed it. We've been a part of a lot of great games and historic games this year."

When the game ended Selanne threw the sticks into the crowd and took several turns of the ice as the crowd stood and cheered. A couple of hours later as he was about to head to the team bus, Selanne was asked if he had one last word for Winnipeggers.

"Just, 'Thank you,' " he said. "It has been so special. Tonight really makes my whole career pretty much. That was something that I am always going to remember. There's always a big piece of Winnipeg people in my heart."

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/hockey/teemu-selanne-still-basking-in-afterglow-of-jets-game/article2275640/singlepage/#articlecontent

[HVC]

Had he won his first game, he would have been welcomed by the fan.  Now they'll hate him just as much as Martin.

He would have been screwed either way. Toronto and montreal is a tough place to be a coach or player thanks in large part to the media. The anglo thing is a easy foible for them not to latch onto.

[viper37]

He would have been screwed either way. Toronto and montreal is a tough place to be a coach or player thanks in large part to the media. The anglo thing is a easy foible for them not to latch onto.

so far, the media focus their attention to Geoff Molson, and he has responded this morning, saying speaking french will be part of the job description for a permament job as head coach.

[Valmy]

He would have been screwed either way. Toronto and montreal is a tough place to be a coach or player thanks in large part to the media. The anglo thing is a easy foible for them not to latch onto.

Oh please.  The teams in New York City and Philadelphia have no problem winning (in all sports) and their media is notoriously vicious.  The reason the Habs and Leafs struggle is because they are incompetently managed.

[HVC]

He would have been screwed either way. Toronto and montreal is a tough place to be a coach or player thanks in large part to the media. The anglo thing is a easy foible for them not to latch onto.

Oh please.  The teams in New York City and Philadelphia have no problem winning (in all sports) and their media is notoriously vicious.  The reason the Habs and Leafs struggle is because they are incompetently managed.

oh, i'm not saying that's the reason they suck, i'm just saying it's tough to play there. Probably worse because they do suck

[PRC]

He would have been screwed either way. Toronto and montreal is a tough place to be a coach or player thanks in large part to the media. The anglo thing is a easy foible for them not to latch onto.

so far, the media focus their attention to Geoff Molson, and he has responded this morning, saying speaking french will be part of the job description for a permament job as head coach.

That's too bad.  It means the Habs are not willing to hire the best coach available... and so are not dedicated to winning. 

[Valmy]

That's too bad.  It means the Habs are not willing to hire the best coach available... and so are not dedicated to winning. 

Yeah that is just madness.  I mean it is not like there is a shortage of excellent French Canadian coaches but still.  That is handicaping your organization as a matter of policy.

[Barrister]

That's too bad.  It means the Habs are not willing to hire the best coach available... and so are not dedicated to winning. 

Yeah that is just madness.  I mean it is not like there is a shortage of excellent French Canadian coaches but still.  That is handicaping your organization as a matter of policy.

Bah.  It's a business too.  Your coach is one of your major team spokesman.

And I *think* that the Habs aren't limiting themselves to French Canadian coaches, but ratehr that knowing French is a requirement.  Which opens the job to plenty of other Anglo Canadians (don't think too many Americans speak French though).

[viper37]

That's too bad.  It means the Habs are not willing to hire the best coach available... and so are not dedicated to winning. 

really?  I can count quite a few bilingual coaches out there.  Winnipeg has a bilingual assistant coach ready for the big job.  Patrick Roy is available, so is Bob Hartley at the end of the season.  When the Tampa Bay Lighting hired Guy Boucher, who was part of the Habs' organization, did anybody say he was incomptent?

There's no shortage of good bilingual coach.  Bilingual is the requirement here, not being French.  Kirk Muller was bilingual during his stay with the Canadiens.
Lots of assistant coach or head coach in the minor leagues are bilingual.  One could graduate to the job.

Or, the dude they hired could learn French in 9 months.  Ruth Ellen Brosseau did learn French since May...

Part of the coach's job is to speak to the press, predominantly french.  He's the first line of the Habs when it comes to public relation.  I think it's important.

Besides... I've yet to see an excellent coach win with an average team, since the lock-out ended.  I think 90% of the coaches out there are equally good, and the difference resides more with the players under their command and their attitude to winning than the coach himself.

I just can't imagine the Maple Leafs hiring a unilingual Punjabi hockey coach.  In fact, the guy would never even make it to the junior... Are the Leafs not dedicated to winning?  Ok, bad example... but let's think of other pro sports team out there in North America.  How many have coached who don't speak english?  Why can't a unilingual latino be the best coach for the Yankees or the Red Sox?  I can't imagine seeing a non english speaking coach anwywhere.  But in Quebec, it should be ok to hire someone who doesn't speak the language of the fans.  That's weird.

[viper37]

Which opens the job to plenty of other Anglo Canadians (don't think too many Americans speak French though).

The Habs would never hire an american coach.  They never did, they never will.  Even if the best coach in the world was a trilingual French speaking Swiss, they'd never hire him.  Same for the Leafs, never had an American coach, never will.  But nobody will complain about that in the Canadian medias...  In fact, for the Leafs, I count only 3 coaches who didn't come from Ontario.

[Grey Fox]

Which opens the job to plenty of other Anglo Canadians (don't think too many Americans speak French though).

The Habs would never hire an american coach.  They never did, they never will.  Even if the best coach in the world was a trilingual French speaking Swiss, they'd never hire him.  Same for the Leafs, never had an American coach, never will.  But nobody will complain about that in the Canadian medias...  In fact, for the Leafs, I count only 3 coaches who didn't come from Ontario.

Ron Wilson's an American....Ok, he got both Nationalities..but he declared for the US national team when he played.

[Neil]

I just can't imagine the Maple Leafs hiring a unilingual Punjabi hockey coach.

I keep seeing this, but it's still retarded.  English is the language of hockey, and so English is the language that everybody must speak.  After that, everything else is optional.

[viper37]

Ron Wilson's an American....Ok, he got both Nationalities..but he declared for the US national team when he played.

true, but:
Born    May 28, 1955 (age 56)
Windsor, Ontario, CAN

[viper37]

I keep seeing this, but it's still retarded.  English is the language of hockey, and so English is the language that everybody must speak.  After that, everything else is optional.

The CBC airs hockey games in Punjabi.  It's got to be important enough.