72 quotes found
"My feelings I'm sure are like the thousands of other kids who dreamed their entire life of winning and holding the Stanley Cup. I don't really know how to articulate it and I've never seen anybody put the feeling into words properly. We all felt the same way, whether you won it in Montreal, or in Toronto or in Philadelphia. When you win the Stanley Cup after dreaming about it your whole life, for me, that was the highlight of my hockey playing career."
"I don't give a shit if nobody likes me, I could care less. But they shouldn't be getting mad at me, I didn't put the [offer sheet] rule in the collective bargaining agreement. If they're mad, they should call Gary Bettman and complain to him. Get mad at Gary Bettman. He's in charge of the rules, not me. I didn't realize there were some rules we're not allowed to use."
"Hockey is an art. It requires speed, precision, and strength like other sports, but it also demands an extraordinary intelligence to develop a logical sequence of movements, a technique which is smooth, graceful and in rhythm with the rest of the game."
"Our hockey team consisted of boys seventeen and eighteen years old and I used to watch them play all the time on the outdoor rink. On this one day, I remember it was very cold and I was looking at the game while standing indoors with my back against a stove. The goalie was having trouble and the coach accused him of not doing his best. The goalie was mad and took his skates off. I rushed toward the coach and volunteered to take his place. There was no other goalie around, so I went in the net and played with them the rest of the season."
"My knees started to shake. In the dressing room that night, I was so nervous I couldn't tie my skates. Maurice Richard walked over and held out his hands. 'Look at them,' he said. 'They shake before a big game. You'll feel better when you get out on the ice.'"
"I was with the [Quebec] Citadelles. We had four defensemen. One couldn't skate backwards. Another couldn't turn to his left. The others were slow. It was a case of me having to go and get the puck when it was shot into our end because our defense couldn't get there fast enough. The more I did it, the farther I went. It seemed to be the best thing to do, so I did it and it worked." Plante continued, "Possession of the puck is number one. That's all I'm doing—getting control until one of my teammates comes along.""
"The shot by [Andy] Bathgate nearly ripped my nose off. I told Toe [Blake] I would only return if I could wear the mask, so there was no choice. He never wanted me to wear the mask because he thought it would make me too complacent."
"Goaltending is a normal job, sure. How would you like it in your job if every time you made a small mistake, a red light went on over your desk and 15,000 people stood up and yelled at you?*"
"I never shot a deer. I've never shot anything in my life. I never hunted. I'm just not that type of guy. But there's no doubt in my mind that I would have killed to win. That really scares me sometimes. Right now I think about it, and I get little goose bumps. I would have done anything - absolutely anything - to win. In a war, maybe that's what happens. It was our society against their society."
"Play with passion and heart. If you don't carry passion into sport—or in any job for that matter—you won't succeed."
"The importance of teammates is the thing I appreciate the most from those years. I was a lucky guy. There is nothing better than good teammates. I don't care what anybody says, you can't do it alone. It takes a good team for you to be a good player, and the same goes for playing on a bad team. I see Vincent Lecavalier play all the time. He gives it his all, but it comes down to your teammates,"
"Management wins Stanley Cups. Players can only do their best. You've got to bring the right ingredients to make a Stanley Cup winner and if the manager is not doing his job, the players can only do so much. You produce and do what's right, but if you don't have the talent there, you're not going to win many games."
"When I first started playing, everything was outdoors. They were home-made community rinks. I played one game a year indoors. That would be the championship."
"I think for kids it's the most important part of the game. You have to be able to skate forward and backward, stop and start, go from side to side. Those are the basics of the game."
"The Christmas just before I turned four, my parents bought me a pair of little black skates and the Bay of Quinte was frozen and my two sisters took me out there and held my hands and taught me to skate. Now I don't know if this is true—although it sounds good!—but rumour has it by the end of the day they couldn't keep up with me."
"To win the Stanley Cup was a dream. When I was growing up, I never really dreamed about winning the Stanley Cup because I never really dreamed I'd play in the National Hockey League. I just followed one day, one month, one year after another and I kept getting better. But winning the Stanley Cup was just tremendous because you're recognized as part of the best team in the world and I was part of that team that contributed winning the Stanley Cup for Detroit."
"I was never concerned with statistics - scoring goals, my records. The only thing I was concerned about was winning. The association changed my life. It changed my career and it changed my stats. I went to Chicago for three years but I was never a Blackhawk. I was treated well by the fans and by management, but I only had mediocre years. I still had a Red Wing on my forehead, on my backside and over my heart. I was existing, nothing more. Then, I retired for four years."
"One highlight I have was playing with all the great players in Montreal. They were not only great players but they were great people. If you look around, a lot of these guys are still in the game. Not only have they been successful with the Montreal Canadiens, but they've helped a lot of other organizations."
"When you're playing, you don't worry about being in the Hall of Fame. When they come up and say, 'Hey, you've been inducted,' it was a thrill for everybody. You're being acknowledged by your peers and the people within the industry, and that's impressive because they're the hardest ones to convince. That, more than anything, gave me the greatest satisfaction."
"I feel bad about the whole thing but all good things must come to an end sometime. I've got many pleasant memories, especially those two Stanley Cups."
"You don't have to be crazy to be a goalie, but it helps!"
"There was no one in the world quite like Plante. I learned more from him in two years with the Leafs than I did in all my other hockey days. He taught me a great deal about playing goal both on the ice and in my head off the ice. He taught me to be aggressive around the goal and take an active part in play instead of waiting for things to happen. He showed me how I kept putting myself off-balance by placing my weight on my left leg instead of on my stick side. He taught me how to steer shots off into the corner instead of letting them rebound in front of me. That old guy made a good goalie out of me."
"By the time he's 31, he'll never have to work another day unless he wants to."
"I never pay attention to individual awards and I think that sometimes, too many people place too much value on them."
"Most kids today slap the puck. The backhand takes time to learn. It's not something you do naturally. But it is an effective shot."
"Everybody skated and played hockey. When I was five, Dad gave me a heavy box for Christmas. When I opened it, there was only a piece of wood. I was so mad! Then he gave me another box, and the skates were there. Dad used to build a rink behind our house every winter. That's where I started playing hockey. From the time I was seven, I used to sleep in all my equipment. That way, I was ready to play in the morning."
"It was tough going to school in the day and traveling to games at night. Sometimes we would get back about midnight. I never went to dances or hung around with girls. Hockey was the first thing."
"Individual records are nice to get, but before the season starts, you want to play to win the Stanley Cup!"
"It may be that everywhere else in the world, the ascendance of Flower Power began and ended in the sixties, Mr. Speaker, but in Montreal it began in 1971 and ended yesterday when Guy Lafleur retired. This is the end of a great era, Mr. Speaker. I am certain that the House and the entire population of Canada will join me in wishing him good luck in the future and thanking him for the unforgettable moments he has given us."
"I had a great time, and I always took care of my body. That's the thing some players don't. For a goalie, there's no reason he can't play until he's 40 if he takes care of himself. The reflexes are still there."
"I wanted something different—something to make me stand out and for people to notice."
"Win together today and we walk together forever"
"A man with a dream of pleasure can go forth and conquer a crowd and three. With a new song's measure can trample a kingdom down."
"1) Never go offside on a three on two or two on one. 2) Never go backwards in your own end except on a powerplay. 3) Never throw a puck out blindly from behind your opponent's net. 4) Never pass diagonally across ice in your own end unless 100 percent certain. 5) Wings on wings in neutral zone—unless intercepting a pass. 6) Second man goes all the way in for a rebound. 7) Defense with puck at opponents' blueline—look at each teammate before shooting. 8) Wing in front of opponents' net must face puck and lean on stick. 9) Puck carrier over center with no room and no one to pass to must shoot puck in. 10) No forward must ever turn his back on the puck. 11) No player must be more than two zones away from puck. 12) Never be outnumbered in defensive zone. 13) On delayed penalty puck carrier must look for extra man. 14) Be alert to time left on opponent's penalty."
"I swear I have never told a player to attack another player. In fact, I have told my players if they ever hear me saying something like this, they can break a stick over my skull. I ask only that they play aggressively."
"I think hockey is a game, a child's game, played by men and to play it effectively you must have fun just like children do. I've been with too many teams in sports through the years where you weren't allowed to open your mouth, you weren't allowed to laugh, you weren't allowed to question the coach or anyone in authority … You lived in fear. My players don't live in fear. They get up in the morning, they're happy and they go to bed, they're happy. And that's the type of person I am."
"Success is not the result of spontaneous combustion. You must first set yourself on fire."
"Be more concerned with your character than your reputation. For your character is what you really are, while your reputation is merely what others think you are."
"When you have bacon and eggs for breakfast, the chicken makes a contribution, the pig makes a commitment."
"We know that hockey is where we live, where we can best meet and overcome pain and wrong and death. Life is just a place where we spend time between games."
"To avoid criticism, say nothing, do nothing, be nothing."
"Success requires no explanations, failure presents no alibis."
"Arrive at the net with the puck and in ill humor."
"If you keep your opposition on their ass, they don't score goals."
"I don't live in the fast lane I live on the off ramp."
"We're in a weird position. All year long people keep telling us that we're bad for hockey, bad for the NHL, bad for Canada because we're too rough. Now we're supposed to save the game for the NHL, for Canada, for everyone. Hah! For the first time we're the good guys."
"He won at every level. He was the first guy to use video, first guy to hire an assistant, first to coach an expansion team to the Stanley Cup. First guy to use a system that involved the entire team. They said it was too late for last year's selections. He'll be considered this year. He belongs. Absolutely."
"The absence of Shero, a pioneer who studied systems in the Soviet Union well before it became vogue and was the first to add an assistant coach to his staff and behind the bench, must be the result of a vendetta. There is no other way to explain it."
"Sometimes I don't think he knows Wednesday from Thursday, and then sometimes I think he's a genius who's got us all fooled"
"If you looked inside Freddie's brain, you would find a miniature hockey rink."
"The thing that makes me laugh about this whole thing, is our Fair Play Commission and our Penalty Commission they never...that’s violence, everybody asks me about getting violent. That’s violence, that’s career-ending. That should be put out of...but don’t worry about it. His [Samuelsson’s] day is coming. But the people I feel sorry for with Ulf Samuelsson are the referees. Last week, we’re not going to show it, [Mike] Gartner gave him a little tap, he falls down, he lets on he’s hurt, he gets a five-minute major and he plays the power play. I know for a fact, not then, that when he suckers in the referees, when he suckers them in, he goes to the bench – he goes to the bench and he winks and he laughs. Big deal! Listen, I’m so glad that he signed a three-year contract in the National Hockey League. His day is coming folks! Don't worry about it. It’s just a matter of time, and I want to know who’s going to be the hero."
"Cherry: You know, I’ve been home now for 24 hours. I must’ve been asked 9,000 times about that incident, we don’t have it [the footage], but I want to talk about it. Figure it out: Here’s a guy who gets eight stitches, eight stitches in his chin. What happened? Who did it? Nobody knows, ok? Nobody knows, ok, so here’s what happens. The referee calls the guy over and he says ‘Did you see what happened?’, ‘Whoaa, not my side’ ‘Did you see what happened?’ ‘Well wait a minute if I tell you, that means five-minute major.’ If the linesman says five-minute major..."
"Ron MacLean: No, no, it could be a four-minute penalty..."
"Cherry:...Yeah he’s gone anyhow, going into overtime. Gretzky, verge of elimination. So, what do we do? They say ‘What do we do? How about he [Doug Gilmour] gets hit with the puck? He gets hit with the puck, he’s laying on the [sic]'. The only way he’d get hit with the puck is if his chin was on the ice. Anyway, that’s all I’ve got to say about that. [Gretzky] gets the overtime winner and that’s wrong as far as I’m concerned. Andreychuk got a five-minute major, he [Gretzky] should’ve got something. At least a slap on the wrist or a dirty look."
"Jimmy Waite thinks this is offside. WRONG Jimmy! 1-0!"
"My buddy Tie [Domi] gets zonked by [Scott] Stevens! [Shawn] Antoski catches [David] Shaw. [Mathieu] Schneider flips [Troy] Mallette! Sergei Bautin lays a pretty one on [Darren] McCarty! [Eric] Weinrich jolts [Mike] Sillinger!"
"[Garry] Galley crunches [Kelly] Buchberger, and Buchberger's not too happy!"
"Here’s a different way to score on a two-on-one: Boston’s [Cam] Stewart shoots the puck, and [Steve] Heinze puts home the rebound! Shorthanded too!"
"[Bob] Beers crashes [Ron] Hextall. Ron's a little upset, and Beers is lucky it didn't happen a few years ago!"
"Andrei Kovalenko runs over Patrick Roy, and Patrick slugs him! Watch him use his blocker here. Don’t fool with Patrick!"
"Watch John Blue give Rob Pearson a cross-check like you can’t believe. Watch this. He gets up, Pearson goes back, WHAM! Well what can you expect from a guy named Blue?"
"You won’t believe this one, folks. Belfour tries to clear the puck in overtime. Nelson Emerson grabs the puck, now watch: he’s skating out in front, he’s got the puck in his hand, Eddie tries to stop him, he reaches around and throws it in the net and, believe it or not, they count it! The Hawks say what are you counting that? [Darryl] Sutter’s not too happy. With video replay, how can they count a goal like that?"
"Cam Neely! Is he a beauty? Fifty goals in 49 games."
"With the series at 2-1, [Jeremy] Roenick wins Game 4 in OT, and now it goes back to Toronto for a best of two out of three! Is he happy or what?"
"Captain Crunch [Wendel Clark] nails Chelios, and the Hawks are gone in six! Are they gonna miss Wendel or what? What a hit."
"The Flames and Canucks, this one was the toughest series of all folks. No prisoners were taken in this one. Whoa! Are they hittin’? And they’re hittin’ to hurt, I’ll tell ya. Watch these beauty hits. You better keep your head up in this series I’ll tell ya!"
"Now the Canucks are down three games to one and come storming back. [Geoff] Courtnall gets the winner in Game 5 as he hammers a rocket in OT. Mikey [Vernon] never had a chance. Are they happy or what? Watch this!"
"Still overtime folks. Watch this beauty pass by [Jeff] Brown: right on the money to [Pavel] Bure and he slides it home by [Mike] Vernon! Can you believe it? Down three to one and come back to win? Pat [Quinn] never gave up on them I'll tell ya. What a win."
"But everybody knows the Bruins don't quit, and they go on to win this series in seven games. Watch Raymond [Bourque] smoke this one by Patrick [Roy]!"
"You can call it a cheap shot, blind shot, a late hit; you can call it what you want and it should’ve been a suspension as far as I’m concerned! It’s unbelievable that it’s not a suspension! What it did, it gave meat to everybody that’s against the National Hockey League—this’ll be the poster boy…[while showing clips of controversial hits by Cooke over the years]!! You think he’d do this stuff against [Wayne] Gretzky, if [Dave] Semenko was there?! Do you think he’d do this against [Steve] Yzerman if [Bob] Probert was there?! NO! That’s what I’m trying to tell you, he wouldn’t do that stuff!"
"You people that come here... you love our way of life, you love our milk and honey, at least you can pay a couple bucks for a poppy or something like that... These guys paid for your way of life that you enjoy in Canada, these guys paid the biggest price."
"Animals deserve to be treated with kindness. I love animals, and I don't believe humans can treat them as commodities and cause them harm. … I officially became a vegan on June 1, 2009. Even though it's quite a change in terms of nutrition, I have never felt better or so healthy in my life. Considering that I'm a professional athlete, that's quite important … I understand the impact I have in joining many groups like PETA. I don't do it to force people to be vegetarian or vegan. I just want to educate people on the subject to make this world a better place. … Many people … refuse to get educated on the matter because just like me, they're sensitive and afraid to make a change. But my friends, that change is not bad at all. … Millions of people around the globe are going vegetarian for the sake of animals, their health and the environment. I encourage you to give it a try too!"