ice-hockey-coaches

"You were born to be a player. You were meant to be here. This moment is yours."

"Great moments are born from great opportunity."

"When you pull on that jersey, you represent yourself and your teammates...and the name on the front is a hell of a lot more important than the one on the back."

"I've always said that coaching is like being a king. It prepares you for absolutely nothing."

"Write your own book instead of reading someone else's book about success."

"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!"

"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 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."

"If you looked inside Freddie's brain, you would find a miniature hockey rink."

"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"

"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."

"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."

"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."

"By the time he's 31, he'll never have to work another day unless he wants to."

"Play with passion and heart. If you don't carry passion into sport—or in any job for that matter—you won't succeed."