Nuxfanabroad Posted October 7, 2014 Share Posted October 7, 2014 Hoping for the best out of Willie but i'll sit on the fence until I see actual results. Considering how many people said Torts would be our best coach ever when he was hired... well everyone knows what happened with that. More hard-core, conditional love than one saves for the weather person!..Just buy gore tex & risk wearing your heart on your sleeve. We all knew/ agreed Torts was an a**hole, but we celebrated thinking his IDGAF 'tude was what our city required(dealing with rivals, reffs & media)..& who knows, maybe we DID need Torts? It cleared the decks, & set the stage for a reasonable voice. This article allows us to cheer on this coach for his potential success, & as a stand-up guy(with excellent character), we're confident he'll maintain composure, win or lose... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wallstreetamigo Posted October 7, 2014 Share Posted October 7, 2014 I know I am excited to have a coach that has something to prove.......to himself. I love the fact that Desjardins feels responsible when things do not go according to plan and holds himself accountable as much or more than any player. That is the kind of coach players want to play for. Playoffs or not if Desjardins can get this group to play with passion and heart and show that will to win and that confidence in themselves then this season will be a success in my opinion. It has been missing from this core group since 2011. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bassetgreg Posted October 7, 2014 Share Posted October 7, 2014 But can he get through to Kassian and Edler? I'm stoked I think we'll see a big bounce back year...lets get started! For longtime Canuck fans...Torterella = Bill Laforge. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TimberWolf Posted October 7, 2014 Share Posted October 7, 2014 He could have Bowman's brain, Quenneville's mustache, Babcock's respect, Neilson's guts and Crawford's hair but there is only so much you can do without the right players. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheXFactor Posted October 7, 2014 Share Posted October 7, 2014 More hard-core, conditional love than one saves for the weather person!..Just buy gore tex & risk wearing your heart on your sleeve. We all knew/ agreed Torts was an a**hole, but we celebrated thinking his IDGAF 'tude was what our city required(dealing with rivals, reffs & media)..& who knows, maybe we DID need Torts? It cleared the decks, & set the stage for a reasonable voice. This article allows us to cheer on this coach for his potential success, & as a stand-up guy(with excellent character), we're confident he'll maintain composure, win or lose... I agree Torts was needed to facilitate the much needed changes in management but regardless, it was a really messy way to go about doing things. And i'm certainly cheering for Willie here but people just need to remember this is his first coaching job in the NHL, and i'm hoping the media and the fans won't be so quick to throw him under the bus IF he doesn't live up to expectations. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sinphase Posted October 8, 2014 Share Posted October 8, 2014 Excited to see what Desjardins can do with this year's team. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
-DLC- Posted October 9, 2014 Share Posted October 9, 2014 VANCOUVER — Communication between the Vancouver Canucks' coaches and their players is no longer a one-way street. The players are encouraged to ask questions and even offer opinions to new head coach Willie Desjardins and his staff. Somewhere, John (my way or the highway) Tortorella must be shaking his head. Ask the Canucks to identify the one thing that stands out about Desjardins and you hear the word communication. "He wants our feedback and how we see things. I think that is probably the biggest thing right off the get-go," says winger Alex Burrows. "He wants to be successful and he utilizes all his assets to make sure we are going to be successful as a team, instead of in the last year it was maybe more of a one-way street and you had to listen and follow. "I don't know if one is better than the other, but I think as a player you like to say what you think a little bit, even if the coach doesn't agree. At least he listens to it and at the end of the day he makes the decision and you just have to go with it." Desjardins, a rookie National Hockey League bench boss at age 57, has a reputation as a coach who gets to know his players, cares about them and never misleads them. "He is a guy that is going to let you know where you stand at all times," says new Canucks winger Derek Dorsett, who played junior hockey for Desjardins with the Medicine Hat Tigers. Dorsett credits Desjardins with helping him make it as a pro. "He is the guy who helped me cool my temper down a little bit. In junior I was a little bit more wound up and he worked with me a lot on that. He is open and honest and respectful to you. It's everything you can really ask for from a coach." That's not to say Desjardins is soft. Far from it. He demands an unfailing work ethic from his team. But in a nice way, says defenceman Kevin Bieksa. "He is intense, but he is calm," Bieksa says. "He's patient but he wants things done the right way, right now. It's different. He is a unique coach, I think. He has an uncanny way of getting across his point and making you want to work harder without all the yelling in your face. "He makes you want to work hard for him, but he explains things, too. He explains why we're going to be working hard and that he is going to push us and guys just accept it and guys just want to work hard for him." The Canucks are a more relaxed bunch - perhaps less uptight is a better way to put it - under Desjardins. And team captain Henrik Sedin thinks that will translate into more creativity on the ice. "I think we were too tense last year, we didn't make the plays we needed to be successful," Henrik says. "I don't think you can win in this league just skating up and down the boards as a leftwinger and shooting slappers from the top of the circle and hoping for a bounce here and there. You have to make plays and so far this year I think we have shown it is a different feeling." New Vancouver centre Linden Vey also played for Desjardins in Medicine Hat and says he made a lasting impact on his career. Vey also says Desjardins' ability to connect to his players is one of the keys to his success as a coach. "I think one of the best things about him is he's such a great communicator," Vey says. "It doesn't matter whether you have played 10 years or one year, whether you're a young guy or an old guy, it doesn't matter. He treats everybody the same way." Canucks assistant coach Doug Lidster spent the past two years working on Desjardins' staff with the AHL's Texas Stars, where they won the Calder Cup last season. He thinks Desjardins' success as a coach can be simply explained: "Everybody wants to be part of a winning organization and pretty much every decision that he makes is what's best for the team and what's best for the team works out to be what's best for the individual." bziemer@vancouversun.com Twitter.com/bradziemer 5 things Willie needs this season to succeed: • An improved power play: The Canucks were 26th in the NHL with the man advantage last season. They'll need to be middleof-the-pack or better this season to make the playoffs. • Bounce-back seasons from key players: Last season, nearly everyone underperformed. The Sedins, Alex Burrows and Alex Edler must rebound. • Four productive lines: The Canucks like to think they have better depth this season and will be able to play their fourth line more than just five or six minutes a night. • A better record in their own division: The Canucks had a losing record of 12-13-4 against Pacific Division opponents last season. That has to change. • More offence from the defence: The Canucks got 147 points from their D last season. That was down from 181 in the previous full season of 2011-12. 5 notable Canucks coaches: • Alain Vigneault: Some Canucks fans were delighted to see Vigneault go, until they experienced the John Tortorella era. All Vigneault did during his seven seasons as head coach was win a franchise-record 313 games, six division titles and two Presidents' Trophies. • Marc Crawford: Like all the other Canucks coaches, Crawford never won the big one. But he might have with a franchise goalie. Crow had the Canucks playing an exciting brand of run-and-gun hockey for many of his six full seasons as coach. His winning percentage of .554 is second only to Vigneault's .632. • Pat Quinn: This guy did it all for the Canucks as a player, coach and general manager. The team came back to life during his tenure, and Quinn took them to Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final in 1994. His winning percentage of .553 trails only Vigneault and Crawford. • Harry Neale: He makes our list because of one of the all-time great Canucks quotes from the 1981-82 season: "Last season, we couldn't win at home," Neale said after a loss. "This season, we can't win on the road. My failure as a coach is I can't think of any place else to play." • Bill LaForge: Who can forget Mr. PhD (Pride, Hustle, Desire). Under LaForge, the Canucks didn't show much of that. Laforge lasted just 20 games in 1984, compiling a record of 4-14-2. His team was outscored 119-67 in those 20 games. • Canucks By the Numbers through 40-plus years here © Copyright © The Vancouver Sun Read more: http://www.vancouversun.com/sports/coach+Willie+Desjardins+ears+eyes+fixed+result/10272688/story.html#ixzz3Fevh29YG A pretty good read - encouraging. As we've seen, firsthand, how significant coaching is in a team's success, I'm encouraged by what I've seen/read. I watched Torts be hands on at the open practices and liked what he had said - with that, seems it didn't quite play out that way and in hearing about his lack of communication (especially with Burr - one of the go to guys on the team), I think there was an obvious disconnect. Being relaxed can be huge to work performance...if you're confident and relaxed, it allows just to focus on the task at hand without distraction or worry. I like that the atmosphere is reportedly one that the players can thrive in. Won't be perfect (nothing is), but last years' debacle screamed that it was coaching - a whole team doesn't completely fall apart without something causing it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aGENT Posted October 9, 2014 Share Posted October 9, 2014 Poor guy looked like he was going to puke at the beginning of the game Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dekey Pete Posted October 9, 2014 Share Posted October 9, 2014 Poor guy looked like he was going to puke at the beginning of the game He looked like that through most of the game. Just nervous I guess, understandable though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aGENT Posted October 9, 2014 Share Posted October 9, 2014 He looked like that through most of the game. Just nervous I guess, understandable though. No, the rest of the game he looked engaged and hyped. At the beginning he looked like he was actually about to heave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldnews Posted October 9, 2014 Share Posted October 9, 2014 "Behind the bench, he’s a flurry of activity, twitching side to side as he follows the action on the ice, shadow-skating with his players, dodging checks, dancing through the defence, crashing the net. Team trainers once strapped him to a heart monitor. During games, Desjardins’s heart is beating as fast as if he were working out. He’s so focused, he is oblivious to anything above ice level." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Cuporbust2 Posted October 9, 2014 Share Posted October 9, 2014 Good read..you can see why his players go all out for the guy. His rejection of Steeltown reminds me of Hamhuis's approach. Nice to have guys that really want to be in Van. Hopefully it works out as well(or even better!) for Willie D. Exactly my thoughts as well. We wants to be here and knows how to win. Can't ask for anything more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whale Tail Posted October 9, 2014 Share Posted October 9, 2014 "Behind the bench, he’s a flurry of activity, twitching side to side as he follows the action on the ice, shadow-skating with his players, dodging checks, dancing through the defence, crashing the net. Team trainers once strapped him to a heart monitor. During games, Desjardins’s heart is beating as fast as if he were working out. He’s so focused, he is oblivious to anything above ice level." That's crazy, I hope this job doesn't kill him Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheRussianRocket. Posted October 9, 2014 Author Share Posted October 9, 2014 That's crazy, I hope this job doesn't kill him *2 days from now* BREAKING: WD placed on IR Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steen Posted October 9, 2014 Share Posted October 9, 2014 Poor guy looked like he was going to puke at the beginning of the game I thought that too, I was ready for it. Glad he got a little calmer as the game went on. Can't blame the guy though, first NHL game, I'd be nervous too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldnews Posted October 9, 2014 Share Posted October 9, 2014 That's crazy, I hope this job doesn't kill him it'll keep him young Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1970 and beyond Posted October 10, 2014 Share Posted October 10, 2014 I stopped reading after the phrases "lowly Vancouver Canucks" and "missed the playoffs for the first time in six years" were within a sentence of each other. Should have read it. It was quite interesting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hairy Kneel Posted October 10, 2014 Share Posted October 10, 2014 I like the less ego approach, players who think their gods gift from heaven can be annoying on a struggling team. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhillipBlunt Posted October 10, 2014 Share Posted October 10, 2014 Hopefully Desjardins gets some Pepto Bismol in his system before Saturday's game. His hand on this team's play is very evident already. There is a passion and fight in the team that has been absent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timberz21 Posted October 10, 2014 Share Posted October 10, 2014 Hopefully Desjardins gets some Pepto Bismol in his system before Saturday's game. His hand on this team's play is very evident already. There is a passion and fight in the team that has been absent. Don't want to be pessimist but can we wait until we play somebody else than the Flames and Oilers before we make any conclusion on this team? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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