This morning I attended a fundraiser called the “Golden Age Sports Celebrity Breakfast”. All kinds of great guests were there, including, Henri Richard, Elmer Lach, Gaston Gingras, Jacques Demers, Phil Goyette, Jean Perron, and Kirk Muller. Other notable guests were from the Als, and of course, there were a couple of members of the Montreal media. As the event wore on, Richard, Demers and Muller were called to the stage to answer some questions from the Team 990’s Andie Bennett. Muller regaled us with a story from the ’93 finals that I thought I would share with all of you.
It was before game 1, and a few of the guys had never been in a final, and they were clearly pretty nervous with Gretzky coming into town and all. Demers in typical fashion came into the room and tried to settle everyone down. “This is the chance of a lifetime. This is where the boys get separated from the men!” Jacques said. These words of encouragement were then followed by “So lets go get ’em boys!” which made Kirk, and the rest of the audience laugh pretty hard.
Another story was that when Gretzky came into town Demers was watching him practice. With conviction he walked into the Habs room and turned to the players “We have to hit Gretzky!” Kirk casually quipped back: “You hit him!” as if to say easier said than done, or you deal with the consequences! Demers quickly told the audience that you never spoke to a coach that way, but that was the type of relationship Jacques had with his players. “There was always an open door policy when dealing with Jacques, and communication as it was then, and is now, the real key to success” said Kirk concerning his former bench boss.
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Amongst the adulation and respect being doled out to one of the finest hockey figures this city has ever seen, I patiently waited for my opportunity to interview Kirk Muller. As I sat and observed how he interacted with his young fans, who endlessly came up one by one for autographs, I couldn’t help but notice the genuine smile Muller is always accompanied by.
Here is a man that understands what the tradition of the Canadiens is about. A man who appreciates the courage it takes for someone to stand before him and ask him for something. A player and coach, who knows and respects the passion that emanates from each fan he shakes hands with. Without further ado, here are Muller’s responses to the little lightning round I put together for him:
EE: Who out of the young guns impresses you most? Kostitsyn, Higgins, Plekanec, Perezhogin, Komisarek, Latendresse, Lapierre?
KM: Higgins. You can see the way he approaches the game, he’s the complete package. He’s intense, great speed and you can tell he’s just got everything it takes to be a great player. Komisarek also. These two guys really bring it.
EE: Do you think they have the potential to be future captains or assistants?
KM: Ya, I do. I think even a bit later on in the season these two really started to step up, and you could tell they were developing into the type of guys we’d like them to be in the future.
EE: You and Carbo kind of look like you got a ‘good cop’ ‘bad cop’ dynamic going. Would you say that’s accurate?
KM: (Laughs) Well Carbo is the head coach, so naturally there are going to be things he says to the guys that they don’t necessarily react the best to. So I make sure the guys understand what they are being told, and make sure they know what’s expected of them. We really try to feed off of each other, and bring passion and enthusiasm to the room.
EE: Who is the most vocal player in the room?
KM: (No hesitation) Shelly. Yup! Shelly, he’s the guy.
EE: It seems unlikely he’ll re-sign in Montreal from what I’ve heard, what do you think of the whole situation?
KM: It’s said all the time that this is a business. We saw it with Chara last year going to Boston, we obviously hope we can keep him. I’m encouraged that he hasn’t ruled Montreal out as a possibility. He is very aware of how well he’s been treated here, and respects the support he was given through his injury trouble, and tough seasons.
EE: You could notice the immediate impact Chara’s leaving had on Ottawa’s PP early on in the season, how important is it to replace Sheldon’s shot from the point should he choose to part ways with the Canadiens? Maybe with a guy like Bergeron, or Schneider, who will be a UFA at the end of this year?
KM: It’s obviously key. I actually heard Schneider might be interested in returning here.
EE: Ovechkin or Crosby?
KM: That is a really tough one. They are different players. I’m not really answering your question, but what impresses me is that they both want to be the best in the world. You can see it in their attitude; they really want to be the best. I’m not sure who I like more.
EE: Who is the meanest, nastiest guy you ever dropped in a fight in the NHL?
KM: Geez, wasn’t much of a fighter. (Laughs) Not sure I ever dropped anyone. Joe Patterson (formerly of the Wings, later involved in a deal to Philly for Darryl Sittler). In my last year I got into a fight with a big western kid playing for St. Louis, that was pretty much when I decided no more fighting.
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I also shared a few words with Demers. Asked him what he thought about the immediate future of the Canadiens. Jacques feels there is a good young nucleus, and he feels that these guys need the ice time, alluding to the fact that they deserve it over certain veterans. He feels Carey Price is going to be a key to future success, and believes he has a shot at playing in Montreal next season. He said Buffalo and Ottawa are the types of teams that built from within, and that is the direction the Canadiens are, and should be headed in. I asked Jacques if he thought Perezhogin was a guy he could see being packaged. He said “no big loss”, the other young guys are good.
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