The Player's Tribune: Lou's Method
Another excellent Player's Tribune article from a respected former enforcer, Ken Daneyko. He talks about his former boss after the Leafs hired him.
What stood out for me in this article was when Ken described the conversation with Lou after he stuck up for a teammate and fought. Someone had elbowed one of their young stars and Daneyko sent a message next shift. Lou shakes his hand and thanks him, Daneyko said he was just doing his job.
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Then Lou got a little hot, looked me in my eye and said (minus the expletives), “I want this team to understand that we’re in this together, thick and thin, on and off the ice. Read between the lines!”
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What's really interesting though is the next part almost sounds like he's describing Bob Hartley after the Vancouver line brawl and the improbable successful season just after.
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I don’t remember every detail of my career, but I’ll never forget that moment. From that instant, I knew we got a guy in charge who was going to be tough, fearless and loyal as hell to his players. It really was all about winning.
I was so young that it didn’t fully register with me at the time, but once I retired and got to reflect on everything, I realized that what Lou was doing in that moment was changing the culture and the direction of the entire organization.
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