Glad this day is coming. For my whole life I have heard stories about how tough the coach is and the romanticizing of their hard-ass ways.
But there's the demanding hot-headed coach that kicks the trashcan and then there's the abusive prick that manipulates and harms individuals. I think both are going to get caught up in a few stories here, but I'm very glad that we're going to stop celebrating the hard-ass coach that will smack a player upside the head for a bad line-change.
I wish we did a few things though:
- Carcillo can cut it out with this publicity stunt
- We separate Akim's allegation from the coaches that went over the line (of which... Peters is also a part of)
- Remember that this is a change, and it's starting today
On Carcillo, until he starts making allegations he's just throwing people under the bus... and seemingly trying to gain an audience while doing it. His heart might be in the right place, but his execution is gross. I'm wondering how much of these are going to be a coach/player relationship problems more than an abusive coach (as I think Maurice was preparing everyone for)
He also seems more bent on the number of stories he shares rather than focusing on the bad-actors in the NHL that need to be outed. I worry that a few player relationships are going to be added to the pile, and a few regrettable interactions blown into a full characterization. Take the coach shouting at the player from the rink to the locker room that Carcillo just shared. A terrible story, to be sure... but is there more when we learn context? Is this an abusive coach, or an intense situation gone too far? In both cases, I hope both parties agree a better course of action should be taken - but there is a level of intensity in sport that does need to be considered in some situations.
So while the reckoning has finally come, I just hope it remembers that there's a difference between bad people and people with regrettable incidents. I also hope we remember that every incident is unique.