2012年11月12日星期一

Patrick Roy vs Mario Tremblay

Puerto Rico Islanders Jersey, Was the tenuous relationship between Patrick Roy and Mario Tremblay the real reason for the blowup that happened that fateful night in December 1995 while hosting the Detroit Red Wings? As we now are debating the honor of having Patrick Roy\'s jersey lifted to the rafters of the Bell Centre in Montr�al, it is clear that Bob Gainey and the Montr�al Canadiens organization have at the very least put the incident behind them, and possibly have now sided with St. Patrick even though his actions that night were deemed immature to most viewers.

Mario Tremblay for his part, was a passionate fiery player himself for the Habs and was actually Patrick Roy\'s first roommate on the road when the young goalie joined the Canadians the same year Mario would retire. Tremblay was known to tease Patrick during that first season because of Patrick\'s lack of English, but really, that is what teammates do. It is more what Tremblay did as coach of the Habs that some could bring his judgment into question here as the team\'s new teacher.

That fiery passion often translated into a lack of leadership for Tremblay, a quality that a coach really should have and that without, will wear thin on players, and over time will surely cause alienation - which is exactly what happened in Montr�al. The day that Mario Tremblay was announced as the Montr�al Canadiens\' head coach, he and Patrick got into it during the very first team meeting that Mario called. By all accounts of this meeting the squabble was more childish than professional. It did however mark a mean spirited streak that Tremblay used to his advantage as a player, but couldn\'t control as a coach. Patrick Roy and Mario Tremblay never did get along as player and coach, and when you don\'t have the de facto team leader on your side, it\'s tough to coach in any circumstances.

Keep in mind here that Mario Tremblay was replacing a very popular players\' coach in Jacques Demers and the team was only a season and a bit past hoisting the Stanley Cup for the 24th time in franchise history. Regean Houle was also a general manager, trying to fill the shoes of Serge Savard and with the team not Puerto Rico Islanders Jersey doing so well, the near future of the Habs didn\'t look so great even with Puerto Rico Islanders Jersey Patrick Roy in the Puerto Rico Islanders Jersey lineup. This was a very stressful time for Montr�al fans AND Mario Tremblay. In retrospect, a man of his character and passion could easily let temperament rule the day.

Later in his tenure as coach of the Habs (after Patrick Roy\'s departure), other players like Donald Brashear, Lyle Odelien and Vincent Damphousse found it a not-so-pleasant atmosphere. The players that the Habs got in return for Patrick Roy were all eventually traded and none of them really worked out as true assets to the team, making Tremblay\'s short tenure nearly impossible. With that said, neither party was innocent but the spectacle could have been avoided altogether in a more favorable time in Montreal.

Mario Tremblay is currently an assistant coach with the Minnesota Wild, where he works with head coach Jacques Lemaire and general manager Doug Risebrough, who are both former teammates of the powerful Habs team that won four consecutive Stanley Cups in the 1970s.