NHL coaches can’t really coach right now, since hockey isn’t being played. So they’re spending their newfound time coaching one another. The NHL Coaches’ Association expedited the launch of its mentorship program by six months to accommodate the thousands of coaches stuck inside and looking for enrichment.
“Todd Woodcroft is just a really nice man,” Maurice told me. “He’s the guy that makes sure people who do nice things get a thank you card. He’s the guy in our group that takes care of all of those things.”
Winnipeg Jets coach Paul Maurice chats with Global News morning about being way from the team, spending more time with his kids and learning how to shoot a bow while social distancing.
The type of coaching carnage that has gone on in the NHL the past few years is borderline historic. Then you have the Lightning’s Jon Cooper and the Jets’ Paul Maurice, the standard-bearers for the lost art of longevity behind the bench. How did they do it?
Ask any Winnipeg Jets fan and they will tell you that a team is only as good as their coach. The moment Paul Maurice stepped up to fill Claude Noel’s position, there was an immediate and noticeable change.
Sometimes in this business, a simple game of connect the dots is a great way to fuel speculation. And given how the last round of NHL expansion went, with the Vegas Golden Knights reaching the Stanley Cup final during their inaugural campaign, it’s only natural to expect Seattle is going to want to hit the ground running when they break into the league in 2021-22.
Paul Maurice doesn’t often find himself at a loss for words. Sunday night was one of those times, though, when the subject of him reaching 700 NHL wins was brought up in his postgame session with members of the media.
“When you’re starting young, you’re thinking, ‘Wow, if I could coach 500 games in this league, that would be a milestone,'” Maurice said.
No scenario in hockey gives a coach more ability to flex their tactical know-how than the power play. Sure, choosing your lineup and delivering your d-zone structure is important, but let’s face it – watching a goal go in the net on the with the man advantage as a result of a scheme you concocted is more addictive than morning skate coffee.
In two decades of coaching in the NHL, Todd Woodcroft has always been fascinated by one thing above all else: the centre position.
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