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About Ian Cobb
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Ian Cobb
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Born in Mtl., Worked many different jobs around Mtl.as a kid, later went working pipeline construction as a labourer, equipment operator and scuba diver for oil & gas co,s ,manager for Gazette newspaper and was fired after they discovered that I did not have 4 years of McGill, only grade 5, owned and operated 2 corporations,in 3 provinces, illiterate until my late 50tys. raised 3 children, retired 10 years ago as just your average millionaire, drive school bus and read and write on inside/out, learning here every day with friends!!!
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A repost of My comment made in the 'Boucher Weighing His Options' thread ...Thought I would repeat and park it here, as I feel (unlike You Ian) that Jacques Martin should only be a stop-gap Coach for Our Habs ...and hopefully GB will be Our Coach in 2011/12 the latest
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...The Montreal Canadiens have had 2 Great Coaches in My Lifetime, ...Toe Blake and Scotty Bowman
...a coach establishes the character and persona of a team as much or more than its collective players ...it's the coach that decides where and how his player assets are used ...he motivates their desire positively or negatively
...I never coached nor wanted to coach, but I have been coached ...what I DO KNOW is, that there are coaches' teams that would wind-up at the bottom of the NHL standings even if they had Maurice Richard, Gordie Howe, Bobby Orr, Larry Robinson, Bobby Hull, Mario Lemieux, Wayne Gretsky, Sidney Crosby and Jacques Plante ALL on his team
...there are others that would keep their heads above water, with maybe an occasional good year, if he had better than average players or chemistry
...then there are the exceptional Great Coaches that come along once in a generation or a life-time, whom are even more rare than Great Players ...whom have that ability to make silk-purses out of sow's ears ...or make great players greater than their sum
...Jacques Martin over 15+ years in the NHL has established Himself in that middle-category ...and there is nothing wrong with that
...Jacques, if nothing else this past season, was tenacious in keeping his focus, discipline and cool through what was a challenging year of melding strangers to a team-concept and compensated sufficiently for lost game availibility to key players through injury
...Jacques deserves respect for that
...though much credit must go to JM for being at the wheel for this interesting almost unforgetable season, you will also remember how We backed into incredibly qualifying for these Playoffs by NOT winning
...outshot most games 2 to 1 (...o' but for The Grace Of God, WHAT would We be speakin' of Jacques Martin today if not for Our real savior ...Jaro Halak ???) ...if not for Halak ?, would most of You argue We would of finished the season no more than a few more points ahead of the New York Islanders ?
...2 rounds of unforgettable over-achievement in these Playoffs ? ...would You argue that JM should be greatful to Pearn's and Kirk's special-team strategies ? ..as well, would You argue He/We had a core of Players, with few exceptions, that were mediocre talent-wise yet possessed inate hearts and courage that required little motivation from a coach to play way over Their heads ?
...I have a hard time wrestling with the 'potential' of losing Guy Boucher to another team ...I have no more assurances than Yourselves whether Guy Boucher will be an exceptional Coach for Us, or ...a bust
...BUT ...all the indications are Guy Boucher has 'the style' of aggressive speed, intelligent and creative hockey I want to see My Habs play again as in Our Glory Days under Blake and Bowman ...in addition I feel Our Habs cries for an enlightened 'renaissance man' to establish a new generation of a unique, hopefully 'winning', culture for Our Team
...from re-establishing a unique Montreal Canadiens' Style Of Play to making Our Players feel the Montreal Canadiens is once again WHERE you WANT to play and learn the game of hockey
...I am not naive enough to declare Guy Boucher can or would ever achieve what Blake or Bowman did for Us ...but I am saying My gut says His 'potential' certainly surpasses Jacques Martin
...at 38, Guy Boucher, notwithstanding His preference to coach Our Habs, He will find it difficult to explain to His wife that He decided to hang-out a year or two more in Hamilton rather than enjoy the perks and salary of an NHL head coach, even if in the wasteland of Columbus
...It's My opinion that Pierre Gauthier's 'vision' and decisions longterm for where Our Habs go-from-here, is as much about His ability to keep Boucher within Our Organization, as it is the results of Player draft-picks and trades
Habitant means PASSIONATE HOCKEY
http://www.nationalpost.com/news/story.html?id=423049
Chris. I always thought that JM was hired to take over Bobs spot because Bob had said he would take the GM job for only 5 or 6 years.
I still think he will move upstairs and allow Kirk, Paron and Boucher to take over behind the bench. I was all about dumping JM now, but changed my mind after I witnessed this great play off run.
It is a team sport and the coaching team did a great job I thought.
...despite the 'fun'/entertainment We had this season Ian, We must look realistically that many things will be different by October ...first, this is no longer a team of 'strangers' ...at least the core
...Jacques Martin had the ideal experience and steady-as-you-go persona to keep Our Train on the track last season ...even then, it was 'lucky' We made the Playoffs
...it would be impossible to say whether Guy Boucher would have done as well last season as it was his first season in at the Pro-level ...but it is NOW the time for Pierre Gauthier to have A Vision of remaking the style and culture of Our Team
...I was born in Montreal and grew with the Montreal Canadiens naturally as My Team ...but this was not the only reason after 60 plus years I still love Our Team from the other-side of this continent ...I also fell in love with the style, class and panache of HOW the Montreal Canadiens played relative to, then, every other team
...of course, then We had that wonderful mix of Franco and English Canadian Players that resulted in magic on the ice ...today, especially that wonderful Franco element has been sadly and severely diluted
...as A Fan that fell in love with HOW the way the Montreal Canadiens played the Game ...I have been sickened how much the Montreal Canadiens have lost Their identity, and have become generic on-the-ice over the past 20+ years
...I definitely want Pierre Gauthier not to be satisfied with Jacques Martin-style hockey, as it is regressive, generic hockey
...in Guy Boucher I see an opportunity both for a dynamic change in The Style We would play, as well I see someone Who will have a great impact of encouraging personalities and individual talents of Our young assets so We will not lose so many as in the past
...this great Playoff-run Ian was an amalgam of circumstances of which JM was a part of, but JM was NOT the architect
...if We want an average Coach, then JM is as good as any
...if You want the Montreal Canadiens to re-find their mystique, to reach another exceptional level ? ...then I don't think JM has the capacity ...and GB does
...Your choice ?
...I KNOW My choice ...IF I were the Molsons, Boivin and Gauthier ...even if I had to eat a lot of coins, even if I had to eat a few existing contracts ...to MAKE SURE GB stays, and is the coach by 2011/12, at least
Habitant means PASSIONATE HOCKEY
http://www.nationalpost.com/news/story.html?id=423049
Congrats on a good piece!
i don't remember the last time I was so emotionally involved in a hockey series as with the Caps and then the Pens. Absolute "nail biters" those games.
I am in favour of Kirk for sure, but it takes team work from the coaches to put a run like we had together. So without kicking Martin to the curb just yet, lets see if this group of coaches can get us there.
After they accomplished what they did this post season, I have backed away from the dump Martin camp for now.