Sorry, you can't smoke that in here.

It was  like something that happened everyday. He came in, crossed the room and shook my hand. More to fact , swallowed my hand with his.

This of course never happened but, I am so fortunate to have had the dream anyway. On the eve of giving another Coaching Clinic for the NCCP in Mississauga to a group of people I had never met before. Sooner or later you come to understand that this is part of how I make my living.

I am speaking to people all the time now, shaking hands and kissing babies to sell my new business which is all about helping coaches get their start and offer any bit of help I can. I'm not crazy enough to think there won't be some closed minded know it all coaches. That is part of the terrain. It has been one more for the rodeo for as long as I can remember.

You've got to treat people how you want to be treated. There are too many bodies to climb over on the way up that you
will no doubt see on the way down.

Why this dream, now? It seems all too strange to me. I have always said in conversations with other hockey people that I would have really like to sit down and talk hockey with Pat Quinn and Pat Burns. Some of the people around the table roll their eyes and ask me why? I usually say why not?

I can't think of two coaches who actually made my favourite team do something in this century. Both also had many similarities to my style on the bench. Controlled to 100k in a split second. Learning through the years when to step back from the cliff. I have heard the stories that Quinn left it all to his associates. That doesn't matter one wick to me. I only wish some coaches I worked with allowed me to do more and have a bigger influence, rather than push pucks.

At the end of the day, it was always Quinn's team. Can anyone question that? The man had style and class I liked that, no check - I admired that. He always accepted his mistakes and wore the team and his emotions on his sleeve. Some may disagree but in pro hockey it is less important to be a strategical genius than it is to be an excellent motivator and know where the line is between your players. A great deal is understanding human nature and how people (players) want to be treated. Some need to be pushed, some need to be (and want) to be kicked. Others need the velvet glove. If you find a way to please them all (?), then you have a happy family. Sometimes it is better to treat them all the same and let the pieces fall where they may. You'll soon figure out what works and who doesn't want to. Decisions are easier based on that.

People are different. Players are no different. They are highly skilled individuals at what they do. They deserve some encouragement and a pat (no pun), on the back when they do well. In clinics we tell coaches to praise in private and criticize no one player more than anyone else in public.

Walking the fine line as a coach is difficult. Even more so for today's volunteer with the hovering parents and most especially in Canada where everyone, even those who have never put on a pair of skates acts like they know the game because it's their birthright.

It seemed to me Quinn balanced the situation more than he lost control and that too was admirable. You can't control everything, let your people you brought on board do what it is that made them appealing to you in the first place.

Next time you watch a game look closely who is drawing out the last second plays and goalie out scenarios. Absolutely the coach has the talent and know how to do this but it is also a big part for the players to hear another voice from time to time.

That is when it all came together for me. What am I chasing? Or better yet, who is chasing me? I have everything I need right in front of me. Most importantly my wife and daughter who have waited 25 years for me to get it through my thick skull, I don't have to be on the road five days a week for little or no money.

This is what Pat came to tell me. Time is fleeting and you'd best make the most of it while you can . Hockey is always here, it is everywhere. If people need me, they know where to find me. Just not five out seven nights a week.

Thanks Pat.
--
Jeff Campbell
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