Off-seasons, or, in the case of the NHL, lost seasons, give everyone hope for the coming year. That has been especially true of the Blackhawks, who continue to try to erase the past and forge a new and (they hope) brighter future.
Another chapter in that story began Thursday when Trent Yawney was named the 35th head coach in franchise history, replacing Brian Sutter.
Just about everyone in the organization believed it was time for the Hawks to make a fresh start, and it was clear Thursday how much different Yawney is from Sutter when he talked about center Tyler Arnason.
The Sutter-Arnason relationship, in a nutshell, symbolized how a once-proud franchise had become dysfunctional: An old-school coach was unable to reach a younger set of players.
Arnason, Yawney said, “is a sensitive guy,” and he didn’t mean it as a negative. “One thing I found out about Arnie is the more you repeat things to him, the more he kind of turns things off.”
So much of coaching today involves psychology, and Yawney’s ability to connect with different personalities was a big part of his success with the Hawks’ minor-league Norfolk affiliate for the last five seasons.
While playing for Yawney, Arnason was the American Hockey League Rookie of the Year. Yawney also coached current Hawks Mark Bell, Kyle Calder and Steve McCarthy.
“You have to be firm and fair,” Yawney said of his philosophy. “There’s not going to be one guy who gets special treatment.”
Unlike Sutter, Yawney accepts the idea that gifted offensive players such as Arnason will have their share of turnovers and mistakes while trying to create on offense.
“Every coach is different,” Yawney said. “First mistake, strike one, I’m all right. Second mistake, strike two, you might hear my voice. Strike three, you might find yourself on the bench rethinking the play.”
Though he played 12 seasons as an NHL defenseman, Yawney said he wants his team to be “attack-minded” on offense and play an “in-your-face” style of hockey.
Yawney broke into the NHL with the Hawks in 1987-88 and experienced the “in-your-face” style of then-coach Mike Keenan. Former Hawks goaltender Darren Pang remembers Yawney being willing to walk into Keenan’s office and challenge him.
Eventually Yawney had enough playing for Keenan and asked to be traded. Certainly those experiences shaped a philosophy of how he coaches and handles players. Players who were under him in Norfolk lauded his abilities.
“As a player, all you want is to be treated fair,” Yawney said. “Does that mean I will always cater to my players? No. But I will listen.”
Shortly after general manager Dale Tallon formally introduced him, Yawney made it a point to dispute reports that he has a “rocky” relationship with senior vice president Bob Pulford. With Pulford sitting nearby, Yawney talked about his first coaching experience as an assistant under Pulford and how at times they “agreed to disagree.”
“In order for an organization to be successful, you can’t have people who will be yes men,” Yawney said. “[Pulford] is very strong in his opinions and so am I.”
Just how successful Yawney will be depends greatly on the man who hired him. Yawney likes the core group of players whom the Hawks are building around: Bell, Arnason, Calder, McCarthy and Tuomo Ruutu. But it will be up to Tallon to fill in the rest of the pieces.
Yawney’s record
Trent Yawney’s American Hockey League coaching record with Norfolk Admirals:
%% SEASON: W-L-T PTS PLAYOFFS
2000-01: 36-26-13 90 9-4-5
2001-02: 38-26-12 92* 4-1-3
2002-03: 37-26-12 91* 9-5-4
2003-04: 35-36-4 79 8-4-4
2004-05: 43-30-1 93 6-2-4
Totals: 189-144-42 36-16-20
*–denotes division championship
———-
rfoltman@tribune.com
%%
