AchtzehnBaby
Global Matador
Looks like will see if he continues to pay the piper.
Smith makes no bones about the fact being a head coach is something he’s wanted and has worked for since late in his playing career. He did what it took to get here, he rode the buses in the Ontario Hockey League with Windsor for six seasons as an assistant and then spent three years as a head coach with the Oshawa Generals.
Smith was the only candidate Dorion and MacTavish met with twice. They flew to Windsor for the second meeting because they wanted to do their due diligence. Dorion likes the fact that Smith filled out his staff with two former head coaches — Jack Capuano and Davis Payne — along with eye-in-the-sky Bob Jones, who worked with Smith in Windsor.
“He has the ability to push the right buttons,” Boughner says. “Whether it comes to a skilled guy or a goalie, everybody is going to know their expectations and they’re going to know exactly what their job is. That’s what he does.
“And that’s the best part about D.J., he’s going to go home with losses, but he’s going to come to the rink the next day and it’s going to be a new day. He realizes he has a young team and an up-and-coming team, but the players need to know when they come to the rink that he’s got their back and he’s not going to hold himself higher than anybody else. He’s going to hold himself to the same standards.”
Smith makes no bones about the fact being a head coach is something he’s wanted and has worked for since late in his playing career. He did what it took to get here, he rode the buses in the Ontario Hockey League with Windsor for six seasons as an assistant and then spent three years as a head coach with the Oshawa Generals.
Smith was the only candidate Dorion and MacTavish met with twice. They flew to Windsor for the second meeting because they wanted to do their due diligence. Dorion likes the fact that Smith filled out his staff with two former head coaches — Jack Capuano and Davis Payne — along with eye-in-the-sky Bob Jones, who worked with Smith in Windsor.
“He has the ability to push the right buttons,” Boughner says. “Whether it comes to a skilled guy or a goalie, everybody is going to know their expectations and they’re going to know exactly what their job is. That’s what he does.
“And that’s the best part about D.J., he’s going to go home with losses, but he’s going to come to the rink the next day and it’s going to be a new day. He realizes he has a young team and an up-and-coming team, but the players need to know when they come to the rink that he’s got their back and he’s not going to hold himself higher than anybody else. He’s going to hold himself to the same standards.”
