WORDS OF WISDOM FROM THE PATS’ BENCH BOSS
The conversation continued after the formal yakking was done.
On Wednesday, Regina Pats head coach and general manager John Paddock dutifully and congenially fielded questions about the local WHL team.
Topics such as the pre-season, the status of Pats players who are at NHL training camps, and the 2018 Memorial Cup — for which the Pats will be the host team — were addressed.
That being done, and with the cameras and recording devices having been deactivated, Paddock hung around and simply chatted with a quartet of reporters.
Head coaches in various sports, at various levels, conventionally flee as soon as possible once the media obligations are fulfilled. Some of them have a “camera face,” only to have their countenance sour as soon as the words are not being recorded for public consumption.
Paddock, by contrast, is the same guy in all situations. Ask him a question and you shall receive an answer that is invariably honest and, unless the topic is a player’s injury at playoff time, informative.
And if you are craving context or a calm perspective, the product of more than 40 years in hockey industry, Paddock is a go-to guy.
But he isn’t a go-away guy — not unless there is an urgent matter.
So there he was on Wednesday, relaxed and happy to talk. His off-the-cuff discussions often pertain to Regina’s other highprofile sporting franchise — the Saskatchewan Roughriders
— and he once again had a few thoughts to share.
By then, my seven-year-old digital recorder was not running. I wasn’t taking notes. But what Paddock had to say, to the extent that I am capable of recalling and paraphrasing at this advanced age, was worth noting.
Paddock began by noting that the Roughriders, win or lose, are highly enjoyable to watch this season.
He is a hockey guy, and hardly a football maven, but he appreciates the esthetic pleasure of spending an hour or three watching the Green and White.
Philosophically, the Roughriders agree with him.
From the moment Paddock took over as the Pats’ bench boss in 2014, he emphasized skill and speed.
He recognizes that even though teams are judged on the basis of wins and losses, they also have tickets to sell. They are in the entertainment business and, with myriad options available to the paying public, there must be a compelling reason to spend money to attend a sporting event.
Paddock has delivered on all fronts. The Pats have been increasingly successful on and off the ice since he took over.
Last season, for example, he iced a supremely talented team that played the game the right way en route to advancing to the WHL’s championship series against the Seattle Thunderbirds.
The people of the greater
Regina area embraced the 2016-17 Pats, and not strictly because they won a franchise-record 52 games.
Regardless of the outcome, they were fabulous fun to watch — in adherence to Paddock’s blueprint.
Many hockey coaches are content to win via any means possible, even if that means destroying the game. The New Jersey Devils won a series of Stanley Cups while being sheer torture to watch, and their approach was widely emulated.
Into the 1990s, NHL games were generally wide-open, and there were numerous 50-goal and 100-point producers. Then New Jersey won its first championship, in 1995, and the Dead Puck Era began. The game has never fully recovered.
Thankfully, there are progressive thinkers — like Paddock — who are imbued with perspective and a conscience.
They feel an obligation not just to accept the fans’ money, but to give them maximum value.
On Wednesday, Paddock once again underlined the importance of entertaining the paying customers. He cited the philosophy that has been employed with the Pats and drew a parallel to the Roughriders of 2017 — with an emphasis on the team’s offence.
Last year, the Roughriders threw 18 touchdown passes all season. In 2017, Kevin Glenn has 21 scoring tosses — in 10 games — and Brandon Bridge has connected for three aerial majors.
The array of targets includes game-breaking receivers such as Naaman Roosevelt and Duron Carter.
The latter, in particular, merited a comment from Paddock. He marvelled at Carter and the excitement he provides, punctuating that statement by labelling himself as “someone who knows nothing about football.”
This from someone who nonetheless dispensed wisdom.