Devil’s in the details for new Leafs GM
Lamoriello strong proponent of accountability, will expect his players to respect game
There was a Lou Lamoriello-inspired secret to the New Jersey Devils’ first Stanley Cup championship: the team’s bus driver.
The story goes that Lamoriello was such a control freak — or simply paranoid — that when the Devils were playing the Red Wings for the Cup in1995, he brought a driver from Jersey to drive the bus in Detroit.
The bus driver, he reasoned, might overhear some strategy, or hear about an injury. A driver from New Jersey could be trusted to keep the secrets. One from Detroit couldn’t.
“Oh, you’re going to hear all kinds of stories about Lou,” says former defenceman Ken Daneyko, the only person who has spent more years (31) associated with the Devils than Lamoriello (28). “Lou’s a smart man. Everything was calculated with Lou. Everything is kept close to the vest.
“And his track record speaks for itself.”
With the architect of three Stanley Cup championships now the general manager of the Maple Leafs, changes inevitably will come to the team’s locker rooms at the Air Canada Centre and MasterCard Centre.
“Players are going to find out it’s not a country club,” says Daneyko, who spent 20 years as a player for the Devils before moving to the broadcast booth. “We grumbled, we complained like all players about too many rules. But we all bought in because we were winning.”
This all sounds like a welcome change to Leafs centre Peter Holland.
“A great track record in New Jersey, three Stanley Cups,” said Holland. “It’s exciting for the Blue and White, another great addition.
“Everything is positive so far. There’s been so many changes, it’s kind hard to digest. We’re obviously going in the right direction. I’m excited to get the season going.”
Devils players called Lamoriello “Uncle Lou” or “Godfather.” He’s treated so many like a second father that it becomes easy for the players to buy into his philosophy.
“He has an unquenchable thirst to want to be great,” said former goalie Kevin Weekes, who spent his last two seasons in New Jersey backing up Martin Brodeur. “And he’s all about detail, about how you carry yourself, how you conduct yourself, how you present yourself on a daily basis, how you represent the franchise. Have your hair cut, be decent, put on a proper suit, look, feel, sound like and be a professional.
“All those things are areas that could have been improved upon here,” added Weekes, now a broadcaster with NHL Network. “Accountability. He’ll pull a player aside, respectfully and say: ‘Listen young man, you’re representing Toronto. This is an Original Six franchise. Go get yourself a hair cut, get a couple of proper suits and look like a professional.’ ”
Holland says he and his teammates will have no problem following Lamoriello’s direction.
“We’re going to have to up the razor budget is what I’m hearing,” said Holland. “It’s a team-first mentality. It takes everybody to win.”
It remains to be seen if Lamoriello bans facial hair with the Leafs as he did with the Devils. But he has core values he wants his players to espouse.
“There’s nobody more loyal than Lou if you’re a guy that’s going to show you’re going to be part of the solution,” says Daneyko.