Author and passionate historian Matthew DiBiase joins us once again, this time to talk about hockey history and the greatest pro coaches in his recent book titled Bench Bosses.
Top Pro Hockey Coaches
Bench Bosses Author Matthew DiBiase discusses the top hockey coaches in history
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Our Guest Matthew DiBiase
Matthew DiBiase has appeared on our Pigskin Dispatch Podcast a handful of times between speaking about his two football realted books of Lords of the Gridiron I and II. Matthew has also helped us in our celebration of the Rose Bowl in 2022 providing some guest appearances with those discussions as well. Here is a bit more about our esteemed guest:
About Matthew Dibiase
Author of multiple books on sports history, including Lords of the Gridiron I and Lords of the Gridiron II, Matthew is also an accomplished podcast host of the The Packaged Tourist Show, as he spends his days archiving some of the great items in museums.About Bench Bosses
Matthew in this discussion chats about his book on the coaches of hockey in Bench Bosses: The NHL's Coaching Elite, published by Penguin/Random House Canada back in 2015.
Matthew takes his formula that we have enjoyed thoroughly in his previous works and ranks the top pro hockey coaches of all time. His evaluation is mainly based on their work as head coaches being credited for winning seasons, playoff appearances, Stanley Cup Final appearances, and Championships. He also uses negative items from the coach's careers, such as missing the postseason, losing records, and the like to deduct points towards the rankings. All-in-all, a very fair and balanced approach to view these great hockey leaders. These are not hust NHL coaches but they go back in North American Hockey history and look at the WHL, Pacific Coast League, and the old Western Conference too.
Here is more on the book.
The NHL Coaching Elites ‣ About Bench Bosses
Bench Bosses: The NHL's Coaching Elites by Matthew DiBiase celebrates some of the greatest Professional Hockey Coaches of all time. DiBiase uses a creative method for evaluating coaching success, weighing both success and failure into a formula that gives an honest and fair approach to settling who the top pro hockey coaches are. Bench Bosses is filled with compelling biographical narrative, innovative analysis, historical allusion, hockey folklore, humor, heartbreak, and tragedy.Top Pro Hockey Coaches
We gathered a list of candidates for the top pro hockey coaches of all time. It is interesting to see how they fair in Matthew's formulated results in Bench Bosses:
- Roger Neilson
- Hap Day
- Art Ross
- Fred Shero
- John Tortorella
- Jacques Lemaire
- Paul Maurice
- Mike Babcock
- Alain Vigneault
- Jack Adams
- Peter Laviolette
- Pat Burns
- Darryl Sutter
- Punch Imlach
- Lindy Ruff
- Mike Keenan
- Pat Quinn
- Glen Sather
- Barry Trotz
- Dick Irvin
- Ken Hitchcock
- Toe Blake
- Al Arbour
- Joel Quenneville
- Scotty Bowman
Do these guys make the grade? You will have to find out for yourselves in Bench Bosses: The NHL's Coaching Elite.
Related Stories
Here are some more bits and pieces collected from the web that add to this subject on the great coaches of professional hockey.
Hap Day
Born June 14, 1901, in Owen Sound, was Hockey Hall of Fame defenseman Hap Day. Hap played a stint with the New York Americans but is best known as the Captain of the 1932 Stanley Cup Champion Toronto Maple Leafs. He was also a part of the Leafs Cup teams of 1942, 45, 47, 48, 1949 serving as the team's coach, and in 1951 as the assistant manager.
Scotty Bowman
Born September 18, 1933, in Verdun, Quebec, was Hockey Hall of Fame Coach, Scotty Bowman. Coach holds the record for most wins in league history, with 1,244 wins in the regular season and 223 in the Stanley Cup playoffs. He coached the St. Louis Blues, Montreal Canadiens, Buffalo Sabres, Pittsburgh Penguins and Detroit Red Wings. As head coach, Bowman has won a record nine Stanley Cup championships; five with the Canadiens (1973, 1976, 1977, 1978, and 1979), one with the Penguins (1992) and three with the Red Wings (1997, 1998, and 2002).
Joel Quenneville
Born September 15, 1958, in Windsor, Ontario, was legendary NHL player and Coach Joel Quenneville. "Coach Q" is second in NHL coaching victories with 969. He took the Chicago Blackhawks to three Stanley Cup Finals in 6 years (2010-2015) and won the title in 2010 with the club. Quenneville has also served as the head coach of the St. Louis Blues from 1996 to 2004, the Colorado Avalanche from 2005 to 2008, and the Florida Panthers from 2019 to 2021.Credits and Thanks
Special thanks to Matthew DiBiase for much of the content provided including an image of his book Bench Bosses: The NHL's Coaching Elite found on Penguin Random House Canada.
Orville Mulligan: Sports Writer
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