Re: SLU 2010-2011 - Until Moko Comes Along This Will Have To Do
I met coach allain after the Colgate game last week, my from the stands impression of him was a gruff taskmaster, after meeting him, I took away that he is a nice down to earth pretty much a regular guy, with no attitude. This article from the New york daily News from January 1, 2011 will put to bed what the two coaches think of each other, I think it is admirable that they still continue to support each other and the program. sometimes a good thing is what it is, a good thing. I will let the coaches own words speak for themselves instead of hearsay and innuendo.
Friends on & off the ice
Keith Allain is taking a short hiatus from Yale to coach the U.S. junior team at the world championships, which conclude with Wednesday's title game in Buffalo. The director of player personnel for the U.S. side is Tim Taylor, the man who was pushed out after 28 seasons behind the Yale bench to make room for Allain - a former Yale goalie who once played for Taylor.
You'd think the situation would be impossibly awkward, until you find out what the men think of one another.
"He's a very professional, quality coach, and a quality human being," Taylor says. "It's hard to imagine a better guy to work with."
Taylor won six Ivy League titles, and one ECAC crown, in his time in New Haven, winning more games (333) than any coach in Yale hockey history and becoming one of the most venerable coaches in the sport. His dismissal by athletic director Thomas Beckett in the spring of 2006 after a 10-20-3 season left hard feelings all over the place. When Yale reached out to Allain, his first call was to Taylor.
Taylor, after all, wasn't just Allain's former coach. He was his mentor, the person who encouraged the 52-year-old Allain to try coaching in the first place, after Allain had spent an unfulfilling year in a Proctor & Gamble internship program.
Allain's first question to Taylor, over a cup of coffee that would last almost five hours, was basically, "Should I take the job if it's offered to me?"
Replied Taylor, "It's a great job, and you're a great coach. I'm not going to be coaching there next year. I'd rather have it be you than someone else."
Says Allain, "I'm not sure if it's correct to say I had his blessings, but I guess I did. I probably would've shied away if I hadn't."
Taylor not only gave Allain a complete go-ahead, he actually called his incoming recruits and encouraged them to stick with Yale, telling them the program was in capable hands. Allain lauded Taylor at his introductory press conference, and the admiration continues unabated. Working together is not awkward at all, both men say.
"Any issues I had were not with the players and not with Keith Allain," Taylor says. "I'm extremely proud of the job Keith has done. And I'm proud that, despite our won-loss struggles the last few years (of my time at Yale), that the foundation was there for a good future."
I met coach allain after the Colgate game last week, my from the stands impression of him was a gruff taskmaster, after meeting him, I took away that he is a nice down to earth pretty much a regular guy, with no attitude. This article from the New york daily News from January 1, 2011 will put to bed what the two coaches think of each other, I think it is admirable that they still continue to support each other and the program. sometimes a good thing is what it is, a good thing. I will let the coaches own words speak for themselves instead of hearsay and innuendo.
Friends on & off the ice
Keith Allain is taking a short hiatus from Yale to coach the U.S. junior team at the world championships, which conclude with Wednesday's title game in Buffalo. The director of player personnel for the U.S. side is Tim Taylor, the man who was pushed out after 28 seasons behind the Yale bench to make room for Allain - a former Yale goalie who once played for Taylor.
You'd think the situation would be impossibly awkward, until you find out what the men think of one another.
"He's a very professional, quality coach, and a quality human being," Taylor says. "It's hard to imagine a better guy to work with."
Taylor won six Ivy League titles, and one ECAC crown, in his time in New Haven, winning more games (333) than any coach in Yale hockey history and becoming one of the most venerable coaches in the sport. His dismissal by athletic director Thomas Beckett in the spring of 2006 after a 10-20-3 season left hard feelings all over the place. When Yale reached out to Allain, his first call was to Taylor.
Taylor, after all, wasn't just Allain's former coach. He was his mentor, the person who encouraged the 52-year-old Allain to try coaching in the first place, after Allain had spent an unfulfilling year in a Proctor & Gamble internship program.
Allain's first question to Taylor, over a cup of coffee that would last almost five hours, was basically, "Should I take the job if it's offered to me?"
Replied Taylor, "It's a great job, and you're a great coach. I'm not going to be coaching there next year. I'd rather have it be you than someone else."
Says Allain, "I'm not sure if it's correct to say I had his blessings, but I guess I did. I probably would've shied away if I hadn't."
Taylor not only gave Allain a complete go-ahead, he actually called his incoming recruits and encouraged them to stick with Yale, telling them the program was in capable hands. Allain lauded Taylor at his introductory press conference, and the admiration continues unabated. Working together is not awkward at all, both men say.
"Any issues I had were not with the players and not with Keith Allain," Taylor says. "I'm extremely proud of the job Keith has done. And I'm proud that, despite our won-loss struggles the last few years (of my time at Yale), that the foundation was there for a good future."
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