Stars chart new course with Crawford
/Andrew's Dallas Stars Page
Marc Crawford got a call from Stars GM Joe Nieuwendyk over the weekend, met with him in Dallas on Tuesday, met with owner Tom Hicks on Wednesday and on Thursday was introduced as the new coach of the Dallas Stars.
"I've never felt more ready for a challenge than I do today, and I think that's largely because I do have a lot to prove and I recognize that," Crawford said as he met with the media at the American Airlines Center Thursday afternoon. "In a lot of ways, the Stars are similar. That's what makes me so excited, how motivated the players are."
Crawford, who won the Stanley Cup with Colorado in 1996 and has also coached with Vancouver and Los Angeles, takes over for Dave Tippett, who was relieved of his duties Wednesday after guiding the team since the 2002-03 season.
"I think what Marc will bring is real command at the top," Nieuwendyk said of Crawford, who has been working for CBC the past season after being fired by the Kings. "They'll know who is in charge. They'll be held accountable on a daily basis, and that's what I think is necessary."
Nieuwendyk said he wanted to move in a new direction, and that's why he decided to make the coaching change.
"Dave is a tremendous person and a first-rate NHL coach," Nieuwendyk said. "Today is about looking ahead and moving forward."
Although the decision to fire Tippett and hire Crawford came less than two weeks after he took over as GM, Nieuwendyk said he went through an "extensive process of evaluation" to in making his move forward.
"I contacted a number of former player of Marc's," said Nieuwendyk. "Joe Sakic and Mike Keane and Trevor Linden from all those years in Vancouver. I did my homework. I respect those players and they all spoke very highly of Marc."
Tippett is the only NHL coach Stars forward Steve Ott has played under during his NHL career. He had high praise for Tippett and expects him to land a new coaching job quickly. As for Crawford, Ott looks forward to Crawford's motivational tactics.
"I have a couple of buddies that played with L.A. when he was there and they say he's an extremely emotional coach that likes to light some fires under guys," Ott said on The Ticket Thursday afternoon. "As one of those guys that likes to be that same way, being emotional and lighting fires as well, it pushes guys to bring their max potential. It makes everybody accountable. I am interested to see who can't handle it and who can. I think everybody needs a good kick in the butt there to get going."
Crawford said he's most comfortable when speaking his mind, but has learned some lessons over the years as well.
"I think you've got to be true to yourself. If I was passive and never said things when things bothered me, I wouldn't be true to myself," he said. "I also recognize there have been times where my demeanor and my personality has got the best of me. Looking at the blogs today I saw one of the old things with me and Scotty (Bowman). That's not one of my finer moments, I know that. I pretty much guarantee you won't see that here.
"But I think being true to yourself as a player and as a coach is the best way to get the best out of your own individual ability, and I am determined to do that. I am smart enough to recognize that. I think common sense is the best way to deal with anybody. Hopefully I'll have common sense as the highlight of what I am about."
As for the style of play he will bring to the Stars, Crawford said he wants a team that plays an up tempo game but still takes care of business in its own end of the ice.
"I concentrate a lot on defense. I spend a lot of time on defensive play. The Stars have been a very, very strong defensive club, a very strong puck pursuit club, a great skating club and a great hard working club. I think they are the core values of the club," Crawford said. "I think I will bring a little bit more of a flair to the team, but I just think that is the way the game is going. The game is just being played at such a high pace right now and with so much speed and so much tempo, I think, quite frankly, that's the way the players want to play.
"We're not going to reinvent the wheel here. We're not going to turn this into the old ABA. We're going to be a responsible team that tries to play an up tempo game."
