Joe Crozier February 2010 WINNIPEG, MANITOBA NATIVE JOSEPH RICHARD CROZIER...PLAYED AS A DEFENSEMEN IN OVER 700 PROFESSIONAL GAMES, BEGINNING IN 1947-- INCLUDING 5 GAMES WITH THE TORONTO MAPPLE LEAFS...*AND THRU PARTS OF TWO CAMPAIGNS ON THE ICE IN ROCHESTER, STARTING IN 1959... BUT IT WAS EARLIER THAT DECADE, DURING A STRETCH IN QUEBEC WHERE JOE GOT INTO THE MANAGEMENT SIDE OF THE SPORT— I played with Jean Beliveau on the power play in Quebec City. I was a good player. I was a tough player. I enjoyed playing. That's what helped me. I mean to say: I was a player, coach and general manager. WITH JOE CROZIER BEHIND THE AMERKS BENCH, ROCHESTER SCORED IT'S FIRST THREE CALDER CUPS-- IN 1965, 66 AND 68.. JUST SIX TEAMS MADE UP THE NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE AT THE TIME. THAT MEANT A HIGH QUALITY OF PLAY EXISTED ONE STEP BELOW: IN THE A.H.L. They were exactly the fifth-best team in the National Hockey League, the Rochester Americans. Toronto put some good players in there. Everybody wanted to play. Then you got a guy like Gerry Cheevers playing on your hockey team, or Larry Hillman. You're talking about National leaguers that are down in the American league playing for me. They were there for you . They were leaders on the team. CROZIER WAS IN A UNIQUE SITUATION-- AS BOTH AMERKS GENRAL MANAGER AND COACH.. HAVING THE SAY-SO ON MONEY ISSUES .. AS WELL AS ICE TIME FOR THE PLAYERS. JOE WAS RENOWNED FOR HIS MOTIVATIONAL TACTICS, TO FIRE UP THE TROOPS You give some players a pat on the back. I've thrown money on the floor. You give them the day off. There's a lot of ways you can motivate. Motivation is also on the bench, by sitting a guy maybe two or three without playing him, to get him mad. He's not playing, and his family is here possibly. BUT ON OCCASION, THE MOTIVATION DIDN'T GET THROUGH. LIKE THE TIME THE AMERKS DON CHERRY-- PERHAPS ANTICIPATING A COACH CROZIER TIRADE-- COVERED UP A PIECE OF PIPE THAT USED TO STICK OUT OF THE ROCHESTER DRESSING ROOM FLOOR-- We're down a couple of goals and there's that can there, right there, that Don Cherry had put over this lead pipe. So I come in there and I'm so damn mad at the way they're playing, I kicked that damn can and I break my foot. It was the wrought underneath it, see? And I was trying to get them going, get them motivated. ANYBODY LAUGH? Oh, they got a big kick out of it. They got a big kick out of it. WITH THE AMERKS, JOE REMEMBERS THE GOALTENDERS: THE LIGHTNING - FAST GLOVE HAND OF BOBBY PERREAULT, GERRY CHEEVERS STICKHANDLING WITH THE PUCK TO CENTER ICE BEFORE THE RULE WAS CHANGED... HE RECALLS THE IMPOSING EDDY LITZENBEREGER, THE GREAT SCORING LINE OF DICK GAMBLE ON LEFT WING-- BRONCO HORVATH AT CENTER-- AND GERRY EHMAN ON THE RIGHT SIDE.. AND THE ALL-AROUND STELLAR PLAY OF DEFENSEMAN AL ARBOUR-- Unbelievable. He wore glasses while he played and he used to be running over to the bench to wipe his glasses with the towel, have a towel ready for him all the time. He was a super guy and a super guy and a great player. JOE APPRECIATED THE SKATING OF DARRYL SLY AND PETER STEMKOWSKI... MIKE WALTON'S TALEN TO BURN... AND THE FAN FAVORITE, NORM "RED" ARMSTRONG-- He was always there. He was a tough kid. And you know, he wouldn't back down from anybody. He didn't lose many fights. Armstrong, you throw him out there, there'd be something happening. He wouldn't be going out there for a waltz. CROZIER RETURNED TO ROCHESTER TO COACH IN 1983-84, AND TIED FOR MOST WINS IN THE LEAGUE WITH 46.. BUT LOST TWO OVERTIME GAMES IN THE FINALS, LOSING TO THE MAINE MARINERS. IN 1987, JOE WENT BEHIND THE BENCH TO FILL IN FOR JOHN VAN BOXMEER ON SUSPENSION, AND PROMPTLY WON FOUR OF FIVE GAMES. CROZIER SERVED FOR SEVERAL SEASONS ALSO AS THE COORDIANTOR OF MINOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT IN THE BUFFALO SABRES SYSTEM When you're looking at kids in training camp, you'd look at speed, how he skates, if he's tough. Same as when I was scouting for the Buffalo Sabres and when going into the colleges, just pick out their talent and try to see where they're gonna fit into your hockey club. You can miss something, you know, the same thing. That's why we have a number one draft choice and a number 15 draft choice. Who says that the number one is gonna be better than the 15. And another scout could like someone better than you? JOE COACHED THREE YEARS WITH THE SABRES- FROM 1972 THROUGH 74.. AND WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR ASSEMBLING ONE OF HOCKEY'S MOST POTENT LINES OF OFFENSE, THE FRENCH CONNECTION, WITH GIL PERREAULT, RICK MARTIN AND FORMER AMERK RENE ROBERT I was thinking about something that was gonna help here, in 1971 when I come in here. I had Perreault, who could dance. I had Martin and I got Robert and I put Robert with them. And I put through the French Connection. That's how I did it. And also when Perreault went into the Hall of Fame in Toronto, the National Hockey League Hall of Fame, he asked me if I would put him in for him, and I did. I spoke both French and English. OTHER CROZIER COACHING HI-LIGHTS INCLUDED PARTS OF TWO SEASONS IN THE NHL WITH TORONTO, CHAMPIONSHIPS WITH KITCHENER... IN BOTH THE OHL AND CHL... AND BACK-TO-BACK WHL TITLES IN 69 AND 70- WITH MANY CALL-UPS FROM THE ROCHESTER AMERICANS. JOE ALSO SPENT THREE YEARS IN THE WORLD HOCKEY ASSOCIATION WITH VANCOUVER AND CALGARY. THE CROW HAS EXPERIENCED ENOUGH HOCKEY THROUGH PARTS OF 8 DECADES NOW.. TO KNOW WHAT *HE WOULD ADDRESS TODAY IF HE WERE IN CHARGE TO KEEP THE SPORT AT ITS BEST I'd try and get away from all those penalties: the hooking and the holding and all that stuff. And the fights? The fights made the game, you know? The people come to the games because there's aggression there. They just don't go to the games because of wanting to see somebody waltz up and down the ice for god's sake. JOE ALSO BELIEVES IT'S TIME THAT THE BUFFALO SABRES ENDED THEIR 40-YEAR OH-FER DROUGHT OF NEVER WINNING A STANLEY CUP. THE TEAM JOINED THE NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE IN 1970 We've had a lot of ownership changes in here, too, you know. Rigas was in here. Knox was in here. Now we got Golisano, who is a good man. He's got a lot of money. He can go out and get the people. Larry Quinn, who does a good job here. I think it's just a matter of time. We've been out of the playoffs two years in a row here. I think this could be our year, really. I hope it is anyhow, because I keep waiting and waiting and waiting for us to win a Cup. I'm not there, but I'm still a part of it, you know? LOOKING BACK, CROZIER BELIEVES HE'S MAINTAINED THAT *BOND.. THAT CONNECTION WITH HIS PLAYERS ... A COMBINATION OF PUSHING AND PRODDING BUT ALSO APPLAUDING... TOWARD THE ULTIMATE GOAL OF SUCCESS --- I love coaching. I love motivation. I love handling kids, like listening to their troubles. I like to help them. You know, that's my whole thing. You can ask any of my players that ever played for me: they say, what about Joe Crozier? They will say nice things about me, because I've never, ever treated anyone badly. And I've always been one of them. AND JOE WILL ALWAYS HOLD A SPECIAL PLACE IN HIS HEART AND IN HISTORY-- IN ROCHESTER. HE'S BEEN HONORED WITHIN FRONTIER FIELD'S WALK OF FAME... AND WAS PART OF THE INNAUGURAL CLASS INDUCTED INTO THE AMERKS HALL OF FAME- I loved Rochester. I had a lot of good times in Rochester. I won championships there. The people were just absolutely fabulous, the Rochester Americans and the Rochester people. It was a great thing in my life when they put me in the Hall of Fame in Rochester- not once, but twice.. and put the picture on the wall. I thought that was just an absolute great thing. ALL TIME ROCHESTER AMERICANS GREAT, JOE CROZIER. I'M BILL FLYNN