Issue link: https://read.uberflip.com/i/1212390
M A R C H 2 0 2 0 | M H J ON L I N E . C O M 13 Here's the thing, I was lucky enough to play on that team and I learned a great deal, but the more important thing is, am I able to pass on what I learned to these players. I want be able to share with them and get them to experience the growth not only as a hockey player but as a person. It's not about the wins and losses, it's about the growth of these players as individuals and as team- mates. If I do my job there, the wins will come. If they play the way I want them to play, they will have as much fun this year as they've ever had. When you play on a team that is truly unselfish and moves the puck without thinking about it and when someone scores and you don't give a lick who it is, there is nothing better. MHJ // Was coaching always a natural next step for you once your playing career was over? Rob McClanahan // I don't know about natural. I started coaching in the Orono system for five years in 2009 and dabbled in some assistant coaching at Blake. MHJ // What was it like playing for Herb Brooks, not only in college but in the Olympics? RM // It was hard. I'm not trying to make it hard for the kids I'm coaching now though. It was hard in the sense that he was a demanding coach. He also completely changed the way we played the game. He coached us to no longer follow the path of the North American teams back then. We were no longer going to be restricted to staying in lanes, no longer being a dump and chase team. We were going to possess the puck and by possessing the puck you increase your fundamentals. The style we played was a ton of possession so it was a ton of fun, not only for the forwards but the defensemen as well. MHJ // Puck possession remains a strong way your Blake team—and so many teams across the country play the game today, too. RM // When you possess the puck, and you have skill, you have good teammates; it breeds success. And you have fun. It's a blast. MHJ // What's one thing you think has changed in hockey today? RM // Every parent is worried about skill development and no one talks about the team. A part of being a good player in any team sport is being a good teammate. No one talks about that. You're only as good as your weakest player, and your best player needs to make sure the weakest player, he or she is as good as everyone else. Whether you play one shift or 20 shifts, that person needs to feel as much apart of the team. You bring them in and embrace them. At a young age, whether it be 10U, 12U, Peewee, I'm a proponent of everybody playing and no one being put in a specific situation. Everyone should play power play and penalty kill, because who am I to say a 12- or 14-year-old isn't good enough to move on and play DI? Michael Jordan was cut from his high school team so how do you think that coach felt? MHJ // Is that team-first focus the biggest thing you're trying to teach your players at Blake? RM // I want them to play fast, I want them to play unselfishly in terms of puck movement, I want them to feel that it does not matter who scores in that when one player scores, everyone does. Photos / Archives, Jim Rosvold/ Minnesota Wild "It's not about the wins and losses, it's about the growth of these players as individuals and as teammates." MORE WITH MAC Highest honor in hockey: I hope the people I played with look at me as a great teammate—that'd be my highest honor. Toughest opponent you've ever faced: I would say the toughest player, the scariest player, was Wayne Gretzky ; the toughest team was the New York Islanders. Not the Soviets? Here's the thing, when we lost to the Soviets in Madison Square Garden 10-3, it wasn't that close. When we played them in Lake Placid it was a different team and so were we. So tough, I don't think I can assess that because it was just different. Who played you better, Ken Stovitz (1981 made for TV Miracle on Ice) or Nathan West (2004 Disney's Miracle)? (laughs) Nathan West by far. Much better looking. How accurate is Miracle? Kurt Russell's portrayal of Herb Brooks was really well done. There were a couple of things that Hollywood created that didn't occur, but the message that comes from that movie was spot on. McClanahan's Blake Bears beat the Blaine Bengals on Hockey Day Minnesota in Minneapolis.