I remember Teddy Nolan when he was a struggling Red Wings farmhand, in the 1980s. Then I remember him when he was coaching Sault Ste. Marie in the Ontario Hockey League. I used to direct TV coverage of Detroit Jr. Red Wings OHL games, and so I got to know some of the league's players and coaches a little bit. Nolan, even back then (early-1990s) had a reputation of being a tough yet fair coach -- and one who could relate well to his players.
Then, of course, I followed Nolan as he ascended to the NHL, coaching the Buffalo Sabres. He was the league's Coach of the Year in 1997 -- then got fired. And he didn't return to the NHL until last season, coaching the New York Islanders. It was a nine-year wait.
Yesterday, Nolan made a gesture that is awash with class and dignity, yet is also bittersweet, for with the publicity woes of the NHL during the Stanley Cup Finals, let alone during July, I fear it's going to get lost in the summertime shuffle.
Al Arbour holds the NHL record for most regular season games coached with one team -- 1,499. He compiled them all with the Islanders, starting in 1973. Of course, Arbour was at the helm when the Isles won four straight Cups (1980-83), and nearly a fifth in 1984. His last game coached for them was at the end of the 1993-94 season.
Arbour celebrates one of his four Cups as Isles coach
Enter Nolan.
There's a large plastic board near the Islanders' dressing room that lists team and individual accomplishments.
"Every day it would kill me when I'd see Coach Arbour made it to 1,499 games," Nolan said in a statement.
So what did Nolan, today's Islanders coach, do for Arbour, yesterday's Islanders coach and among the greatest coaches in NHL history?
He pitched an idea to the club, and with league approval, it's going to come to fruition.
On November 3, a home game against the Pittsburgh Penguins, Arbour -- after signing a one-day contract -- will coach the Islanders for the 1,500th time.
"This is an incredible gesture by Ted and the Islanders," the Hall of Famer Arbour said in the same statement released by the team that included Nolan's remarks. "I am flattered that Ted thought of me and I wouldn't miss this night for the world."
It's not going to be a record breaking night. Arbour already holds the mark. But 1,500 is such a nice, round number. So thirteen years after hitting 1,499, Arbour will gain his roundness.
Nolan: "Every day it would kill me when I'd see Coach Arbour made it to 1,499 games"
Cynics and sticks in the mud will say that this is a paper move, like the White Sox activating Minnie Minoso in 1976 and 1980 just so he could say he played in decades four and five. Or when the Detroit Vipers let Gordie Howe skate a shift in 1996, making him a six-decade man.
Fine. Let them harrumph and frown. But Arbour will coach the entire game, fair and square -- not make a token appearance behind the bench then vanish two minutes into the contest. But besides that, who cares what the naysayers say? The NHL needs all the positive publicity it can get.
I see where Nolan is coming from. It always bothered the heck out of me that Al Kaline ended his brilliant MLB career with 3,007 hits, but 399 home runs. He was one homer shy of becoming the first player with 3,000 hits and 400 roundtrippers. That honor later went to Carl Yastrzemski.
But it would have been totally out of character for Kaline to continue his career long enough to hit no. 400. Not his style. And I doubt the Tigers, or anyone else, could have convinced him to do so.
Arbour, we presume, was very aware that his record stood at 1,499 games coached. Perhaps he was at peace with it, as Kaline was with 399 home runs. Or maybe he would have jumped at the chance to coach no. 1,500, if asked.
Thirteen years and some change after his last game coached, Al Arbour will be behind the bench for the 1,500th time with the New York Islanders. It will come two days after his 75th birthday. And he's right -- it IS an incredible gesture by Ted Nolan and the team.
The NHL could use a lot more of this kind of stuff, you know.
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