24 Shares Share Tweet Share Share Email

Marc Crawford, head coach of the ZSC Lions of the National League A, took some time to email with Sean Tierney and had some interesting thoughts on the process of coaching, Auston Matthews and analytics. His answers are presented as-is.

A little bit of "Hollywood" in Swiss NLA playouts: ZSC ice hockey coach Marc #Crawford watching the game in #Kloten pic.twitter.com/4pq7mjr1BR — unihockey.ch (@unihockeych) March 16, 2015

Sean Tierney: You’ve won coach of the year awards at the AHL and NHL level. You’ve won Memorial Cups as a player, a Stanley Cup, and the Swiss National League A championship. What’s your next goal as a coach?

Marc Crawford: My goal as a coach is always to improve everyday. Coaching is about the process and with a core belief about the need to keep pushing to find the improvements in our game, I truly believe that the results will follow.

Sure, I also can be specific and state that I want to win a championship or the Stanley Cup but none of that will be possible without the underlying desire to be the best that you can be.

…

ST: You spent more than two decades coaching in North America, including 15 years in the NHL. You’ve coached in the NLA with the ZSC Lions since 2012-13. What’s the biggest difference you’ve noted between the NHL and the NLA?

MC: The big differences are that you have much more time to actually coach players and help them with their individual skill improvements. Our travel schedule is less and our players are less fatigued because of this and therefore we can practice more.

We do individual skill sessions with players on 2 occasions per week and our practices are less rushed than in the NHL where as a coach you have many more demands media, sponsorship, community and you are constantly concerned about managing the energy level of your team.

The bigger ice and hockey sense of your players are some of the other issues but generally speaking you have much more time to instruct and teach in Switzerland.

…

ST: What attracted you to the opportunity to coach in the Swiss league? In the long run, do you imagine you’ll return to North America to coach in some capacity in the AHL or NHL?

MC: I interviewed extensively for the Montreal Canadians [sic] job and the Washington Capitals job just before I took the position in Zurich and what that process revealed to me was that I really wanted to coach.

I felt that by learning more about the game on the big ice, and by coaching a team primarily with foreign trained players, I would be broadening my experience.

I have learned a lot. I believe that I am the best coach that I have ever been and yes I hope to one day return to the NHL where I will definitely use my knowledge to do the best job I have ever done.

All I need is s [sic] chance.

In the meantime the learning continues in Switzerland.

…

Hold those sticks and HEADS high! @OHLBulls pic.twitter.com/fg11KXkdxD — MasterBedroom (@masterbdrm) April 3, 2015

ST: As a Belleville native, what was your reaction to the city’s loss of the Bulls at the end of the OHL season?

MC: I was surprised and saddened to hear about the loss of the Bulls.

I am involved in a group that wNted [sic] to buy the franchise and I continue to search for ways to bring the OHL back to my hometown.

Belleville is s Grsat [sic] hockey market and I have no doubt that the city will again be a vibrant market for a team.

My father was captain of the world champion Belleville MacFarlane’s in 1959, my brother Louis coached the 1999 Belleville Bulls to their only OHL championship and I hope to one day win my own Championship in Belleville.

…

From what I'm being told 2016 projected 1st overall pick Auston Matthews to #ZSC in #swiss league is done deal. Marc Crawford is head coach — Andy Strickland (@andystrickland) May 11, 2015

ST: Rumours have swirled about the possibility of Auston Matthews playing in the NLA next season, possibly for your ZSC Lions. In your opinion, what are the advantages of playing internationally for a draft-eligible star like Matthews? Could a teenager succeed playing against men in the Swiss league?

MC: Auston Matthews is an outstanding young Hockey player and everyone involved with the ZSC Lions is so excited about seeing him play in Zurich.

There is no doubt that he can play and excell [sic] in the Swiss NLA and I believe it is the perfect training ground for young athletes. He will be coached by an NHL coach he will be challenged by playing against men in a fast skating, highly skilled league. He will learn what it is like to play the systems that will be utilized as he continues to rise up the hockey ranks.

He is a wonderful young man who wants to improve and we have an excellent record of development.

Ron Kenins developed with us and this year Jonas Sigenthaler and Denis Malgin both will get drafted because of our program.

…

ST: Analytics are growing in importance for coaches in North America. To what extent do you make use of possession stats or shot attempts stats in the NLA?

MC: I have always been at the forefront of analytics

We utilize statistics for zone time, zone exits, zone entries, scoring chances, momentum swings and of coarse, shots,hits, giveaways, takeaways, and goals.

I have long been a proponent of using the info to develop your practices, to utilize your match ups and to aid in the development of your line combos and D pairings.

I am constantly looking for the edge and I do believe that interpreting the data is of more importance than collecting it.

Having said that, getting the data collected correctly is of the utmost importance and it proves challenging in a none [sic] conventional hockey market.

#Hometownhockey SNAPSHOT – Marc Crawford returns behind bench of Cornwall Royals http://t.co/DV0LAtrFop @NHLRT_ pic.twitter.com/86ipYMdYqU — Hometown Media (@_HometownMedia_) April 29, 2015

Still focused on a return to the NHL, Crawford’s international experience has served him well.

Crawford already has an NLA Championship on his resume and his international experience rounds out what is already an impressive coaching resume.

If Auston Matthews spends a year playing for Crawford next year, the extra attention that Matthews will draw may be just what Crawford needs to make the jump back to the NHL. For a man dedicated to his craft, on the forefront of analytics, and with such varied experience, it’s only a matter of time before Marc Crawford returns to coaching in North America.

What do you think, hockey fans? Where is Marc Crawford most likely to land if he does return to the NHL?