Tom Renney who is the President and CEO of Hockey Canada was in Budapest for an IIHF Coaches Committee meeting. We had a chance to talk to the World Championship gold winning head coach about Hungarian hockey, Gergely Majoross and his time in the NHL.
Tom Renney was the head coach of Canada both at the Olympics and the World Championships, he had been the head coach of the Vancouver Canucks, New York Rangers and Edmonton Oilers and also worked with the Detroit Red Wings. He is currently with Hockey Canada and also on the IIHF Coaches Committee with MAC Újbuda head coach and Hungarian national team assistant coach Gergely Majoross.
What do you know about Hungarian hockey?
If there is a country that has dedicated more and has grown as quickly to become a legitimate hockey country than I don’t know who they are. Hungary has done all of this, they certainly get recognized in the IIHF as well as in my circle as well. They have done this better than anyone else.
Is there anyone that Hungary could look towards as an example for them to get to the next level?
One country is Switzerland, this is a country to emulate. Hungary has the leadership here that they could follow. There is a political population that knows the importance of sport, being active and what hockey can bring and also has the funding to make the sport popular. The number of players has risen in the country as well thanks what is being done in the country.
What is your impression about Gergely Majoross and the work you have done with him in the IIHF?
I think that Gergely is a real leader within the game, not just in Hungary but also around the IIHF and the couching committee as well. He has had a good experience as a player and as coach well as in the executive positions that he will be doing overtime. I think he will leave his mark everywhere he goes and I hope over time he stays with what he does as he will have a large impact on the growth of hockey in Hungary.
Have you ever experienced Hungarian hockey?
During the NHL lockout we were preparing for the World Championships in Prague and we played an exhibition game against Hungary. We had a chance to enjoy the country and the fans as well, it was a very good game. I am somewhat familiar with Hungary, I can see the passion of this country through Gergely.
How much was that World Championship different than a usual preparation when the top players are available for Canada?
We had a better pool of players to pick from than usual, this was not an Olympic caliber team but a world caliber team. We all love to watch the best players taking on the best players in the world. Any time we can put the best players from our country on the ice we are excited about it. This does not always translate into success but that time it did and we were grateful for it.
You have been fired from the NHL three times, which one of the three might have hurt the most?
Edmonton for sure, I loved coaching in Vancouver since British Columbia is my home province, I loved coaching the Rangers since we had real good success for five years. I had a very young team in Edmonton and I really wanted to get my hands on them for alonger period of time. I think we really could have taught those youngsters to win. That was probably the most disappointing. I had the most fun in New York since we were not picked to do well but we did win. I was the most disappointed in my own performance in Vancouver, I was not that coach that I was.
During your career who were the players that you had enjoyed coaching the most?
I had coached the 1994 Canadian Olympic team in Lillehammer, we were not expected to contend for a medal but we ended up playing in one of the best finals ever with a team that was not expected to do much. This was very gratifying. In New York we got the Rangers back into the playoffs for the first time in seven years as a first year coach was great as well. Also winning the major junior championships, the Memorial Cup in Canada was also big deal with Kamloops in 1992. When looking at players it will have to be Scott Niedermayer a Hall of Famer who I coached in Kamloops. It is great to see a kid who you coached as 16, 17, 18 year old make it to the Hall of Fame. Jaromir Jagr was great as well, we had a special relationship with Jaromir and we still do. We tied Joe Thornton in the scoring lead in the NHL that year that I coached him and also won the Lester Pearson award. That was special because I don’t think people had the faith in Jaromir that year to pull it off. He tells people that, that was the most fun he had in one season in the NHL. Henrik Lundqvist is another great career who started his career in New York and is still going, he is a tremendous athlete to say the least. Paul Kariya is another player that I enjoyed coaching when he was on the Olympic team, another Hall of Famer. These are bunch of players where it sounds like I had something to do with their careers. They actually had more to do with my career than I had with theirs.
