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My Greatest Day - Scotty Bowman

October 3, 2008 06:17 PM | Posted by   Scott Morrison - My Greatest Day  

He is the winningest coach in NHL history. He owns a record nine Stanley Cup rings. He has coached some of the greatest teams in the history of hockey in some of the greatest games played over his 30 years behind the bench.

But the day that was Scotty Bowman’s greatest was his last.

“I really had to think about it, but I would say my last game. The fact I had made up my mind not to coach the following year. I’m very fortunate because most coaches lose their last game and get fired.”

Fittingly, though, Bowman went out a winner. That spring, in 2002, his Detroit Red Wings overcame some considerable bumps on the playoff road and became the first team in NHL history to lose their first two playoff games at home and still win the Stanley Cup, which was the Motor City’s third championship under Bowman.

And it was that win that allowed Bowman to slip by legendary Montreal Canadiens’ coach Toe Blake with his ninth win and make his career complete in so many different ways.

About the Author
Scott Morrison is a 27-year veteran hockey journalist and recipient of the Hockey Hall of Fame's 2006 Elmer Ferguson Memorial Award. Scott appears on the Satellite Hot Stove each week on CBC's Hockey Night in Canada, as well as writing regularly for CBCSports.ca. Morrison has authored several hockey books and served two terms as President of the Professional Hockey Writers’ Association.

About the Book
Ask 10 NHLers to describe their best moments in the game and you'll get 10 different answers. Ask 50 and you'll get Hockey Night in Canada: My Greatest Day. In this new book from veteran sportswriter and analyst Scott Morrison, 50 great hockey people - players and coaches, managers, referees, and even a decorated general in Canada's military - are asked to describe their greatest day in hockey. Featuring full-colour photography throughout, this 200 page book is sure to be a hit with hockey fans of all ages. Get it here


“If we’d lost, I’m pretty sure I would have held to my word and not come back, but you never know, I suppose. But to be able to go out on a winning note was very special for me. It was just a nice way to do it, without any regrets or doubts.”

It was actually mid-winter, during the Olympic break, that Bowman, then 68, decided it was time.

“We had that long break and when we re-organized, we took our team to Orlando for a five-day training camp. We allowed the players to bring along their families and I brought two or three of my guys with me. That’s when I made up my mind to go. I thought if I could do this in other years, then I am ready to go.

“When we won it, it was a close game. Brendan Shanahan scored an empty-netter with 45 seconds to go to make it 3-1. I had the trainer all set up. I told him if we win I’m going to put the skates on for the Cup. It was the first time that had happened. With about five seconds to go I slipped off the bench and he had the skates all ready and I put them on.

“At that moment, when I had the Cup, to skate around was great. I wasn’t able to do that as a player. But at that moment I felt good obviously because we had won, but I also felt good because I could finally say it was my last game and I was going to go out a winner. I didn’t have doubts or second thoughts. If there is any grey area you can’t do it, but I felt good about my decision and the accomplishment for our team.”

And the symbolism of Bowman wearing skates, carrying the Cup, was a message to his players that he was leaving.

“We had a great team, but we had some tough moments that spring, too. We lost the first two at home to Vancouver and we were down 3-2 going into Colorado. But we shut them out in that sixth game, 2-0. I’m not surprised Dominik Hasek listed that as one of his greatest days because that was a big game. But we had a very good team that year. It was nice to be able to go out that way.”

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