Hockey, hockey and more hockey

[MTLskyline]

Jacques Demers sera nommé sénateur

 

Photo: Martin Chamberland, La Presse

 

Deux jours après avoir célébré son 65e anniversaire de naissance, notre collègue Jacques Demers a reçu un autre beau cadeau. Il sera nommé sénateur par le premier ministre Stephen Harper, ce midi à Québec.

 

"J’ai été contacté pour la première fois le 13 juillet par une personne de l’entourage du premier ministre. Ce dernier m’a souligné que j’étais l’un des choix de M. Harper et il voulait savoir si j’étais intéressé. J’ai répondu que je serais très honoré d'occuper cette fonction. M. Harper m’a par la suite contacté quelques jours plus tard", a confié Demers.

 

L'ancien pilote du Canadien n'est pas le premier représentant du milieu sportif à accéder au Sénat, à Ottawa.

 

Il y retrouvera notamment l'ancien attaquant du Canadien, Frank Mahovlich, et la championne de ski alpin, Nancy Greene.

 

Servir d'exemple

 

Cette nomination se veut un très grand accomplissement pour Demers, lui qui a toujours travaillé fort pour arriver à ses fins.

 

"Si on regarde ma vie, je ne l’ai pas eu facile et là, en 2009, je suis nommé sénateur. C’est un cheminement incroyable, presque impossible pour certain."

 

"J’ai toujours travaillé fort dans la vie. Dans un premier temps, pour devenir entraîneur. Par la suite, dans le monde des communications. J’ai été capable de démontrer que malgré une éducation limitée, on peut accomplir de bonnes choses. J’espère que je vais servir d’exemple pour des gens qui ont beaucoup de difficulté », a laissé entendre celui qui a remporté la coupe Stanley avec le Canadien en 1993.

 

En 2005, Demers a lancé sa biographie dans laquelle il avouait son analphabétisme fonctionnel.

 

"J’ai travaillé tellement fort dans les quatre dernières années afin d’améliorer mon écriture et ma lecture. Soudainement, on me nomme sénateur. C’est tout simplement incroyable."

 

Toujours à RDS

 

Même s'il sera un peu plus occupé, Demers conservera tout de même son rôle d'analystes des matchs du Canadien à RDS.

 

"J’ai appris la nouvelle à mes patrons (Gerry Frappier et Domenic Vannelli ) et ils sont prêts à travailler avec moi. Il y a évidemment certaines journées où je devrai m’absenter afin d’être à Ottawa, mais nous allons nous organiser."

 

Réactions

"C'est un honneur fantastique pour Jacques. C'est quand même surprenant, mais il a tellement fait pour le hockey ici et à travers le Canada. C'est un gars qui a toujours donné 100% de lui même pour la population et tout le monde doit être content pour lui", a indiqué Guy Carbonneau.

http://www.rds.ca/hockey/chroniques/281190.html

 

 

FORMER NHL COACH DEMERS TO BE NAMED TO SENATE

 

MONTREAL -- Ex-NHL hockey coach Jacques Demers, who has spoken frankly about his lifelong battle with illiteracy, is about to be named to the Senate, his employer said Thursday.

 

Now a hockey analyst, Demers's current employer -- television network RDS -- announced the appointment on its web site.

 

It says he will be named to the Senate by Prime Minister Stephen Harper during his swing Thursday through Quebec City.

 

Demers is quoted by the sports network's website under the banner headline: Demers Becomes Senator.

 

"I was contacted for the first time July 13 by someone in the prime minister's entourage," Demers is quoted saying by RDS.

 

"This person told me I was one of Mr. Harper's choices and he wanted to know if I was interested.

 

"I answered that I would be very honoured to be a senator. Mr. Harper contacted me a few days later."

 

Demers is the last man to coach a Canadian team to the Stanley Cup, a feat he achieved in his first year behind the Montreal Canadiens' bench in 1993.

 

He told interviewers that, as recently as 2005, he could only write his name and a few other words.

 

In November 2005, Demers released a biography, written by journalist Mario LeClerc, in which he revealed that he is functionally illiterate and had to hide it throughout his life.

 

He would hire assistants to read hockey contracts. He described how he pretended to read notes while he was on TV.

 

He also described the various means he used to hide his illiteracy from his wife, like pretending to be busy when bills would arrive in the mail and asking her to look after them.

 

Because of his status, he quickly became an inspiration for many suffering the same fate.

 

In a 2007 interview with The Canadian Press, Demers said he was buoyed by the fact that other people were coming forward because of his example.

 

"It's amazing it's led people to come forward, but it's also we're all scared to express ourselves because if we do, we're all scared of the backlash," Demers said.

 

Since his admission, Demers has learned to read and can plow through hockey stories in the newspaper. But other things take longer and require more focus and quiet around him.

 

Demers also coached in Quebec City, St. Louis, Detroit and Tampa Bay.

 

He is among a batch of new senators being appointed Thursday by Harper -- a crop that includes some of the prime minister's closest political confidants.

http://tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=288991

[Habsfan]

What a cheap attempt by Harper to get some votes in Québec. The added bonus for him is that this won't cost him one penny!

[peluche]

What a cheap attempt by Harper to get some votes in Québec. The added bonus for him is that this won't cost him one penny!

 

 

Bof.......si c'est ça c'est cheap en maudit mais j'en doute.

 

Au moins, Demers est un bon diable. Je suis content pour lui.

[MTLskyline]

What a cheap attempt by Harper to get some votes in Québec. The added bonus for him is that this won't cost him one penny!

 

I think you're misreading the situation. Harper needs to put Tory senators in the senate while he can, otherwise the Liberals will add to their majority.

 

In constantly appointing senators, he's trying to get the opposition to get so flustered that they support his call for an elected senate. To date they have been resistant to the idea. We'll see what they think when the place is filled with Conservatives loyal to Harper.

 

I definitely do not think that its an attempt to get votes but to get Canadians to want an elected senate.

[peluche]

I think you're misreading the situation. Harper needs to put Tory senators in the senate while he can, otherwise the Liberals will add to their majority.

 

In constantly appointing senators, he's trying to get the opposition to get so flustered that they support his call for an elected senate. To date they have been resistant to the idea. We'll see what they think when the place is filled with Conservatives loyal to Harper.

 

I definitely do not think that its an attempt to get votes but to get Canadians to want an elected senate.

 

I totally agree with your analysis.

[ErickMontreal]

*18+* Don Cherry pète les plombs

Publié le mardi 15 décembre 2009 à 07 h 47 - par Sébastien Goulet

 

(Corus Sports)- Accusé d'encourager la violence, puis défendu par la CBC, lundi, Don Cherry a refusé, plutôt impoliment, de donner ses commentaires à un journaliste de la radio de Toronto.

 

Le journaliste Colin D'Mello de la station 680 News de Toronto lui a demandé de formuler ses commentaires, dimanche, à la suite de l'accusation faite par le neurologue Charles Tator, à l'effet que Cherry était une « influence négative » dans la bagarre contre les coups à la tête.

 

Le réplique de Cherry (citée dans la langue de Shakespeare) fut la suivante :

 

« First of all, I would'nt do it on your station, I'd do it on my station. Why the f*** would I do it on yours? Now I'm telling you to f*** off. How's that? Can I tell it any more quicker than that? »

 

Alors que D'Mello insistait, un passant s'est demandé si la conversation était enregistrée. Cherry a ensuite ri du reporter : « Did you hear what he said? I told him f*** off, and he tells me there's no way I want to comment on it? »

 

Lors de sa dernière question, à savoir si le Dr Tator allait avoir le dernier mot, Cherry a déclaté : « I don't give a f*** about him, I don't give a f*** about him. »

 

Audio :: http://corussports.com/hockey/nouvelles/18-don-cherry-pete-les-plombs-1882623.html

 

[Philippe]

La grande classe. Voici le héros de bien des gens, triste non?

[MartinMtl]

Ouep, de la classe en effet. Un clown vulgaire et pathétique.

[acpnc]

L'égo est le pire ennemi de chacun, s'il n'est pas maitrisé il bouffe la personne et sa réputation et ce sans retour. Le "bon" Don Cherry aura bien son chant du cygne tôt ou tard et à l'instar des Jeff Fillion et autres grandes gueules sans cervelle, il n'aura que lui même à blâmer.

 

Quand on pointe un doigt accusateur vers quelqu'un on oublie trop souvent que trois doigts sont inévitablement pointés vers soi-même. Ceux qui ont toujours raison finisse par la perdre un jour.

[jesseps]

Honestly, I don't see why Bettman keeps certain teams in the NHL; L.A Kings, Florida Panthers, Nashville Predators, Columbus Blue Jackets and NY Islanders. Plus just let the Thrashers move to Winnipeg and have the Coyotes come to Quebec. We would have 8 Canadian teams and 17 teams in the US. Plus the majority of hockey players are pretty much Canadian. There is only a few teams that are in the US that have a majority of US players (i.e Buffalo).

 

 

Bettman keeps adding teams in the US and those teams are crap. The Kings have been in the NHL since 1967 and they only have been in 1 conference!

 

First the Minnesota North Stars move to Dallas and years later Minnesota gets another team. Yet Bettman, the ass that he is wont let Canadians buy a US team to move to Canada or let them start new teams in Canada. It is time that the league, fires his ass and hires someone more competent. Plus move the NHL HQ from NY to Toronto or Montreal. It is a Canadian sport, so the HQ should be in Canada!

 

If Bettman ever is at a Canadiens game, I would love hearing people say "Fuck You Bettman, Fuck You Bettman". I know people already boo him when he's at a game anyways. I know he is a business man and running the NHL like a business, Canadian corporations should buy it out from under his feet. I don't think many billion dollar corporations in the US would be willing to buy a Canadian sport. Plus many of the sponsors are Canadian corporations, plus many of the US teams most of the staff is Canadian.

 

Plus a few of the US teams kept moving between different cities and so on.

Edited May 17, 2011 by jesseps