“It’s been a breath of fresh air”: Blazers liking different coaching style

The players say Lajoie is approachable and they’re enjoying his relational approach to coaching.

“He’s easier to talk to with little things,” said 19-year-old defenseman Nolan Kneen. “As for Don, he was more of a team guy, whereas Serge, he’ll come and talk to you one on one and really help you out individually.”

Goaltender Dylan Ferguson added, “he’s a players coach for sure and it’s good to have someone like that that you feel comfortable talking to and asking questions. He wants the same out of everyone. He doesn’t put people on levels. He thinks everyone is equal and that’s a really good thing.”

Lajoie, who’s a teacher by craft, understands the importance of one-on-one development and patience with these new-age players. He also realizes the players these days need not just respect the coach but like him, too.

“If that is the case, and I agree with you, they have to like you. But they’re never going to like you unless they feel that you care about them,” said the 47 year old who coached the University of Alberta Golden Bears to the 2018 USPORT men’s national hockey championship. “Whether we use the word ‘like’ or ‘respect’ or ‘want to buy in,’ it all starts with building relationships.”

20-year-old power forward Jermaine Loewen was hesitant to give much insight into the different between Lajoie and Hay, but he said that Hay helped develop him from a fringe player to a 36-goal scorer last year.

“Don was a little bit of a harder, old-school kind of coach, but he helped me and taught me things I needed to learn to be a competitive player and to get that edge,” said the Arborg, Manitoba native. “Serge, he wants the same thing as well, be competitive but he’s very, I feel very comfortable around him. Just the change, I feel, is good for me.”

Ferguson shares the same sentiments as Loewen.

“Nothing against Don. My personal thought was Don was a great coach and he taught me a lot, but like you said he did have an old style of game play and the game is changing a little,” said Ferguson, who’s heading to Vegas Golden Knights’ training camp on Sept. 3. “I guess they thought it was time to make a change and we’ll see what happens.”

by Chad Klassen

“It’s been a breath of fresh air”: Blazers liking different coaching style

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