Welcome to Steelers Takeaways! – Page 160 – More than 1,000 interviews of Steelers players, coaches, front office staff, media and more with those that played in the 50’s through today’s current roster.

Jeff Weiner – ESBL

Jeff Weiner interview (March 22, 2011):

Can you tell us first what constitutes “sports management” as it pertains to NFL players – what services do you provide?

Sports Management has a very broad definition, since it can pertain to so many different aspects of sport.

To my company, ESBL Sports Management, it means providing the highest quality of services to my clients (including LaMarr Woodley and Steve Smith) as it relates to building their brand via Marketing, Public Relations, and Social Media. In this day and age, I strongly believe that Social Media is the most powerful and essential aspect in order to maximize the other two (Marketing and Public Relations).

How did you get involved in sports management?

Do you want the long version or the short version? In short, I attended the University of Maryland in hopes of becoming a Super Bowl winning head coach one day. I worked on the football team as a student volunteer and developed some great friendships with several coaches and players.

About a month before I was slated to graduate, I found out that I didn’t (even get an interview for) the Graduate Assistant coaching job I was hoping to get, and I was dejected. The coach who I was closest with consoled me and told me the old cliche that everything happens for a reason. I liked him too much and was too upset to tell him how corny that was, and soon after, I of course realized that he was 100%
right.

Just the next day, he showed me an article on ESPN.com about an agent and the relationship he had with his client, and he said it reminded him of me and that I should look into becoming an agent. I blew it off and said “No, I want to be a coach. Plus, I didn’t even know what that is other than from watching the movie Jerry MaGuire.

My good friend on the team, kicker Nick Novak, had just finished his career at Maryland and had hired an agent. Coincidentally, he approached me just a few days later and said “Hey Jeff, have you ever thought about becoming an agent? I just hired one and your personalities are very similar. I bet you would be good.” I decided to do some research on what being an agent entailed, and about a month or so later I landed my first job working for an agent. I experienced some ups and downs in my first few years in the business, having worked for two different companies who both taught me a ton.

At the end of the day, I decided that I did not want to be one of a thousand agents, but rather I wanted to carve a niche in the industry that I felt did not exist. That’s when I started my company, ESBL Sports Management, where I focus my energy on the aspects of an NFL player’s career other than their NFL contract. Yes, that was the short version.

What does sports marketing entail, exactly? Can you explain to readers what it is that you do to market and brand a player?

Sports marketing in its purest form is when athletes are paid to endorse a company. Before marketing a player, I first need to get to know the player and understand who he was in the past, who he is in the present, and
who he projects to be in the future.

Once that is accomplished, I target companies locally, regionally, and nationally that I believe would benefit from having my client endorse them. In deciding what companies to target, I take a meticulous and strategic approach, and make sure that both my client and I believe that a partnership with that particular company would be something they would be proud to endorse.

How do you prepare rookies for the NFL game and for life outside of college?

Well, I don’t have to do too much to prepare them quite frankly, because the guys I work with are very intelligent guys who already understand how blessed they are to be in the position they are in.

One of the things I work hardest on teaching them is how careful they need to be with Social Media in this day and age, since one poor choice of words on a post can negatively affect their reputation. I do my best to coach them up, so to speak, on the importance of time management and being professional with media and marketing opportunities, as well as showing them how to best communicate with their fans via Social Media.

Of course, there is much more to it than that, but that’s the basic premise.

In working with athletes and their brand, what are the biggest concerns athletes usually have when you take them on? Is it all about money for most or are there other issues that you find them caring about more?

What most people don’t understand is that it’s impossible to answer this question because every single client of mine, and every single athlete in general, is a different person with a different outlook on things.

Sure, my clients want me to make them money because they realize it’s a short window for them and that they bring value to the table for companies. I think the most common thing that my clients all want is to be presented with opportunities that can not only provide them with a couple of bucks, but that also have value for the overall development of their brand.

How do you determine how you brand players – what factors go into an individual strategy?

As I eluded to before, this is an impossible question to answer because every player is so different in so many ways. It really depends on if the player is an introvert or an extrovert, if he is willing to be active in Social Media, among other factors.

So much of a player’s personal life has become public now. How do you educate players to avoid circumstances that can get them into PR, if not legal trouble?

All of my clients are good guys who, knock on wood, have never been in any trouble with the law. I really don’t have to educate them much, but there are always situations that arise, such as an athlete getting arrested for a DUI, where I make a point to remind them how something like this can not only ruin a career, but also a life.

How do you handle players who don’t take advice or seem to have little concern for their public image?

With only 24 hours in a day, I don’t have a single minute to spend working for players who have that mindset. In order to perform my job efficiently, I need to work with players who want my advice in regards to my areas of expertise and who are willing to take these aspects of their career seriously.

How do you find players to represent and do you reject players? If so, why?

I am very strategic in my approach to finding new clients. I know it sounds cliche, but I only want high character individuals, who also are business savvy. Agents want high character guys, but they still can earn a living from negotiating a player’s contract even if he is not an upstanding citizen.

Since I’m not an agent, the thing about my aspect of the business is that if I have a client who gets in trouble with the law or represents himself poorly in the media, I am very limited in what I can do for them.

How do you prepare players for retirement and how hard is it to work with players who are making that transition from star/starter to winding down their career?

I focus on preparing my clients for retirement the day I begin working with them by asking them what their long term goals are after football. No matter what they say, I believe that the ability to build a database of fans and supporters via Social Media while an athlete is in his prime playing days will only help that athlete when he is ready to move on to the next phase in his life.

Most NFL players aren’t making the millions that you see star players making. How do you handle those players differently and is there often resentment on their part/lack of acceptance of their “place” in the NFL?

I don’t think there is resentment at all from these players. I believe that most players are realistic and understand that Peyton Manning’s are few and far between.

I think guys just want to be compensated fairly for their production and they want to make as much money as possible, as quickly as possible, because they know that the window is small.

What are your biggest concerns – and hopes – with any new CBA?

I don’t lose any sleep worrying about that which I cannot control. I believe this thing will get worked out in the very near future and right now everything you hear in the media is all just part of negotiations.

The NFL is the best league in all of professional sports and it’s not by accident. Not only is it a great game with great fans, but it has smart businessmen on both the NFL side and the NFLPA side who have worked very hard over the years to get it to the level of success that it has reached.

I have the utmost confidence they will not mess that up and that everything will be resolved before too long.

Any last thoughts for readers?

Thanks for reaching out to me Ron. I hope my answers were interesting and insightful to your readers.

Jim O’Brien -70’spirates-steelers

Reunions of ’71 Pirates and Steelers of ‘70s Rekindle Great Memories – Jim O’Brien

I have often been told I have a nice job.

Then again, my younger daughter, Rebecca, has often reminded me, “Dad, you never had a real job.”

Many sports fans through the years have told me they wish they could have tagged along with me and met all the great sports stars I have been fortunate to meet and interview as a sports writer and author.

I always recognized I was blessed to turn a boyhood fascination with sports and writing into a lifelong career. Yes, in my own way, I was able to make it to the major leagues in all sports.

I was never a one-sport guy. I covered more sports on all levels than any other sportswriter to come out ofPittsburgh.

I was reminded of this over the past extended weekend when I spent time in the company of the Steelers of the ‘70s, as well as some of the great players of opposing teams in the National Football League, and the ’71 Pirates.

These were the ballplayers that made the Steelers the “Team of the Decade” in the NFL in the ‘70s, and produced title teams – four Super Bowl champions and two World Series winners – and prompted sportscaster Howard Cosell to label Pittsburgh“The City of Champions.”

It stuck and we still like to think of ourselves in that respect.

Last Thursday evening my wife Kathie and I attended a gala party at Heinz Field for the 34^th Annual Andy Russell Celebrity Classic, and then I joined many of the celebrities and participants at a breakfast the following morning at the Club at Nevillewood where a golf outing was held.

From there, I hustled off to Robert Morris University, where I signed books in my “Pittsburgh Proud” series Friday through Sunday at the 33^rd Pittsburgh Sports Card Show that featured the 30^th anniversary reunion of the 1971 Pirates.

I worked at The New York Post from 1970 till 1979 and took pride in thePittsburgh sports successes from a distance. I was covering all the sports teams inNew York, but I still reveled in the accomplishments of my hometown teams, including the 1976 Pitt national college football championship team.

I returned home to work for The Pittsburgh Press, where I had worked while in high school and at Pitt, in April of 1979. I got back just in time to celebrate another World Series triumph by the Pirates in 1979, and to cover the Steelers when they won their fourth Super Bowl in six years.

Danny Murtaugh had managed the Pirates in 1971, and Chuck Tanner was at the helm of the ship in 1979. Chuck Noll, of course, coached the Steelers, still the only coach to claim four Super Bowl championships in as many outings.

And I wrote the first of 20 books I would write about Pittsburghsports achievements when Marty Wolfson and I edited and published Pittsburgh: The Story of the City of Champions.

Andy Russell has raised over $5 million at his celebrity golf outing for local charities, most recently the UPMC prostate cancer research program. I remember covering one of his early outings with Arnold Palmer as the co-host at the Latrobe Country Club, and I have attended about 15 of these events ever since.

The former Steelers present this time were John Banaszak, Craig Bingham, Rocky Bleier, Mel Blount, Emil Boures, Robin Cole, Glen Edwards, Neil Graff, Gordon Gravelle, Jack Ham, Dick Hoak, Bill Hurley, Todd Kalis, Marv Kellum, Louis Lipps, Mike Merriweather, Edmund Nelson, Myron Pottios, Lynn Swann, Paul Uram, Mike Wagner, J.R. Wilburn and Dwayne Woodruff.

Bobby Bell and Willie Lanier, both Hall of Fame linebackers for the Kansas City Chiefs, were there, along with Isaac Curtis of the Cincinnati Bengals, Pierre Larouche and Phil Borque of the Penguins, Kent Tekulve of the Pirates, Tom Mack, a Hall of Fame center for the Los Angeles Rams, and Billy Van Heusen of the Denver Broncos.

I particularly enjoyed taking a trip down memory lane with Bobby Bell. I was stationed at the U.S. Army Home Town News Center inKansas Cityfor ten months in 1965 when the Chiefs were assembling one of the greatest teams in NFL history. Lenny Dawson, a former quarterback with the Steelers, was the team’s offensive leader andBelland Buck Buchanan were the leaders of the team’s defensive unit.

I helped out in the press box at Municipal Stadium for home games for the Chiefs and Athletics, a real perk since I was getting about $10 a day in meal money from the Army. I spent time in the home of Bobby Bell when I interviewed him for a feature story in Sport magazine. He was sharing the pad with a defensive back named Fred “The Hammer” Williamson, who gained fame for his ferocious hits and went on to star in a series of black exploitation movies featuring fearsome black tough guys and gals (Richard Roundtree and Pam Greer) ala “Superfly” and “Shaft” that were popular with urban audiences in the early ‘70s. Williamson had once played briefly for the Steelers.

Belland Williamson were an odd couple, andBellhad a few belly laughs over reflecting on his roommate.

Bellhas been a regular at Andy Russell’s Celebrity Classic for many years, and is popular with whatever foursome gets him in the draw. KDKA’s Bob Pompeani, who was a student of mine once upon a time atPointParkUniversity, is the only other member of the media at these outings. He emcees the auction and plays in the golf outing. He’s got a green jacket to prove it. Those who participate in at least ten of the classics rate the same kind of blazer that is given to Masters champions atAugusta.

I was not as familiar with the ’71 Bucs because I was inNew York at the time as I am with the ’60 Bucs and ’79 Bucs. It was good to see Gene Alley, Tony Bartirome, Steve Blass, Vic Davalillo, Dave Giusti, Mudcat Grant, Richie Hebner, Jackie Hernandez, Bob Johnson, John Lamb, Don Leppert, Bill Mazeroski, Al Oliver, Bob Robertson, Charlie Sands, Manny Sanguillen, Bob Veale and Bill Virdon.

I covered the New York Yankees when Virdon managed the team during the 1974 and 1975 seasons. He is the answer to a trivia question: Who managed the Yankees for two years and never managed one game at Yankee Stadium? The Yankees played at Shea Stadium, the Mets’ home field, during that span as major renovations were being done on Yankee Stadium. The venerable ballpark has since been leveled when a new stadium was constructed next door.

Terry Hanratty, a quarterback for the Steelers in the ‘70s, was the lone Steelers’ player to be signing autographs among all the ’71 Pirates at Robert Morri sUniversity. Promoter J. Paul Stogner said he wanted to have something for the Steelers’ fans in attendance.

Jim Tripodi, who operates Diamond Jim’s, a sports card and memorabilia shop in Beaver, is a regular at these card shows.

“I’m really getting into magazines, sports publications of all kinds and press guides,” Tripodi told me. “I swear I keep seeing your name in all of them. I don’t know where you found the time to have two kids.”

I told him I hustled pretty good in the ‘70s and ‘80s as far as free-lance writing was concerned. I loved writing about sports stars and seeing my byline in all the national publications.

Sportswriters weren’t making good money in those days, so I moonlighted and took advantage of all opportunities to get my stuff published and make some money on the side.

I saved nearly all of that extra money. The fees for such stories ranged from $50 to $500 in the early years, and got better later on. I started out making $12,500 a year for editing Street & Smith’s Basketball Yearbook in 1970, and was up to $65,000 for editing three annuals for the Conde Nast Publications by the mid-80s.

I was able to save about $100,000 for each of our daughters, Sarah and Rebecca. That included $65,000 earmarked for their college education and $35,000 for their weddings. I was right on the mark for what I needed for them to go to theUniversityofVirginiaandOhioUniversity, for Sarah and Rebecca, respectively. Rebecca’s wedding money is still drawing dividends and interest.

I invested the rest in retirement funds for Kathie and myself. That’s how you are supposed to manage your money. That’s why I have little tolerance for the complaints offered by pro athletes these days during the labor contract disagreement in the NFL.

The players have this sense of entitlement, which is rampant in this country among many people. With the kind of money they are making they should be stashing away the majority of their money for future use. When NFL players compare their situation to being slaves I have to question their mentality.

They say the average NFL playing career is just over four years, yet many of them think they should be set for life and never have to work again. In truth, if they saved and invested their money wisely they would be set for life.

I worked for the New York Post for nine years and Street & Smiths’s for 32 years, and The Pittsburgh Press for four-and-a-half years – the average NFL career – and draw a pension from none of them. I saved and funded my own pension.

I did what I did because I enjoyed the life. I remember Dick Young, the best baseball writer ever, when asked why he was a sportswriter, saying, “I don’t want to be a millionaire, I just want to live like one.” Exactly. My sentiments, indeed.

It’s a great life. The Pirates, Steelers, Penguins and other pro athletes who were in Pittsburgh this past week ought to know that by now. It was good to see them again. We were lucky they came our way.

Pittsburghsports author and Valley Mirror columnist Jim O’Brien has written a series of “Pittsburgh Proud” books that area available at area book stores. His website is www.jimobriensportsauthor.com

O’Brien-Ohlendorf

Ross Ohlendorf poster boy for what’s wrong with Pittsburgh Pirates – Jim “O’Brien

I actually felt some compassion for Ross Ohlendorf and that surprised me. He looked so forlorn and lost as he sat on the bench after he was knocked out of his last two starts as a Pirates’ pitcher.

Ohlendorf looked like a man who was wondering whether he would be wearing a Pirates’ uniform next season. He looked like a man who was wondering how everything was going wrong for him, and what was to become of him.

I don’t think Ohlendorf will be back with the Bucs. I don’t think another pitcher with similarly awesome stuff, Paul Maholm, will be back either. They can’t win, they’re high maintenance and they make more money than they’re worth. Catcher Ryan Doumit may not be back, and shortstop Ronny Cedeno could be gone as well. Pedro Alvarez must improve or be a bust.

The Pirates made significant progress this past season, but they had a losing season for the 19^th consecutive year – a record for all major sports – and they must make some changes if they are to become a legitimate contender for a championship in Major League Baseball.

Ohlendorf is a 29-year-old righty with a hard-biting sinker and he can hit 97 miles per hour with a two-seam sinking fastball.

But he hasn’t stayed healthy and he hasn’t been able to win.

During the last off-season he rejected the Pirates’ contract offer and took them to arbitration. When he did this I offered the thought that the Pirates should have told him, “Sorry, but we’re not interested. You should look elsewhere for future employment. Good luck.”

But Ohlendorf knew what he was doing. He was a Princeton grad, an all-Ivy standout, and he’d written a 140-page paper atPrincetonabout the financial aspects of the draft in Major League Baseball. He majored in Operations Research and Financial Engineering atPrinceton.

Now this was a guy who had posted a record of 1-and-11 and an earned run average of 4.07 in his previous season as a pitcher for the Pirates. He won his arbitration hearing and a $439,000 raise to $2,025,000 for the 2011 campaign.

How’d he do that? In truth, though, the Pirates aren’t the only team that operates this way.

Ohlendorf is making almost as much as another overpaid pitcher, Todd Graham, the first-year head coach and pitchman for Pitt’s “high octane offense” this season. Graham is getting $2.25 million. Hopefully, the fine win againstSouth Floridais a preview of what’s to come for the Panthers.

This year Ohlendorf missed most of the season with arm ailments and didn’t join the team until the final six weeks of the season. He posted a 1-3 record with an 8.15 ERA. So he’s been paid more than $3.5 million for two pitching victories over the last two seasons.

His one victory last month came against the Dodgers, but he followed it up with two disastrous and short-lived appearances in the stretch run. I witnessed both games on television. It was hard to watch.

He was shelled for seven runs in two plus innings in an 8-5 loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks, the team that drafted him out ofPrinceton. The D’Backs managed to pull off two double steals on Ohlendorf, a club record. I’d never seen that happen in my lifetime.

In his last outing, against the Brewers inMilwaukee, he gave up a monster home run to Prince Fielder and then an even longer one to Rickie Weeks, the next batter. The Bucs managed to tie the game at 2-2 and Ohlendorf singled in a go-ahead run, but he couldn’t hold the 3-2 lead.

Afterward, Ohlendorf said, “I wish I could have held the lead but that was a lot of fun.”

Did he really think so? That was a lot of fun…

But Ohlendorf talks like that. At spring training, he was brought along carefully because of arm problems. After he pitched an extended inning (four outs) in spring training, he declared himself fit for the coming season.

He likes to put a positive spin on his efforts.

When he was ripped by the D’Backs, he said, “I felt like the ball was coming out of my hand real good and I made good pitches, but they took good swings. I had some really good pitches but I didn’t make enough good pitches.”

Even the late Chuck Tanner was never that positive and upbeat.

I’ve seen where the Pirates have fired their trainers since the season was completed, so maybe they were to blame for Ohlendorf missing so many games, or the Pirates falling apart after the All-Star Game. It was said some of the coaches were in jeopardy of losing their jobs as well.

The problem with the Pirates is that they just don’t have enough good players, and I think that’s going to be a problem for the Penguins and Steelers as well. Oh my oh my. Imagine if Sidney Crosby can’t play.

There would not be any Pittsburgh Penguins playing at theConsolEnergyCenterexcept for Sidney Crosby coming here. There wouldn’t be anyConsolEnergyCenter. And they wouldn’t be tearing down the Civic Arena. See the domino effect?

That’s why sports command our attention. This past weekend there were some great last-game of the schedule outings in baseball, some terrific match-ups in collegiate and professional football, and some hockey and golf thrown in for good measure. The Steelers lost inHoustonbecause their offensive line can’t block for Big Ben or any of the running backs.

The Red Sox took a monumental dive and that, along with his own words, cost Terry Francona ofNew Brightonhis job as manager inBoston. Maybe he’ll end up with the White Sox.

It was good to see Jim Leyland leading the Detroit Tigers into the playoffs against the New York Yankees.

But, for some reason, I kept thinking about Ross Ohlendorf. He’s probably a fine fellow. He’s taken advantage of a system that doesn’t make any sense. There are no NBA pre-season games going on right now because they have followed the lead of the NFL in having a labor dispute. There is never enough money to go around.

Unemployment is high in this country and in the world right now, and the Average Joe is hurting. But the ballplayers never make enough money. Prices are going up after a long hiatus for the Pirates next season.

They need more money to pay for the kind of players they need to make a serious run – and not just to the All-Star Game like they did this season – for a National League playoff position.

Sometimes I think the Pirates’ broadcasters would be speechless if they didn’t have statistics to spew out throughout the telecasts and broadcasts. But one statistic caught my attention last week.

Greg Brown came up with a gem. He said that the great Walter “Big Train” Johnson, who pitched for the Washington Senators way back when and was a charter member of the Baseball Hall of Fame, was a pretty fair hitter, too.

Brown said there was a ten-year stretch where Johnson had a higher batting average than his earned run average during the same span. Now that’s impressive.

Johnson surely didn’t make as much money as Ohlendorf’s raise of $439,000 during those ten years combined.

It’s a different day, of course. I thought about my friends Bob Friend and Bob Rowe. They both had their right shoulders surgically replaced this past year. Friend pitched every fourth day for the Pirates back in the ‘50s and ‘60s, and Rowe was a lineman for ATT, working a high-wire act with a hook. The wear and tear on their shoulders finally got to be too painful.

They didn’t need rehab until they retired.

Pittsburghsports author and historian Jim O’Brien has a series of “Pittsburgh Proud” books available at area book stores. His website is www.jimobriensportsauthor.com

Joe Starkey

Joe Starkey, Tales From the Pittsburgh Penguins (August 12, 2011):

First, what made you decide to write on this subject and include the past as well as present team stories?

Well, my former colleague at the Trib, Mike Prisuta, gave me the opportunity and passed along the project from a publishing company in Chicago. Their whole theme was to do ‘greatest tales’ books on teams and players.

How were able to research those older Penguins teams to uncover the stories as you did – who were you able to speak with and how much fun was it to connect with those older players?

It was incredibly fun.

I already had tons of numbers from covering the team, but Cindy Himes at the Penguins connected with me a lot more of the old-time players and people like Paul Steigerwald, Bob Grove and Tom McMillan — with their encyclopedic knowledge of team history — gave me tales to pursue and people to connect with.

How was the game different then – how has it changed, and has it done so for the better, do you think?

So many things are different. I remember looking at one of the old photos and seeing the glass was only a few feet high. People could and would stand to reach over it.

No helmets, obviously, and less equipment, which actually prevented a lot of the gutless, idiotic plays you see nowadays. More equipment means more courage.

Also, as players will tell you, they protected each other back then. Of course, they also had bench-clearing brawls.

The biggest difference of all, as in any sport, is the size and speed and strength of players. Just no comparison. The size of goalie equipment, too, is a joke nowadays. You look at old-time goalies, they practically look naked in the net.

Their masks were much cooler then, too. I miss end to end rushes and slap shots off the rush. But overall, the game is better because of the skill and speed. Simply put, more players are good.

The Penguins came such a long way from sad sack team to contender – what happened organizationally to make this happen?

It started, of course, with Mario Lemieux, and Eddie Johnston’s willingness to go to great lengths to secure that pick (nice way of saying Penguins tanked it for top pick). EJ then would not be tempted by any trade offer for top pick.

Later came Paul Coffey, which was the kind of trade that made people say, wow, if the Penguins can get a guy like that, anything is possible. Then, of course, Craig Patrick came along and brought in Bob Johnson and Scotty Bowman, and suddenly the Penguins had one of the most respected management teams in the game.

Who were a few of the more memorable characters on those older teams –what made them so – any examples?

Eddie Shack stands out. Just a complete nut. Commandeered the Zamboni for a few rides. Crazy end-to-end rushes captured fans’ imagination. Bryan “Buggsy” Watson took the team’s hotel shuttle for a ride one time, kicking the driver out of his seat, and Andy Brown was the last goalie to play without a mask.

What would surprise fans most about the early days and about the success the Penguins finally realized?

One thing that surprised me in researching was that George Steinbrenner almost became owner of the team at one point early on. That would have been interesting.

Also, the NHL at one point seized control of the franchise. There were financial issues from the get-go.

Oh, and by the way, there were financial issues with the company that published the book, too. It went bankrupt and folded!! How ironic is that? Is ironic the right word there? I don’t even know where the book can be found at the moment. Probably on Craig’s List or something, or at somebody’s garage sale.

If you could put a finger on it, what did those Penguins teams of old “do wrong” in their inability to win on the ice and win over fans?

Couldn’t beat the Islanders, for one thing.

You wonder how things might have been different if they hadn’t blown the 3-0 lead in 75.

The constant trading of first-round draft picks was probably the biggest mistake. Eddie Johnston ended that habit, emphatically.

Besides the obvious players like Lemieux, Jagr….who were some of the more memorable players for you on these recent teams that didn’t share as much of the limelight, and what made them so?

Hans Jonsson wore blue socks every day. Darius Kasparaitis was probably my favorite player to cover. Just a warrior and a naturally funny guy. Never forget him playing with a torn ACL. Also the way he hit people (like Lindros).

Brad Werenka was an interesting person. I remember him constantly reading on the team plane (he went on to become a lawyer). Jiri Slegr wearing literally pounds of jewelry around his neck. Kip Miller played the guitar fairly well. Robbie Brown was a great guy. I remember my first trip with the team being a bit uncomfortable walking onto the team bus — especially when I got the stare from Barrasso — because there were no seats up front. I wound up in the back, next to Brown, and he couldn’t have been nicer.

This offseason, the Penguins lost a couple of their “heart and soul” guys in Rupp and Talbot. How damaging are those losses to the locker room >>> > chemistry and to the team’s “grit”? Who replaces those personalities?

Always hard to tell how losing certain players will affect chemistry.

I don’t think much if Crosby and Malkin come back and play well! I think the chemistry was excellent before Rupp got here and will continue to be so. He contributed, for sure, but I wish he’d playedmore in Game 7 vs. Tampa.

Talbot’s contributions won’t be forgotten. But I think the team will be fine if its top-end talent comes through.No shortage of grit when you look at who could be on the third and fourth lines.

The Penguins have become one of the most community-oriented franchises in sports. Do you think this is in part to secure their place with a fan-base that they had lost much of years ago (to the point of almost having to relocate)?

I just think they’re really good at reaching out in creative ways, like having Sid show up at somebody’s house with tickets. That kind of thing. They’re smart people. But I also think winning is the best fanattraction of all.

Any plans for a new book?

None at the moment, but I’m open to suggestions!

Any last thoughts for readers?

Should be a fascinating training camp, especially day 1. If No. 87 is cleared for contact and ready to go, I can imagine very good things for this team.

Stan Savran

You are missed on the radio by fans – are there plans for you to get back on air soon?

I am going to be starting a new show on the new 970 ESPN on January 3rd. 　I’ll be on the air from 10 to 11 am….and then when the Steelers season is over, and Tunch and Wolf are no longer on, I will expand my show to 10-12…and it will stay at that time from that point on.

What are your thoughts on the state of sports broadcasting today – has it become too reliant on gossip and shock as it competes with the internet? What are some of the up-and-coming Pittsburgh broadcasters you think highly of?

I’ll be honest and say I don’t listen to a lot of sports talk radio…hardly any at all. I’m in it, and I’ve been dealing with my Own shows for years now, so I prefer to listen to music when I’m in the car.

I don’t know about other markets, but I think in general, sports talk radio is pretty tame in Pittsburgh compared to other markets like New York and Philly, for example. 　And I think the reason for that is…the market here doesn’t appreciate a whole lot of it. 　Obviously, there are some guys who are doing it very successfully. 　Equally as obvious is the success Mark Madden has had and is having. 　But Mark is able to do it first of all with a solid foundation of sports knowledge. 　Plus he has great intelligence and wit, which is what it takes to pull that off.

As far as young up and comers, this is an older market, so I think the sports announcers tend to be a bit older. 　Clearly, I’m a Big Guy Junker fan. 　Bob Pompeani as well. 　Ken Laird is a terrific reporter, and Jim Colony is not only good…but unique. I Also have to give shoutouts to my FSN colleagues as well.

How as an announcer 　do you stay true to news and avoid opinions in discussions. 　And how/when do you decide to cross that line and offer opinions?

I think it depends on what hat I’m wearing. When I was a sporta anchor on Channel 4, I tried to do it straight, and save the commentary for when I was actually doing a commentary…and labeled it as such. Sports talk radio IS about opinion…if you don’t have one…generally a strong one…then you shouldn’t be on the air! 　SportsBeat was as popular as it was because people basically tuned in to hear the opinions of Stan and Guy.

What are some of your best (and worst) experiences reporting on Pittsburgh teams and players over the years?

Certainly the 3 Stanley Cups and the Super Bowls the Steelers won since I’ve been here. 　But the best story I ever covered here was Mario’s comeback in 2000. 　That was magical. 　The worst? 　Two of them. 　The death of the Chief, Art Rooney Sr. 　And the horrific accident to Gabe Rivera which ended his career…and subsequently sentenced him to a wheelchair for the rest of his life. I have never gotten over that.

What are your thoughts on the litany of NFL fines and how the Steelers players, coaches and the front office have handled the situation?

I applaud the league for its objective, but not in the way they’ve handled it. 　They’ve got a lot of work to do in the offseason to explain exactly what they want from the players. 　James Harrison may or may not be a league target, but he has been too stubborn. 　You can indignantly claim you’re being victimized, but all your doing is costing your team 15 yards with each hit. 　At some time, you have to change what you’re doing. 　Even Mike Tomlin has said that.

How has this team changed under Tomlin over the past few seasons and what are your thoughts of him as a head coach. 　How has he differed from Cowher and even Noll? 　　　　

Tomlin is an interesting mix of the previous two. He keeps his distance from the players like Noll, but they never doubt he’s got their back. 　He’s not as close to them as Cowher was, but he still is closer and engages them more than Chuck. 　I think Tomlin is a man of tremendous character and ethics. 　I admire him as a person first, before I admire his coaching abilities.

What would surprise us about this Steelers team and coaching staff? 　Any under-the-radar young players or strategies we should look out for?

Despite his problems of a year ago, and some this season, I think they’re still very high on William Gay, and wouldn’t be surprised to see him start at corner next year. 　Especially if Ike Taylor leaves via free agency.

We hear a number of fans express concern over Arians as a coach/play caller. What are your thoughts on this – is this just an issue of lofty fan expectation or are there real issues with Arians?

I have always had two big issues with Arians. I firmly believe in a strong running game…and to have that, especially with this offensive line, you need a fullback. 　Arians uses a tight end instead, and I’m sorry, a TE is never going to be as effective at the point of attack as a Dan Kreider type. 　Secondly, I don’t think Arians is as good at play sequencing….meaning calling a play in the 1st quarter just to set up something later in the game. 　Whisenhunt was a master at it.

What does the Pittsburgh Power, the area’s new team, have to do to be successful?

I don’t think they will be, no matter what they do. 　True, Pittsburgh is a great football town, but it’s also a very discerning football town. 　I think, after the curiosity wears off, they’ll see that this is a novelty rather than the kind of football that will satisfy the hard core fan.

What are some of the blogs/sites you rely on for sports news now?

ESPN, NHL.com, NFL.com….and the local team sites.

Do you see competition between the area’s teams for PR/audience share – and how does that occur if so?

I don’t think It’s direct competition, but I do think that the successes of one franchise puts additional pressure on others to succeed.

Anything you’d like to add/further thoughts for Pittsburgh Sports Daily Bulletin Readers your work and Pittsburgh sports in General?

Just a huge thank you to all those who have watched/listened/supported me over the years…through several moves up and down the dial. 　It means everything to me, and you guys are the reason I keep at it, trying to give you the best I’ve got every time I go on the air, no matter where it is. 　I hope you’ll tune in when I start the new show on 970 ESPN. 　I also want to thank all those who sent best wishes during my recovery from open heart surgery!

Continue reading “Stan Savran”

Andy Russell, Steelers Linebacker, 1963-1976

First, can you let readers know what you are doing now in your post-football playing days?

I consider myself “semi” retired, but my partners think I’m “fully” retired.

Our private equity business, Laurel Mountain Partners, (run by my two superb partners, Jeff Kendall and Don Rea), operates Liberty Tire Recycling and are invested in other companies. When I’m in Pittsburgh, which is seldom (I spend a lot of time in Colorado and biking/hiking overseas), I do go to the office every day and find myself busy with charitable efforts and some business meetings.

Continue reading “Andy Russell, Steelers Linebacker, 1963-1976”

Rob Ruck

Rob Ruck, Pittsburgh Sports Historian and Author of Sandlot Seasons: Sport in Black Pittsburgh and Rooney: A Sporting Life – (June 19, 2011):

Thank you for taking the time to answer questions for us Rob. First, can you let readers know about you – your sports history background and your research on Pittsburgh sports teams and culture?

I began studying sport as a grad student in Pitt’s History Department in the late 1970s.

History then was going through a radical change by focusing on the people whose stories had largely been ignored in favor of the rich and powerful. This ‘history from below’ focused on working people, immigrants, sharecroppers, and the like. I had been studying labor history with David Montgomery and thought I would write about the rise and fall of the steelworkers union. Instead, I began looking at what people did with their free time in addition to their working lives.

I began studying the role that sport played in black Pittsburgh prior to integration. My dissertation was about the old sandlot and Negro League teams and what they meant to people at a time when sport was not defined primarily by profit motives. It became “Sandlot Seasons: Sport in Black Pittsburgh,” and was the basis for “Kings on the Hill: Baseball’s Forgotten Men,” a documentary that uses Pittsburgh and its Negro League clubs to tell a national story.

What books and other research/projects have you done in these areas, and what projects are you working on now?

I began traveling to the Caribbean to study baseball after “Sandlot Seasons.” It was a logical next step from looking at the Negro Leagues, given that black players played in the winter leagues in the islands and Latinos played in the Negro Leagues if they were dark-skinned, in the major leagues if they were Caucasian or could pass for white. That work became “The Tropic of Baseball: Baseball in the Dominican Republic.”

A few years ago, Dan Manatt and I made “The Republic of Baseball: Dominican Giants of the American Game,” another documentary.

My most recent book is “Raceball: How the Major Leagues Colonized the Black and Latin Game.”

It came out in March. “Raceball” brings together the story of baseball in black America with that of the Caribbean and the major leagues, before, during, and after integration. It connects the work I’ve done in both areas and takes the story up to the 21st century. The story of African Americans and Latinos have been intertwined for over a century, first by major league baseball’s segregation, then by integration.

While baseball’s integration had profound social ramifications for the nation (and changed the game itself by bringing in the best waves of talent yet to play), it came at a cost to black America. African Americans lost control of their own sporting lives and institutions. Integration did not bring black owners, managers, and teams into the majors but took black players, often without compensation, and their fans.

As a result, the Negro Leagues collapsed without their owners, front office, or teams integrating into the majors. While peaking at over a quarter of all major league players in 1975, African Americans make up only about 8 percent of players today.

Latinos, however, have since remade the game. They comprise over a quarter of all major leaguers, about half of those in the minors, and are over-represented at the highest levels of play. They’ve put a new face on baseball and are its future.

Your 2006 documentary on Dominican baseball players (The Republic of Baseball: The Dominican Giants of the American Game) was highly acclaimed. What made you decide to focus on this subject?

In 2000, Dan Manatt asked me to work with him on a documentary about Dominican ball. He was a great collaborator and became a close friend. Doing an independent film is a difficult venture, because they’re so costly to make and because distribution is uncertain. But we felt that baseball had become the story by which Dominicans were able to tell their story to the world and that it was a great story at that.

We focused on the first generation of Dominicans to make it in the majors: Felipe Alou, Juan Marichal, Manuel Mota, Ossie Virgil, and Mateo and Jose Alou. They are tremendous guys and we felt privileged to tell their story. I try to stay as connected with baseball on the island as I can.

A recent New York Times article
(//www.nytimes.com/2011/06/12/sports/baseball/clementes-3000th-hit-helmet-raised-to-a-sparse-crowd.html?_r=2&emc=eta1) brought forth the notion that Roberto Clemente was not appreciated in Pittsburgh until after he died due to the fact he was both Black and Latino. What are your thoughts on this – do you agree? It seems to contradict the research you did earlier on a more progressive Pittsburgh, or is this an “apples and oranges” comparison?

David Maraniss, who made that comment, wrote an astounding biography of Clemente, but I disagree with him on this point.

There certainly was (and is) racism in Pittsburgh but anybody who saw Clemente play had to acknowledge how brilliantly he played the game. It is true that Clemente, playing in Pittsburgh, was overlooked by much of baseball America until the 1971 World Series. I think it would have been different if he was in a larger media market or had not been such a principled advocate for civil rights for Latinos and African Americans.

It’s also true that the way he died elevated him to an iconic level and made him larger in death than he was in life.

Your book “Sandlot Seasons, Sport in Black Pittsburgh” showed how those Black sports teams in Pittsburgh helped the Black community realize its potential for self-expression. What made you decide to write on this subject – and do you feel Pittsburgh was more progressive than most cities in it’s acceptance of Black sports teams like the Pittsburgh Crawford and Homestead Grays baseball teams and Garfield Eagles football team?

I wrote that book because I saw sport as playing a very important role among African Americans and suspected that those historic roles were key to figuring out how and why.

African Americans in Pittsburgh embraced their teams and athletes but given that they had created those teams, their passion for sport should come as no surprise. I think that white fans and sandlot teams alsoappreciated the Grays, Crawfords, Eagles, and other black teams.

I’ve had any number of older white men tell me how proud they were to stand on the mound and pitch to Josh Gibson or bat against Satchel Paige. Of course, most said that Josh hit a long home run off them and that Satchel struck them out. But these games validated white teams, too.

If your question is whether there was less racism in Pittsburgh than elsewhere, I’m not sure that would have been the case. Certainly, the sporting arena brought out a less racist, more progressive set of relations in the city. The sandlots were more of a level playing field—more egalitarian. That was true for earlier generations of immigrants from Europe, too.

Nearly 20 years after the writing of the book, Pittsburgh has an African American football coach and an NFL team owner that was the driving force of the “Rooney Rule” requiring teams to interview African American candidates for head coaching jobs. Do you think the days of the “African American athlete” distinction in the Pittsburgh sports community/fandom is over? Or do you feel there are still big differences in how Pittsburgh fans view the African American versus white athlete?

I think that racial attitudes in sport, as in the nation as a whole, have improved immensely.

There is little doubt that African Americans and Latinos are center stage in American sport and have been so in this city for some time. The 1971 Pirates were an international squad, the 1979 champs were the “We are Family” Bucs with diverse line-ups.

The Steelers were as evenly integrated as could be during the 1970s and today they are led by a player of Samoan descent and one who is part African-American, part Korean. That matters, as does the way the Steelers operate—and have long operated due to Art, Dan, and Art II—when it comes to race.

I also think that each generation has a more progressive and tolerant set of views on race than previous ones. Having said that, there are enormous and serious issues regarding race and sport in Pittsburgh, especially pertaining to health, access to leisure and recreation, and in longevity. Socio-economics and class have much to do with that.

There are also important questions regarding ownership and power in sport that have yet to overcome a racial imbalance.

Your biography on Art Rooney. “Rooney: A Sporting Life” was a major undertaking. Can you tell readers what surprised you most about Rooney as you did your research on him?

I had known that Art was quite an athlete but I came away from the research realizing that he might have been the best all-around athlete in the city during the 1920s.

He was fast, tough, had great eye-hand coordination and had the ability to think ahead of the play. That combination made him a top baseball and football player as well as one of the top welterweights in the nation. He would have represented the US in the 1920 Olympics but did not enter the tournament because he had made money playing semi-pro baseball and did not want to have his amateur status questioned. He beat the man who won the gold medal before and after the Olympics.

The other surprise was just how critical Rooney was to the making of the NFL.

He was at the core of the decisions to create a league that operated on a one for all—all for one ethos. That approach—via the draft, equal distribution of broadcast revenues, recognition of the union, and in scheduling—has made the NFL the most successful pro league in American sporting history.

This approach, of course, is under great duress this summer. I think it’s also apparent how much Art’s son Dan and now his grandson Art II have continued to play this role of finding win-win solutions in the league and with the players’ union.

How did you go about the research – what sources were you able to tap into that really helped define who he was?

In addition to the standard tools of research—scrutiny of newspapers, public records, and the like—we (and there were two co-authors of Rooney: A Sporting Life. One was the late Michael Weber with whom I began the book; the other is Maggie Jones Patterson, Mike’s colleague at Duquesne and my wife who jumped in after Mike’s death in 2001) interviewed about 100 people, some, like Dan Rooney, many times.

That oral history is the only way to get at this sort of story, which is largely something that lacks written sources.

Much of your prior work covered the social/cultural elements of Pittsburgh sports. In your research on Rooney, how much of his work did you find influenced the culture of the city and it’s acceptance of minorities – and how so?

It’s at the heart of this story. No city uses sport more than Pittsburgh to tell its story to the world and to itself. It’s a story about people who work hard, but play harder; who lose but persevere and in the end become the city of champions. That story rings true because no city of comparable size had the sort of sporting record that Pittsburgh did across the board in sport in the 20th century.

African Americans and later Latinos were at the center of that story—the Homestead Grays and the Pittsburgh Crawfords, Clemente, Stargell, Harris, Blount, Greene, Dorsett, and so many others.

What were some of the more interesting examples of Rooney’s behavior you unearthed in your research that helped you define Rooney’s character in the biography?

That he was at ease with a down-on-his-luck horseplayer, a guy from the neighborhood, or ex-pug as he was with Mayor David Lawrence and the Bishop. He was a regular guy who stayed that way all his life, even when he became a national icon.

What do you think Art Rooney would say about the state of Pittsburgh sports and sports culture today?

I’m sure he would be telling both sides of the NFL struggle to compromise and settle so that the working folks in the industry are not harmed by a lockout. And I think he would rue the amount of money and the influence of television in the game today.

And I believe he would be appalled at the pressure to extend the season to 18 games, given what we know about the damage football inflicts on the body and mind.

I also think he would know that the last decade has been a second golden age for sport in Pittsburgh and appreciate just how well the Steelers, Penguins, and Pitt basketball has done.

Bill Moushey

Bill Moushey, Author, Never Give Up (July 19, 2011):

First, what made you decide to focus a book solely on James Harrison?

I grew up in NE Ohio, went to Kent State (played football for a year) and knew of Harrison through those channels. I knew he also had a tough life. When he won the NFL Defensive Player of the year award, moved forward and learned he had a fascinating life of overcoming daunting odds to achieve success.

How reluctant was Harrison in working with you on the book – and did you experience those moments of intimidation that many sportwriters seem to when they interview him?

It took awhile to get him to loosen up, but I had the luxury of time.

He does have an intimidating demeanor, but once you pierce through that, he was engaging and Interesting.

In your research and discussions with Harrison, what surprised you most about Harrison “the person” versus the player?

He loves kids. He lights up whenever he’s around them.

That’s why he set up a foundation helping children.

Harrison struggled with his attitude early on in his career, making it difficult for him to stick with teams. How did he turn that attitude around – who/what influenced him?

I think he had a difficult transition from college to professional football on a lot of fronts.

I think he learned how to be a professional from folks like Jason Gildon and Joey Porter. I also think once he learned the complicated defenses, he quit thinking and started reacting, which helped him become all-pro.

Were you able to derive what the source was/is behind Harrison’s hard-nosed attitude in your discussions with him?

Early in his life, he created a wall around himself. It might have been because he went to schools outside his neighborhood (all-white) or maybe it was insecurity.

The bottom line is that he used that rough exterior to his advantage early and as life unfolded. I think the older he gets, the less hard-nosed he is.

If you offer up one experience of Harrison’s that best sums up the man, what would that be?

He works harder than anyone. His focus is unique. He plays through incredible injuries.

He faces adversity head on and, like the book says, he never gave up.

What do you make of his recent Men’s Journal interview and subsequent fallout?

What he said, in large part, is true. How he said it was indefensible.

My point of view is that he refused to bad-mouth coaches and teammates in the book (on the record). I wish he would have made public his inner thoughts in print, as it would have made the book better.

Many of the players supported Harrison after the interview – even ones he criticized. Does this surprise you, and how close is he with his teammates?

Not at all. He is very involved with his defensive teammates. They are a band of brothers.

You may have noticed the comments he made about the quarterback are the only negative words he has ever used to talk about teammates, or for that matter, anyone else in the NFL.

I still don’t get why he did it this time.

In your discussions with Harrison, were you able to tell just how important football is to him? Was he threat to retire last season credible in your opinion?

His children come first, his family second and then football take over. He works every waking hour on football. He does an incredible amount of things to keep him in the best possible position to be great.

What drives Harrison outside of football?

Children and family.

He will have to find a hobby or something after his playing days are over.

What else would surprise fans most about Harrison?

The fateful 100-yard interception return for a touchdown in the Super Bowl was a complete improvisation by Harrison.

Any new books on the horizon?

I’m working on one about a corrupt U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency agent and keeping an eye on a few sporting folks with hopes of keeping it going.

John Norwig, Head Trainer, Steelers

Can you tell readers how you got started with the Steelers:

I was the Head Athletic Trainer at Vanderbilt and had contacts with the Steelers through the talent scouts that visited the team each season. There was an opening and I was fortunate enough to have Tom Donohoe call me to fill the position. I have been here over 20 years since.

Continue reading “John Norwig, Head Trainer, Steelers”

Steve McKenna

Steve McKenna – Pittsburgh Penguins (July 18, 2011):

First, how is the coaching career and what made someone who was born in Ontario decide to coach for Ice Hockey Australia?

The coaching career has been very enjoyable. For a person who loves the game and didn’t want to give it up (contrary to all the crowd yelling that I should have during my Penguin days!), coaching has been perfect. It is always challenging but I like seeing players develop and helping them achieve their goals, much along the same lines as I did with Kovalev and Jagr in Pittsburgh.

I didn’t bother with Lemieux, he seemed to be doing alright on his own.

Australia is a great country with very passionate people. They love all things sporting and physical. Being able to work with their program was a definite highlight of my career. The players were very receptive to anything that helped them get better.

How difficult has it been to drum up players and support in a country that, seemingly, has less experience with ice hockey? Is that part of the fun/challenge for you that makes the job appealing?

The hockey population in Australia is limited of course. Most of the young men that have some size and athleticism tend towards Aussie rules Football!

But the players that do play love it and see it as an extension of Aussie rules, only on ice. As I said, they love sports and the kids, boys and girls, are very very active so hockey is just another avenue for them. You see sports programs declining in certain places in North America and the associated health problems that go with that, but in Australia they embrace all activities, even Ice Hockey.

Life is all about challenges and trying new experiences. Australia was definitely both those things. It was a great opportunity to go beyond the normal and I lived to tell the tale.

What have been some of the bigger success stories so far – and have you worked with the NHL and Penguins in specific to help build recognition of the program?

The Ice Factor program that is run in South Australia and now even in Sydney has been a great success.

It takes young high risk teens and teaches them hockey and in doing so they learn a lot of real life skills necessary for the outside world. This is a fact that a lot of societies miss out on. They see hockey and sports programs only as an extra expense for tax payers but really, children learn a lot more from organized sports than just how to shoot or run fast!

The NHLPA generously supplied thousands of dollars worth of equipment for the program which was great and gave a lot more kids the opportunity they needed.. I did not approach the Penguins but I know they do a ton of work in the community.

The Australian team qualified for Division 1 while I was there and they again qualified this year. Not bad for a bunch of amateur players, paying to play in the tournament against professionals. This is a testament to their dedication and ability.

What NHL experiences have helped shape your coaching career – and how so?

Dealing with the likes of Ian Moran, Marc Bergevin and Jamie Pushor on a regular basis really made me patient and ready to deal with dysfunctional youngsters of any age!

Having Ville Neminen as a roommate made me aware of eating habits and the problems associated with them, having to decipher what Bergevin and Oliwa were saying readied me for international coaching and the problem of languages and giving young player like Mario the opportunity to play alongside me showed me that I can make other player’s dreams come true as well.

You’ve been known as more of an enforcer/physical player – but in 2003/2004 you did score 9 goals with the Penguins – and had 21 when you played in the OHA. Do you feel you had better offensive skills than your role in the NHL allowed you to display?

I wish you could have said that while I was playing because every day I was in the coach’s office saying the same thing. Of course it was after hours and the coach wasn’t there but I was just building up the courage to say it for real!

I was fortunate to play with some great players, and only through their generosity and kindness in passing me the puck was I able to score at all! In 2003-2004 I did get to play on a pretty good line for a period of time so I can’t take all the credit, or even any of it!! I always knew that there was a 50 goal scorer inside me, unfortunately it is because I ate my Mike Bossy trading card when I was little.

You had a brief stint with the Penguins in 2000-2001, played for the Rangers and Hartford before returning to Pittsburgh for two seasons. What made you decide to return and what was it like for you to do so?

The Penguins are an amazing organization and the people involved with the team from the equipment staff to the front office were top notch. It was honestly like a big family, I made some great relationships and when the opportunity came to go back it was a no-brainer.

And the Fish Market, best sushi this side of York!

Those early 2000 teams had a great deal of talent – Lemieux, Jagr, Stevens, Kovalev, Straka, Kasparaitis, Hedberg… What do you think was ultimately missing that prevented that team from winning another Stanley Cup?

I still look at our roster from that year and wonder what went wrong.

All teams have talent but it takes a certain something to put teams over the top and able to withstand the grind that is the Playoffs. Some teams show it and some don’t. We were missing that one ingredient and I wish I had known what that was.

How close-knit were those early 2000 teams and what would surprise fans most about them?

I can honestly say that I had the most fun and thought I was the luckiest guy ever when I played in Pittsburgh. It had a great mix of personalities and talent and that translated to success on the ice and a great atmosphere off it.

I think Craig Patrick and the management deserve the credit for assembling a good mix of players. Some of the best memories I have are of those years and I have the psychotherapist bills to prove it!

Everything would surprise fans about those years but the most was that Jamie Pushor ran a book club that really paved the way for Oprah to do the same, true story.

Who were the locker room leaders of those teams besides Lemieux – and how did they do so?

When people think of leaders they have this great vision of Braveheart giving his big painted face speech, but that is only one type of leader. Mario is a guy that can get the best from players with only a look.

He and Mark Messier and Brian Leetch are the best leaders I have ever met. They lead by example, by doing the work themselves that they demand from others. How can you not follow and fight for a guy that would do it for you!

But Pittsburgh had many locker room leaders that were just as valuable, Ville was a leader in pastries, we had several social directors depending on city and conference, and Kasparaitis led in a way that made you afraid not to follow him!

Just how crazy was Ian Moran to play with – and who were some of the other characters on those teams – and what made them so?

Ian and Marc Bergevin shared an on camera kiss for the big screen that really made it acceptable for athletes of all flavors to play our game. He was a great guy and he made coming to the rink a new experience every time. He and Bergevin and Tibbetts, and Barnaby, need I say more.

And who can forget Oliwa. It was like the The Breakfast Club of hockey players! Except we didn’t have the princess, unless you include Garth Snow! All the kids you could put into detention at one time and give them hockey sticks and a Stanley Cup to shoot for, and we almost made it.

What were some of your most memorable experiences as a Penguin – and what made them so?

Walking into the room the first time after getting traded from Minnesota and seeing all that talent in one locker room was an experience I wont forget.

The run during the playoffs was memorable, trying to understand a word Nieminen said was always something to remember as well as his ability to sample everything on the desert cart!

Just being able to play and work alongside Mario Lemieux was priceless, and I know he would say the same about me! He was a true professional on and off the ice…again this is a quote I am sure can be attributed to him about me…right?

How has the NHL changed since you’ve played – and is it for the better, in your opinion?

I think once I left, the NHL improved overnight! At least this is what someone from the Penguins tweeted with the name “Pensowner”!

I think they are trying to improve the speed and scoring in the game but I am not totally convinced they are doing it the right way. I think they really need to make the ice surface larger, players are bigger and skating faster, why not give them the room they need.

And they still need to get rid of the instigator rule, you want to limit head shots, make that player accountable for his actions by having to square up with a heavyweight. That is accountability that works.

Fighting will limit concussions before it increases them. But this is from a guy that had to use spell check just to spell concussions!

What’s next for you – where do you see yourself 5-10 years from now in terms of coaching?

I really am enjoying the start of my coaching career. I do love to help young players develop. I am currently coaching in Alleghe, Italy. It is a top division team located in a tiny ski village in northern Italy.

It is yet another experience that I hope will help shape my future. I would like to get back to North America eventually to coach and I would like to make a future at the NCAA level. I like the idea of building the student athlete, they are eager to learn and a lot of future NHLers come from college.

I know Pittsburgh has some great schools so if any are in need of a coach look me up!

Any last thoughts for readers?

Pittsburgh is one of the great sports towns and I was very fortunate to be part of it for a few years. I met a ton of great people and I would like to thank everyone that made the experience so memorable. I would name everybody but I think I wrote too much already. I

hope to see you again in the future and wish you and the Penguins all the best going forward.