
Behind the Bench
Inside the Minds of Hockey's Greatest Coaches
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Narrated by:
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Barry Abrams
About this listen
They are motivators, key strategists, tough bosses, and choreographers. They can be branded as heroes, ousted as scapegoats, quietly valued as friends, and everything in between. It's all in the job description for an NHL head coach. In Behind the Bench, Craig Custance sits down for film sessions and candid conversations with some of the game's most notable modern luminaries - names like Mike Babcock, Joel Quenneville, Dan Bylsma, Todd McLellan, Ken Hitchcock, and Claude Julien - all of whom share their singular views on topics ranging from leadership secrets to on-ice game plans. Dissect some of hockey's greatest moments with the men who set the pieces in motion. Go straight to the source on what it's like to manage a dressing room full of the league's top stars or execute line changes with everything at stake. Signature games, including Stanley Cup finals, Olympic gold medal clashes, and World Championship contests - both wins and losses - are reflected upon and broken down in detail, making this a must-listen for current and aspiring coaches, players, and hockey fans alike.
©2017 Craig Custance (P)2019 TantorListeners also enjoyed...
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Eleven Rings
- The Soul of Success
- By: Phil Jackson, Hugh Delehanty
- Narrated by: Matt Walton
- Length: 10 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
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During his storied career as head coach of the Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Lakers, Phil Jackson won more championships than any coach in the history of professional sports. This is the story of a preacher's kid from North Dakota who grew up to be one of the most innovative leaders of our time. Eleven times, Jackson led his teams to the ultimate goal: the NBA championship - six times with the Chicago Bulls and five times with the Los Angeles Lakers. This book is full of revelations.
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Listener Beware
- By Robert S. Wegener on 07-12-13
By: Phil Jackson, and others
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The Boys of Winter
- The Untold Story of a Coach, a Dream, and the 1980 U.S. Olympic Hockey Team
- By: Wayne Coffey
- Narrated by: Kirby Heyborne
- Length: 8 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
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Once upon a time, they taught us to believe. They were the 1980 US Olympic hockey team, a blue-collar bunch led by an unconventional coach, and they engineered perhaps the greatest sports moment of the 20th century. Their "Miracle on Ice" has become a national fairy tale, but the real Cinderella story is even more remarkable. It is a legacy of hope, hard work, and homegrown triumph. It is a chronicle of everyday heroes who just wanted to play hockey happily ever after.
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Great, but...
- By S. B. G. on 02-13-18
By: Wayne Coffey
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Let Them Lead
- Unexpected Lessons in Leadership from America's Worst High School Hockey Team
- By: John U. Bacon
- Narrated by: John U. Bacon
- Length: 7 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
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When John U. Bacon played for the Ann Arbor Huron High School River Rats, he never scored a goal. Yet somehow, years later he found himself leading his alma mater’s downtrodden program. How bad? The team hadn’t won a game in over a year, making them the nation’s worst squad. With almost everyone expecting more failure, Bacon made it special to play for Huron by making it hard, which inspired the players to excel. Then he defied conventional wisdom again by putting the players in charge of team discipline, goal-setting, and even decision-making—and it worked.
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Fantastic Listen
- By John T. on 04-20-25
By: John U. Bacon
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The Grim Reaper
- The Life and Career of a Reluctant Warrior
- By: Stu Grimson
- Narrated by: Stu Grimson
- Length: 9 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
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NHL tough guys all tell the same story. They all grew up dreaming of skating in the big league as stars. Then one day, a coach tells them the only way to make it is to drop the gloves. And every guy says the same thing: I'll do whatever it takes to play in the NHL. Not Stu Grimson, though. When he was offered a contract to patrol the ice for the Calgary Flames, he said no thanks, and went to university instead. And that's the way Grimson has approached his career and his life: on his own terms.
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A great story about a dying breed in the NHL
- By C,L, Richey on 07-06-21
By: Stu Grimson
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No One Wins Alone
- By: Mark Messier, Jimmy Roberts
- Narrated by: Will Reeve, Mark Messier - Introduction & Epilogue
- Length: 10 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
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Mark Messier is one of the most accomplished athletes in the history of professional sports. He was a fierce competitor with a well-earned reputation as a winner. But few people know his real story, not only of the astonishing journey he took to making NHL history, but of the deep understanding of leadership and respect for the power of teamwork he gained.
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❤️❤️❤️11❤️❤️❤️
- By sandy on 01-18-23
By: Mark Messier, and others
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Mr. Hockey
- My Story
- By: Gordie Howe
- Narrated by: Don Hagen
- Length: 6 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
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Big, skilled, tough on the ice, and nearly indestructible, Howe dominated both the sport and the record books like no one has before or since. Over an incredible six decades, the Hall of Famer had so many accomplishments that he set the record for the most records by any athlete ever in any sport. He also achieved the remarkable feat of playing for six years with his own two sons, Mark and Marty.
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Loved!!
- By Tattooed Birdy on 07-02-21
By: Gordie Howe
What listeners say about Behind the Bench
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Derek Craig
- 03-20-19
great stuff!
I loved hearing what the coaches had to say. it kept me wanting more. if you are a hockey fan and enjoy inside stories then this book is for you.
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- Dominic
- 08-04-24
Very good interviews of salient moments
I love Craig Constance as reporter. He both recaps great moments, but does it through the coaches eyes. He also attempts to tie themes together linking risk, perseverance and greatness. It’s a great read for any hockey fan of the past 30 years.
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- Amazon Customer
- 07-07-23
awesome
book was incredible... very well done... didn't live the narrator... but if u muscle through that... its completely worth it
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- Amazon Customer
- 07-15-20
Illuminating
The idea and stories revealed are amazing. The performance with mispronounced names, less so.
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- Ben
- 10-30-24
Not Quite as Advertised
The description makes it sound like this book offers a lot of technical breakdowns of big games from the coaches who won them. Hockey players would get great tips and fans would learn a lot.
That is not the case with this book though. Beyond the aggravating fluff in each chapter about the journalist's travel anxiety, the stories are part light biography and part walkthrough of key moments during the big games.
With that being said, it is still a very interesting book that taught me a lot about who the coaches were, how they prepared for a big game, lesser known details in the games (injuries, bad bounces, etc), and had some good quotes from players about the coach being interviewed.
As a penguins fan, I really enjoyed hearing Dan Bylsma and Mike Sullivan discuss 2 of the last 3 cup wins.
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- Chris
- 03-27-19
Great story but the narrator- oof.
The narrator tries to give different voices to the various coaches interviewed. He makes several sound almost childish, with high voices, and then his portrayal of Mike Sullivan sounds like a cartoon goon, speaking really deeply and verrrrrry sloooooowly. He makes Bob Hartley sound like a moron who can barely form a sentence, giving him odd, choppy sentences. He also gives Hartley some strange accent.
It would have been far better read just in the narrator's normal voice without the weak attempts at dramatization.
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2 people found this helpful
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- Jake
- 08-09-19
my review
Not a big fan of the narrator, but he was ok
Story was really good.
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- SAH
- 06-01-21
Love this book
I love hockey! Hockey is the best sport ever! I can watch hockey all day 24/7
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- Brad & Kate
- 09-12-24
All fluff
I was expecting coaching insides to hockey, no this was an author who just likes to write fluff. Just news headlines, typical reporter fluff. No hard questions or deep answers.
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- Michael Keller
- 07-21-21
Unlistenable Narrator
I wish I had listened to a sample prior to my purchase. This guy should be narrating Thomas the Tank Engine stories, rather than poorly trying to emulate the voices of legendary coaches.
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2 people found this helpful