He added: ''It was a closed door before the 1980 Winter Olympics. They would be together for less than a year when the Olympics began. ", "You're looking for players whose name on the front of the sweater is more important than the one on the back. "And maybe I'm a little smarter now than I was before for all the stupid things I've done. The reigning world hockey power was the Soviet Union, whose team was composed of older players from military teams or clubs, and who performed together on a year-round basis. In 1986-87, he coached St. September 16, 2003 / 11:40 AM [11] It is believed that he fell asleep behind the wheel before the accident, and neither drugs nor alcohol were responsible. Having played hockey for the University of Minnesota, Brooks coached the team from 1971 to '79, capturing three national championships. Get the latest breaking news delivered straight to your inbox. It's a great feeling of accomplishment and pride. Miracle on Ice team has died in a car accident. "Coach may have been the greatest innovator the sport has ever had.". But Brooks had instituted an American style based on speed and motion away from the puck. His charges in 1980 were college players. ", "You look like you have a five pound fart on your head. After he was fired by the Minnesota North Stars, Brooks then spent two years doing TV color commentary for SportsChannel America along with play-by-play announcer Jiggs McDonald. [5] From 1981 to 1985, he coached in the National Hockey League for the New York Rangers, where he became the first American-born coach in Rangers' team history to win 100 games. It states, "He never saw it. ", First published on September 16, 2003 / 11:40 AM.
After his team's Olympic gold medal win, Brooks moved to Switzerland to coach HC Davos in the National League A. Brooks also coached the New York Rangers (1981-85), Minnesota North Stars (1987-88), New Jersey Devils (1992-93) and the Pittsburgh Penguins (1999-00). His hiring by the North Stars in 1987 would be the last time a college coach was selected to coach an NHL team until North Dakota coach Dave Hakstol was tapped to coach the Philadelphia Flyers in May 2015. He was asked why he wanted to return after writing the most improbable story in hockey. Herb Brooks, who molded an unheralded collection of United States hockey players, most of them collegians, into the ''Miracle on Ice'' team that captured the gold medal at the 1980 Winter Olympics, died yesterday in an auto accident north of the Minneapolis-St. Paul area. The last player cut on the 1960 U.S. gold medal team, Brooks played in 1964 and 1968.
But don't just weave for the sake of weaving. ", "Let's be idealistic but let's also be practical. Brooks, according to witnesses, evidently lost control of his minivan on an interstate highway and was ejected from the vehicle after it rolled over, said Lt. Chuck Walerius, the supervisor at the scene for the Minnesota State Patrol. ", "Write your own book instead of reading someone else's book about success. He lived it.". But in 2002, as coach of the Olympic team, Brooks, right, won a silver medal, with a team of mostly NHL players. He coached the French team at the Nagano Olympics in 1998, coached the United States team to a silver medal at the Salt Lake City Olympics last year and was director of player development for the Penguins at the time of his death. ", "This team isn't talented enough to win on talent alone.
That went out with short pants. '', Lou Lamoriello, the Devils' president and general manager, said in a telephone interview that ''Herb opened the door for college players to get the opportunity to play in the National Hockey League.'' Interviewed years later on why he headed to the locker room shortly after the game ended, Brooks said he wanted to leave the ice to his players.
Brooks later coached in the N.H.L., with the Rangers (1981-85), the Minnesota North Stars (1987-88), the Devils (1992-93) and the Pittsburgh Penguins (1999-2000). Brooks was killed in a 2003 car accident. "He will always be remembered for coaching that 'Miracle on Ice' team," said CBSNews.com Legal Analyst and lifelong hockey fan Andrew Cohen. "Herb Brooks was a Minnesota legend, a Minnesota treasure.". He was inducted into the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame in 1990. Born in St. Paul, Brooks played hockey at the University of Minnesota, where he later coached from 1972-79 and won three national titles.
Players kept a notebook of "Brooksisms," sayings the coach used for motivation like: "You're playing worse and worse every day, and right now you're playing like it's next month. That year opened the door.''. And his greatest victory came when Team USA beat the Soviet Union at Lake Placid.