Emotional and impulsive by nature, Michel Bergeron often struggled with referees and sometimes his words trumped his thoughts.
During his tenure as a coach in the QMJHL and NHL in the 1970s and 1980s, it wasn’t uncommon for coaches to stand on the boards to cheer on the scratched men.
At that time there was only one chief referee on the ice, unlike two today, always accompanied by two line judges, an important nuance, according to the “Tiger”.
“There was a lot of violence, a lot of penalties,” the retired coach recalls. There were fewer referees and fewer teams, so we saw them a lot and got to know each other.
“When there was only one, I knew who to argue with. “Now with the two-person system, the instructors don’t always know who’s doing what,” points out the man, who swears the goal wasn’t to put on a show.
The former Quebec Nordiques and New York Rangers coach recalls preparing his game plan according to the match’s referee.
“They didn’t all work in the same way. Some were adamant early in the game so we told the players to be careful early on,” said Mr Bergeron.
I never forgave Kerry Fraser
It is not yesterday that officials’ work was criticized. It’s impossible not to mention referee Kerry Fraser in conversation with Michel Bergeron. As part of the intense rivalry between Montreal and Quebec, on April 28, 1987, Fraser had prevented a goal against Fleurdelisé’s Alain Côté in the fifth game of a series between the two teams, which then ended in a 2–2 draw at the Forum.
Instead of taking a 3-2 lead in the game and series, the Nordiques scored Canada’s goal right after play restarted, taking the CH through to the federation finals.
Michel Bergeron was in all his states when referee Kerry Fraser denied a goal by Alain Côté in the 1987 playoffs against the Canadiens. Photo archive / Le Journal de Montreal
“I try to forget it, but every day someone reminds me! says “Bergie”. It will haunt me for the rest of my days. But hey, it’s also part of the folklore.
The Journal columnist claims that he turned these events on their head, but that he did not forgive Fraser.
A $20,000 fine
The big challenge for Michel Bergeron was to find a balance between defending his players and maintaining discipline in order not to harm his club.
“The next day I read my comments in the newspapers and I thought, ‘I can’t say that.’ But I’ve never been misquoted! I had to live with the consequences,” he laughs today.
A good discussion with the referee before the next game and the file was closed…until the next harassment!
“I’ve already apologized to Bob Myers and Ron Fournier, among others. “We understood that it happened in the heat of the moment,” explains the man, who can proudly say he has never been disqualified from an NHL game.
“But the NHL has already fined me $20,000 for showing reporters video footage of referees missing calls during a series against the Philadelphia Flyers. The league was furious!”
Even during a reality show about the Montreal-Quebec ice hockey rivalry in 2010, Michel Bergeron had heated arguments with referee Ron Fournier. Photo archives / Didier Debus scissors
Peter Stastny put him in order
Mr. Bergeron quickly learned that while he could climb onto the bench at the time, swearing was not tolerated. In particular, some referees preferred to award a penalty that gave the opponent a numerical advantage rather than send the coach to the shower.
“I was beside myself and asked Denis Morel to throw me out. But he just wanted to give me a few minutes. My Nordiques captain, Peter Stastny, told me to calm down!”
“A referee once told me, ‘It’s true I made mistakes tonight, but I’ll never make as many as you did!’ That was a good point.”
Behind the New York Rangers bench, Michel Bergeron often fumed, as here at the 1988 Montreal Forum. Photo archive / Pierre-Yvon Pelletier