A Winning Habit
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Montreal Canadiens’ Georges Laraque: Life After Hockey

By Lissa Albert

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This past week, Georges Laraque coached the Haitian Street Hockey team to its first world championship – and in fact, their first time in the tournament – captured in Switzerland and held by the International Street And Ball Hockey Federation (ISBHF). The team’s win was a stunning surprise to those who did not expect it to be a contender, much less a champion.

Laraque had originally decided to join the team as a player. But when one coach left, he was asked to take over. It proved to be a winning move.

Laraque asked a friend of his – Robert Haddock – to assist him on the coaching team. Haddock, a minor-league player who currently heads the development team at a local West-Island hockey association in Montreal, grabbed the chance.

"Haddock’s roots are in Barbados, a few islands to the east of Haiti, but he took Laraque up on the offer just weeks ahead of their departure for Switzerland."

Laraque remembered a conversation he and Rob had once shared, in which Haddock expressed his desire “to coach a team with only black guys to show how good we could be.” This was what propelled him to recruit Haddock to the team.

(Another personal note – my kids have benefited from Rob Haddock’s development clinics; my many conversations with him about hockey translating to life lessons and education have been enlightening. I can personally attest to the fact that his heart, like Laraque’s, lies with making a difference in this world)

The Haitian team was reminiscent of the famed Jamaican bobsledders: underdogs, first-time contenders, players whose immigrant families had them focus on homework rather than sports, but who had natural abilities that were all but overlooked.

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Laraque talks about how these players perceived hockey, and their own skills:

"For some of them, believe it or not, this is the first time they’ve had formal coaching because they usually got together with a bunch of buddies and played in a league. They watch a little TSN and a few Habs games and try to mimic Markov or P.K. Subban and all of a sudden they think they’re on the same wavelength."

Now that they have captured the championship, Haddock’s vision is focused on 2017, when the tournament will be held in the Czech Republic. He hopes to draw talent from North Americans of Haitian background (cities like Toronto, Vancouver, Boston and New York are rich with this demographic). In fact, most of the team’s players were Montreal-born.

Georges Laraque’s heart is worn on his sleeve. Whatever he undertakes, he does so with passion and commitment.

In this interview held after the tournament, his pride and exuberance are in his million-dollar smile.

It’s always good to keep up with one’s favorite players; for me, having just become immersed in understanding the intricacies of hockey in 2010 – and having instantly taken to learning about the people on the team, Georges Laraque remains among my top favorites.

His personality alone is a winner and I look forward to seeing more of what this dynamic, driven man will do in the future.

(Enjoy this routine from “Battle of the Blades” – a “Dancing With The Stars” type of production that pairs figure skaters with hockey players. Georges showed his competitive, and warrior self in this particular routine, but also demonstrates a keen sense of style and grace)

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