Heatley is misunderstood: family friend print this article
WAYNE SCANLAN
Canwest News Service
OTTAWA If its Tuesday, then Dany Heatley is being flogged somewhere.
On the Internet. On talk radio. In a newspaper.
Thats how it has been for the National Hockey League scoring star since his trade request from the Ottawa Senators was made public during the Stanley Cup final.
Tom Molloy, an international hockey coach and former neighbour of the Heatleys, says the one-sided Heatley bashing from fans and media has been difficult for the family.
Danys parents (Murray and Karin) dropped over to our place the other day, Molloy said by telephone from Calgary. They said, Everyone is crucifying Dany. His mother is very upset. And the attacks are all personal stuff, about his character. Nobody mentions that this is a guy who gives up a month of his summer every year to play for Team Canada (at the IIHF world championship).
Molloy wrote a letter to Ottawa Citizen sports department because the Heatleys told him they didnt have a forum to express the other side of the story.
The Heatley camp, including the two-time 50-goal man himself, doesnt see the merit in speaking out so close to the July 1 launch of NHL free agency and a potential trade. Molloy is trying to get out the story of a strong player wanting to be a go-to guy.
Nobody talks about all the good he has done, Molloy said, or that his teammates like him.
According to Molloy, Heatley was with many of those teammates at a bachelor party last week for Senators centre Jason Spezza, Heatleys longtime linemate.
This is an organizational thing, Molloy said. Wade Redden was crucified in Ottawa despite all the work he did for underprivileged kids. They ran him off.
Marian Hossa signed a contract (with previous Senators management) and then they traded him the next day to Atlanta.
If I was the owner of the Senators, Id be calling my manager in and say, Why dont guys want to play here anymore?
Molloy has 17 years of experience coaching hockey at the Canadian college and university levels, including eight years as a University of Calgary assistant in the 1990s. He used to instruct Heatley, provide him extra ice at Molloys international clinics for kids. One summer, the extra ice helped Heatley become a midget triple-A scoring star in Calgary. Molloy spent last season as a development coach in Salzburg, Austria, and he has co-developed a coaching video called Hockey Coaching ABCs.
Molloys letter to the newspaper began this way:
I cant express how disappointed I am in the press and hockey fans concerning Dany Heatleys request to be traded. I was talking with his parents . . . and they cant believe the awful things that people are saying about Dany. He simply wants to play on a team that believes in his abilities.
The new coach (Cory Clouston) has decided that Dany is a second- or third-line player, uses him on the second power play and plays him 14 minutes a game. Dany had many closed door conversations with him and was told that the situation would improve, but it didnt in the two months they were together.
Though he was used on the second-unit power play, referring to Heatley as a second- or third-line player under Clouston is a stretch. Though his ice time did dip, Heatley usually played alongside Spezza and Daniel Alfredsson on the first line.
I have been in this game for a long time and make my living coaching hockey, Molloy wrote. I see Dany making the right plays and doing his job defensively. Dany isnt a hitter, but he wins his one-on-one battles using skill. I ask myself, How can a guy with the best one timer in hockey, and great vision, be on the second power play?
BEGINOPTIONALTRIM
Some other interesting tidbits from this Heatley family friend:
Heatley was injured in Game 1 of the 2007 Stanley Cup final against the Anaheim Ducks when Chris Pronger cross-checked Dany and then sat on him. After that chest injury, Heatley was not effective the rest of the series, Molloy said.
The Senators decline since 07 was a factor in Heatley wanting out.
Two years ago they looked like the old Montreal Canadiens, Molloy said, but they havent been able to right the ship since.
ENDOPTIONALTRIM
There is no question Heatleys power-play production fell off noticeably under Clouston. Past the halfway mark of the season under Craig Hartsburg, Heatley had 11 power-play goals. In the final 33 games with Clouston, Heatley scored four.
Heatley also saw his ice time drop in many games a shockingly low 12 minutes 44 seconds on Feb. 11 though he played significant minutes, 23:07 and 22:24 over the final two games of the season.
Molloy surmises, and this will make management cringe, that maybe the Senators wanted to force Heatley to move by making things difficult for him.
Alfie is a god, Molloy said of Senators captain Daniel Alfredsson, and nobody wants Spezza in a trade.
Is it too late to resolve this mess and patch things up between Heatley and the Senators organization?
"The new coach (Cory Clouston) has decided that Dany is a second- or third-line player, uses him on the second power play and plays him 14 minutes a game. Dany had many closed door conversations with him and was told that the situation would improve, but it didnt in the two months they were together."
clouston had a winning record in ottawa with heatley on the 2nd PP while hartsburg had a losing record and got fired maybe for using heatley too much.the bad thing about the salary cap is ottawa and heatley cannot change his contract to help get a trade done. heatley signed the long term big dollar contract and is going to have to realize nobody else likes him for that money. the only way the trade will happen is if ottawa agrees to take an over paid stiff from another team (brierre,redden,gomez,drury etc).
He fails to mention that this is the second team Heatley has asked to be traded from. Great player but becoming clear that he wants out if things don't go his way. Everything was okay when he signed his big contract but now that a coach is demanding accountability he wants to be traded. Justify it anyway they want but he sounds like just another spoiled athlete.
"Danys parents (Murray and Karin) dropped over to our place the other day, Molloy said by telephone from Calgary. They said, Everyone is crucifying Dany. His mother is very upset. And the attacks are all personal stuff, about his character. Nobody mentions that this is a guy who gives up a month of his summer every year to play for Team Canada (at the IIHF world championship). "
Everyone, as far as I can tell, has not mentioned the FACT that Heatley has already caught a HUGE break in life. He did not / is not serving any jail time.
That said I have heard that it may have been the Senators that leaked the trade request to make themselves the victim. If true then I would have to think about him joining the Leafs should the chance come about.
Burke apparently is blaming the Heatley camp, so no chance of him becoming a Leaf. In any event the Leafs do not, as of yet, have a center to play with him.
Support Our Troops !
Go Leafs !
Go Jays !
Go Raptors !
Go Argos !
Go Rock !
Go TFC !
Go Nationals !
WEXDOG is a Cowboys Fan !
09,11,01
Lest We Forget
11,11,11
Craven Moorehead (Login krustyrl) Registered Members
Re: Heatley Is Misunderstood
June 30 2009, 1:57 PM
I understand heatley's parents feeling the way they do but dude negotiated a huge contract displaying commitment then "bails" on them in what seems to be a tantrum FOR THE SECOND TIME .!
I'm afraid Burkie is right and he not only overpriced himself..he went to the media to bail on the teamS. Let him sulk somewhere else.. overated to say the very least, he is.
Good luck heatley..your reputation precedes you.! Somebody get him a lollipop.!
