Fred Shero - Coaching Style

Coaching Style

Shero's introverted, enigmatic personality had an effect on the way in which he coached players. Shero often communicated with his players by way of notes left in their lockers. When he did talk to them, he was known for never yelling. He believed that when coaches yell they do it for their own sake. He always defended his player whether it was in the press or even against management. He always tried to make sure his players were focused during the game. He often asked them how much time was left in the period to force them to pay attention. He had a unique take on practice as well. If the team was winning then he worked the team hard. If they were losing then there would be a low key practice. He believed that he could get more out of players when they were winning. He often had drills designed to let the players have fun, stating that "Hockey is a child's game played by men. Since it's a child's game it ought to be fun". To have fun the Flyers occasionally had 12-on-12 games with the winning team earning a small monetary reward. He sometimes had the players perform drills that lacked purpose which the team performed until a player questioned the validity of the drill. At that point Shero stopped the drill and praised the player for being alert. Shero was notoriously bad with names. On one occasion it led to him trading for the wrong player. While GM of the Rangers Shero traded for Cam Connor believing it was Colin Campbell. Upon his arrival Conner had to explain that he was a winger and not a defenceman.

Often credited with using fighting and intimidation as a tactic, Shero never coached players to fight. He valued team toughness and insisted that players take the body and follow through with their checks. When it came to fighting Shero was quoted as saying "I swear I have never told a player to attack another player. In fact, I have told my players if they ever hear me saying something like this, they can break a stick over my skull. I ask only that they play aggressively." In an interview in the HBO documentary Broad Street Bullies Shero states that he had a team that liked fighting so he let them fight. Demonstrating his personal coaching philosophy that "You have to learn to win with what you got or you don't win at all."

Shero was an innovator, aside from being the first coach to employ systems, and known as one of the first Western coaches to study Soviet influences, he was the first coach to study film. His son Ray even recalls his father breaking down games from radio broadcasts. He was also the first to have his players use in season strength training, with the use of an Apollo machine, a precursor to Nautilus equipment. As well as one of the first coaches to adopt the morning skate. He was one of the first coaches to have a game plan specifically designed on how to attack opposing teams. Although, not all of them worked to plan, Bernie Parent recalls a game against Montreal in which Shero decided to out skate the highly skilled Canadiens. After the first period the Flyers' goaltender faced 21 shots and jokingly summed it up by saying, "the Zamboni didn't even need to resurface the other end of the ice." Yet it illustrates Shero's understanding that he didn't know everything about coaching and his pursuit to learn more.