Podcast Transcript

RESPONSIBLE SPORTS PODCAST TRANSCRIPT

Cam Neely|Positive Outlook

The Responsible Sports Podcast series features Positive Coaching Alliance founder and Executive Director Jim Thompson interviewing prominent former athletes, coaches and general managers. Each episode, these influential stars share their insights on Responsible Sports from their own sports careers. Listen in as they talk about filling emotional tanks, bouncing back from mistakes, staying motivated through long seasons to continually give 100% effort, and how they translated their sports experience to invaluable life lessons.

n ABOUT JIM THOMPSON Jim Thompson is the founder and Executive Director of Positive Coaching Alliance (PCA), a nonprofit organization founded at Stanford University with the mission of helping to transform the culture of youth sports to give all young athletes the opportunity for a positive, character-building experience. PCA serves as the experts behind the Liberty Mutual Responsible Sports program.

n ABOUT RESPONSIBLE SPORTS The Liberty Mutual Responsible Sports™ program supports volunteer youth sports coaches and parents who help our children succeed both on and off the field. We offer many youth sports resources including $2,500 community grants, instructional videos, weekly tips, peer and expert advice, and coursework for those interested in improving the youth sports experience for all involved. To learn more, visit ResponsibleSports.com

n IN THIS EPISODE: CAM NEELY In this episode, Jim talks with NHL Hall of Fame and Boston Bruins right wing hockey legend Cam Neely. Neely shares his secret to success: the power of positive thinking. Taught to him by his dad, this positive approach helped Neely bounce back from mistakes, recover from injury, and overcome two devestating losses in the Stanley Cup.

n EPISODE INFORMATION Episode Number 23 Episode Date: April 27, 2012 Episode Length: 00:25:47 (p) 2012. Liberty Mutual Responsible Sports

Cam Neely|Positive Outlook

JM: Cam, I want to start off by introducing you to our audience. Cam Neeley was born in a small town in British Columbia where he played minor league hockey with the Ridge Meadows Hockey Association before moving to the Portland Winter Hawks of the Western Hockey League. After leading his team to a win in the Memorial Cup in the Western Hockey League, he was drafted by the Vancouver Canucks, 9th overall in the 1983 draft.

He played three seasons with the Canucks before being traded to the Boston Bruins. In his inaugural campaign there his 36 goals led the team and his 72 points more than doubled his previous year’s tallies. He reached the 50 goal mark in three separate seasons, played in five All Star Games and was named Second Team All Star at right wing in 1988, ’90, ’91 and ’94.

Only three other players have registered higher goals per game average through an NHL season putting him among the company of Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux and Bret Hull. He also won the Bill Masterson trophy in 1994 and is one of only ten Bruins to have his number retired.

Cam was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2005. In 2007 he was appointed Vice President of the Bruins and was promoted to President just three years later. And in a big year, in 2011, he and the Bruins captured the Stanley Cup.

Cam and his wife, Paulina, have two children, Jack and Eva. Cam, thanks for joining us.

CAM: It’s my pleasure.

JIM: Cam, I first want to start by talking about the Bill Masterson trophy which you won after the ‘93/94 season. This is awarded to the player who best exemplifies perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to ice hockey. Talk about that trophy and what it meant to you.

CAM: Well, it came after some serious injuries where I missed a lot of hockey. Had to do all kinds of rehab and therapy. I didn’t give up my love for the game even though there was moments where I wasn’t sure if I’d play again. To be recognized because of that was certainly an honor. It’s an award that, unfortunately, players in that— in my situation receive. But it also I think shows people what kind of dedication and perseverance athletes have when their career may be taken away from them, and how hard it is to get back and to play at a level you want to play at.

JIM: I’m thinking about the NFL Combine coming up, and a lot of talk about talent versus character. Can you talk about in terms of the Bruins and what you’re looking to players—how you balance the character that is awarded. The Bill Masterson trophy is really about character—how you balance talent and character when you’re looking for players?

Cam Neely|Positive Outlook

CAM: Character’s high on my list, to be honest with you, and the same with our organization. We really look at a player’s character. Talent, obviously, is something that you see right away, or you feel the player can improve their skill sets. But character is high because you feel like a player is going to do everything they can to get the best out of their abilities. And that includes certainly a strong work ethic.

Talent can get you so far. It certainly gets a lot of players in all sports drafted and may get them, depending on where they’re drafted, an opportunity to play at the pro level. But that talent can only take you so far, and that’s where your hopes are, you find someone with a strong character that’s very talented.

JIM: One of the things that talent doesn’t get you through is injuries. And I know you’ve battled many injuries during your career. What advice can you give youth athletes and coaches when it comes to dealing with injuries.

CAM: Well, you have to take them seriously. You know, you always want to play, and you always feel like you can play depending on how severe the injury is. But the biggest thing is making sure you take care of yourself. If you do have an injury, listen to the doctors, listen to the therapists, listen to what they have to say because it’s only for your betterment.

You come back too early, as I did at one point in my career I think I came back too early, and it set me back even farther. So every athlete wants to play. They don’t really want to go through therapy and treatments and working out. They’d rather be on the field or on the ice, or on the court. But you really have to listen to the people that know best, and that’s usually the doctors and the trainers.

JIM: It strikes me that the focus on toughness sometimes the idea is I’m going to be tough, I’m going to go back early. Sometimes mental toughness can be in taking that extra time even when you feel like people are wondering if you’re taking it too easy.

CAM: You’re correct, as long as you’re true and honest with yourself, and know your injury, and the doctors know, your parents know it, depending on where you’re at in your career, if your coaches know it, that’s all you have to worry about. Obviously, if you feel like you complain you’re not going to hurt yourself any further, then you’re going to want to get out there and play. But for the most part, toughness isn’t playing through an injury that will certainly set you back, because that just really will hurt yourself and your team even more so.

JIM: You know, throughout your career you had a reputation of being incredibly tough without being dirty. I interviewed Ronnie a lot, the football player awhile back. Football and hockey are both collision sports. There’s just a lot of contact. I asked him how he was able to honor the game in such a physical sport. He talked about rules of engagement. That’s really understanding what those are. Are there rules of engagement for a hockey player in terms of a line that you cross where you become dirty, on the other side of the line it’s toughness?

Cam Neely|Positive Outlook

CAM: Well, it’s just that every sport has rules to begin with. So you play within those rules. In our sport, in particular, there’s penalties that you incur for breaking those rules. But they’re there for a reason. Like you can get a two-minute penalty, five-minute penalty, ten-minute penalty. But it’s really staying within those rules, even if you do get a penalty you’re still playing the game within those rules.

I mean, what you don’t want to cross is, get to a point where you’re outside of those rules that will give you a penalty but actually suspend you. It is a line. The game’s a fast game. But for the most part it’s understanding the rules of the sport. You can still play tough, you can still play physical, as long as you try to stay within those rules of the sport.

JIM: After your first three seasons with the Canucks, you were traded to the Bruins. How was it settling into the new team? You may have to think back now because you’ve been with the Bruins so long. But how was it settling into the new team? And any advise for youth athletes that might help them when they join a new team?

CAM: I’m a big believer in positive thinking. So I went from a team that wasn’t doing very well to a team that, historically speaking, was a more successful franchise. So I could have looked at two ways.

One that “Oh my God I’m going to a team, how am I going to fit into this one when this other team traded me that wasn’t maybe as good.” But I looked at it from a positive standpoint, is here’s an opportunity to get involved with an organization that has had some success. They’re generally a winning franchise. And show them what I’m capable of doing. And look forward to that challenge. I really look forward to the challenge of going to a new city and believing in my abilities.

JIM: Where do you think that positive thinking came from? Were you born with it? Did people instill it in you?

CAM: Yeah, I have to credit my father a little bit. At some point in his life he really started thinking positive. And he’d always talk about the power of positive thinking. So it just kind of rubbed off on me. And I strongly believe in that to this day. I tell that to my children as well, that you always have to think positive. That you can do well. You know, you put the hard work and the effort in and think positive, good things generally come.

JIM: It’s interesting, you mention your dad in that respect, because I’ve talked to a lot of athletes. And very often they say, “My dad was really tough on me and really hard on me, and my mom was the one who kind of believed in me.” I just think it’s kind of unusual that your dad was the one who put you on that positive route.

CAM: Well, both my parents were very supportive. Like most kids’ parents are, they’re very supportive. Got us to and from practice. You know, instilled a strong work ethic. Treat people like you want to be treated. That came from both our parents. But my dad generally was the one that was driving me to and from those practices and games, and really didn’t offer much advice from how to play the game. He never skated. But he was there for support. And a lot of the times it was—and most times it was really positive support.

Cam Neely|Positive Outlook

JIM: In Positive Coaching Alliance we do a lot of work with sports parents around the country. And we tell them to avoid the dreaded “PGA”, the Post Game Analysis, where a kid is playing and the parent, usually the dad is going through everything they did wrong during that game. It sounds like your dad wasn’t that kind—He didn’t do the dreaded PGA.

CAM: No, he didn’t, not at all. And I’ve kind of to a degree have carried that forward. Interesting story after one game with my son a couple of years ago. He’s now 13, but he was 11. And I just casually mentioned to him—I don’t want to be that parent—but I casually mentioned to him after one game I said, “Zack, you have to—You should get into the corner a little bit more and get a little bit more aggressive going after the puck.”

And he turned to me and said, “Dad, I’m not like you.” [laughter] So I left it at that.

JIM: That’s great. A lot of dads can’t leave that alone. And I think they make their kids miserable sometimes.

CAM: Well, it’s unfortunate, you’re right. I think the biggest thing—and I tell kids this all the time with their parents standing there—“As long as you’re having fun, that’s what sports are all about. Go out there to have fun, and work hard. But for the most part you’re there to have fun and enjoy the sport.”

JIM: We talked about fighting a little earlier. And I got a quote here from your former Bruins coach, Mike Millbury, where he said, “I want you to think about what you’re doing by putting yourself in the penalty box. If you’re going to fight, make sure it’s on your terms, and not just because someone is challenging you. I want you to think about how your reaction affects both their team and our team.” How did that advice impact the way you approached the game?

CAM: Well, it made a big impact because I was not a player that backed down from challenges. And there was times where I would be getting challenged by players that I was going off the ice with that really was detrimental to our team. So that’s why Mike had talked to me about that. He’s like, “We know who you are, what you’re all about, but we need you on the ice more often than we need you in the penalty box.” And really make it on your terms, not someone else’s term. So it was great advice because it got me thinking about, okay when I get upset and want to challenge somebody to fight, that’s on my terms. But if someone comes on the ice and challenges me because they want to have a good tradeoff for their term, it doesn’t help our team.

So he was just trying to get me to understand that a little bit more.

JIM: I’m interested in your role now as the leader of the Bruins. How did the things you learned as a player factor in how you lead the organization?

Cam Neely|Positive Outlook

CAM: Well, there’s so many parallels from the business side of hockey up in the, whether it’s the marketing department, sales department, the sponsorship department where it’s about their own little locker room, if you will, and working for each other, not working as an individual. Down in the locker room you’re working for the team and you’re trying to do the best with the team. But you know as an individual you want to do your best. You want to work your hardest. But that helps the team. And I want—on the business side I want everybody to feel like they’re part of the team. Obviously, what happens on the ice is it makes a big impact about what happens off the ice. But you have to have the right people in place off the ice that are working together as a team to create some success off the ice.

For me it’s that off the ice, and then you know, on the ice it’s also—you talked about it earlier, has to do with the character of your players, the work ethic of your players. I’ve always said this, that you may not play well every night, but you can work hard every night. And that’s what we expect of our players here too.

JIM: With Positive Coaching Alliance we developed we call the Elm Tree of Mastery, E for effort, L for learning and improvement, and M for bouncing back from mistakes. The research actually shows now that coaches who get their athletes to focus on mastery and getting better, actually perform better, they win more than coaches who teach their kids to focus on trying to win. And it seems to me that’s part of what you’re saying, is that focus on the effort, getting better. That that carried you a lot in your career.

CAM: It really did. I don’t care what level of player you are, and what sport you play, I strongly believe that you can get better at some part of that game every year. Whether it’s if you’re a strong defensive player, maybe you could get a little bit better offensively. If you’re a great offensive player, you can get better defensively.

If you’re having trouble picking the puck off the wall coming out of your zone, that’s an area where you can get better and improve that. There’s always areas where you can improve. And I think if everybody keeps improving, you know only logic says you’re going to get better.

JIM: Twice as a player you reached the Stanley Cup Finals against the Oilers. Unfortunately, lost both times. It seems to me in youth sports there’s kind of a win it all cost mentality. And so much of the negativity I think comes from coaches, parents and athletes as they get older too, not dealing well with losing. I’d love to hear how you dealt with those losses at the top of the game. Any advice you might have for youth hockey players who get into that situation, they’re at the championship level but then they lose?

CAM: Well, it’s difficult at the professional level to lose in the finals. There’s no getting around that. I mean, you play this sport, think about as a kid growing up winning the Stanley Cup. So those two are very difficult to deal with. You kind of own it all summer and suffer with it all summer. But then another training camp comes around and you try again. What I found with regards to youth sports, the kids have a tough time with it. But generally speaking, they forget about it pretty quick. And that’s what I’d recommend them to do. They forget about it pretty quick. This is not their job; it’s not how they earn their living. They shouldn’t live and die by winning and losing. Right now it’s about having fun and going out there and enjoying yourself and working as hard as you can. If you’ve done your best and worked your hardest, that’s all anybody can ask.

Cam Neely|Positive Outlook

JIM: That’s great. The third part of that elm tree, E for effort, L for learning and M is for bouncing back from mistakes. How did you react when you made a mistake on the ice?

CAM: Well, it’s fortunately—or hopefully you get another shift to forget about it pretty quick. You know, in hockey you’re playing every other night, so you can’t dwell on it too much. You can learn from it, though. What you have to try and do is not dwell on it but just learn from your mistakes. And that goes for anything in life, not just sports. Is try to learn from your mistakes. Not get disappointed or upset about them, but learn from them.

JIM: One of the tools that we teach coaches is the mistake ritual, like flushing mistakes. Because you don’t want a kid in a competition who made a mistake focusing on that. So you flush it, have a short memory, and then you have a parking lot where you put it. Later you come back and say, once the competition is over, okay now what do I need to do to get better?

CAM: Absolutely, that’s how you do get better. If you start dwelling on the negatives, it’s going to be difficult to move past the things that you’re dwelling on and try to correct and get better at.

JIM: You’ve been a sports parent. How do you behave as a sports parent? How do you support your kids and fill that role?

CAM: Very similar to what my parents did, is I get them to and from their sporting events. And I sit off to the side and watch them with pride and joy. You know, it’s obvious a unique situation being a former professional athlete. But I want them just to enjoy themselves, not feel any pressure. Just go out there and play and have fun. I try not to engage too much with the other parents.

JIM: Do you ever have an issue with a coach’s decision or an official’s decision?

CAM: Well, there’s always issues with officials. [laughter] But there’s not much you can do. I learned that a long time ago. They make a call, whether it’s right or wrong, they’re not going to change their mind, so there’s no point in getting too upset about it.

As far as coaches go, right now the coaches are volunteering their time and I give them all the credit in the world to volunteer their time to get behind the bench, or get on the court and help the players. Have somebody there that they can run drills and set lines up together. So you know, if anybody has issues with volunteer coaches, they should become one themselves.

JIM: Let’s talk about something else, the Cam Neeley Foundation to help cancer patients and their families during treatment. And every year you put on the Neeley SK8 Challenge. First of all, tell me a little bit about why that’s an important issue for you. And why you created this event.

Cam Neely|Positive Outlook

CAM: Well, as an athlete you get asked to do all sorts of different charity events, or be at events or getting involved with these great causes. You know I had done that along with all my other teammates. Both my parents were diagnosed with cancer, so I kind of geared my energies towards cancer related causes. I saw that there wasn’t really as much being done for patients and families today, based on the experiences that myself and my siblings were going through with our parents.

So felt that I—because of the platform that I had that I could make some kind of a small difference in cancer patients and family’s lives. Decided to start a foundation to raise money to help people today. So everything we do—Unfortunately, both parents passed away from cancer. So everything we do is in memory of our parents.

JIM: It strikes me that very often the treatment for cancer is focused on the patient. But cancer is really something that affects the entire family. So I could see why what you’re doing is really important.

CAM: Well, it really does. I found not just with my parents, but I even see it in children of adults, the patient generally handles it better than the family members.

JIM: That’s interesting. As part of the Neeley SK8 Challenge you interact with some younger hockey players in the Boston area. Any thoughts about the current generation of youth hockey players?

CAM: Well, right now at the young age they’re still—You know, they’re excited to play. They love the sport. They’re engaged with the sport, especially here in New England. I think as they get older, you know especially if you’re a skilled player, they start looking at the opportunities to advance, whether it be at the collegiate level and so on. But right now I think it’s a sport in this area that is growing. It’s been imbedded in New England for a long time. But the kids just want to go out and have fun and enjoy themselves. And for the most part I see them doing that.

JIM: I interviewed John Buccigross, the ESPN hockey guy. And he still plays hockey recreationally as an adult. And one thing he said that really struck me is it seems like almost nothing in life that’s more fun than just skating. Being on the ice and moving effortlessly. Do you miss skating? Or do you still skate?

CAM: I’ve been on the ice little recently, which has to do with unfortunately some of the ailments that I have. But it’s like riding a bicycle, you’ll never forget doing. And when you get on the ice you’ll always enjoy it, whether it’s every day or once a month, or once a year. It’s something you truly enjoy doing. And I strongly recommend—You don’t necessarily have to play, but like riding a bike, you should learn how to skate.

JIM: Cam, I want to thank you for the time to talk with me today, and all the Responsible Sports listeners out there. I think the youth sports leaders, coaches, parents and athletes who listen to this are going to get a lot of insight. So I really want to thank you for taking the time to do this.

CAM: Well, it’s been my pleasure; I appreciate it. Thank you.