Ex-Flames defenceman Regehr rips Mike Keenan and Jay Feaster
Former Calgary Flames defenceman seems to have no problem giving his thoughts on Mike Keenan and Jay Feaster.
Regehr, who retired from the NHL after the 2014-15 season, spent the first 826 games of his career with the Flames. He was a top-pairing defenceman for the majority of that time and even suited up for Team Canada at the 2006 Olympics.
Recently, Regehr appeared on FlamesNation with Mike Wilson, where he dove into plenty of topics, including what it was like playing under Mike Keenan, the Flames’ head coach from 2007 to 2009.
“From my personal perspective, Mike Keenan was probably the worst coach I’ve ever had in the NHL for a variety of reasons,” Regehr said. “He would play the top guys like crazy, and the bottom six forwards and bottom two defencemen, he would whip them as players, as people, like crazy.”
Regehr also explained that his tactics often seemed like he was trying to divide the room. Hearing this doesn’t come as a major surprise, as many of Keenan’s former players have questioned and criticized his tactics throughout his lengthy head coaching career.
The former Flames defenceman also criticized former general manager Jay Feaster, who was in charge during Regehr’s final season with the organization. He explained that he didn’t feel the former GM handled his trade situation, which eventually saw him go to the Buffalo Sabres the appropriate way.
“If a player has a no-trade or a no-movement, usually the general manager, if they want to trade you, talk to you as a player and your agent. You try to work together to come to a solution,” Regehr explained. “That didn’t happen.”
It wasn’t all negative, however, as Regehr did have some positive words for Darryl Sutter. Though he said he didn’t feel Sutter made good moves during his time as GM, he quite enjoyed having him as his head coach.
“I have a tremendous amount of respect for Darryl Sutter. I think he’s one of the best coaches I’ve ever had in the NHL.”
Though Regehr’s time as a Flame didn’t seem to end the way he had hoped, he was able to move on and accomplish what he had always dreamed of, winning a Stanley Cup with the LA Kings in 2014. The 44-year-old wound up playing in 1,090 games, registering 199 points and 972 penalty minutes.
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