Dallas Stars head coach Lindy Ruff used Team Canada’s Olympic orientation camp to brush up on one of his new players.
Ruff, one of Mike Babcock’s assistant coaches for the Canadian squad, picked the brain of fellow assistant and Boston head coach Claude Julien about Dallas’ big offseason acquisition -- Tyler Seguin.
“It was about his move back to the middle of the ice, why he went to right wing,” Ruff told NHL.com. “How he handled him. Where does he think he can be best utilized? They’re all questions a coach would ask another coach.”
Despite the “how he handled him” line, Ruff didn’t divulge if the conversation steered towards Seguin’s off-ice reputation. The former Boston forward -- acquired by Dallas in a seven-player blockbuster -- had his B’s exit marred by allegations of immaturity and a party lifestyle.
There was also a minor controversy following his arrival in Dallas, when he alleged someone “hacked” his Twitter account.
Julien said “there was no issue between Tyler and I” during their three seasons together in Boston, and Ruff said any alleged issues won’t be a problem now, because he’s offering the 21-year-old a clean slate.
“I have had players that had situations that any normal young guy would go through. They make bad decisions sometimes,” Ruff explained. “Some of those bad decisions get out in the public and some of them don’t.
“Some of [Seguin’s] have, but I look at it as we’re going to start clean, move forward, and he’s excited about getting a fresh start.”