François Allaire is an ice hockey

Ice hockey

Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...

 goaltending coach currently working for the Toronto Maple Leafs

Toronto Maple Leafs

The Toronto Maple Leafs are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...

 of the North American National Hockey League

National Hockey League

The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...

 (NHL). He developed considerable expertise during the 1980s as the Montreal Canadiens

Montreal Canadiens

The Montreal Canadiens are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is officially known as ...

' first-ever goaltending coach. In the 1990s, he promoted his methods to the younger generation of goalies, making his technique a new standard. The 'Allaire style' stresses sound positioning, getting down into the butterfly

Butterfly style

In ice hockey, "butterfly style" is a technique of goaltending distinguished by the goaltender guarding the lower part of the net by dropping to the knees to block attempts to score. The butterfly style derives its name from the resemblance of the spread goal pads and hands to a butterfly's wings...

, and taking up as much net as possible. He has encouraged his goalies to wear the biggest allowable gear.

Allaire successfully mentored Patrick Roy

Patrick Roy

Patrick Edward Armand Roy is a former Canadian ice hockey goaltender. Nicknamed "Saint Patrick," Roy split his professional career between the Montreal Canadiens, whom he played with for 10 years, and the Colorado Avalanche, whom he played with for 8 years, both of the National Hockey League...

, winning Stanley Cup

Stanley Cup

The Stanley Cup is an ice hockey club trophy, awarded annually to the National Hockey League playoffs champion after the conclusion of the Stanley Cup Finals. It has been referred to as The Cup, Lord Stanley's Cup, The Holy Grail, or facetiously as Lord Stanley's Mug...

s in 1986 and 1993. In 2003, he guided the relatively unheralded Jean-Sébastien Giguère

Jean-Sébastien Giguère

Jean-Sébastien Giguère is a Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender currently playing with the Colorado Avalanche of the National Hockey League . He played major junior with the Verdun Collège Français and Halifax Mooseheads in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League , where he was drafted 13th...

 to the Conn Smythe Trophy

Conn Smythe Trophy

The Conn Smythe Trophy is awarded annually to the player judged most valuable to his team during the National Hockey League's Stanley Cup playoffs. The Conn Smythe Trophy has been awarded 46 times to 40 players since the 1964–65 NHL season...

 (an award for the most valuable player in the Stanley Cup Playoffs

Stanley Cup playoffs

The Stanley Cup playoffs is an elimination tournament in the National Hockey League consisting of four rounds of best-of-seven series. Eight teams from each of the league's two conferences qualify for the playoffs based on regular season records...

). He won a third Stanley Cup championship with the Anaheim Ducks

Anaheim Ducks

The Anaheim Ducks are a professional ice hockey team based in Anaheim, California, USA. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League...

 in 2007.

On 10 June 2009, Allaire left the Ducks to join the Maple Leafs, opting to resume a working relationship with Brian Burke, Toronto's current general manager

General manager

General manager is a descriptive term for certain executives in a business operation. It is also a formal title held by some business executives, most commonly in the hospitality industry.-Generic usage:...

. Burke had served as Anaheim's GM since 2005 before joining the Maple Leafs in November 2008. He has since been reunited with Giguere when he was traded for Vesa Toskala

Vesa Toskala

Vesa Tapani Toskala is a professional ice hockey goaltender, currently playing for Ilves.-Early career:Toskala was selected by San Jose in the 1995 NHL Entry Draft . The Sharks also took fellow Finn Miikka Kiprusoff in the fifth round...

 and Jason Blake on January 31, 2010, and mentoring Swedish goalie Jonas Gustavsson

Jonas Gustavsson

Jonas Gustavsson , popularly nicknamed The Monster due to his stature, is a Swedish ice hockey goaltender currently playing for the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League .-Playing career:Swedish Jonas...

.

His brother Benoit Allaire, also a goaltending coach, has worked for the Phoenix Coyotes

Phoenix Coyotes

The Phoenix Coyotes are a professional ice hockey team based in Glendale, Arizona. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . They play their home games at Jobing.com Arena....

 and is currently with the New York Rangers

New York Rangers

The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in the borough of Manhattan in New York, New York, USA. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . Playing their home games at Madison Square Garden, the Rangers are one of the...

.

Interviews

ESPN

ESPN

Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....

interviewed Allaire shortly after Patrick Roy announced his retirement from professional hockey here: http://static.espn.go.com/nhl/s/2003/0528/1560164.html

External links