Fred Shero

Fred Shero
Hockey Hall of Fame, 2013 (Builder)
Shero during his playing days with the New York Rangers
Born	(1925-10-23)October 23, 1925 Winnipeg, MB, Canada
Died	November 24, 1990(1990-11-24) (aged 65) Camden, NJ, United States
Height	5 ft 10 in (178 cm)
Weight	185 lb (84 kg; 13 st 3 lb)
Position	Defence
Shot	Left
Played for	New York Rangers
Playing career	1947–1958

Frederick Alexander "The Fog" Shero (October 23, 1925 – November 24, 1990) was a Canadian professional ice hockey player, coach, and general manager. He played for the New York Rangers of the National Hockey League (NHL). However, he spent most of his playing career in the minor leagues. Following his playing career, he went into coaching, spending 13 years coaching in the minor leagues before making it to the NHL. As an NHL head coach, Shero won the Stanley Cup twice with the Philadelphia Flyers (1974 and 1975) and reached the Stanley Cup Finals three times in Philadelphia (1974, 1975, and 1976). He also had four consecutive seasons of having a 0.700 or better winning percentage and remains the Flyers all-time leader in coaching victories. Shero controversially left the Flyers following the 1977–78 season to become the head coach of the New York Rangers, whom he led to the Stanley Cup Finals in his first season. He resigned from the Rangers after coaching for less than three seasons. Shero had a unique style of coaching that led to several innovations that are still used today. He was the first coach to hire a full-time assistant coach, employ systems, have his players use in season strength training, study film, and he was one of the first coaches to utilize a morning skate. In 2013 Shero was recognized for his contributions when he was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame as a builder.

He was known for his enigmatic and introverted personality often appearing or disappearing from a room unnoticed, or being completely lost in thought. He often left philosophical sayings on a chalkboard as a way of provoking thought or as a motivational tool. Prior to game four of the 1974 Stanley Cup Finals, Shero wrote his now famous quote "Win today and we walk together forever" – a statement that continues to be quoted to this day. His son, Ray Shero, also pursued a career in hockey and was the general manager of the Pittsburgh Penguins from 2006–2014 and is the current (as of May 2015) general manager of the New Jersey Devils.