Jacques Demers

Former NHL Coach, Hockey Commentator & Canadian Senator

Former WHL, AHL and NHL coach, Jacques Demers has had a remarkable hockey career. Among other teams in the WHL and AHL, he was the NHL coach for the Quebec Nordiques, Detroit Red Wings, St. Louis Blues, and Montreal Canadiens for more than twenty years. During his career, his teams advanced to the conference finals on numerous occasions, he coached the Canadiens to a Stanley Cup win in 1993, and he was awarded the Jack Adams twice. Following his retirement, Demers admitted to the public that he is functionally illiterate, and has become a major advocate for various literacy initiatives.

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A coach who started in the World Hockey Association, Jacques Demers became an NHL coach when his Quebec Nordiques left the now-defunct league. After Quebec didn’t renew his contract, Demers coached in the AHL for two seasons before returning to the NHL with the St. Louis Blues. After three seasons with the St. Louis Blues, he went on to coach the Detroit Red Wings for four seasons. In his last year with St. Louis, Demers brought them to the conference finals; he would repeat this feat the next two seasons with Detroit. Those same two seasons, Demers was awarded the Jack Adams trophy – the only coach to win it in consecutive years.

Following a two-year absence, Demers returned to coaching in 1992 with the Montreal Canadiens. That year, the Habs won their 23rd Stanley Cup. After only four games into the 1995 season, the Habs fired Demers. Rebounding, he took over the Tampa Bay Lightning for the next two seasons.

Demers released his biography in 2005 entitled, En toutes lettres (All Spelled Out). Written by sports writer Mario LeClerc, Demers admitted that he was funcionally illiterate.

In 2007, Demers was named the 100th most influential personality in hockey by The Hockey News, and he was appointed to the Senate by Prime Minister Stephen Harper in 2009.

A frequent commentator on CBC and TSN, Demers is a regular analyst and columnist for RDS in Quebec.

6. Jacques Demers en Toutes Lettres

Throughout a storied career, Jacques Demers built a name as one of the most successful coaches in the National Hockey League. Savvy and charismatic, he is still respected in his native Montreal as the last coach to bring the Stanley Cup home to his appreciative city. After hundreds of on-ice victories across Canada and the United States, Mr. Demers went on to a thriving career as a television sports commentator. Yet during all those years behind the bench and in front of the camera, he managed to hide a remarkable fact. He could neither read nor write.

In an authorized biography published in 2005, the 61-year-old Mr. Demers reveals that he covered up his illiteracy with elaborate ploys, fearful that the truth could cost him his job with professional hockey. Mr. Demers, said he hoped that speaking out would help others develop the confidence to learn to read and write, as he has tried to do. Millions of Canadian adults have varying levels of illiteracy, and Mr. Demers's story of survival and determination is emblematic of the struggles they face every day.
5. Managing Assets - Knowing & Using the Players You Have
4. Recognizing Talent
3. Overcoming Adversity
2. Teamwork
1. Leadership

Jacques did a fabulous job for us! He was highly skilled at presenting in both French and English which helped to engage the entire audience. His message and the way he related it back to his life was wonderful. I was also pleased to see how his points related back to success in both personal and business life.

Holstein Canada