Photo credit: Getty Images/NHL

On a fairly tame July 1st this year, the most notable thing that happened on the first day of free agency was not a player signing, but TSN opening fire on free agent Alex Semin with what bordered on xenophobic hate speech. The worst offender, former NHL Head Coach Marc Crawford, called Semin “a complete loser” and said that he had “no character”. If you haven’t seen the video, it’s worth reviewing here.

The next day, Crawford did us all a favor and left the continent, accepting a head coaching position with the ZSC [Zurich] Lions in Switzerland. Hooray! We thought we’d never have to watch him on TV or hear his commentary ever again.

We were wrong.

This week, Crawford did an interview with the German newspaper Tages Anzeiger, discussing his Alex Semin rant when asked how he grades a player’s character strength with Semin being cited as an example. Sports.ru translated the German article, and I’ve translated the Russian into English below.

You know, my words about Semin were misinterpreted. I compared Alexander to Zach Parise, one of the best players in the NHL, including in this sense [character strength]. Semin is a great player but he’s still got a lot to learn. And I, to be honest, wish him all the best.

About your question: people with a strong character are consistent, permanent in a good way, they are professional. When I watched Zurich’s games in the playoffs, I figured out right away that our captain Mathias Seger is a man of spirit. He’s smart, he feels the game. I like guys like him. Not many can do things he does.

While this is the first time we’ve seen Crawford back off his words, we’re curious what definition of “misinterpreted” he’s using. The TSN broadcast was live, uncut, and the panel was discussing only Parise and Semin at the time.

Crawford also went on to reveal that he interviewed for the Capitals’ vacant heading coaching position in the spring. That is scary news.

I’m sure Marc Crawford is a credible hockey coach, but he’s still got a lot to learn about the English language and how to be unbiased and responsible for his words. And we, to be honest, wish him all the best.

Alex Semin’s agent Mark Gandler did not respond kindly to TSN analyst Marc Crawford’s fair and balanced screed about his client yesterday. He went as far as implying legal action.

“I can tell you that’s the worst I’ve ever heard an analyst say about any player,” Gandler told CSN Washington’s Chuck Gormley. “It’s just prejudice, and there is no place for that in the National Hockey League.”

Less than twelve hours after his rant, TSN’s Darren Dreger announced Crawford has accepted a head coaching position with the Zurich ZSC Lions, located in Switzerland.

Marc Crawford has the coaching bug. “Crow” has accepted the head coaching position in Zurich. TSN will miss him,but he belongs on the bench.

— Darren Dreger (@DarrenDreger) July 2, 2012

Sounds like a good move to us. Crawford’s slanderous craw is now headed to Zurich, far away from TV cameras and our radar. For a while, Crawford was considered a candidate the head coaching job in Washington, so we’re just grateful that didn’t happen.

It’d be nice to think of Crawford’s exile to Switzerland as an escape from the riotous hordes of Alex Semin fans, but that would be silly.

So here’s hoping this is the the last time we utter Marc Crawford’s name on RMNB, unless we’re talking about NHL04 and those weird coaching strategy videos.

“I have no idea what I’m talking about.”

The NHL Network was super awesome today. They aired TSN’s three-hour Free Agent Frenzy special, in which there was precious little frenzying. As a result, TSN’s panel of uh, experts– Pierre McGuire, Marc Crawford, Ray Ferraro, and host James Duthie–  had nothing to talk about. So they dumped on former Capital Alex Semin.

Huge thanks to @TrevorCampbell8 for the video.

James Duthie: I want to talk about two of the intriguing names still left on the board. Let’s start with the forward Alexander Semin. It is the skill that nobody on this board can question. If you actually look at his numbers compared to Zach Parise’s over the last few years, if you just go purely by goals — we’re not comparing him to Zach Parise as a player — but the numbers hold up very well between Alexander Semin and Zach Parise as far as goals scored: 31 to 38; 32 to 26; 45 to 34; and 38 to 40. Very, very similar numbers. Would you take a chance on Semin?

Marc Crawford: The difference is: one guy has a ton of character, the other guy has no character [exaggerated hand motions]. One guy scores 30 goals and doesn’t help his team and the other guy scores 25 goals, but helps [his team] in every single way. So yeah, I would sign him, but he’s going to be banished to a place like Columbus or something, and that’s what those guys do, head to the island of misfit toys [evil laugh].

Ray Ferraro: What about if he goes to a place where he respects the people around him?

Marc Crawford: I feel like a place like Detroit could bring him in and surround him with a Datsyuk. You gotta have a really, really strong group. There’s an old NHL General Manager that says,”Either take a guy that’s a complete winner or a complete loser.” And he falls in that category. Maybe they can change him. [Gets skeptical look on his face.] I don’t like… you don’t change that much. I’d be cautious.

Ray Ferraro: I guess if you’re desperate for the one shot then he can give it to you. But he doesn’t give you a whole lot else.

Pierre McGuire: This is not a great teammate. I’ll tell you that right now, not a good guy to have around your group unless you have unbelievably great leadership and rely on that. He’s the ultimate coach killer, that’s what he is.

All four guys: [Nod in agreement]

Wow. Where do we start?

This is the first time I’ve heard Alex Semin called a “coach killer.” I thought that distinction went to his other Russian (now ex-) teammate Alex Ovechkin. And how precisely does one decide that “this guy has no character” — and everyone on the board casually agrees — without knowing the guy? Instead of developing some kind of insight, it seems like Crawford just ran this equation:

Not Canadian + doesn’t talk much + Russian  = Soulless.

The whole thing stinks. No more than 10 minutes later, Pierre McGuire called Canadian defensive prospect Justin Schultz — who has never played a game in the NHL before — a superhero. Meanwhile Semin, about whom not a single kind word was said all brodcast, somehow still was ranked 7th in TSN’s free agent pool.

TSN purports itself to be the authority for hockey on television, but instead of enlightening their audience they just rehashed the same tired clichés about a player who has always been cordial to his fans and beloved by his teammates.

So who is the lazy one here?