Peter Diana, Post-Gazette Coach Michel Therrien gives instruction to the Penguins at a workout at the Mellon Arena. Click photo for larger image.

As it is, he took over a team that was near the bottom in the NHL, lacked cohesiveness, was behind in conditioning, put in too many unacceptable performances, was anemic on the power play, spent too much time in the penalty box and gave up goals at an alarming pace.

General manager Craig Patrick brought Therrien up from Wilkes-Barre because he felt the team wasn't listening to Eddie Olczyk's message and that a new start was needed.

Formerly the coach of the Montreal Canadiens, who were 77-91-22 during his tenure, Therrien has been described variously as blunt, an "in-your- face" disciplinarian, a no-nonsense leader and a teacher of the game.

Therrien, the man tapped to salvage the season, answers questions from Post-Gazette reporter Robert Dvorchak.

Q. Some Penguins who played under you in Wilkes-Barre have said that you hate to lose, whether it's losing a game, a battle on the boards or a single shift, and that you made them hate everything about losing. Where does that come from?

Therrien: I don't know (chuckling). I hate to lose when I play cards. I hate to lose when I play golf. I don't know. It's a lot of hard work to prepare a team for a game. When I see players not concentrating, not performing the way that they should prepare, I think it's a lack of respect, and respect is important. We work hard to prepare that team for every game. The only thing we demand is an effort and concentration. We're not saying there aren't going to be times when we're going to lose, but I have to like the effort, the concentration. Sometimes, there are things you can't control in a game. It could be a bad call. It could be a bad bounce. There's nothing you can do sometimes. But, as long as the effort is there, as long as the guys are concentrating on what they're supposed to do, this is the only thing I can demand as a coach. When they do that, I don't have any problem. When they do that on a regular basis, we'll be more successful than not. Yes, I hate to lose. Most of the time when you lose hockey games, there's a reason. There could be a lot of reasons. But I want to make sure my team is ready to play when the gate opens, that they're excited to play. I get really upset when they don't play with pride.

Q. You want to bring structure to these players and have them play in your system, which is a challenge in the middle of the season. How long will it take for them to adapt?

Therrien: The one thing we can change right away is attitude, work ethic, our desire to win. We're going to have to work harder than other teams to get back on track. I'm not a dreamer. This is what we have to accept. This is going to be a long-term process about the structure we try to bring, but I want to see some improvement right away. The first thing I talked about with the players was changing attitude. Our intensity has to be there. Our emotions have to be there. Even if you play with structure and the intensity is not there, it's not going to work. ... So we're going to have to find the combination of the two, and eventually we'll have success in the long run. We have to become a team that's not going to beat ourselves. We need to do what winners do to win some hockey games. There's a price to pay. It's going to be one of my duties to make sure those guys pay that price to win hockey games and reward the guys who want to be recognized as winners.

Q. How are you different as a coach from the first time around when you were with the Canadiens?

Therrien: When I was 20, I was different. When I was 30, I was different. When I was named coach of the Canadiens, as a French-Canadian, it was a dream come true. I've learned along the way. I will say this, I will work with all my passion, all my pride, in this job.

Q. The way the game has changed, special teams seem to be more important than ever. How do you jump-start the power play and improve the penalty killing?

Therrien: My philosophy has always been the special teams have to finish plus one. If you're minus one, it's tough to win. Guys will get responsibility regarding special teams. They're going to have to play with some pride -- block shots, be in the shooting lane, make sure we're going to be solid.

Q. One of the first things you did was move Sidney Crosby back to center after he had played on both wings. How do you feel about coaching a young talent like him?

Therrien: He has so much skill, so much speed. He's so versatile. I want to give him a chance to focus on being a center. He needs to learn. He's only 18. When I saw him at training camp, I was impressed. I never thought he was going to be that good. He sees things on the ice that not too many hockey players see. I want to help him become a complete player because I like the kid. He's a good kid. He cares. When you have young players who care, it's a gold mine for us. I want to make sure he's learning as much as he can on the ice, off the ice. Overall, I like the way this franchise is going. We have some good young players.

Q. You also named him an assistant captain at a tender age. What went into your decision?

Therrien: I really believe that this is a new beginning for our team. He's one of our best players. I don't think it's pressure. I want him to learn. Eventually, it's going to be Sidney's team. Sid has some good veterans to work with. He's a young kid, but sometimes those young kids have new ideas.

Q. After the back-to-back games with Buffalo, there was a chance to lay the foundation. Did you consider it a mini-training camp?

Therrien: For me, I like to work on different things every practice. Even if I have only one practice, it's a chance to work on our system. I'm not a guy who's going to do drills, drills, drills, drills, drills just to touch the ice and get off the ice. I like to think every day is important. Every day we have to get better. Every day we have to improve. But we had some quality time this week, so we have to make sure every guy is on the same page with us.