“Procrastination is one of the most common and deadliest of diseases and its toll on success and happiness is heavy.”

I think sports for kids is the greatest thing in the world because it teaches you how to share, about winning and losing and pressure. But I don’t think you should force your kid to become a professional athlete.

I love everything about hockey.

The highest compliment that you can pay me is to say that I work hard every day, that I never dog it.

I can remember hockey. It was my life, my passion. It’s what I love the most.

My kids are no different than anyone else’s – they tend to disagree with everything I say!

I played everything. I played lacrosse, baseball, hockey, soccer, track and field. I was a big believer that you played hockey in the winter and when the season was over you hung up your skates and you played something else.

A good hockey player plays where the puck is. A great hockey player plays where the puck is going to be.

One of the key qualities that you need to be a great hockey player is fantastic anticipation and feel for the game – if you know where the puck is going before it is hit, that is half the battle.

Most people marry their mother. I married my father.

A lot of times, I can turn and pass without even looking.

When I played in a 21-team league, there were six or seven goalies who were just average, and the equipment and pads were smaller. I came in the right era. I played for the right team. It was all speed, and creativity and imagination.

It doesn’t matter what I think. It doesn’t matter what other people think. You have to get on the ice and participate and play and the best team wins.

Lifting the Stanley Cup for the first time. There’s nothing like it. It’s the greatest story. In my era, they used to say you couldn’t be a superstar without winning one. I remember thinking when I lifted it: “Now they can’t say that about me.”

I can’t remember the last time I went to a game and there was a fight. I think they fight more in baseball now than they do in hockey.

You’ll never catch me bragging about goals, but I’ll talk all you want about my assists.

My best friend had a hockey scholarship at Ohio State, so I would get a couple of pairs at the beginning of the season and send them down to him. They practised two hours a day. He’d skate in them for three weeks then ship them back.

I had always been feeling uncomfortable in my mind about giving advice to others and not acting upon it myself.

Advice is based on our sanskars. Implementation is based on theirs.

Keep your circle tight and snake-free.

I have often heard that the outstanding man is he who thinks deeply about a problem, and the next is he who listens carefully to advice.

The key is not being overconfident. You should not think that because I’m a top-ranked player, I will win this game. You have to be focused.

Have lots of experiments, but make sure they’re strategically focused.

Read carefully anything that requires your signature. Remember the big print giveth and the small print taketh away.

A low-minded person should not be given good advice.