Marco Bayer was named Switzerland’s U20 coach more than a year ago and was back behind the bench in Edmonton for his second U20 tournament. As a player, he appeared in two World Juniors as well as the 1995 World Championship, and he had a lengthy playing career in his domestic league before turning to coaching. He talked with IIHF.com to discuss the 2022 U20 team from last December, the Swiss program, and the coaching life.
The 2021 World Juniors was your first year coaching the U20 team. How would you compare that team with the one you had in Edmonton last December?
The players this past year were much better than my first year because most of them had been playing in the men’s league in either the first or second division. We had ten returning players from last year’s tournament as well, which is very important. They are a year older and haven’t just been playing at the junior level but have more experience with men’s hockey, which is a significant difference.
Do you see the most important part of your job to develop players who will reach their potential in a few years or to focus on this tournament, right now, and try to win games?
It’s a balance, but at the same time we have to perform. This is not a development camp. We are here representing Switzerland and we have to win hockey games. That’s a fact.
Does it help you, as a coach, that you played at the World Juniors 30 years ago and know something about the tournament?
No. That was a long time ago. Hockey has gotten so much faster. Last year was my first year, but after that I went to two other senior tournaments as well as the U18 in Texas, and those trips helped me to make better decisions, to see what’s happening in international hockey today and bring that knowledge to our team.
Do you remember anything specifically about those 1991 or 1992 tournaments?
I was in Saskatoon and Regina, and I think we made it to the quarter-finals, which meant we stayed in the A Pool, as they called it then. That was the most important thing for us. And it was cold then, too! But hockey has changed so much in the last 30 years. I had a chance last year when we were in Edmonton to watch some NHL Classics games on TV from my era, and you can’t compare. It’s so much faster and more skilled now.
What were some of the challenges specific to this past year? You had to arrive early and quarantine. You had to worry about the players’ health, which was the most important thing. You didn’t have many practices so didn’t have a lot of chance to gel and build a team.
The mental part of that tournament was really, really huge. We started in Switzerland with 17 players, practised there a few days, flew to Edmonton. Some new players arrived. We had two days of quarantine. But I think we, as a coaching staff, did a good job because we were prepared for the situation. My job is to see the sport side of this as my number-one priority. Covid is not my job. But we worked hard to keep the team together and cohesive because the simple truth is, there was nothing about that we could change. We had to accept the situation, have a good mindset, think positive, and live day by day, hour by hour. That’s all we could do and all we could control. But the mental side of this was huge last year, absolutely.
Marcel Jenni also started coaching with the U18 last year. Do you guys talk a lot about players and the development programs?
One hundred per cent, but it’s not only Marcel and me; it’s also Patrick Fischer from the senior team. We’re a new group, but we work really closely together. I went to the U18 to see who are the potential players for U20. We have to work together to develop.
Historically, the U18 and U20 have always had a Swiss coach, but the senior coach has often had a Canadian coach. Now you have Swiss coaches at all levels. Is that an improvement for the program?
I think we learned a lot from the Canadian coaches, and from Swedish coaches, too, but recently we have tried to bring more Swiss-ness in because the Swiss coaches know exactly what the players need. We are different from Canadian people, different from Swedish people. So we know how to work with the players, what their DNA is. It makes great sense to move Swiss coaches in to work together.
Streit was a player who had a great NHL career but also year after year played at the World Championships. Is one of those more important than the other in terms of development in Switzerland?
In the end, we need all of our top players to commit to play for Switzerland. In the last few years, most of the best players really wanted to play for their country. Years ago, that wasn’t the case. But also it’s so good now because we’ve taken a step up and have shown we can compete for a medal and even win the World Championship trophy. That’s big motivation for the young guys to play for the national team. Now, if Patrick Fischer calls them, they say yes right away.
The 2021 World Juniors was your first year coaching the U20 team. How would you compare that team with the one you had in Edmonton last December?
The players this past year were much better than my first year because most of them had been playing in the men’s league in either the first or second division. We had ten returning players from last year’s tournament as well, which is very important. They are a year older and haven’t just been playing at the junior level but have more experience with men’s hockey, which is a significant difference.
Do you see the most important part of your job to develop players who will reach their potential in a few years or to focus on this tournament, right now, and try to win games?
It’s a balance, but at the same time we have to perform. This is not a development camp. We are here representing Switzerland and we have to win hockey games. That’s a fact.
Does it help you, as a coach, that you played at the World Juniors 30 years ago and know something about the tournament?
No. That was a long time ago. Hockey has gotten so much faster. Last year was my first year, but after that I went to two other senior tournaments as well as the U18 in Texas, and those trips helped me to make better decisions, to see what’s happening in international hockey today and bring that knowledge to our team.
Do you remember anything specifically about those 1991 or 1992 tournaments?
I was in Saskatoon and Regina, and I think we made it to the quarter-finals, which meant we stayed in the A Pool, as they called it then. That was the most important thing for us. And it was cold then, too! But hockey has changed so much in the last 30 years. I had a chance last year when we were in Edmonton to watch some NHL Classics games on TV from my era, and you can’t compare. It’s so much faster and more skilled now.
What were some of the challenges specific to this past year? You had to arrive early and quarantine. You had to worry about the players’ health, which was the most important thing. You didn’t have many practices so didn’t have a lot of chance to gel and build a team.
The mental part of that tournament was really, really huge. We started in Switzerland with 17 players, practised there a few days, flew to Edmonton. Some new players arrived. We had two days of quarantine. But I think we, as a coaching staff, did a good job because we were prepared for the situation. My job is to see the sport side of this as my number-one priority. Covid is not my job. But we worked hard to keep the team together and cohesive because the simple truth is, there was nothing about that we could change. We had to accept the situation, have a good mindset, think positive, and live day by day, hour by hour. That’s all we could do and all we could control. But the mental side of this was huge last year, absolutely.
Marcel Jenni also started coaching with the U18 last year. Do you guys talk a lot about players and the development programs?
One hundred per cent, but it’s not only Marcel and me; it’s also Patrick Fischer from the senior team. We’re a new group, but we work really closely together. I went to the U18 to see who are the potential players for U20. We have to work together to develop.
Historically, the U18 and U20 have always had a Swiss coach, but the senior coach has often had a Canadian coach. Now you have Swiss coaches at all levels. Is that an improvement for the program?
I think we learned a lot from the Canadian coaches, and from Swedish coaches, too, but recently we have tried to bring more Swiss-ness in because the Swiss coaches know exactly what the players need. We are different from Canadian people, different from Swedish people. So we know how to work with the players, what their DNA is. It makes great sense to move Swiss coaches in to work together.
Streit was a player who had a great NHL career but also year after year played at the World Championships. Is one of those more important than the other in terms of development in Switzerland?
In the end, we need all of our top players to commit to play for Switzerland. In the last few years, most of the best players really wanted to play for their country. Years ago, that wasn’t the case. But also it’s so good now because we’ve taken a step up and have shown we can compete for a medal and even win the World Championship trophy. That’s big motivation for the young guys to play for the national team. Now, if Patrick Fischer calls them, they say yes right away.