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TODAY’S TRAINING INSPIRATION:
BRYAN TROTTIER

Today’s Colin Timberlake Training Inspiration is a man who proved during his NHL career that a man can redefine himself, his game and his role, rather than simply succumb to the expectations associated with advancing age.

During his prime with the New York Islanders in the 1970s and 1980s, Bryan Trottier was one of the league’s true scoring elite, earning himself a place in the Hall of Fame with 1,425 points in 1,279 games over 18 seasons.

He twice led the league in assists (including 87 in 1978-79) and also led the entire league in points that season with 134, winning the Art Ross Trophy as scoring champion and the Hart Trophy as league MVP. It is worth mentioning that he also led the league in +/- that year with +76 (one of the +70 or better seasons that would foreshadow the later evolution of his game into a defensive specialist).

Trottier was a central factor in the Islanders’ four consecutive Stanley Cups (1980-83) that would make them one of the most legendary teams in pro sports. But one should also look a little further down his resume and note the two Stanley Cups and aging Trottier won with the Pittsburgh Penguins (1991 and 1992).

No longer so fleet of foot, nor a scoring machine, Trottier now capitalized on his extensive knowledge of the game and positional play to become a specialist in neutralizing the other team’s best scoring stars. This adaptation earned Trottier a longer affair with the game he loved and required him to utilize both hands if he ever wanted to wear all of his Stanley Cup rings.

TODAY: CHEST (5-5-5 Tempo, 90 Second Rests)
and BICEPS (5-5-5 Tempo, 90 Second Rests)

FLAT DUMBBELL FLYES (5 sets)
40 x 6
40 x 4
40 x 4
40 x 4
40 x 4

FLAT DUMBBELL PRESS (5 sets)
40 x 4
40 x 4
40 x 4
40 x 4
40 x 4

INCLINE DUMBBELL PRESS (5 sets)
30 x 6
30 x 6
30 x 7
30 x 6
30 x 6

INCLINE DUMBBELL FLYES (3 sets)
30 x 5
30 x 4
30 x 3

STANDING HAMMER DUMBBELL CURLS (5 sets)
30 x 5
30 x 4
30 x 3
25 x 4
25 x 4

STANDING UNDERHAND DUMBBELL CURLS (3 sets)
25 x 4
25 x 4
25 x 4

TWISTING SUSPENDED-LEGS INCLINE DUMBBELL CURLS (3 sets)
20 x 4
20 x 4
20 x 4

TRAINING NOTES

Total Sets (Chest): 18
Total Sets (Biceps): 11

BACK TO Index of Inspirational Role Models for Training

Well, I posted recently on the greatness of Bryan Trottier and included the video that the Hockey Hall of Fame put together on his legendary career. But for those who weren’t watching carefully at the time, it may not have been evident that Trottier was as competitive as any, and that mean streak made its way into his on-ice trash talk.

Let’s just say that while he didn’t make any references to “sloppy seconds” (a la Sean Avery), he did coin a fresh term as he and teammate Kevin Stevens tore a stripe off of Minnesota North Stars legend Brian Bellows in the 1991 Stanley Cup Finals. As fantastic as the heckling is, I wonder if Bellows would really be that insulted. Could it be taken as a compliment for any self-respecting hockey player?

The Penguins went on to win the Stanley Cup in 1991 and in the following year. Trottier was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame with 1,425 career points (and 184 in the playoffs). But it has been often overlooked that Bellows had a pretty spectacular career of his own. He retired in 1999 with 1,022 career points (and 122 in the playoffs), including a career year with 55 goals and 99 points in 1989-90.

Two players with Hall of Fame skills, but only one with a Hall of Fame mouth!

The following video is a montage that was put together by the Hockey Fall of Fame to honor the induction of New York Islanders great Bryan Trottier.

Trottier combined a rare level of talent and finesse with an abrasive physical game that earned him the Conn Smythe Trophy (playoff MVP), Art Ross Trophy (top scorer) and Hart Trophy (league MVP) in a career that saw his name engraved on the Stanley Cup six times: four times with the legendary Islanders dynasty, and twice with the Pittsburgh Penguins. For these final two cups, the former scoring prodigy had remolded himself into a grizzled defensive forward, specializing in shutting down the opposing team’s top offensive talents.

He finished his career with an astounding 1,425 points, to which he added 184 in the playoffs.