Dallas Eakins’ hideous jungle animal tie: The story behind it

Dallas Eakins made his regular-season debut as the Edmonton Oilers coach on Tuesday night, and it was an unforgettable one.

Not because of anything the Oilers did on the ice – blowing a lead in the third period, losing to the Winnipeg Jets – but because Eakins wore one of the single most garish ties that has ever graced the neck of an NHL rookie coach.

Via @skrosney

It was a collage of jungle animals, overlapping with one another like a child’s puzzle with scattered pieces. Giraffe, monkey, elephant, a giant tiger head and a panther crawling around it, with a rhino and a zebra underneath.

It was the kind of tie that dangles on a rack unsold at a zoo gift shop for $59.99. It was the kind of tie that Don Cherry would look at and say, “It’s a little much.”

But it wasn’t too much for the late Roger Neilson, who was known to rock a garish tie in his storied Hall of Fame coaching career.

Neilson, who died of bone cancer in 2003, was a mentor to Eakins. OK, more than a mentor – a second father, who had known Eakins since he was 12. So as he coached his first NHL game, Eakins decided to honor Neilson by wearing one of the coach’s old ties.

From the Edmonton Journal and Jonanne Ireland:

Indeed it did.

In many ways, Eakins was standing behind the Oilers bench because of Neilson’s inspiration, who always told him that he’d make a fine hockey coach.

“I knew that Roger was right that coaching was in my blood,” Eakins told the Globe & Mail.

Last night, Neilson was clearly in Dallas Eakins' head and heart.