Bill 101 leaves Carbonneau bitter
No English school for daughter of Habs assistant

by Ken Warren for The Ottawa Citizen, February 13, 2002

Guy Carbonneau says the flow of professionals out of Canada won't be reversed without offering things such as education options.

Quebec's strict linguistic policies have left a bitter taste in the mouth of Montreal Canadiens assistant coach Guy Carbonneau.

Carbonneau, a former star with the Canadiens, St. Louis Blues and Dallas Stars, has battled to find an English-language school for his 14-year-old daughter, Kristina, ever since joining Montreal's management team before the 2000-01 season.

Kristina was born in Montreal, but her only previous French-language schooling came in kindergarten. She has attended English-language schools in Dallas from 1995-2000, but under Quebec's Bill 101, English-language schooling in the province is limited to the children of Canadian-born anglophones.

Carbonneau and his wife, Line, are both francophones, born and raised in the province, but they were naturally concerned their daughter's marks would suffer in a French-language school environment after attending English-language schools for so long. When Carbonneau first returned to Montreal in July 2000, he said one of his biggest concerns was finding the proper school for Kristina.

For the time being, the fight has been put on hold, as Kristina's French has improved and she says she'll attempt to work within the system, which allows for some courses in English. Still, Carbonneau said his family's case is one example of how little flexibility exists within the system, designed to protect the French language and francophone culture within Quebec.

"When we came back (from Dallas), we faced Bill 101, and obviously she wanted to go to an English school, and we tried to do some lobbying," said Carbonneau, an assistant coach with the Habs since November 2000. "She was put into French classes, and that's not what we asked for. I understand the law and the (preservation of) heritage, for sure, but this is a special case. If you look at it, especially in the business world right now, Canadian professionals are going to the United States for tax purposes and things like that. At some point, you have to be looking at bringing people back in, and you can't do that if you can't find the right schools (for your children)."

As an 18-year NHL veteran, Carbonneau, 41, was respected as an outstanding leader and was captain of the Canadiens from 1989 to 1994. He won the Stanley Cup championship with Montreal in 1986 and 1993, and again in 1999 with Dallas. He also won the Frank Selke Trophy as the NHL's best defensive forward in 1988, 1989 and 1992, and ranks second all-time in playoff games played.

When he retired following the 1999-2000 season, he originally joined the Canadiens as the supervisor of prospect development. He became an assistant coach when general manager Rejean Houle and coach Alain Vigneault were fired in November 2000. He was long considered to be a leading candidate to become the team's future coach if current coach Michel Therrien was fired.

Therrien now appears to be on secure footing and Carbonneau is considered a candidate to return to Dallas as coach, depending on how interim coach Rick Wilson fares over the next couple of months.

Carbonneau said he never considered leaving the Habs over the school issue, but added the affair hasn't been an easy one with which to deal.

"Obviously, it has been a concern of mine," he said. "I would battle for three years if I had to, but it's my daughter who's in the middle of it. It has been tough on her, but she's starting to understand (French) better. At Christmas, she said she was going to try it."