BY MICHAEL PIASETZKI

He doesn't like to talk about the past and what he achieved as a Quebec Midget AAA Hockey League head coach. He never talks about it with his current players.

For soft-spoken Ile Perrot resident Léo Bédard, that was then and this is now.

Maybe he should, though. What a past it was. A 10-year career with the Brian McKeown-owned Lac St. Louis Lions that was in many ways, legendary. From 1980 to '89, Bédard's Lions qualified for three Air Canada Cup national tournaments, winning gold in 1981 and '85 and bronze in '84. During that time, he amassed 185 victories, 139 defeats and 29 ties, second only in league history to Jean-Louis Létourneau. He also instructed numerous players who went on to enjoy lengthy and respected National Hockey League and European professional careers, including Benoit Brunet, Bobby Dollas, Claude Lapointe, Randy McKay, Mike O'Neill, Tom Draper, Peter White and Shawn Anderson, his stepson.

It was a sparkling career finally recognized last May by the league when it inducted him into its Hall of Fame.

Last year, after an almost 13-year coaching hiatus - he was an assistant coach with the midget AA North Shore Pirates in 1991 and head coach for the junior AA LaSalle Cyclones the year after - Bédard got the itch to return behind the bench. A perfect excuse to do so fell onto his lap when a position opened up with the Lac St. Louis Hockey Association bantam AA Trois Lac Eagles, whose roster included his grandson, Holden Anderson.

"It was a real adjustment for me when I came back," Bédard said. "Hockey had changed so much from the days when I coached the Lions. Back then, I did almost everything myself. I didn't even have assistant coaches. I suddenly found myself spending so much more time preparing for practices, which are far more complex, and preparing for games."

Heading into this weekend's action, Bédard's Eagles find themselves in last place in the Patriotes division with a 7-9-3 record. Still, he admitted finding encouragement in the fact they are a hardworking group that never seem to give up.

"Even though we're a middle of the road kind of team," he said. "We might surprise some people in the playoffs."

When stepson Andersen was appointed head coach of the midget AAA Lions in the spring of 2004, Bédard's interest in the league and the team was rejuvenated. These days, with Anderson long gone, he continues to follow, but admits things are very different than back in the days when he coached.

"It's still a high-level league," he said. "But much like the NHL, it's been watered down due to expansion."

Bédard had far more players to choose from during his days with the Lions, something he said definitely played a part in the team's success. Gatineau was not in the league, neither was Châteauguay.

"However, let's not forget other teams have also lost previously eligible players due to zone changes," he said. "Richelieu has lost a lot of their zone as well. Now there's a team in St. Hyacinthe. The Quebec City region has also expanded with Lévis. It's not only the Lions. The whole league has changed."