One thing that fans have come to expect from Letterkenny is absurd and extreme characters. And few characters are more ridiculous than the Coach. Little is known about him other than he coaches hockey, enjoys golf, and really seems to like yelling at people. While his loud, garbage can-kicking ways are hilarious, they might come from a very dark place that the Coach needs to address.
Calling Coach’s style of motivating his players unique is an understatement. He’s not the first coach to raise his voice. And he’s likely not the first coach to kick a garbage can or two in an effort to put some emphasis on his point. But the extremes he goes to are another level, bringing an intensity to the position of bench boss few can match and even fewer would want to.
Reilly and Jonesy are the most common recipients of his insanity. Even when they got called up to the next level, he eventually followed them. Even worse, Coach constantly inserts himself into their personal lives. In Episode 5, Season 4, he helped them cheat in the town spelling bee, largely against their will. And he dragged them into his beer league, also against their will to an extent.
But it was the beer league that shone a light on something much darker in the Coach’s past, not for the first time. In Season 9, Episode 2, Reilly and Jonesy were trying to enjoy the beer league but Coach kept accosting them with drunken stories about his life, including a few about his late wife, Barbara. Little is known about her other than the fact that she passed away prior to the beginning of the series.
It has become increasingly apparent that Coach has not dealt with her loss on any sort of meaningful level. In Season 4, Episode 4, Coach tried to participate in the town talent show, only to fail miserably. He dedicated his act, which consisted of playing the ukelele, to his late wife. When he was consistently interrupted, he snapped and freaked out like he was coaching hockey.
Coach’s emotional issues combined with a recurring drinking problem are consistent with someone who has not fully processed his grief. Coach rarely talks about his personal life in any kind of substantial fashion, particularly the circumstances surrounding Barbara’s death. It’s unclear if it was due to an illness or an accident. Regardless of the reason, Coach needs to get himself into therapy to discuss the problem as soon as possible.
Throughout all nine seasons of the series, Coach has proven to be a bit of a menace, particularly in the lives of anyone playing hockey in Letterkenny. But it all might boil down to the fact that the man lost the love of his life and hasn’t figured out how to move on without her. All the Coach could need is some therapy and a couple of really good friends who can be there for him. Or the guy is just an unrelenting jerk. Really, either possibility is equally likely.
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