Ferguson tapped as UAF hockey coach
Originally published Thursday, May 15, 2008 at 11:07 a.m.
Updated Thursday, May 15, 2008 at 11:52 p.m.
For the past four seasons as an assistant coach, Dallas Ferguson sat outside the head hockey coach’s office in the Patty Center at the University of Alaska Fairbanks.
On Thursday morning, Ferguson moved into the head coach’s office after he was named to guide his alma mater’s hockey team, replacing Doc DelCastillo, who resigned April 10 following one season with the Central Collegiate Hockey Association program.
Ferguson, a former Nanooks defenseman, assistant coach and interim head coach, was accompanied by his wife Tara to a nearly packed media conference in the Patty Center’s Nanook Lounge. Other Alaska head coaches, assistant coaches, and athletic department and university administrative staff also attended.
The 35-year-old native of Wainwright, Alberta, said it was a great honor to be chosen as the eighth head coach in Alaska’s 28-year history at the NCAA level.
“This program is very special to me for obvious reasons,” Ferguson said as he sat next to UAF athletic director Forrest Karr. “As far as the community, the university community and the alumni, I want everyone to know that every last ounce of energy will be put towards this program to make it successful, and make the university, the community and its alumni proud.”
Center Dion Knelsen, a junior-to-be and the Nanooks’ leading scorer in 2007-08, said he thinks Alaska will be successful with Ferguson’s tutelage.
“Coach Ferguson is someone we know that has a lot of background and we know that he sincerely cares about the program and the players, and he’ll do everything in his power to make us successful,” Knelsen said from High Level, Alberta, where he’s working a summer job, training and visiting friends.
The resident of Three Hills, Alberta, and a 33-point scorer (11 goals and 22 assists in 35 games) this past season described Ferguson as a very skilled coach with a ton of knowledge that hasn’t been utilized yet.
“I think if he’s given a chance to coach the way he wants to coach, good things are going to happen,” Knelsen, who was also a member of the hockey coach search committee, said. “He has a ton of potential and we’re excited for next year.”
Six Nanooks players who are scheduled to be seniors in the fall will have their third head coach in as many seasons, following DelCastillo and Tavis MacMillan, a former Nanooks center and teammate of Ferguson who was the Alaska head coach from 2004-07.
With Ferguson, though, the seniors will have a familiar tutor in place.
Chad Johnson, one of the seniors-to-be and the scheduled starting goaltender this coming season, said Ferguson won’t have to evaluate too many players in the preseason practices.
“Dallas knows the whole team, the returning players and he knows what each individual can do and accomplish,” Johnson said from Calgary, Alberta. “It’s definitely going to be a big year for me because coach Ferg knows how I’m capable of playing and that’s definitely a big benefit with me.”
Ferguson also had a hand in recruiting 13 players who are slated to be freshmen for the Nanooks in 2008-09.
Karr said that Ferguson’s teaching ability was among the things that led him to choose Ferguson over fellow finalist Kevin Patrick, a University of Wisconsin assistant coach who was also a finalist for last year’s vacancy created after MacMillan resigned in April 2007.
“Teaching and recruiting are Dallas’ strengths,” Karr said. “Over the years, there’s been no question, and he’s had the highest evaluations from our student-athletes, probably of any coach in the department over the last four years.”
Karr said some former Nanooks players who left the program to sign professional contracts credited Ferguson’s teaching for getting the best out of them.
One of those players was defenseman Jordan Hendry, who skated in 40 games for the NHL’s Chicago Blackhawks this past season after getting promoted in January from their American Hockey League affiliate in Rockford, Ill.
“Dallas is a great coach and he’s the one who I learned the most from throughout my career as a defenseman,” Hendry, a Nanook from 2002-06, said in a telephone interview. “He gave you little tips and taught you little tricks, and just how to read the play better ... the sort of things that other coaches tend to overlook.
“He was also not afraid to put in the extra time to make sure you learned everything. I think he’s an excellent (head) coach for the team.”
Patience was a quality of Ferguson that impressed the nine-member search committee, Karr and Nanooks players past, present and future.
“What’s always impressed me about Dallas is his honesty and sincerity,” Mike Curtin, UAF head athletic trainer and strength coach and a member of the search committee, said after the media conference. “All he said in the interview in terms of being a good teacher is true. I’ve heard a lot of coaches on the bench over the last few years and I’ve never seen anybody with more patience who was teaching all the time.
“When everybody else is hollering and yelling and going crazy, he has a certain calm to him — a calm in the storm, which I think will be a very good quality for him in times to come.”
The upcoming season will be an intriguing one for the Nanooks after a 9-21-5 campaign in 2007-08.
Five seniors completed their eligibility, including goaltender Wylie Rogers, who backstopped all of the team’s wins. Three underclassmen left after the season, including highly-honored junior defenseman Tyler Eckford, who signed with the New Jersey Devils, who selected him in the seventh round of the 2004 NHL Entry Draft.
Eckford, who was the Nanooks’ second-leading scorer in his final season with 8-23-31 totals in 35 games, was a first-team selection on the RBK Hockey All-America West and All-CCHA teams and he received the conference’s Best Offensive Defenseman Award.
Jeff Penner and Landon Novotney, both honorable mention choices for the CCHA All-Rookie Team, left after their freshmen seasons. Penner signed an NHL entry-level contract with the Boston Bruins and Novotney, who led Alaska with 16 goals, left school during spring break and had an amateur tryout with the AHL’s Grand Rapids (Mich.) Griffins, the top minor-league club of the Detroit Red Wings.
Also, Alaska’s offense ranked 11th in the 12-team CCHA, averaging 2.29 goals per game.
Ferguson is ready to go to work on improving the Nanooks and a promising rookie class should help. The newcomers include two centers who led their leagues in scoring, Adam Cardwell of the Wichita Falls (Texas) Wildcats of the North America Hockey League and Carlo Finucci of the Burnaby Express of the British Columbia Hockey League, and the NAHL Defenseman of the Year in Topeka (Kan.) RoadRunner Aaron Gens.
“I feel strongly about goaltending that we’ll be fine there,” Ferguson said. “The defense again will be young, but I think the kids coming in are kids that have ability and it’s just going to be a matter of how quickly they transition into their roles.
“And again, you have to rely on your returning guys. Guys need to make step. That’s college athletics; you just can’t rely on freshmen to come in and be your guys all the time.”
Ferguson, in his previous four seasons with the Nanooks, worked with the team’s defensemen and penalty kill, which in 2005-06 had the third-highest efficiency in NCAA Division I.
He was named to the interim role following DelCastillo’s resignation. He was among 16 applicants for the position, and Patrick and he were the only finalists.
Ferguson ranks 21st all-time among Nanooks scorers with 17-87-104 totals in 135 career game. Following his college career, he played four seasons professionally with the old Alaska Gold Kings of the West Coast Hockey League, the Richmond (Va.) Renegades of the East Coast Hockey League and the Anchorage Aces of the WCHL.
Ferguson, who received a business administration degree from UAF, became the assistant coach and recruiting coordinator for the Fairbanks Ice Dogs of the NAHL in 2002. Two years later, he joined the Nanooks coaching staff.
Community Discussion
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I am glad to see Dallas taking over the program
He will return UAF hockey to a program that we can be proud of
Now the challenge goes out to the University Administration to provide Dallas and the Nanook program with the support that it needs and deserves to be a elite Division I hockey program.
Still very disappointed that we didn't get to see more finalists.
Yeah, more of the same old stuff, again. I can't wait to see our continuous 10th place finish's in the CCHA and a quick first round exits played out of town. When will the administration up there learn to go get good candidates instead of recycling someone who just hung around long enough to fall into the job. This is a Division I hockey program for crying out loud!
The administration is just going to have to learn that we are a stepping stone for better Division I hockey programs and use it to our advantage. This is just like any other college sport. Good coach’s will move on after showing what they can do here for four or five years like Lucia and Gadowski. Why do we have to settle for people that just hang on long enough to get the job like Laurion, MacMillan, and Ferguson? There are tons of good up and coming coaches out there that would kill for a shot to show what they can do and help to put this program on the map. And if we are lucky, one will finally stay here. But, instead, we settle. Again.
At least I can look at the bright side. There will be plenty of tickets available for the games and I won’t have to worry about seating……..
"Fall into the job" are you kidding me? Nice comments! I would say it was every bit earned and deserved.
Ferguson is an up and coming coach and maybe if we are lucky he will give us a decade or more of service and build a strong program. One where the program is strong enough that it won't matter who is coaching because top players will come just to be a "Nanook".
And if it wasn't for some of those people who stuck with the program through thick and thin we probably wouldn't even have a D-1 hockey program today.
Yes, fall into the job. Was that not descriptive enough for what UAF calls a coaching search? "Hmmm..... who has been around here as an assistant the longest? Well, looks like it is you. Here is the keys to the team." Every time they have tried that approach, it has become a slow decline to dismal seasons. I am sure that Laurion and MacMillan were also "earned and deserved" because they were just here longer than anyone else. I am sure they were "up and coming" coach's, too. All they did was ride the coat tails of the good coach's before them.
Like I said before, "At least I can look at the bright side. There will be plenty of tickets available for the games and I won’t have to worry about seating……" when good teams with good coach's come up from the lower 48 to play.
Good job Dallas. Ignore the haters.
jwcehc
If you remember, Guy Gadowsky wasnt the first, second or even third choice. For all practical purposes he was the only "sucker" who would say yes to the job.
I love Gads, wish he would have stayed and think that he did many things to improve the community on and off the ice.
With that being said.... UAF will NEVER draw the elite coaches for any sport. Why/ 1) We dont pay a salary for the coach or staff that is similar to other CCHA and Division I programs 2) The program is not funded at a level similar to what other DIV I programs are 3) Alaska is not a top tier school for recruiting, the facilities, although improved still are no where close to what other CCHA schoosl have to offer, and finally 4) This is Alaska, the proveribal radar post in Siberia. Its a stepping stone nothing more nothing less.
I have know Dallas since he came into UAF as a player. I have seen him progress through youth hockey, Junior hockey and finally collegiate hockey. To think that Dallas will not give it his all is simply a mistake. If the University Administration suppoports Dallas and the program he can turn it around and make it the envy of Alaska.
We as fans need to decide what we want and what we are willing to put our money into.
Is it good enough to win the Governors Cup 75% of the time
Do we need to be successful in the CCHA
Do we need to be a contender in the CCHA
Do we need to be a contender in the NCAA
Each step of that requires a significant commitment from both the Administration, but also you the fan.
Support your team, give Dallas a chance, and lets return the Nanooks to the level that we were accustomed to under Gads reign
Don't screw this up Dallas!
Well said hckywtchr.
jwcehc There always seems to be few seats behind the visiting team bench. You can get away with wearing a Michigan State hat there.
Go Nanooks.
Most excellent choice!
hckywtchr,
Thank you for proving my point. When UAF does a real search for a coach, even the fourth one in line is good. When they do this weak search and settle on an assistant who just happens to have been here the longest, we get garbage. There are tons of good coach's looking to go to the next level and we keep looking in the local pool for our next coach. We have been 0-2 so far with that approach. I just hope it isn't 0-3 and it takes us 3-4 years to figure it out. But, our administration is willing to bet on the come, so we will see.
And you are right also that we will never keep or get the elite coach's. We don't spend the money, or have the facilities. But we do have a Division I hockey team in a premier league that produces good hockey teams (thank you Lucia) and we should be able to grab those good coach's on their way up. We need to do a real search, not one that seems rigged from the beginning for the local assistant.
I guess time will tell.......
AKCANDOR - Those seats will probably be the hardest to get. To many folks here from the lower 48 that want to support their team. I am sure I will find better seating of my choosing any place else in the stands..... :(
WOW!!! The guy hasn't even been on the job 24 hours and people are already pissed. I say give him a chance first. The problems lie in the administration. They dont support hockey never had and never will. It took Lucia and Laurion years just to get the nanooks to be in the CCHA, remember when they were just independent. The community needs to support this program 100 percent good or bad. Because thats what real fans do. They support there teams.
Tropical, you have to realize we have had to give 2 coaches a chance in the past 4 or 5 years. It's getting old. The only thing I really like about Dallas aside from his recruiting is how he says this isn't the job he wants to take just to get to the next step. He will be given a chance, but people can express their opinions on what they've seen in the past. Until we're proven otherwise, it's gonna be hard to support someone who has been around with two losing coaches.
Finally, they did the right thing up on the hill when it comes to althletics, especially hockey!! Hopefully this starts a trend for the althletics admin. Congratulations Dallas, you and this program deserve the oppertunity!! All of us are looking forward to many, many years with Dallas Ferguson as the Nanooks hockey head coach.
I say Yay Dallas!
May I remind all you people griping about the coaching recruitment process that UAF administration went through the whole process last year, hired a supposed "good" coach, and look what we ended up with. Doc had to go, and I have a feeling Dallas will be very successful. Part of his success will come from working with a group of kids who LIKE AND RESPECT him as a coach. I think he's going a great guy for the job. Also, he's been in Alaska for a while, and probably won't just waltz out of town at the first opportunity to go bigger like most of these guys.
stop complaining about our new hockey coach, like it was a big surprise anyways. our athletic director is a joke...fairbanks is far from being a hockey town...we never contend for any championship and are always losing, finishing 10th. hockey is much bigger in minnesota and michigan that it is here, nobody cares except for a select few up here..i can't remember the last time the carlson center sold out for a nanook hockey game, oh wait that hasn't happened yet
Yes Dallas was there for the last two coaches, but he was second assistant under Tavis. His role wasn't as great as it was this past year. I believe that last years applicants just weren't that great and the committee thought that Doc was the best canidate. Now one year later they see that he was not. Whether it was on the ice or off he just was not the right guy for UAF. Now Dallas bleeds Blue and Gold he's an amazing teacher. I know from experience. His passion for this sport is remarkable. He is going to teach the Nanooks how to perform at the highest level. Now I'm sure they won't win every game but they are going to compete from start to finish. Because thats how Dallas played.
Just to clear up a few things. Someone mentioned that we "settled" for Dallas.
Do you realize that we also "settled" for Lucia? He had served as an assistant for 2 years at UAA and 5 years at UAF before becoming the head coach.
jwcech- When speaking of the "tons" of coach's that we should have looked at, please be more specific. I'd like to think i'm pretty familiar in the hockey world, and would like to know who these coach's are.
Best of luck to Dallas and the Nanooks this year.
jwcech
So if there are all of these highly qualified coaches chomping at the bit, why didnt they apply
Do you know of someone more qualified than Dallas that applied and didnt get proecessed?
If you have info, speak up
If you are talking out of your ass then.....
Footballman - The Carslon Center has sold out several times, you must have just moved into town, Go watch your Grizzlies.
jwcehc - You know nothing of the process so instaed of opening your mouth and letting a lot of hot air out, open your checkbook and if your truly are a fan, support the program.
The problem isn't the coaching it's facilities and $ and $ and more $. It's not a coincidence that there is a significant correlation between the programs that have success and the money that is pourded into them. Mac in his short term as head coach did some great things. In his three years we experinced more playoff success that any other previous coach. Truth be known when you see what we are stacked up against, just finishing in the middle of the pack is a significant success.
footballman-
Are you new to the Fairbanks area? Fairbanks not a hockey town?
2004 the Nanooks averaged around 3800 per game.
The NAHL Ice Dogs can easily bring in 2000 per game.
Youth Hockey (FAHA/IUB/Arctic Lions)have around 1000 participants.
Men's/Women's hockey, High School hockey, etc.....and you can easily have 10,000 people either watching or participating on hockey on any given weekend.
FrozenAK-
Really? 3,800 per game? Wow, that's just amazing. You almost put me in my place... There were 45,000 + at my high school state championship football game, and easily 75,000 at my college football games..... so don't tell me 3,800 people at a hockey game makes Fairbanks a hockey town. You have no idea what it's like to have one sport fully supported by a city. Cleary, Fairbanks is not a football town, but hockey sure isn't all that big up here compared to the lower 48. P.S - No I am not new to the Fairbanks area, I've lived here for about 8 years.
NEWSFLASH- footballman, only 8 years is considered still new to Fairbanks. When you have been there 20 plus then your considered not new. I'm a 3rd generation Fairbanksan and Damn proud of it. And hockey is what even has Fairbanks on the map.
footballman-
I guess you are new up here then.
As I mentioned, easily 10 thousand people attend or participate in a hockey game on any given weekend. In a town this small, you still think there are only a "select" few?
Every other conversation in this town has to do with Hockey, (look at the press this job posting recieved). Fairbanks has a population of 35,000...you honestly think the only way we would be considered supportive of our teams is if we drew over 40,000?
And where in the "lower" 48 did you come from? I have played or coached hockey pretty much every where in North America. There aren't too many places that live and breath hockey like Fairbanks.
Just got back from watching the Stanley Cup playoffs in New York. Sure they were drawing 20,000 per game, but around one in every 50 people in that area even knew that was a series going on. Does that qualify them as a hockey town?
As mentioned earlier. Go back to watching football.
footballman, look at the per capita numbers. When 1 out of every 6 people in the borough are at a hockey game in a given weekend, and four out of six can be said to follow the sport casually, I'd say this is a hockey town.
Compared to that, 75,000 people showing up in a city of 4 million is small potatoes.
Preston_Lancashire-
I played college football in a city of 125,000 people, not 4 million. We had 75,000 come to our games every weekend. Like I said you have no idea of what it's like to have one sport worshiped in a city.
footballman-
Like I asked earlier. Please state the school and town you are talking about. All of the numbers I have stated, (NAHL, NCAA, Youth, etc) can easily be verified.....
Your turn.
Let's hear of this magical football place you speak of.
Boy, I see that the folks drinking the UAF Administration/Face Off Club kool-aid are showing up to circle the wagons and defend the decision. Let me try to respond to some of the comments before they really start frothing at the mouth.
FrozenAK - Did you notice that when they hired Lucia, they didn't hire the current head assistant coach Laurion at the time? Hmmmmm, I wonder why? Lucia, who did four years here and then two at UAA (six total by the way, not seven), after being the team co-captain at Notre Dame, and growing up playing in Minnesota. Obviously a bit more varied experiences than just UAF/Fairbanks...... And it must have been a good choice looking back and seeing how well he did then, and has done since leaving here. Obviously Laurion wasn’t IT then or when he finally was handed the keys.
FrozenAK & hckywtchr - Also, last time I checked, there are 59 Division I Men’s programs with at least an average of 2 assistants, and 7 Division II programs, and 73 Division III programs, both with head coach's as well for possible candidates. Not to mention how many Junior A head coach's or NCAA Division I Women's head coach's out there that would like to step up as well. Do we need a bigger pool of possible talent to look at? And to think, the best candidate was in our own back yard this entire time! Please, give me and a bunch more of the Fairbanks hockey community more credit than that.
MC – You are correct, I don’t know the entire process. Just what was fed out of UAF. Were you part of the process? Want to fill us in? What I didn’t see provided by the administration, was a published list of who did apply. Why was the Fairbanks public not allowed to see who applied? Who or what were they hiding? Are they afraid of the criticism they might get by going with Dallas instead of someone else? Instead I get a shut up and open up my pocket book comment. Funny, but it is tough to get the sale and my money when you don’t let me buy into the process. What I would have loved to see is who else there was, but that is not to be.
jwcehc
Your conspiracy theory is bunk, (you gotta stop listening to all that AM radio) Follow the money, It's amazing how much the game has changed in 20 years. The top coaches with signifcant Div I experience won't be interested in coming here until you at least triple the salary and build new facilities because the last thing they want to do is watch there career go down the toliet. Don't get me wrong (I don't want to start sounding like you) the Fairbanks community is great and provide an excellent atmosphere to play in but there are very few who know what it is UAF competes against.
I will make a prediction that Dallas is going to be (already is) a phenomenal coach.
Fans like you are a dime a dozen, you break out your Yankee hat when their winning but your Boston hat isn't far out of reach. Who knows, look into HR and see if you can gang access to the applicants, but who are you that you could shed any light on a difficult process.
FrozenAK-
I played college ball at the University of Michigan for 5 years. Over 75% of Ann Arbor show up for football games every weekend. The streets are completley bare and local business shops are closed. Hockey in Ann Arbor is also much bigger than hockey here in Fairbanks, much bigger! They actually have a winning program. Oh, and by the way, counting Ft. Wainwright, Eielson AFB, and surrounding areas in the North Star Borough, the population here exceeds 60,000. For someone "New" to this area, I sure knows a lot more than the die hard locals. GO WOLVERINES!!!
We seem to be getting a little off topic here, so let me add my 2 cents.
First off, it is a hockey town. More people here identify with hockey whether it be nanooks, ice dogs, arctic lions, etc, then they do with other sports. Thus making it a hockey town. I am not saying this to disrespect other sports, simply more people care about hockey then baseball, basketball, and football. Just because stores don't close down for hockey games doesn't mean it isn't a hockey town.
The problem that UAF has, and it has been acknowledged in these comments, is it is not a money maker. We don't offer the highest paying, most prestigous jobs in the country. Big time schools like UM, MSU can put millions into their sports and other programs because they make millions. Consequently they get the more sought after recruits and can be nationaly competitive year after year. Here we will never get the most skilled players. Dallas will be a great coach at getting the players whose work ethic and drive to compete will make up for the lack of skill. This is part of why Fairbanks is a hockey town, the players on the Nanooks were looked down upon by many other programs and feel they have to fight to earn respect and succedd which Fairbankians can identify with.
All in All Dallas is the right man to get these kids focused to battle hard and compete agains the top programs in the country year after year. He will not stop working to ensure the program go farther then expected. Hopefully people will give him time and not jump down this throat (like they already appear to be doing) when there are a few loses.
footballman
When did you play at Michigan?
It is a very impressive school and has incredible support amongst the community and its alumni.
I would bet dinner out that they have boosters who donate more in a year to their sports program(s) than UAF sports have for a budget. Thats part of being a prime time Division I school.
Also
Since you played there and are ver familiar with the facilities, you should reaslize just how bleak the facilities that UAF has.
You had a football dining hall, correct? UAF has no athletic dining hall
You had nutrionist working with you, correct? UAF has none
You had multiple strength coaches, correct? UAF has one for ALL athlets and the varsity weight room is a converted storeage room. Rich Rodriguezs office is bigger than the UAF weight room.
With the experience you have why arent you playing for the grizzlies, Lord knows that they could use all the help they can get
Hckywtchr-
I agree with you, UAF doesn't have the support UM does. But it's no excuse to lose either. My brother played football for a small NAIA school in Montana that had absolutely no facilities and ended up being 5 time national champions. I would love to play for the Grizzlies, and I almost did, but I just can't with my job. I am a mining engineer out at pogo and work 3 weeks on 1 week off. Plus they only pay their players $200/game. Anyways, I didn't mean for this to get into a big hate match over Fairbanks and Michigan. I hope the best for UAF and maybe they can get back to where they were on 04'.
Hckywtchr-
I played at UM from fall of 1996 to fall of 2000.
Man I almost agreed with Footballman until I kept reading on.
This is a hockey town.
Go back to Michigan footballman.
alaskaflier, you say ALL OF US, please don't speak for all of us. We have our own voices.
Being skeptical of the current regime doesn't make you any less of a fan. I bleed Cubbie blue, but the signing of Jim Edmonds made me puke in my mouth. I give my heart and soul to the teams I love. I scream and cheer until I lose my voice. I buy tickets, merchandise and memorabilia. When you're emotional invested in a team, I think you have a right to question the GM or AD.
I like coach Ferguson. I hope he's the right man for the job, and that the Nanooks start winning, but nobody really knows how this will work out.
MC - I wish it was AM and it was conspiracy theory. Instead it is a piss poor search that landed on the administrations first and foremost candidate before the process even started. And it is evident in how little the administration lets its fans and supporters know what is going on in the process and who applied.
Folks, there are only 59 Division I head coaching positions available in all of NCAA Hockey. Most don’t turn over at all, or maybe once every 10 years or so. So the ability of all those potential candidates to get one of those slots is minimal at best. They will not wait forever for the chance. Having one of those 59 lots puts us in the cat bird seat, even if we don’t have a powerhouse football or basketball team helping to foot the bill on facilities. What we provide is an opportunity. I am just sorry to see UAF give it away without doing a proper search, again.
jwcehc
Again, what qualified candidate was interested in the job and didnt get a fair look?
I agree with jwcehc that in the past when UAF has selected a sidekick as the new head coach (i.e., Larion and MacMillan), it has been a mistake. Those guys didn't have what it takes to be a head coach and it was a failure. That may or may not be the case this time. It is up to Dallas and his coaching staff, the administration, and the players to prove that it isn't always a mistake to hire an assistant to take over as head coach. I hope he succeeds and I will definitely be rooting for him and the Nanooks to succeed this year and for many years to come. Good luck, Dallas. Go NOOKS!
Good choice! I look forward to the next hockey season, as soon as I get my moose.......
akjak
FWIW, Tavis was not part of the coaching staff when he was selected to replace Gads. He had been in the Administration for atleast a year at that point (Compliance Coordinator)
I do agree with you on Dave though. As much as like Dave, he was destined for failure before he even took over the reigns and he did himself NO favors with his staff. Dave Laurion was one hell of a recruiter though. He could find the kids that no one else wanted and that could play.
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