1. I think the WHL should call their summer the silly season. In NASCAR they have silly season where the final few months of the season sees drivers and sponsors start preparing for next season by signing new deals. In the last few months there have been a bunch of coaching and GM changes and there is still more to come. Plus add in some new assistant coach’s and there are a lot of new names and new/old names in the WHL.
2. I think it’ll be nice to talk again with Jeff Truitt who is the new GM of Moose Jaw. I was in Lethbridge when he was an assistant coach and had many interviews with him during his time in Kelowna. Truitt is passionate about hockey but very honest and fair in answering all questions. That being said I will miss the visits with former GM Chad Lang.
3. I think it’ll be interesting to see how Marc Habscheid does with the Chilliwack Bruins as both the coach & GM. He was one guy who many thought would never to return to the WHL as it appeared he was on his way to a long NHL career. He still is a strong candidate to be in the NHL again. Habscheid is always an interesting interview who appeared amazingly calm before a game. That being said I hope to see Jim Hiller in the WHL again soon.
4. I think I can’t believe the things that are happening in Lethbridge. No Coach or GM and it doesn’t appear any one person is controlling the situation. Some are unhappy that Rich Sutter has publicly made it known he wants the GM job. But what is he supposed to do when the radio & newspaper people interview him. Is he grandstanding or is he just answering questions. Because he is a Sutter the fact he is applying for the job is a headline story that the media wants to report on and there is nothing wrong with it being a story.
5. I think the rumour of Craig Hartsburg being a candidate to be the next coach of Everett doesn’t surprise me to much. Remember it was GM Doug Soetart that got former NHL coach Kevin Constantine to be the coach of the Silvertips when they were an expansion franchise. Soetart has the big connections and Everett has a reputation for being a great hockey city.
6. I think it’s great to have Dean Clark back in the WHL. The new Prince George coach is 18 wins away from 400 regular season wins in his career. 10 years ago, while coaching the Hitmen, he seemed destined to be on the road to the pros but never seemed to find the right fit. He did more great things with Brandon. In Kamloops he bounced back and forth from being Coach and GM. With the Cougars he has signed a 5-year deal to just worry about being a coach.
7. I think it’s surprising to see Curtis Hunt back as coach of the Regina Pats. It was only 1 year ago he left to be an assistant in the NHL. Even with all the changes with the Senators I thought he would be in the AHL at the very least. He is always great for an off the wall comment or two during our pre-game interviews.
8. I think it’s great to see Jon Klemm joining Spokane as an assistant coach. There were rumours he was thinking of being interested in joining the ICE 2 years ago when the club lost Cory Clouston and Brad Lauer. He still wanted to play hockey and now 2 years later he is more comfortable with his decision.
9. I think it’s only a matter of time until Ryan McGill is named to the Flames’ coaching staff. Will he be working on the bench with Darryl Sutter or Brent Sutter?
10. I think these are my non-hockey thoughts.
a) I think it was great to see Roger Federer win his 14th major at the French Open on Sunday. Tiger Woods has 14 golf majors. You have to think it’s harder to win a major in tennis because if you have 1 bad day you’re done. In golf you still have 3 days to recover from a bad round.
b) Every year at this time I try to get excited about the CFL but am disappointed there are no magazines to read to get more information on the teams and the players. It starts in a few weeks. There are dozens of NFL and NCAA magazines yet not 1 on the CFL. I lean on Rod Pedersen (link to the right) for info on the Riders.