McCRIMMON’S MAGIC TOUCH HELPED PATS FIND PADDOCK
Kelly McCrimmon’s legendary recruiting acumen is such that it isn’t always sufficient to simply bolster his own team.
In the summer of 2014, McCrimmon — who was then in charge of the Brandon Wheat Kings — passed along a timely tip to the Regina Pats, who were looking for a head coach and general manager.
That person turned out to be John Paddock, whose excellence in both capacities was underlined Thursday when Pats president Todd Lumbard announced three key members of the WHL team’s coaching staff have signed contract extensions calling for three-plus years.
“If you recall, the coaching search in Regina had gone on for some time, and by this point it was near the end of July,” McCrimmon, now assistant GM with the NHL’s Vegas Golden Knights, said Thursday.
“I felt John would be a good candidate for the Pats, and that he would be good for our league. Based on that, I spoke to Todd about him. I knew also that John had some interest. After that, they did the rest, and obviously it has been very good for all parties.”
Very good, indeed.
Paddock was named the WHL’s coach of the year in 2015 and 2017. Last season, for good measure, he was deservedly decorated as the league’s executive of the year after helping Regina register a franchise-record 52 victories.
Dave Struch, a former bench boss with the Saskatoon Blades, has contributed immensely as the Pats’ assistant coach and assistant general manager.
Regina-born Brad Herauf, a homegrown success story, has excelled as a Pats assistant coach for 21/2 seasons. He joined the WHL club after coaching the 2014-15 Regina Pat Canadians to the Saskatchewan Midget AAA Hockey League championship.
The 2014-15 Pats were also a success — winning a playoff series for the first time since 2007 — despite a late start in preparations.
Paddock was not hired by the team’s new ownership group until Aug. 6, 2014 — a mere 17 days before training camp. He only arrived in Regina five days in advance of the first workout.
But everything has worked out fabulously, despite the frenetic first few weeks.
“He came in like the true pro that he is,” Lumbard said. “It was, ‘This is the situation we’re in. We’re going to have to deal with it.’
“Everything he does is firstclass. He’s inclusive. He keeps us all in the loop. He runs the organization so well. We’re so lucky to have him.”
Are they ever. The description of “true pro” is so apt. Yet, he is not exclusively a professional coach or executive, despite his wealth of experience in the NHL and AHL.
Paddock did not coach junior hockey until age 60, when he joined the Pats. His previous involvement in the WHL had been as a player with the Wheat Kings during the 1972-73 and 1973-74 seasons.
Despite a 40-year absence from the WHL, Paddock made an instantaneous and seamless transition to the major-junior ranks.
“The way John deals with people, he’s first-class all the way,” said Struch, who is of the same ilk.
The hiring of Struch was also an inspired move. He, too, was a perfect fit for the Pats despite having spent all of his previous time in junior hockey with the traditional rivals from Saskatoon.
Paddock’s negotiations, if they could be so termed, with Struch were not especially time-consuming. “Two hours and 15 minutes on a phone call,” Struch said with a chuckle.
“The first 15 minutes we talked about hockey and the next two hours was about life and family and people and friends and places we’ve been.
“It all happened right then.
And then we decided to talk about a vision for the hockey team.”
Even before that, Struch had been in contact with the Pats.
“I started my interview process with the ownership group,” he said. “I had never talked to John until the very last moments. That was the intriguing part, because the owners are such good people. They’re invested into the community.
“John, in the two-hour-and15-minute conversation, was just the finishing touch.”
The golden touch of Kelly McCrimmon was the catalyst for everything that ensued.
“It just seemed like the stars were aligned,” Lumbard said, “and it was great that it happened.”