New direction
Rangers add Swedish coach to bench
KITCHENER — The Kitchener Rangers have shaken up their bench.
The Ontario Hockey League club announced Wednesday that it has hired Swede Andreas Karlsson as an assistant coach while opting not to renew the contract of associate coach Jason Fortier.
“It seemed like it just wasn’t the right fit at this time,” said Rangers general manager Mike McKenzie on Fortier. “We decided just to go in a different direction.”
Fortier joined the Rangers last July after working as an assistant coach with the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies, who were coming off a Quebec Major Junior Hockey League title and a loss in the Memorial Cup final.
The 42-year-old ran the power play — among other things — in Kitchener this past season which ranked sixth overall (21.6 per cent) in the league. “Jason is a big personality and he brought a lot of passion and dedication to our staff,” said McKenzie. “It’s tough to see a guy go, but we just felt it was the right decision.”
Karlsson played pro for 19 seasons including five with the Atlanta Thrashers and Tampa Bay Lightning. The retired centre gives the Rangers an all-NHL coaching staff with skipper Jay McKee and fellow assistant Matthew Barnaby by his side.
The 41-year-old has spent the past couple of years as an assistant coach with York University’s men’s hockey team.
“He really fits what we’re looking for,” said McKenzie. “He’s a quality person, first and foremost. He’s someone that will relate well to our players and he obviously has experience at a couple of different levels.”
Karlsson’s connections should also be a boon with regards to recruiting European prospects. OHL teams can roster two imports per season and the Rangers are currently trying to woo Swedish forward Lias Andersson to the Aud.
The highly touted forward has yet to report after being selected by the Blueshirts in last year’s Canadian Hockey League import draft, and is expected to go in the first round of next week’s NHL draft.
“He knows a lot of people in Sweden after growing up and playing there for a number of seasons,” said McKenzie. “We’ll pick his brain on that, but that wasn’t the main reason for his hiring.”
Karlsson lives in Burlington with his wife and two kids and has been eyeing a job in the OHL since moving to Canada from Sweden a couple of years back.
“I’ve heard so much about the league and the Kitchener Rangers are one of those teams that is highly respected in Sweden,” he said. “You heard about the team and (Gabriel) Landeskog and the players they have here, so I’m very humbled and excited.”