Getting to know you
South Kent athletic director sheds light on recent coaching hirings by Mount St. Charles
A closer look at the big doings with the Mount St. Charles hockey team and the new names and faces involved.
WOONSOCKET – Ten days ago, Mount St. Charles rolled out the red carpet as a symbolic token to welcome Matt Plante, Devin Rask, and Scott Gainey to the school’s boys’ hockey program.
To enlighten the masses regarding the kind of coaches and people that Mount recently hired, we engaged in a background check that conjured up all sorts of positive vibrations. In essence, this is a “getting-toknow-you-better” exercise, an opportunity to view through the lens of those who know and understand Plante, Rask, and Gainey the best.
In Owen Finberg, you have the South Kent (Conn.) School athletic director who helped bring each of them into the private boarding school’s fold.
“Mount St. Charles did very well to bring in three great coaches and three quality guys who are going to help them re-establish their program at the highest levels. I have no doubt about that,” Finberg said during a recent phone interview.
The move to bring aboard three coaches from the same school should be interpreted as Mount being serious about emulating the prep-school hockey riches that South Kent enjoyed under Plante, Rask, and Gainey. The trio produced a winning culture that featured national acclaim, a recipe that would be the envy of any program.
Plante coached South Kent’s Under-18 team to the national title as recently as earlier this year. He also piloted the school’s Under-16 team to a New England District championship in 2016-17. Rask coached the South Kent Under-16 team to three national tournament appearances and four New England district championships. Gainey was behind the bench this past season when South Kent’s Under-15 team qualified for the national tournament.
Now, they’ve been tasked with guiding the Mountie icemen to similar lofty heights.
“I don’t think there’s anything that suggests that it can’t be duplicated. Experience is something you only get from going through the process. Those guys have all done it. In my estimation, especially when you’re working with young student-athletes, there are no better building blocks than the people who are going to spend the most time with them and develop them as players but also as young men off the ice,” Finberg said. “To have the people in place is a huge step in the right direction. They’ve proven what they’re capable of over a number of years.”
Understandably, Finberg wished to not get into the particulars when asked if Mount St. Charles school officials asked their South Kent counterparts for permission to talk to Plante, Rask, and Gainey. As tough as it was to lose coaches of that caliber, Finberg elected to take the high road.
“We would have loved to have those guys around. They did great things for us. We had a great working relationship and our success in multiple facets as it relates to hockey and school is a testament to what they achieved,” Finberg said. “At the end of the day, everyone has to do what’s best for their family. This is certainly an opportunity they all felt that they couldn’t pass up. We’re sorry to see them go, but we’re wishing them the best of luck.”
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Every coach has a different style, and that appears to be the case with the new additions to Mount hockey.
Rask’s responsibilities at South Kent differed from those of Plante and Gainey. Not only was Rask a head coach, but he was also the director of the school’s hockey program. Until they actually have a team to coach, Rask and Plante are the co-directors of hockey operations at Mount.
“He’s a very organized and detail-oriented individual. Outstanding professional in everything he does. Obviously he’s shown his chops as a recruiter, a developer of elite-level players, and certainly as a head coach,” Finberg said about Rask.
On Gainey, Finberg said, “He did a phenomenal job with the U-15 group and really helped set the tone for the expectations coming into the program as first-year players who were also new to the school. He was instrumental in helping all those kids in their transition, no doubt about it. In general, he relates to people very well. Very likeable guy.”
Any time you win a national title, which Plante did when he guided South Kent to the 2017-18 Under-18 championship, you clearly understand the requirements that are needed in order to become the last team standing.
“That was a remarkable accomplishment and just goes to prove what a great coach Matt is,” Finberg said. “It takes a lot more than great players to win at that level. He’s a taskmaster and works hard at what he does and expects the same level of commitment from the players, on and off the ice, in order to get the best out of them.”
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Just to give you an idea of the hockey world that Mount St. Charles is preparing to enter into, South Kent’s prep school season starts in early September – usually after the teams only have one or two practices under their belt. The campaign spans the fall and winter sports seasons and holds the potential to stretch into early April when the USA championships are held.
“It’s quite a long season,” Finberg said.
It’s no secret that the new Mount coaches will be using the coming months to spread the word and make recruiting pitches to perspective student-athletes. Based on the winning touch they displayed at their previous coaching stop, Plante, Rask, and Gainey know how to spot talent.
“The student body is the lifeblood of any school. You have to go out and find those kids, whether they’re athletes, musicians or scholars. You’re going out and promoting the school and, yes, you are recruiting them,” Finberg said. “Matt, Devin, and Scott had to find quality student-athletes who could get in through admissions and prove to be positive members of our community. Obviously, they had to be good hockey players as well. That’s just the way it works.”