Mountie alum heeds the call
1986 Mount graduate wants to build on legacy started by Belisles
Matt Merton to take over IL hockey team
WOONSOCKET – When the search initially opened, the focus centered on finding the best possible candidate to succeed Bill and Dave Belisle behind the boys’ hockey bench at Mount St. Charles.
As the quest to replace two respected pillars who served as maestros for countless championships progressed, it became, per MSC president Alan Tenreiro, “pretty important that an alum take over.”
Not just a graduate of the Catholic school, mind you, but someone who knows a thing or two about “Mount Pride.”
Enter Matt Merten, who checks off every single important box as the next head coach of MSC’s R.I. Interscho- lastic League entry. The criteria that proved important to Mount is being met by someone who graduated from the Logee Street campus in 1986 and rose to become the starting goaltender on the 1985 MSC squad that went on to capture the program’s eighth state title as part of a record 26 straight state championships from 1978 to 2003.
“Matt knows what Mount is all about,” Tenreiro said. “It’s a bonus that an alumni can take the mantle and build on the strong tradition we have.”
The official announcement was made on Thursday afternoon and concluded a stretch that saw Mount receive close to 30 applicants for the chance to build on the legacy that the Belisles created.
“The beauty for playing for ‘Coach’ [Bill Belisle] is that the best person was going to play no matter what their background was. If you did things the way he wanted, you would get an opportunity.”
— New Mount RIIL hockey coach Matt Merten
From those initial feelers, a search committee that included administrators, coaches and students helped whittle the pool down to six individuals who were granted the chance to interview. Merten was one of several graduates from Mount to express interest.
“We’re all about continuing the legacy we have but changing it up a bit to keep up with the times,” Tenreiro said, noting that a final decision regarding the hiring of Merten was made this past Monday.
When Merten sat down before the interview panel, the Uxbridge native spoke about Mount’s hockey heritage and how he succeeded in earning Bill Belisle’s trust despite not hailing from a youth hockey hotbed that was based in Milford, Mass. He enrolled at Mount as a middle schooler and had to wait until his senior year before he could take over as the primary backstop.
“The lessons of hard work and attention to detail are universal,” said Merten when reached on Thursday. “The beauty for playing for ‘Coach’ is that the best person was going to play no matter what their background was. If you did things the way he wanted, you would get an opportunity.”
Merten comes aboard at a time when Mount is introducing a hockey academy that will begin competing beginning at a national level as soon as the 2019-20 season. While the RIIL entry will exist as a separate branch of the school’s new hockey venture, Merten says he’s looking forward to seeing if the two sides can skate as close to center ice as possible.
“When I came to Mount in seventh grade, we idolized the varsity guys. They never mistreated anyone and made everyone in the program com- fortable,” said Merten. “Building continuity with the hockey academy is really important.”
After graduating from Mount, Merten played junior hockey in Ontario. In the same year (1986), he backstopped his junior team to a championship and was drafted in the ninth round by the NHL’s Vancouver Canucks. He received a scholarship to Providence College and was a four-year starter for the Friars (1986-90) where he appeared in 85 games. He toiled for a few seasons in the minors before an injury forced him to hang up his skates for good in 1991.
Merten’s post-playing career saw him launch a hockey program at Nipmuc Regional High School in Upton, Mass., where he also teaches social studies, officiates girls lacrosse, and is a former assistant lacrosse coach. He coached the hockey team to the playoffs in just its second year of existence.
“We had a group of parents who were tremendous and we built that program together,” Merten said.
Tenreiro confirmed what the Call/Times previously reported regarding the status of current MSC assistant coaches Larry O’Donnell and Paul Guay. Both will be back next season. As for really diving into the particulars of his new coaching responsibility and meeting with the underclassmen who will be back next season, Merten plans to wait until after Mount’s upcoming run in the Division I playoffs comes to an end.
“It’s all about letting the Belisles finish up on their terms. They’ve meant so much to me as a person. I’m not sure they’re in the same ballpark as my family but they’re pretty close,” Merten said. “Respecting it and letting it play is the most important thing right now.”