Steve Hamilton to coach Oil Kings
There was no search for Derek Laxdal’s job as head coach of the Edmonton Oil Kings, exhaustive or otherwise.
GM Randy Hansch simply picked up the phone and asked Laxdal’s right-hand man Steve Hamilton if he wanted the job while he was on a camping holiday at Sandpoint, Idaho.
“Took me about half a second to say yes,” said Hamilton, whose stomach did a little flip, nothing compared to the wild roller-coaster ride at Silverwood amusement park that the new coach admitted he braved to show his kids he had game away from the rink.
“The one roller-coaster where the floor drops out and you’re suspended? I told my kids I can’t believe I did that. They watched their dad fall apart,” he said, laughing.
He’ll be on firmer footing as coach of the Memorial Cup champions. This was as expected a hire as the Zamboni coming out to clean the ice every period, with the associate coach moving up while Laxdal moved on to coach the Dallas Stars’ AHL farm club the Texas Stars.
Hamilton, 40, had talked to the Calgary Hitmen and the Vancouver Giants about their coaching vacancies, and he was sounded out about the bench job in Saskatoon, too, but this is where the Vimy Hockey Academy teacher wanted to be. He’s now head coach of the junior team his dad Al played on in the 60s, which is a nice bit of symmetry, however long ago that is.
“It’s wonderful not having to ask my wife Nancy to waive her no-trade clause (to move) ... it’s great we can stay in Edmonton and raise our family,” Hamilton said jokingly of his pursuit of other WHL vacancies. “I had some interest from other teams, but I’m a family-first guy ... sometimes, it wasn’t a fit from my choosing (Vancouver possibly) and sometimes from the other teams (Calgary, who hired former AHL coach Mark French).
“I’m thrilled the way it worked out here. Derek worked for his opportunity and the timing for me worked out very well.”
The Oil Kings are losing captain Griffin Reinhart and core guys Mitch Moroz, Henrik Samuels son and Cody Corbett, leaving big holes in the lineup.
Forward Curtis Lazar has junior eligibility left but could also stick with the NHL’s Ottawa Senators.
Hamilton, who went to Northern Michigan University as a defenceman, hurt his back and decided he’d like to get into coaching in his 20s. He first started with the Sherwood Park Crusaders, working for current Oilers amateur scout Jim Crosson, then went to the Spruce Grove Saints as the AJHL squad’s head coach and GM, racking up a 164-476-27 record over four years before the Oil Kings hired him.
He was associate coach to the head man Laxdal, running the defence and the penalty killing unit. The Oil Kings, who tend to hire from within — Hansch was former GM Bob Green’s assistant before he went to work with the Edmonton Oilers — had Laxdal’s successor in their own dressing room.
No need to line up interviews with other people, not with Hamilton’s resume, not just here but getting the Team Pacific under-17 team to the finals of the world hockey challenge in Cape Breton over Christmas last year.
“He’s a teacher, a good communicator, works well with the players,” Hansch said.
“It’s also very important he’s been part of our program and had a huge impact over our runs the last couple of years, and he’s an important piece of the puzzle. It’s important that the transition be smooth for the players.”
Laxdal and Hamilton weren’t always on the same wavelength.
“Derek and I, to be honest, were different guys at times, but that chemistry worked,” Hamilton said. “We found a way to balance each other off ... I took things from him and vice versa. I’m very appreciative of the amount of input Derek allowed me to have. I never felt there was a limit with my voice in the room.”
ON THE BENCH: Hamilton will need another coach on staff. Perhaps it will be coach Jason McKee of the Spruce Grove Saints.