Blazers introduce new coaching staff trio
The Saskatoon Blazers will have a new look next season.
Rich Pilon has left his assistant role with the rival Saskatoon Contacts to come on board as the new head coach. Dean Seymour and Bobby Braybrook are his new assistants.
“I’m excited to have Richie around,” said Blazers team president and governor Dave Chartier, who also retains an assistant role for the Saskatchewan Midget AAA Hockey League squad. “He (Pilon) wants to be head coach in the worst way. He’ll do well. That trio is going to be really good.”
Former Blazers head coach Curtis Leschyshyn and assistant Scott Scissons have stepped aside and won’t be back following a 14-29-01 season. Ditto for general manager Randy Smith.
Dan Wingerak stays on as team manager.
“They (Leschyshyn and Scissons) both did an awesome job,” Chartier said of his out-going coaches.
Chartier explained that Leschyshyn would have likely been back had his Blazers-playing son, Jake, not been traded from the WHL’s Red Deer Rebels to the Regina Pats where he is expected to stick next season.
“Struchy (Dave Struch) wanted him (Jake) in the worst way in Regina and he’ll play him next year,” said Chartier, “and I’m sure he’ll contribute like mad next year.”
The goal for the Blazers remains the same: It’s all about player development.
Establishing a winning program is also paramount.
“To recruit higher-end kids, you have to win and that’s what we’ll have to get to,” admitted Chartier. “You want to bring kids in and treat them the best that they can, develop them and win. The guys (Contacts) on the other side of the city have won more than us and it makes it a little easier for them to recruit. By bringing Richie in, now we’ve got to find the winning factor and the program will get better and better.”
Pilon, a native of St. Louis, Sask., is a former NHL defenceman who played for the New York Islanders, New York Rangers and St. Louis Blues.
“My passion is coaching and hockey,” said Pilon, 47. “When it comes to hockey, I live and breathe it. It’s what I know and I believe I’ve got a knack for dealing with kids, I really do. I haven’t had a chance to really show it (as a head coach) in midget.”
Pilon saw, first-hand, how the Contacts operate. The Blazers want to replicate that winning culture.
“The Contacts have had a winning tradition there,” noted Pilon. “That’s pretty juicy for parents and I think the Contacts end up getting the pick of the group.
“You’ve got to find a way to win here.”
Pilon said he has adapted to a change in coaching styles.
“I’ve changed,” he said. “The old days of coaching are gone. It’s hard to coach with the iron fist in a free world. Kids are smarter; parents are smarter. You have to create some kind of partnership with these parents and kids.
“It comes down to communication and that’s where I think I’m way better at that than five years ago. My goal, and I believe this, is if you surround yourself with good people, and I think I’ve done that. We’ve created a pretty good coaching staff.”
Pilon said he told Chartier that, above all, he’s looking for good kids and good families.
“If you can find those kids, and get the support from the families, you’ll have success,” he said.
“Our job is to coach these kids and make them better hockey players and better individuals. My reputation in the city has been, ‘Richie’s tough’ and they go back to the way I played. When you ask kids about me, I’m exactly the opposite. The only thing I demand of players is that they show respect, whether they’re at the rink, at home or at school.”