MEANT TO BE
Ken Hitchcock finally comes home to coach Oilers
Despite always wanting to coach the Edmonton Oilers, it seemed Ken Hitchcock was never going to come home again, especially after retiring at the end of last season.
Yet, the lure of being head coach of the Oilers was enough to coax the local product out of retirement, and Hitchcock stood behind the home bench in Edmonton for the first time in his illustrious career Tuesday at Rogers Place.
Ironically, the first game he coached at home with the Oilers was against the Dallas Stars, the team he coached for a second time last season and then stepped away to take an administrative role.
“To me, I feel fortunate that I got a chance to coach (the Oilers). It’s been a team that I’ve followed since their WHA days,” Hitchcock said prior to the game. “Coaching at home is important, but for me, getting a chance at this stage in my life to coach this team is really at times overwhelming, to be honest with you.
“I actually feel most comfortable in the area. The rest of the part in my life is a little chaotic and nervous. I learned today they have one name for a lot of streets called ‘Detour’. And I also got stopped by the police at 5:15 in the morning for going the wrong way. So inside the rink, I’m fine. Outside of the rink, I’m a mess right now.”
Born and raised in Edmonton, the 66-year-old Hitchcock got his start coaching minor hockey in the city. He spent more than a decade coaching a Midget AAA team in Sherwood Park, which eventually led him to the Western Hockey League and then on to the NHL.
Hitchcock got his first head-coaching position with Dallas in 1996 and went on to lead the team to a Stanley Cup championship three years later.
“The emotional part for me is based on former players, not pro players, but I spent 12 years in Sherwood Park and I went through a lot of hockey players,” Hitchcock said. “I know who are the suite holders, who are the season-ticket holders, and I know they live and die with the Oilers. That’s the pressure for me, is those guys.
“They put me in a spot where I can make a living in the game, and it’s a big deal for them and it’s a big deal for me. That’s the one part that makes me nervous. They gave me a lot of success for a long period of time, allowed me to go coach junior hockey, allowed me to get to the NHL. I don’t want to let those guys down.”
After leaving the Stars and coaching the Philadelphia Flyers, the Columbus Blue Jackets and the St. Louis Blues, Hitchcock returned to Dallas last season. He had the Stars near the top of the Western Conference standings before goaltender Ben Bishop was injured. Dallas went on to miss the playoffs by three points and Hitchcock retired, making way for current head coach Jim Montgomery.
“I didn’t really know if I wanted to do it last year. This is a different animal coming to Edmonton,” Hitchcock said. “I wasn’t sure I wanted to keep doing it, so there was some grey area there. I told Jim that. I think it’s important for me that if I’m not 100 per cent committed then I ought to back off, but I was really proud of what we did.
“There was a period of time in Dallas for 50 games where we were, if not the best team in the West, then one of the top two teams. A player got hurt (Bishop) and it changed our disposition in the room and on the ice. But I’m really proud of the growth of the players. We came from way on the back of the bus and we made immediate steps to the front of the bus, and a lot of those players grew very quickly with our coaching staff.”
The Oilers are hoping Hitchcock can make a similar difference in Edmonton. He took over the job from Todd McLellan just prior to a three-game road trip to California, where the Oilers went 1-1-1. They went into the game against Dallas three points out of the final playoff spot in the Pacific Division.
Hitchcock feels a sense of responsibility to the Oilers to help them get into the playoffs and end the string of futility, which has seen the team miss the post-season in 11 of the past 12 years.
“I have a lot of medals and a lot of rings because of the people who worked for this organization,” Hitchcock said. “Whether it was Wayne (Gretzky) that started in 2002 or Kevin (Lowe) in 2002 (Olympics), Peter (Chiarelli) in 2014, Bob Nicholson right from 2002 on, between Olympics and World Cups and World Championships, I’ve been really fortunate because of those guys giving me the chance to do it year in and year out. That’s the other responsibility I feel.”