Sign up for the paNOW newsletter

Josh Manson follows in dad’s footsteps, signs pro hockey deal

Apr 4, 2014 | 6:44 AM

After Prince Albert’s Josh Manson signed a two-year, entry-level contract with the Anaheim Ducks last week, he made it official that two generations of Manson’s will play professional hockey.

His father Dave Manson, the current associate coach for the Prince Albert Raiders, played 1,103 career games in the NHL over 16 seasons, scoring 102 goals and 390 points.

Dave earned a reputation for being one of the toughest guys out there while amassing 2,792 penalty minutes in his career. In his playing days, Dave was even nicknamed “Charlie Manson” after the convicted American serial killer, for his outbursts and mean streak.

But while Josh was growing up, he wasn’t fully aware of the reputation his father had, nor of all of his successes.

“I didn’t really know it was ‘Dave Manson,’ he was just ‘dad’ to me,” said Josh, the 22-year-old from Prince Albert. “That’s kind of all it ever was. I’d go to the rink with him, but I didn’t really understand everything just because I was so young.

“But now that I’m at this age, and I’m finally playing at the professional level, I really understand everything he did throughout his career. I hope to achieve half of what he did, someday.”

That experience of growing up with his father in the NHL, and moving around to seven NHL teams (including four Canadian teams) Josh had to adjust and was able to make a lot of new friends.

“Having been around hockey his whole life, he’s learned how to make new friends because his dad got traded a few times,” chuckled Dave. “He’s a leader and he doesn’t settle. He knows what he wants and I believe that he’ll do well.”

“It just became part of life,” said Josh. “We’d move and my parents would make it an easy transition for us. Just go to new schools and meet new people.

“When you’re younger, it’s easier to make friends. We just kind of felt about it like that and it was good. I made a lot of friends along the way.”

In addition to all of the places Dave played in, Josh is starting to create his own hockey footprint.

He joined the Ducks’ AHL affiliate, the Norfolk Admirals, based in Norfolk, Va., shortly after signing last week. He was drafted by the team in 2011 in the sixth round, as said it was “great to finally sign” with the team.

Josh spent the last two years playing in Boston, Mass., with the Northeastern University Huskies of the NCAA, and the previous two years in Junior A with the Salmon Arm SilverBacks in the BCHL. He played some of his minor hockey in Prince Albert, including two years with the Midget AAA Mintos.

Despite playing on both sides of the continent before turning 23 years old, that hasn’t stopped his family from keeping tabs on him, especially his mother Lana.

“She watches everything,” said Dave. “The moms, you know, they don’t miss too much.

“If (the Raiders) are not playing, then I watch as much as I can, but his mom, she’s gotta watch her son.”

Lana and the rest of the Manson’s watched Josh pick up two awards this year with Northeastern.

As the Huskies’ captain, Manson was named the Old Time Hockey Best Defensive Defenseman in the NCAA Hockey East division, as well as a Hockey East Second Team All-Star.

It’s all the more impressive, considering Josh was predominately a forward until the last three years of his career. In his second year at Salmon Arm, Manson was converted to a defenceman, a switch he said was a necessary and helpful one.

“It’s been great for me for my career to keep going farther in hockey,” said Josh, who is listed at six feet, thre inches, 223 pounds by the Admirals. “Having the play come to me, it was just a lot more natural feeling. 

“I think if I was still a forward, I wouldn’t be playing at this level.”

Regardless of his position, Josh has been able to contribute on both sides of the puck, so much so that Dave, who played well over a thousand games in the NHL, said “(Josh) has got a lot more skill than I ever had.”

Now, Josh finds himself a part of the Ducks’ AHL affiliate, the Norfolk Admirals, who are fighting for their playoff lives. They are in ninth place, one point back of the eighth-ranked Hershey Bears with nine games remaining.

“I hope to (play) in the next little while, here,” said Josh. “They’re in a playoff push, so if I can help them anyway I can, that’d be great.”

Also on the Admirals is Prince Albert-born Ryan Parent. Parent, who won two gold medals at the World Junior Championships with Team Canada, was born in Prince Albert but grew up in Sioux Lookout, Ont. and later played his major junior hockey in the OHL with the Guelph Storm.

The Mansons are quite the athletic family. Josh’s younger sister, Meagan, is a starting defender for the University of Saskatchewan Huskies soccer team. She started all 12 games for the Huskies as a first-year player.

jdandrea@panow.com

On Twitter: @jeff_dandrea