By Raiders Rant

Column:Thoughts of an undefeated coach

Sep 2, 2015 | 8:09 AM

The Raiders intrasquad game was a new experience.  For the first time in 11 seasons I got the coaches view as the celebrity bench boss alongside Associate Coach Dave Manson who was truly in charge. The terms “fish out of water” or “deer in the headlights” accurately described much of my first period. 

The speed and skill of the game at ice level in addition to the rapidity of line changes or in my case switching up the defense pairings was a real eye opener. I missed seeing three of our four goals because of the quick activity on the bench.

Mine was a very easy task considering it was a roll-the-lines and defensemen type of game.  The players themselves did an excellent job of making quick changes on the fly, although I did get to call two of them including putting overager Hunter Warner and partner Zackary Hayes out while we were nursing a one goal lead with just over a minute to go and soon to face a last minute penalty kill. Otherwise I did my best to stay out of the way.

Under normal circumstances during regular season games coaches are keenly aware of complicating factors like line matchups especially on the road when the home team has the last change while also teaching on the fly when mistakes need to be corrected while the game remains in progress.  Coaches do hours of preparation before they even meet with players to review specifics like the specialty teams, in addition to systems and strategies tailored to the opposition. Coaches also have an uncanny knack to do all of this while remaining focused enough to remember and deal with finite details of the game amid the chaos.

The exercise was a stark reminder just how important verbal communication is in today’s WHL, especially given the fact much of today’s teenage and young adult interaction is done by cellular and electronic means.

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I enjoyed the chance to speak to the players before the game, telling them that I have the best job in the business, calling the games and being part of the hockey fraternity knowing my employment isn’t contingent on wins and losses.  However like most people my age still involved with the game, if we weren’t in our younger days, we wanted to be players with the type of opportunity those involved in the Raider intrasquad game had on Monday night.   

Thank you to the organization for the invitation to take a spot behind the bench for the first time and maybe the last time during my tenure as voice of the Prince Albert Raiders as I hope to retire from coaching with a 1-0 record.  It was a truly rewarding experience, including the $20 side bet victory over opposing celebrity coach Jeff D’Andrea of panow.com.  It’s now back to the comfortable confines of the broadcast booth for Friday’s preseason opener against the Pats in Regina.

dwilson@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: RaidersVoice