Marc Habscheid has stepped down as head coach of the Prince Albert Raiders. (Prince Albert Raiders/Twitter)

By Rob Mahon

Habscheid Heads To Europe

‘Once a Raider, always a Raider’: Habscheid bids fond farewell to Prince Albert

Jul 14, 2022 | 4:28 PM

During his coaching career, Marc Habscheid has never stayed anywhere as long as he’s stayed in Prince Albert working with the Raiders. His time in the city, however, has come to a close.

After a tenure filled with wins, the Art Hauser Centre at its most raucous, and numerous emotional moments, Habscheid has decided to pursue an opportunity to coach in the professional ranks in Europe.

“It’s been an emotional day, for sure,” Habscheid said. “I’ve been here the longest I’ve been anywhere since I was 16, so that should speak for itself. It’s a really good place, a special place for me, lots of good memories. I’ve met lots of great people here but it’s just time. In this business, eight years is a long time.”

Describing himself as a nomad, Habscheid said as a player and a coach he’s moved around a lot and he’s looking forward to a new adventure in Europe. That doesn’t mean there won’t be a special place in his heart for the city and the team he’s leaving behind.

“People have treated me very well,” said Habscheid. “I had a lot of help when I first came in terms of trying to build something here and build a culture and the team. I talked about the team all the time, and the team wasn’t just the coach or the coaches or the management or the hockey ops, it was the city of Prince Albert. Everybody, I wish, could have a ring from that (2019) team.”

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The 2018-19 edition of the Raiders is special for a lot of reasons, not least of which is that they won a WHL championship. Naturally, that group sticks out to Habscheid among the teams he coached.

“Obviously that’s pretty special, especially winning it in game seven overtime at home,” said Habscheid. “Seeing Nooner (Dante Hanoun) and seeing guys chase him down the ice and the fans, I remember looking up and seeing fans crying in the stands. It was great, it was a great time for the city.”

The Raiders stress a culture that involves more than just winning, however. There’s a certain level of character the team expects from their group, and being part of that culture will be among Habscheid’s proudest achievements in Prince Albert.

“That was probably first and foremost when I came, to get the players to do the right thing,” Habscheid said. “They worked hard, they gave themselves a lot of things in the community, they volunteered for a lot of things, spent a lot of time, did a really good job, and by the way, they were really good hockey players too. It was a good combination.”

Habscheid added he couldn’t reveal exactly where in Europe he was headed just yet, but he spent time there as a player and his parents came from Luxembourg so he’s excited to be going.

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rob.mahon@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @RobMahonPxP