Calgary Hitmen want new voice after coaching contracts not renewed

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Garry Davidson needs a brand new voice for the Calgary Hitmen.

The Western Hockey League crew’s common supervisor has made that clear after opting to maneuver ahead with out head coach Steve Hamilton and assistants Trent Cassan and Don MacGillivray.

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The bench trio was advised Tuesday their contracts — which expired this spring — wouldn’t be renewed within the main junior loop.

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“The truth that Trent has been right here 9 years and Steve six, I assumed perhaps a part of it could be a contemporary begin — a brand new voice, so to talk — and convey one thing to the desk that may improve what we’re doing right here as a corporation,” mentioned Davidson, who’s in his first 12 months as Hitmen GM.

“We wish to improve our gamers’ expertise right here.”

The transfer comes simply three days after the Hitmen ended their common season with a 28-31-9 file and missed the playoffs. The Calgary crew completed in ninth place within the Jap Convention — two factors behind the Prince Albert Raiders for the eighth and remaining post-season spot.

Underneath Hamilton, the crew has missed the playoffs two of the final three seasons.

However he didn’t have a lot to work with when it comes to high-end expertise, and the membership — which parted methods with then-GM Jeff Chynoweth final low season — is amid a large rebuild with a youth motion at present at hand.

“There’s not one single factor,” mentioned Davidson of what went into the choice to maneuver on with out Hamilton, Cassan and MacGillivray. “And definitely not making the playoffs, it wasn’t part of it, to be sincere. As a result of if it was, I’d have put that forth that we’ve acquired to make the playoffs. In order that actually wasn’t a big-time aim, though that was actually one thing we’re attempting to attempt for to do to get that playoff expertise.”

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Hamilton joined the Hitmen as bench boss in 2018 and compiled a 165-152-40 regular-season file.

Throughout his tenure, the membership superior to the second spherical of the playoffs in 2019 and made a first-round exit in 2023. The Hitmen additionally completed among the many prime eight groups within the convention in 2019-20 and in 2020-21, when post-seasons weren’t held because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

When requested for remark early Wednesday in regards to the choice, Hamilton declined.

“Over the past couple of months, I actually struggled with what we’re gonna do transferring ahead,” Davidson mentioned. “However in the end, I made a decision that most likely we would have liked to make an adjustment with our workers.

“I simply suppose everytime you’re taking a look at individuals, whether or not it’s a coach or a participant, or a common supervisor, you’re attempting to evaluate what they create to the desk — what are their strengths and weaknesses? And all three of those gents have actually have strengths.

“However I noticed some shortcomings.”

Hitmen confronted season of transition on the ice

Specifically, this season — Davidson’s first as GM — was riddled with roster transition.

In transferring to additional the youth motion, the Hitmen traded away captain Tyson Galloway, sniper Sean Tschigerl and fellow veterans Carter MacAdams, Grayden Siepmann and London Hoilett.

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“Actually, it was an ongoing season of analysis for me,” Davidson mentioned. “All through my profession, I’ve all the time tried to take a seat again, consider and guarantee that individuals are being given a good alternative to show themselves, and in order that was, after all within the season right here.

“And it was a troublesome season in the truth that we have been going to go along with a youth motion, which we actually did. However not making the playoffs was a secondary or third aim most likely in the entire course of once you’re taking a look at what we have been attempting to do — construct out a younger crew and develop them and have significant video games until the tip, which we did.”

The Hitmen employed Cassan as an assistant coach in 2016, whereas MacGillivray was introduced on board in August 2023.

“The very first thing is you’re coping with good individuals,” Davidson mentioned. “And that makes it actually, actually troublesome. All three are good strong individuals.”

Davidson has already obtained resumés from the hockey world in his bid to rent a brand new teaching workers.

The GM says he has no one in thoughts, at this second and no timetable in place to call a bench crew.

Davidson served because the director of participant personnel for the Hitmen from 2021 to 2023 earlier than being named director of hockey operations and — in the end — GM in November.

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Earlier than that, he was director of participant personnel for the Portland Winterhawks from 2008 to 2012 and GM of the Everett Silvertips from 2012 to 2021.

“For me, teaching within the Western Hockey League or junior hockey as a complete is such a tricky factor since you coach each evening to win,” added Davidson. “However what’s essential is the event and the expansion of the participant. As a result of if we don’t develop gamers and make them higher, who’s gonna wish to come to our program?

“So for me, as we transfer ahead right here, the person who we put in place right here has to essentially perceive that and settle for it. It’s not win in any respect price each evening, as a result of then we’re going to come back up brief within the development side. So I feel it’s essential this individual understands that coping with 16-to-20-year-olds is approach totally different than it’s coping with 20-to-35-year-old professionals.

“We’ll simply take our time and weed by means of this and attempt to put collectively teaching workers right here we really feel assured may also help us get to a different degree.”

LOOSE PUCKS

The 2024 WHL Draft Lotteries have been carried out Wednesday to find out the order for the 2024 WHL Prospects Draft and the 2024 WHL U.S. Precedence Draft. The lotteries contain the WHL’s six non-playoff golf equipment — the Kamloops Blazers, the Tri-Metropolis People, the Regina Pats, the Seattle Thunderbirds, the Edmonton Oil Kings and the Hitmen. The Hitmen, who completed sixth-last within the league, owned one in every of 21 lottery balls in a bid to luck in to the highest general choose within the prospects draft. For the American draft, they’ve an equal probability to seize the primary selection as one in every of six groups with one ball every within the lotto … The WHL U.S. Precedence Draft goes Wednesday, Could 8 … The WHL Prospects Draft is about for Thursday, Could 9.

tsaelhof@postmedia.com

http://www.x.com/ToddSaelhofPM

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