Patrick leaving it all on the Ice

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This article was published 10/02/2020 (2252 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

James Patrick spent 33 seasons in the NHL, including 12 as an assistant coach. Now in his third season as a Western Hockey League head coach, he’s found fufillment in the major-junior ranks.

“I enjoy this more, I really do,” said the 56-year-old Patrick at a Monday press conference to announce he had agreed to a three-year contract extension with the Winnipeg Ice. “To have an impact on younger kids at the development stage they’re at, it’s more rewarding for me.”

A head coaching job in the WHL is normally viewed as a stepping stone to the pro ranks and while Patrick will admit to having an out clause that would permit him to pursue NHL offers, he’s grateful for the opportunity afforded to him by Ice chairman Greg Fettes and general manager Matt Cockell when the franchise was still based in Cranbook, B.C.

The club also announced the promotion of director of scouting Jake Heisinger to assistant GM and vice-president of hockey operations.

“The opportunity Greg and Matt gave me to become a head coach — they had faith in me,” said Patrick, whose only previous experience as a head coach was as an injury replacement for Buffalo Sabres bench boss Lindy Ruff for three games in 2011-12. “I had to learn a lot to be a head coach.”

Ruff, who suffered broken ribs in a collision with a player during a practice that season, was a major influence on Patrick’s career — including having him for eight seasons on his Sabres staff immediately after Patrick’s playing career ended and then for four more years with the Dallas Stars.

Patrick guided the Ice through two stressful rebuilding seasons in Cranbrook before relocation to Winnipeg last summer. Since then, the club has surged into second place in the East Division standings with a 31-19-1-0 record.

The biggest difference he’s found between working in the NHL and with WHL players?

“(NHLers are) the best athletes in the major sports, they’re the most down to earth and most charitable — I could go on and on,” said Patrick. “But I did feel there was some entitlement and some condescending behaviour that made your job harder and those things made it not as fun compared with junior kids. They want to get there and every one of them has their own story, their own dreams and I just found the respect, willingness to learn and the desire to learn and get better was there.”

Patrick admits he aspires to return to the NHL one day but notes that many respected pro coaches have found their way back to the WHL.

WHL head coaches such as Willie Desjardins (Medicine Hat Tigers), Brad Lauer (Edmonton Oil Kings), Mike Johnston (Portland Winterhawks), Brent Sutter (Red Deer Rebels), Marc Habscheid (Prince Albert Raiders), Kelly Buchberger (Tri-City Americans), Mark Lamb (Prince George Cougars) and Dave Lowry (Brandon Wheat Kings) all have NHL stints on their coaching resumés.

Heisinger, a 27-year-old Winnipeg product, will continue to guide the day-to-day operations of the scouting staff for the bantam draft as well as the team’s 50-man protected list. Heisinger will add the operation of the MJHL’s Winnipeg Blues, owned by the 50 Below Sport + Entertainment parent company, to his portfolio.

Taras McEwen remains in the role of manager of hockey operations and GM of the Blues, reporting directly to Heisinger.

Heisinger is a keen adherent of the draft-and-develop approach but said he understood Cockell’s decision to include four second-round bantam draft picks in the deadline deal to acquire veteran defenceman Dawson Barteaux from Red Deer.

“Ultimately, when your team has some success you’d like to reward them,” said Heisinger. “They’ve earned the opportunity to win a championship and think as a group, that’s the goal. To acquire a player like Dawson, you’re going to have to give up some draft picks so, I’ll tell you this, we weren’t willing to trade a first-round pick. That was a scenario we came up with and I can live with it.” 

mike.sawatzky@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @sawa14