HighSchoolHockeyForums.com

If you could play for any HS coach or had a daughter who could play for any HS coach, who would you choose and why? (If you coach, play or are a parent, please do not pick your own coach. We are not looking for a loyalty contest.)

There are a lot of good coaches out there. Many are worthy to be listed in this topic. There many that have won multiple state championships, many that have been close so many times and there are those that are high quality people who teach beyond the sport.

I would want my daughter to either play for Dick Bartholdi in Cloquet or for Rob Potter at Coon Rapids. I think that both of these men are great hockey coaches who also teach, and embody, the traits that I would want for my daughter.

Do past coaches count in this, or are we only talking about current ones?

Ross Dahl - Willmar
Class Act!!!!!

Ross is a great person to be around. He is definitely pro girls hockey. From bringing "Farm hockey" to the forefront, he has done it. All coaches in the rural areas should be happy that Ross was there for them.

I was thinking of only the coaches that are currently coaching (06-07).

I also wanted to keep this positive. I would not like anyone to trash a coach of someones choosing. This post is ment to honor those that do such a great job for our young women.

Mitch Loch - Alexandria
That team had nothing before he arrived.

I will say that there are some outstanding current coaches, and also some great ones that aren't coaching any longer (this happens when you have 25% turnover each year...)

Also - I wanted to point out that some great coaches volunter their time with the girls coaches assn. These coaches deserve recognition for their contributions. I know I don't have the time to put in the extra work they do on behalf of girls hockey, and they should be recognized for this:

http://www.mghca.com/officers.htm

Pat Rendle

http://www.mghca.com/general/pdf/MGHCA% ... istory.pdf

Some deserving names on this list too - note that Rendel was the first COY and did it 2x in 97 & 98!

Pat Rendle is a great coach and a fabulous human being.

Cory Poole - TRF

I agree with Golferguy...Mitch Loch has done wonders for the Alex program and from what I hear he is a great guy as well

How about Tim Morris and Dave Palmquist?

Dave turned SSP into a girls powerhouse and still holds the record for most consequetive wins, and Tim really doesn't get credit for what he has done at Eden Prairie.

Prior to Tim's arrival I don't think the girls team had ever played in a section Final. Its not like he is in Wayzata, Stillwater, Roseville or Edina where the coaches get athletes who have played for the state championship as U12s or U14s.

In just a few years Tim has assembled one of the best coaching staffs in the state and they've won their last 31 games in a row. I'm not even going out on a limb when I suggest that it might be sometime in 2008 before he loses another game. If you want your daughter's to learn how to play the game I think these are two of the coaches I would want to teach them.

My vote is for Amber Heglund at Wayzata. She is a terrific role model and beloved by her players because they know she cares about them and loves hockey. It's tough to coach in Wayzata due to all of the issues tied to parents Amber somehow seems to rise above and get the girls to play as a team despite it all. They won't have Christina Lee/Tiff Johnson this year, but you can expect the players to move the puck because Amber will insist upon it.

With regard to EP and not taking anything away from Tim Morris, how many players does he have on his top two lines that played youth hockey in Eden Prairie?

Thunderbird77 wrote:My vote is for Amber Heglund at Wayzata. She is a terrific role model and beloved by her players because they know she cares about them and loves hockey. It's tough to coach in Wayzata due to all of the issues tied to parents Amber somehow seems to rise above and get the girls to play as a team despite it all. They won't have Christina Lee/Tiff Johnson this year, but you can expect the players to move the puck because Amber will insist upon it.

With regard to EP and not taking anything away from Tim Morris, how many players does he have on his top two lines that played youth hockey in Eden Prairie?

Agreed on Heglund. It has to be tough to coach with high expectations in the toughest section in the state.

wrt EP/SSP Morris/Palmquist, many would argue that the desire for transfers to play for these programs actually proves how valued their contributions/coaching/opportunities to play there actually are. Let's not forget that SSP & EP are very similar. They both started with some amazing inside talent and then through the long-term effort/leadership of these coaches the programs started to attract amazing outside talent too.

It's also NOT as easy as it may seem to manage a bench loaded with talent. That can actually be a disaster waiting to happen if the chemistry is not handled correctly. That responsibility falls directly to the coaches and indirectly to the captains and leaders. Although, sometimes this is part of the problem - too many players that are used to being "#1" - but I would say that SSP & EP both found ways to work through this, as did RV back in the days - these are the three dynasty teams - along with maybe Jefferson of the late 90's early 00's...

I also wanted to add that we should also talk about unrealistic expectations, or the possibilities that some coaching positions are difficult to be successful in no matter how well you do.

In some respects, I think BSM is one of these jobs, and some even feel that some amazing top teams should have done even better, etc. Not sure what is more difficult, coaching without much talent/with too much youth or coaching with too much talent. Both are challenging in different ways, but the expectations are far less but easily equally frustrating/challenging in the less talent/youth scenario. Both test the coaching capabilities I believe.

I agree 100% that Amber Heglund also deserves more respect. She and Larry have had their team in the 6AA Final for as long as I can remember.

I wouldn't be surprised if she was coaching at some DI team soon.

cluelessinminnesota wrote:I agree 100% that Amber Heglund also deserves more respect. She and Larry have had their team in the 6AA Final for as long as I can remember.

I wouldn't be surprised if she was coaching at some DI team soon.

You can find heglund on the cover of LPH along with Darwitz for Whitecaps...
http://www.letsplayhockey.com/902cover.pdf