25 years and counting

Times Reporter       

 

Strathmore native Doug Thurston has been coaching hockey for over 25 years, most recently spending the last three with the Rockyview Raiders of the AMMHL. After suffering a tough start to the season, the Raiders climbed the standings with a strong second half, and finished seventh in their division.

“Every team I’ve been a head coach of has made the playoffs. I’ve put my coaching record on the line in the last month,” Thurston said. “Making the playoffs this year, this might be the best one.”

Thurston has spent time coaching at every level – minor, major, AA, also spending time with the UFA Bisons and Drumheller Dragons.

“It’s my winter hobby,” he said. “I’ve kind of got the bug. I had some early success with a couple of teams. Being around the young guys keeps you young. It’s been pretty rewarding over time. I really have been lucky to have some good groups of guys.” 

Some of those players have gone on to play in the NHL, such as Zach Boychuk and Dana Tyrell.

“It’s fun to watch the guys after they leave your team,” Thurston said.

Keeping his cool, Thurston finds, is the biggest battle, especially with the teenage players.

“After you’ve been in it for a while, and then move to a younger group of guys – staying patient has been my biggest challenge. You expect guys to know more at times than they do,” he said. “There’s a quite a bit of difference between 15-year-olds and 17-year-olds. Especially from junior hockey too, where you’re dealing with young men.”

Another difficulty of the job, however, is the feeling that comes with painful losses. In Thurston’s first year with the Bisons, the team made it all the way to the provincial final.

“We probably should have won it. We lost in the fifth ovetime,” he said. “We outplayed the other team, and outshot them – out everything. They just couldn’t get the goal that counted.”

All the negatives don’t outweigh the positives of the job to Thurston, who focuses on individual and team improvements.

“I think if you improve your players and they have a positive year, that’s why anybody coaches. We’re still at a development level. If you try to make everyone better, and they’re successful, usually your team does well,” he said. “I’m sure I’m not the best coach in the world but I’m not the worst. We’ve always had a positive atmosphere. I just hope they enjoy the year.”