McBean excelling with family hockey roots

Justin Seward
Times Reporter

 

First year Bisons defenseman Quaid McBean has been passionate about hockey since starting as a young tyke, when he played three years in Okotoks before moving to Phoenix, Ariz.
He has had a pretty good mentor along the way in his father Wayne McBean, who played a combined 211 games in the NHL with the Los Angeles Kings, New York Islanders and the Winnipeg Jets.
McBean played, up until this year, a majority of his minor hockey in Phoenix on the travelling team. Then he decided to come back north of the border to try-out, and ultimately made the Bisons.
“A lot more people take interest to it and all the commercials up here involve hockey so it’s a big hockey atmosphere around here,” said McBean.
The Calgary Hitmen draft pick did not mind having the guidance of his father behind the bench.
“It definitely doesn’t hurt, you know it’s always nice to have a voice from home. He was my coach in Phoenix for a while so that helped and it’s just another word of advice,” he said.
McBean was not fazed being in the spotlight, considering the professional hockey ties he had in his family.
“I just took it as a role, tried to be as humble as I could (and) just kept fighting forward,” said McBean.
While playing in Arizona, the players were younger as it was strictly 15 and 16-year- olds.
“We played triple-A, it was a good league but the age was different. It was a 15, 16-year-old league, there were no 17-year-olds, it was a good league, it was just Phoenix was just a weaker team,” said McBean. “It (the league) was all over the country, we had teams from Boston, Florida, New York, Virginia. (Father Wayne) was our coach most of the time, so he was on most of the road trips.”
Phoenix, being a non-hockey market, was a different experience for him because hockey is not the most popular sport there.
“It definitely wasn’t a hockey capital, it wasn’t very big into hockey at all but we seemed to make it work,” said McBean. “So far the biggest hockey moment is making the Bisons up here, I think it’s a great opportunity to play. Biggest moment off the ice is getting drafted to the Calgary Hitmen.”
The best piece of advice that his dad has given him is a motto that he has not forgotten and probably never will.
“He said ‘if you’re not going to work hard you might as well not step on the ice,’ ” said McBean.
His favourite team is the Arizona Coyotes and favourite player is Jonathan Tavares of the New York Islanders.