Last season, the Rebels struggled to compete night in and night out, and then Head Coach and General Manager Brent Sutter decided it was time for a change.
On April 10, 2021, with just nine games left in the COVID-19 shortened season, Sutter stepped down as the team’s head coach. Assistant General Manager Shaun Sutter stepped behind the bench to assist Brad Flynn and Ryan Colville guide the team through the duration of the season.
Early in the off-season, Brent Sutter announced that former Seattle Thunderbirds’ Head Coach Steve Konowalchuk was becoming the team’s new bench boss.
Konowalchuk came in with extensive coaching experience, including a Memorial Cup appearance during his six-season tenure with the Thunderbirds.
Most recently, Konowalchuk was a professional scout for the New York Rangers.
After finishing up some obligations over the summer, Konowalchuk arrived in Red Deer and began the process of getting to know the players and staff with the team. Konowalchuk was asked about the start of his new position with the Rebels.
“Very excited, (it) feels like this week is kinda dragging by, getting antsy to get going, players are starting to get into town. I can feel the excitement of the players which is nice too, I know it has been a long year for everybody.”
With the team struggling to a 4-15-4-0 record last season, it is expected that there will be a new message to go along with the new head coach.
The Rebels did improve at the end of the season, stringing together points in their final four games.
“I think the message, a lot of it is coming from the players. They’re excited about a new season. When I talk to all the players, they believe in that group in there. That’s exciting for a coach, if you have the players believing that we’re ready to take the next step, that’s so important.”
Call the 2021-22 season anything but a rebuild though. The team has hit its bottom and is ready to take the group of players to the next level. The team is even eyeing a championship run in the not-too-distant future.
“I think that coming from the players and us as well, it’s not about rebuilding anymore, last year was last year but a good group of guys that finished strong last year on top of some additions every game, we expect to go into every game with the mentality that we are going to win.”
There have been some comparisons to when Konowalchuk made his debut with the Thunderbirds in 2011-12. That team was last in the Western Conference before his arrival, with a 27-35-5-5 record. The next season saw the team’s record dip to 25-45-1-1, but there was hope for the future. Seattle went on to win the WHL Championship in 2016-17.
Red Deer might be in a better position to win in the near term.
“As far as players go, we are ahead of when I went into Seattle. When I went into Seattle, believe it or not, it was my first year (as a head coach). It was a little bit of an older team, and then the second year was kind of when we started, I don’t want to say started over but got very young and built it from there. Since the Memorial Cup was hosted here (in Red Deer), that younger group and the players and the rebuild has kind of been in place,” said Konowalchuk
So no rebuild in Red Deer in 2021-22? The team is still in a tough division with several teams figuring to be in the mix for a playoff position.
“I think that’s all behind, the players all believe that is behind, and we’ve got a good mix of very talented players and a good mix of very good older players and good leadership that it shouldn’t be that timeline that we can compete for a championship,” added Konowalchuk.
There will be some changes in Red Deer, as Konowalchuk has gained extensive experience, not only at the WHL level but also by being part of the Colorado Avalanche, Anaheim Ducks, and New York Rangers organizations in various roles.
Let’s not forget he also played 790 games in the NHL.
“I’ve watched most of our guys on video a little bit to get an idea of what they are. I don’t want to read too much into it, I think there is going to be competition at camp. That’s one thing actually with our players when I am looking at the board with all our players, there should be very good competition with depth of guys fighting for different lines or different power play spots or penalty kill. That helps to have a good team as well, if a guy isn’t going one night you can put someone else up in a different situation. Kind of have that internal competition and I think we have that with good depth.”
Red Deer Rebels training camp begins tomorrow with player physicals. On-ice activities, open to the public, begin on Saturday at 8:30 am at the Peavy Mart Centrium.
Thank you to Byron Hackett for providing the audio from today’s press availability.
