Chiefs gearing up for another championship

By Aaron Bell, Canadian Hockey League – Hardy Sauter knows that he has some big shoes to fill.
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rThree weeks ago, Sauter was introduced as the new head coach of the Spokane Chiefs and after watching Bill Peters guide the club to the Memorial Cup championship last May, he knows that the pressure is on to do it again.
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r“I think we have a pretty good thing going with some very talented and dedicated players returning,” said Sauter, who was an assistant under Peters last season. “I can’t wait for the season to start and get back to work.”
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rThe 37-year-old from Maryfield, SK played for the Chiefs in the early 1990’s and brought a lunch-pail work effort to the rink every day. He expects his players to keep bringing the same effort.
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r“I competed hard and had pretty good hockey sense, both of which I hope to convey to our players,” Sauter said. “I’m excited to get the chance at this level with this calibre of player and hope to be successful.”
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rPeters stepped down as coach of the Chiefs earlier this month to accept the head coaching job of the Rockford IceHogs, the Chicago Blackhawks’ American Hockey League affiliate. He guided the Chiefs to the Ed Chynoweth Cup as WHL champions and then went on to win the MasterCard Memorial Cup in Kitchener last May. He also led Canada to a win at the Under-18 Memorial of Ivan Hlinka tournament last week.
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rPeters said that Sauter is a great choice as his successor.
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r“He obviously had a lot to do with the success that we enjoyed as a team, particularly the defense,” Peters told MLN Sports when the team resigned Sauter to their coaching staff in June. “He did a great job as a head guy in the Saskatchewan Junior League and he will do a great job as a head coach in the WHL.”
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rThe Chiefs expect to continue a similar winning program under Sauter.
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r“Hardy has come full circle with our club; first as player, then as assistant coach and now as head coach,” said Chiefs GM Tim Speltz. “He was a big part of last year’s success and very deserving of this opportunity.”
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rSauter played three seasons in the WHL and then went to the University of Regina before a 10 year minor league career. He came to the Chiefs last summer after two seasons as the GM/coach of the Nipawin Hawks in the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League where he was that league’s coach of the year in 2005-06.
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r“Coaching seemed like a natural fit,” said Hardy, who was player/coach for the Oklahoma City Blazers during his final seasons on the ice.
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rHe is the first former player to become head coach of the Chiefs.
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r“We are all about developing talent, from players to coaches, and to have a former player become an assistant and then move on to head coach it is the ultimate case of development,” said Chiefs President Bobby Brett. “We couldn’t be happier to have Hardy lead our team.”
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rLast year, the Chiefs were a bit of a surprise to make their way to the Memorial Cup because they were relatively young. Many of the stars, including scoring leader Drayson Bowman as well as Mitch Wahl, Trevor Glass and Jared Cowan and standout goalie Dustin Tokarski should be back in the lineup again this season. They hope to make another run at the WHL title and a return trip to the MasterCard Memorial Cup in Rimouski, QC.
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r“You never know how it is going to turn out but I thought we were going to be pretty good,” Sauter said. “I knew the team was improving throughout the year but I didn’t anticipate the Memorial Cup. The most rewarding part was seeing everything that the guys put into the season and having it all pay off in the end. Unless you’re around them you don’t see how hard they work and how dedicated they are.”