With weeks of uncertainty in the rear view, the Cochrane Generals have announced a new head coach, and for anyone who knows the team, the name Dan Gendur is a blast from the past.
The 29-year-old Victoria native was appointed last Wednesday to the big job after much discussion between the Gens’ board of directors.
Gendur started his journey with the Gens two seasons ago when he and his wife moved to Calgary and he saw a job posting that stood out like a beacon.
“It was for an assistant coaching position with the Generals, so I sent my resume in, had an interview with (former head coach) Evan McFeeters and got hired.”
He assisted McFeeters for the full season, before taking more of a part-time role in the 2014/15 season, as he was playing with the Bentley Generals of the Chinook Hockey League.
When McFeeters came knocking this time around, it was an opportunity too good to turn down.
“It was very easy to accept the job,” Gendur said. “Evan and I are fairly close and keep in touch. He let me know he was leaning towards taking the Canmore job, asked if I might be interested, and we went from there.”
The former centreman brings a high-grade pedigree to his new position, having played five seasons in the WHL with the Prince George Cougars and the Everett Silvertips before being drafted by the Vancouver Canucks in 2007 and signing a three-year deal with their organization in 2008.
Gendur played one season with the Manitoba Moose (now the AHL affiliate for the Winnipeg Jets) before moving to the Victoria Salmon Kings of the East Coast Hockey League in 2008.
He ended his playing career four years ago and has since worked with athletes at a hockey development training facility in Victoria, which has given him an insight into how to bring a player’s potential to fruition.
“I don’t have any head coach experience from behind the bench per say,” he admitted. “I’m used to developing players.”
One of the things Gendur is looking to bring to the Gens for the 2016/17 season is a new attitude, while maintaining the success the club has had in recent years.
“A lot of the players were coached by McFeeters for six or seven years dating back to minor hockey,” he said. “I know from my past experience, that a coach’s message can get a little stale. We as a team need to be more accountable for things on and off the ice, as well as maintaining a winning mentality.”
Has he made any plans concerning the upcoming season since taking charge?
“At the moment my wife and I are in the midst of moving out to Cochrane,” he said. “We just bought a house out there so that’s the priority right now.”
After he gets settled, Gendur plans on contacting all of the players who are eligible to return for the season and gauge their interest.
“For the year the guys had, they all deserve a shot at coming back,” he said. “We know everyone has school and jobs so we’ll have to see, it might not work of some of them but I hope to have them all back.
“There’s going to be some tough decisions, especially concerning the overage guys.”
The Gens training camp is expected to begin on Sept. 3. Details have yet to be released.
