Brennan Sonne says he has always wanted to have a positive impact on the world around him — that means working with aspiring young athletes.
Today, as the coach of the Saskatoon Blades, Sonne is leading one of the top teams in the WHL.
He said his leadership style is centred around living the culture himself, as best he can.
“How you want the culture around the rink to be. How you want the young men to grow into. You must model that. You can’t ask them to do one thing and then do another yourself,” Sonne said.
Sonne said it is important for young athletes to stay dedicated and focused, but not at the expense of the big picture. He believes sport is important because it teaches athletes valuable lessons that can be taken through life.
“We want to put out the best humans into the world. If you fast forward 20 years, none of these kids are going to be playing hockey,” Sonne said.
“They’re all going to be citizens in the world. And who do we want to put out? We want to put out engineers. We want to be putting out the surgeons who will be operating on us when we’re old.”
Sonne believes, first and foremost, it is his duty to try and help the players he is working with.
“It’s not about me. It’s about my duty to others,” Sonne said.