There’s a coach in central Alberta who has guided the Camrose Kodiaks to five Doyle Cup wins, a Royal Bank championship and two national runner-up finishes.
He coached Mason Raymond for two years and he’s given the Canucks forward lots of useful advice.
But Boris Rybalka probably wasn’t thinking Vancouver in May when he imparted this bit of wisdom years ago: “My old coach in junior used to always say, good teams wear shorts to the rink,” Raymond said on Wednesday.
Not Wednesday they didn’t, not with the liquid sunshine pouring down.
It was the second non-skating day in a row for the tired team, one the Canucks seemed glad to take advantage of as they recharged physically and mentally.
“You just get away, relax, enjoy some time with your family,” Raymond said. “Get some good meals in you, sleep well.”
They’re back on the ice Thursday, then Friday can start preparing for their next opponent, beginning the second half of the quest.
“We talked about it this morning,” Raymond said of the Canucks’ first conference final appearance in 17 years. “Bones [Rick Bowness, coaching Boston in 1991-92] hasn’t been here for [almost] 20 years. This doesn’t happen all the time.
“Today, we’ve won two series. But we don’t really feel we’ve won anything. We’ve got a long ways to go.”
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