Edmonton Oil Kings head coach Brad Lauer is a finalist for the Dunc McCallum Trophy awarded to the coach of the year in the Western Hockey League.
“I don’t think it’s an individual award,” said Lauer. “This goes deep into our organization.”
The Oil Kings had a record of 42-12-10, best in the Eastern Conference, when the season was paused on March 12 because of the novel coronavirus pandemic. The Canadian Hockey League season and Memorial Cup were cancelled on March 23.
“There are mixed feelings. You want to make sure everyone is healthy and safe, and that’s the most important thing,” said Lauer.
“Selfishly, when you have a group of kids like I had this year, you feel like you want to play because you feel like there’s an opportunity to do something special.”
Lauer said he’s always remember how the Oil Kings rarely let a game get away from them.
“The way we found a way to hang into games even when we weren’t playing very well,” said Lauer. “Our guys hung around a lot of games.”
Last season, the Oil Kings were somewhat of a surprise, finishing first in the Central Division before being eliminated by Prince Albert in the Eastern Conference final. That meant a big jump in expectations coming into this season.
“Coming off my first year, expectations were high on us. I think going to the third round matured our team an awful lot,” said Lauer. “They were hungry to do it again. They were hungry to take their individual games to a new level. When that happens, your team game is going to improve.”
Lauer is up against Everett’s Dennis Williams. The winner will be announced May 7.
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