Welcome to the Kootenay International Junior Hockey League (KIJHL) New Bench Bosses series. This series is focused on new coaches entering the league and next is Chad Scharff of the Fernie Ghostriders.

The Airdrie, Alta native comes to Fernie after being the head coach of the Airdrie CFR Bisons U18AAA team and being named the Alberta Elite Hockey League’s (AEHL) Coach of the Year. Scharff, guided the Bisons to second-place in the South Division of the AEHL.

The season before, Scharff was head coach of the Calgary Northstars in the AEHL U18AAA and an assistant coach of the Northstars U17AAA program. He was also an assistant coach with the WHL’s Vancouver Giants from 2009-12. He played for the Giants from 2002-07 (179 career games – 28 points as a defenceman).

KIJHL: What are the valuable things you learned as a head coach last season that will help you with the Ghostriders?

CS: I’m going to draw from the experiences of my playing career, as an equipment manager in the WHL and NHL, to coaching in the WHL and at the U18AAA level the last four years. There are many experiences I can draw from, and people I’ve met along the way. That is what I am looking forward to doing here in Fernie – working closely with a lot of people that I’ve built strong relationships with.

KIJHL: What is your coaching style in terms of how you will want your team to play?

CS: I’m very detailed, structured and I like being organized. There is a little bit of old school in me. I try and dive into what working hard and competing looks like at a deeper level. We will be a skilled team that likes to play offensively, but is responsible in our own end. I have a great assistant coach in Dante Raposo  – a young guy that levels things out for us. (Raposo is a KIJHL alum, having played for the Kamloops Storm in 2015-16 before advancing to the BCHL with Prince George. In 2020-21, Raposo won an American Collegiate Hockey Association championship with Adrian College.)

KIJHL: What do you enjoy about coaching?

CS: It’s ultimately been for me to give back. I had a heck of an experience playing in the Western Hockey League. I want to be able to give back to these kids and hope they can share the same experiences I had and when they are 38 to 40, they can look back and really cherish those moments and the friendships they have made. It’s about building those relationships and making these young athletes enjoy the game and play it as long as they can.

KIJHL: Do you have a coach who made such an impact on you that you lean on when needed for advice? Why is that person so important?

CS: There are two people directly – Don Hay in the WHL with the Kamloops Blazers. I played for him and coached with him in Vancouver. He ultimately molded me into the coach I am today. Another is Mark Maloney, who I worked with over the last six years in Calgary as a coach mentor and taught me a lot about how to look at the game, how to approach games.

KIJHL: You were named the Alberta Elite Hockey League’s Coach of the Year,  what did that mean for you?

CS: My name is the name on the award, but I was fortunate enough last year to work with some really good people. Maloney was a huge part of that, as was Raposo, and Connor Maloney, who was also an assistant coach. Those three guys coming to work every day, and doing what we did was easy, it didn’t seem like a job. Really, it’s a staff award and the kids put in a lot of effort and we had a great year.

KIJHL: What is your favourite hockey moment as a player or coach?

CS: My playing career in Vancouver, we were an expansion team that turned into a WHL championship – a Memorial Cup champion. That is near and dear to my heart. Then on a personal level, just being able to get to the NHL and experience that, as an equipment manager, is probably a highlight of my career.

As far as coaching goes, at the U18AAA level, in the Mac’s Midget tournament (now Circle K), our team wasn’t expected to do all that well, and we were able to get to the last minute of the semi final before bowing out. I think that was the highlight of my coaching career for sure.

KIJHL: Away from the rink, what are things you enjoy doing?

CS: I’m a family guy through and through. I have a wife of 16 years and we have seven- and four-year-old daughters. I’m a husband and a father first. I’m a coach second. I love spending time with them doing all the things that seven and four-year-olds do. When I get a little personal time, I like to golf, being in the water doing water sports.

KIJHL

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