(Photo of Steve Konowalchuk from Getty Images, Matt Martin)

By Troy Gillard

new bench boss

Steve Konowalchuk named Red Deer Rebels head coach

Jun 8, 2021 | 11:00 AM

The Red Deer Rebels have named Steve Konowalchuk as their new head coach.

This will be the second head coaching stint in the Western Hockey League for Konowalchuk. He was bench boss for the Seattle Thunderbirds from 2011-2017 and guided them to a WHL Championship in 2016-17. In six seasons behind the bench he compiled a regular season record of 219-176-22-15.

Currently a pro scout with the New York Rangers, the Utah native has served as an NHL assistant coach with both Colorado and Anaheim.

Konowalchuk played two seasons in the WHL with Portland from 1990-92. He went on to play 790 NHL regular season games and 52 playoff games with Washington and Colorado.

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Rebels owner, president and general manager Brent Sutter resigned from his head coaching duties on April 9.

“Steve is the right coach at the right time for our hockey club, said Sutter. “He is a person of high character, whose intensity and work ethic match that of our organization and community. With Steve’s winning pedigree, we have the right leadership to become a championship-calibre team. We welcome Steve and his family to Central Alberta.”

Sutter said that as the hiring process moved along it became clear Konowalchuk was the man he wanted for the job.

“We talked to several guys and they were all intriguing in their own right. But at the end of the day, with Steve it’s just everything that I wanted to see in a coach that we were going to hire. He was able to check all those things off and it just really made sense. I think he’s a great fit for our organization at the right time. We’re bringing in someone that’s a respected hockey man, someone that’s had success, someone that’s played in the National Hockey League for a long time. It’s just a good fit. It’s good for our organization, and it’s a good fit for our fan base, too.”

“I would like to thank Brent Sutter and the Red Deer Rebels for the opportunity to coach in the WHL again,” Konowalchuk said. “The organization has established itself as a top franchise in the league, and I look forward to working with the staff and players on reaching the organization’s high expectations.

“I would also like to express my gratitude to the New York Rangers for the opportunity given to me over the past three seasons.”

After three years away from the bench, Konowalchuk says he’s thrilled to get back into coaching.

“I was trying to figure out what I wanted to try to see if there was a different avenue in hockey that (I wanted to do). I’ve had a lot of different hats on as far different jobs in professional hockey… but at the same time, I didn’t want to give up coaching. That was always in the back of my mind.”

Konowalchuk feels the Rebels are further ahead now than the Thunderbirds were when he first joined them in 2011.

“They (Seattle) were probably more in the start in a rebuild. The first couple years took a little bit of time to get the (right) players and build with those players,” he recalled. “Going into Red Deer, it sounds to me Brent and Shaun (Sutter), and then also with the others scouts, some very good pieces are in place and it’s a team that has some potential right out of the gate… But it will be another good organization with good character.”

Konowalchuk will officially join the Rebels in August after his duties with the Rangers are complete. The Rebels will look to add an assistant coach and new goaltending coach this summer.