Chad Olson hails from Valencia, California but has coached junior hockey in various spots around the western United States. That includes stops in Seattle, Tahoe and Montana in the now defunct Junior-A Western States Hockey League.
He currently coaches the Bremerton Sockeyes of the United States Premier Hockey League. This season marks Olson’s eighth year as a head coach.
The Sockeyes stand at 11-8-0, good for middle of the USPHL’s Northwest Division.
Part of Olson’s decision to coach the Sockeyes was the ability to live at home with his family and have his son come to the rink every day. He said his son comes to practice with him on Tuesdays and Wednesdays and is involved with the team, which is a dream for Olson.
He also noted the ability to play one of his former teams, the Seattle Totems, which he said was definitely motivating. As of Dec. 1, the Sockeyes were 3-3 against Seattle.
“I enjoy taking teams from the bottom to the top, and it’s something I really do pride myself on doing, and something that I really do find fun,” Olson said.
But what does it take to rebuild struggling junior hockey programs?
“Honestly, I think it just comes to putting people first, and getting guys that want to buy into building a better culture, building something that the guys will remember for forever,” Olson said. “A band of brothers type of thing.”
He wants players who want to create lifelong memories. Olson said he doesn’t sell what they’re going to do, or what he’s done or anything like that.
“What I sell is experience that I’m giving these kids, that they’ll remember until they’re 85 years old,” Olson said.
So where do the players go after their junior career? Olson said that’s either college or a minor professional team. Some players just end up not playing hockey anymore too. Olson has had 140 players move on to college, minor pro and tier-2 junior hockey.
According to Olson, when he rebuilds a team, he usually only brings back a player or two from the previous season’s team. This season he only brought on two players from last season’s team.
“I think the biggest hurdle is finding the right fit guys,” Olson said.
Olson will go through 40 guys for a 28-man roster to find guys that actually want to buy in to what they’re selling or what they’re trying to accomplish.
As Olson is building a team, he said he looks for character. He wants guys who work hard and want to put the work in to get better.
Some of the most enjoyable aspects he said include turning a team from a three win team to a 33 win team is pretty sweet. He also mentioned moving the guys on.
“We moved on 22 kids in two years,” Olson said. “So, I mean that in itself, like the 33 wins hosting playoffs, all that legit home ice, all that awesome, but 22 kids in two years, like, what other program has done that? Honestly, there’s not a lot.”
Some things Olson has learned throughout the year include being adaptable and not having a set way of doing things. He touched on running teams like a cohesive group.
“I really like to get input from everyone and that’s something I really do pride myself on,” Olson said.
Olson wants his players to feel like they have a say in how they do things.
“Because once people feel like they’re involved or have a say they go 10 times harder for it, whatever it is, whether it’s hockey or coffee shop or whatever,” Olson said.
Teams like the Sockeyes must take part in a showcase with Olson noting the scouts that are in attendance. The league even lets teams bring their own scouts in. Olson decided when he was coaching the Lake Tahoe Lakers, to bring in seven or eight of his college friends and a couple of NCAA Division III guys.
“It was really nice to be able to bring them into our Lake Tahoe Lakers locker room, and most of the teams didn’t have anyone coming in to talk,” Olson said.
Another aspect of junior hockey Olson noted is the ability to get out in the community. For the Sockeyes, that’s been going to the humane society and taking dogs for walks.
“The animal shelter is a big one that I always like to target,” Olson said.
Northwest Sports Desk 