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WHL Kamloops Blazers

Hay Nearing 200th Win Behind Blazers Bench

February 18, 2016 - Western Hockey League (WHL)
Kamloops Blazers News Release


As the Blazers head out on the road for a three game swing this weekend, Head Coach Don Hay has a chance to reach an admirable milestone.

Hay currently is sitting at 199 wins behind the bench with the Kamloops Blazers, good for second in franchise history behind only Ken Hitchcock (291). The milestone is something Hay said he wasn't aware that he was approaching.

"I really don't pay a lot of attention to that. I know that I've been probably one of the longest coaches here", Hay said. "I worked with Ken Hitchcock for five years, I know he was with the organization for six. I worked with Tom Renney for a couple years."

And with that elite coaching company, Hay and the Blazers experienced a lot of success in his first tenure with the team, which lasted nine seasons from 1986-1995.

"We had some awesome groups of teams in that bunch."

Hay began as an Assistant Coach with the Blazers in 1986-87; Hitchcock was the head coach at the time and Kamloops was coming off a WHL Championship. Hitchcock would remain as the Blazers head coach for four more playoff seasons, ending with another WHL Championship in 1990.

When Hitchcock left to become the Philadelphia Flyers bench boss in the NHL, Tom Renney took his place in Kamloops. The Blazers won 50-plus games in both seasons with Renney, as well as the team's fourth WHL Championship and first Memorial Cup in 1992.

Renney left that offseason to become the Head Coach of the Canadian National Team, which is when Hay first took the reins as the Blazers' Head Coach.

With Hay, the Blazers won back-to-back WHL Championships and Memorial Cup titles in 1994 and 1995 - a rare feat among junior hockey clubs.

Now after coaching stints in the NHL with Calgary, Phoenix and Anaheim, in the WHL with Tri-City and in the AHL with Utah, Hay is in his 12th consecutive season head coaching in the WHL. The Kamloops, BC native spent 10 ten seasons behind the bench of the Vancouver Giants, before returning where it all started to coach his hometown team ahead of the 2014-15 season.

Hay's WHL resume includes three league Championships, three Memorial Cups and 667 career regular season wins - second all-time only to Ken Hodge (742).

"200 wins is a great milestone", Hay said. "It says a lot about the organization and a lot about the players you've coached, so I'm very happy to be part of it."

Hay will have a chance this weekend to reach win number 200 with Kamloops. The Blazers play in Victoria against the Royals on Friday and Saturday, before finishing up in Vancouver against the Giants on Sunday.

Check out the Kamloops Blazers Statistics



Western Hockey League Stories from February 18, 2016


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