Former NHL player and Olympian James Patrick, the winningest coach in the Western Hockey League the past two seasons, is joining the Victoria Royals as the new director of player development.
Patrick coached the Kootenay/Winnipeg Ice for six seasons and led the Ice last season to the Scotty Munro Trophy and the regular-season WHL championship with a team that included first-round NHL draft picks Matthew Savoie, Connor Geekie, Zach Benson and Carson Lambos.
The Ice were a combined 40-83 and missed the playoffs in their last two seasons in the Kootenays under Patrick. Things accelerated markedly as Patrick amassed a 166-49-8 record over the past four seasons the Ice played in Winnipeg, after moving from Cranbrook, including 53-10-5 in 2021-22 and 57-10-1 in 2022-23. Patrick took the Ice to the WHL playoff final in the spring before losing to the Seattle Thunderbirds, who represented the league in the 2023 Memorial Cup. But new ownership did not bring Patrick to Wenatchee, Washington, when the Ice franchise was moved from Winnipeg over the summer to become the Wenatchee Wild.
The Patrick hiring continues the flurry of moves the Royals have made in their bid to return to respectability after three desultory seasons in which they were last in the WHL during the 2021 bubble season and missed the playoffs in both 2021-22 and 2022-23.
Patrick follows the hiring of former NHL Arizona Coyotes manager of hockey operations Joey Poljanowski as the Royals’ vice-president of hockey operations, essentially the new GM, and Jake Heisinger as assistant GM. Dan Price, who held the title of Royals GM, will now focus solely on his role as head coach. Heisinger was the vice-president of hockey operations and assistant GM of the Ice since 2020 and has a history with Patrick.
“James has had a positive impact on countless players over his time in the WHL and will be a great resource for Royals players as they pursue their hockey careers,” Heisinger said in a statement.
Patrick played 1,280 NHL regular-season games across 21 seasons from 1983-84 to 2003-04 as a blueliner with the New York Rangers, who selected him ninth overall in the first round of the 1981 draft out of the University of North Dakota, and also the Hartford Whalers, Calgary Flames and Buffalo Sabres before concluding his pro playing career in Germany with the Frankfurt Lions.
The Winnipeg native also had extensive international experience for sa国际传媒. Patrick won gold and bronze at the 1982 and 1983 world junior championships and played in the 1984 Sarajevo Winter Olympics with Victoria’s Russ Courtnall, placing fourth. Patrick also played for sa国际传媒 in five IIHF world championships and the landmark 1987 sa国际传媒 Cup with Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux.
Patrick was assistant coach in the NHL for seven seasons with the Sabres from 2006-07 to 2012-13 and four seasons with the Dallas Stars from 2013-14 to 2016-17.
The Royals open the 2023-24 regular season Sept. 22 at the Langley Events Centre against the Vancouver Giants and Sept. 23 at Angel of the Winds Arena in Everett, Washington, against the Silvertips. The home openers at Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre are Sept. 29-30 against the Prince George Cougars.
