The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
The OCN Blizzard have fired Head Coach/General Manager Glen Watson, according to a brief press release issued by the Manitoba Junior Hockey League on Wednesday. The statement says very little other than the fact that the termination is effective immediately. When reached for comment, Watson confirmed he was, indeed, fired by the hockey club in which he led to three straight first place finishes in the Sherwood Division. He was behind the bench for two of the team's five league championships and was also the only coach in team history to get OCN into the Royal Bank Cup national tournament. They lost in 2001-02 in the title game to the host team from Halifax. This season, OCN lost just ten regulation time games out of sixty-four. However, they were swept in the first round by the Portage Terriers as the club endured rumours of off ice turmoil amongst a couple of players and other non hockey playing personnel. Watson admits he has not spoken verbally with any member of the Blizzard Executive. Currently in Estevan visiting with family, Watson was notified of his dismissal by way of a fax to his hotel room. "They did request my assistance in finding a replacement. Other than that, I have no comment at this time." Watson was also silent when asked whether or not he'd take the Blizzard up on their request. Some recent MJHL coaches currently out of work that could be interested in the job are Ken Pearson (Winkler, more recently Brooks of the AJHL) and Jeff Wiest (Dauphin, Swan Valley, Winkler). There is not expected to be a shortage of applications to lead a team that is long on budget and success.
