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.
A former Flin Flon Bomber has landed behind the bench of one of Canada's most famous junior hockey teams. Travis Crickard, 26, has been named new assistant coach of of the Ottawa 67's of the Ontario Hockey League. 'I'm really excited to be in an atmosphere like that and learn from these coaches in this league,' Crickard told CBC. 'I think it's a great opportunity.' Crickard, a Newfoundland and Labrador native, was a goalie with the Bombers from 2005 to 2007. Prior to that, he had spent the 2004-05 season with the Swan Valley Stampeders of the MJHL. Crickard started playing minor hockey in Newfoundland and Labrador with dreams of making it to the NHL. He left the familiarity of his home province and headed to Hamilton to play with the AAA Midget Bulldogs. After playing with the Stampeders and then the Bombers, Crickard headed east to join New Brunswick's Woodstock Slammers of the Maritime Junior Hockey League. Later, Crickard, on an international student grant, played net for State University New York-Potsdam in Potsdam, New York, according to CBC. He graduated with a degree in health science with minors in pre-med and coaching science, CBC reported in a recent profile on Crickard. Crickard went on to pursue a Master's degree in Ottawa and, yearning to stay in hockey, eventually found himself as a volunteer assistant coach with a major midget club, the CBC piece noted. Crickard recently stepped up the hockey ladder when he was hired as assistant coach of the 67's under head coach Chris Byrne. Though he still has his sights set on the NHL _ as a coach this time _ Crickard told CBC he is in no rush. 'My plans have changed and (the NHL is still) my goal,' he told the network. 'If I focus on the outcome, I'm going to miss what's important. By no means am I in a rush. Chris is just 40. I'm not in any hurry to get to the next level. It's a long process, and that's what I have to focus on.'
