For Ron Johnson, the director of hockey development with the Port Moody Panthers, success is not always measured in championships.
Sure, shiny trophies are great, but he also takes pride in developing young talent and helping them move on to the next stage in their career — whether that be in hockey or elsewhere.
Johnson has worked with players like the Tampa Bay Lightning’s Jason Garrison and the Washington Capitals’ Karl Alzner, who are mainstays in the NHL.
But he has also coached other players, who may not have gone on to professional hockey fame, but have found their own paths to success in their careers.
“We aren’t going to send all these people to the NHL,” he said. “Our total mindset is to try and build a team of young professionals. It is about building good members of the community.”
That doesn’t mean that Johnson wouldn’t like to see the PJHL junior ‘B’ squad notch more than the six wins they garnered during the 2014-15 season.
And when the regular season gets underway this Saturday at the Port Moody Arena, he said fans will get the chance to see a club that has made some strong strides in the off-season.
“We are going to be fine,” said Johnson, who has been with the club for a year and a half. “We have a good nucleus.”
There are familiar names, like Dan Obscena and Cole Iantorno, who will re-join the lineup for the upcoming season.
Johnson said he expects the returning veterans to play bigger roles on the team and help mentor along some of the new players that are joining the club.
“They really went through the hard knocks last year,” he said. “They really hung together as a team and there are just a bunch of leaders in that dressing room.”
There are also a few new names that Johnson said will likely get some attention from fans.
Alex McGovern is a burly 18-year-old defenceman that is expected to log a lot of minutes on the blue line, while other additions like Matthew Mason will also add to the Cats’ physicality on the ice.
“The rookies are really energetic,” he said. “You can tell they are really passionate. They want to get to that next level.”
In fact, Johnson believes that with some of the players in his roster, the team may be able to turn things around this season.
His goal is to make the club a good place for players to develop, while doing what it takes to win and attract new talent.
“We want to blend both of those worlds,” he said.
• The Port Moody Panthers will take on the Ridge Meadows Flames this Saturday at the Port Moody Arena. The puck drops at 7:45 p.m. For more information go to www.portmoodypanthers.com.
