Kevin Bieksa’s days of firing point shots on NHL goalies and hammering NHL forwards into the end boards as a member of the Vancouver Canucks or Anaheim Ducks are long over, but that doesn’t mean he’s done with hockey. Far from it.
When he’s not part of the intermission panels on Hockey Night in ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½, you can find him in minor hockey rinks across North America shouting instructions, calling timeouts and drawing up plays on his clipboard as head coach for his son’s Fairmont Prep Hockey team from California.
Like he was on Saturday afternoon at The Q Centre as Fairmont was among 16 teams taking part in the annual Under-18 Island Cup tournament at The Q Centre, Juan de Fuca Arena and Westhills Arena.
“I love coaching the kids. Love seeing them progress and grow and love the game like I did when I was their age,” Bieksa said after guiding Fairmont to a 4-3 win over Bourget College of Quebec.
The win sends Fairmont into this morning’s 13th-place game at Westhills Arena as two close losses earlier in the tournament left them with a 2-2 record.
“Ya, we let a couple slip away, but played pretty well, even in the losses so could have easily been 4-0 or at least 3-1,” Bieksa said. “But sometimes in hockey, you play well and don’t win. We all know that.”
His son, Cole, a star forward on the team that is based at the Ducks’ practice facility in Irvine, is in his senior year of high school so, like many of the Fairmont players, is in his final year of minor hockey.
“We have a lot of players in their final year so it’s going to be a bittersweet season because we know it’s the last time together for a lot of the kids.
“And they’ve been together and I’ve been coaching most of them since they were 10 or 11 years old. It’s a great group and we’ve travelled to places like the Quebec Peewee Tournament and all over the U.S. and ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½, so it’s been a lot of fun. I’m going to miss it.”
While Cole, who was born in Vancouver, mulls over his future in hockey, which could land him in the ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ Hockey League or Western Hockey League, Bieksa is hanging up his clipboard, for a while anyway.
“I’m going to take a year or two away from coaching and then we’ll see how things are,” he said. “And Cole is seriously thinking over his options and we know the ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ Hockey League is a great league with some great organizations, like right here in Victoria, but now with the changes to the NCAA rules that allow WHL players to be eligible, there are a few more options to look at.”
Bieksa is an NCAA grad himself, having spent four years at Bowling Green State before being drafted by the Canucks. And he knows the junior hockey scene is about to change because of the NCAA ruling.
“The big winner is the NCAA teams as they will now have a larger pool of players to choose from, and the players will have more options, but like everyone else in hockey, we’ll have to wait and see what this means for junior hockey clubs in ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ and the U.S.”
Bieksa is no stranger to Victoria. The 43-year-old from Grimsby, Ont., was in the ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ capital last February for Hockey Day in ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ and he came across the water a few times for Canucks training camps, one of which was at The Q Centre. He’ll be back on the Island in January when Fairmont takes part in the Robertson Invitational Tournament at Shawnigan Lake.
“Victoria’s almost like my second home now,” Bieksa said with a laugh. “I think I had a few Canucks camps here and my dad now lives here part-time so I visit him when I can. It’s a great city. Well, except for the rain.”
The weekend in Victoria means he was absent from Saturday night’s Hockey Night in ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ broadcast that featured Connor Bedard’s first visit to Vancouver to take on the Canucks.
“I probably should get on a plane now and head over. Kidding.
“I book certain weekends off at the beginning of the season for my son’s games, and this was one of them. But should be a great game.”
ON THE ICE: The Island Cup wraps up today with the medal round which features first-place Northern Alberta Xtreme taking on fourth-place Calgary International Hockey Academy in one semifinal and second-place Edge Hockey Academy playing third place Upper ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ College in the other semi. Host Pacific Coast Hockey Academy will play for fifth place against Delta.
