Former NHLer and Vermilion native, Jeff Woywitka, (centre, right) is the newest addition to the Lloydminster Bobcats coaching staff and is looking forward to what the team’s future holds. Taylor Weaver Meridian Source
There’s a new face behind the bench of the Lloydminster Junior A Bobcats, and it may be familiar to some.
On Dec. 21, the Bobcats announced the addition of Vermilion native and former NHLer Jeff Woywitka to its coaching staff.
Woywitka joined the team just before Christmas and is the team’s new associate and skills coach.
Throughout his storied hockey career, Woywitka played in over 600 professional hockey games, including 278 in the NHL between the St. Louis Blues, Dallas Stars, and New York Rangers. More recently, he’s spent the last six seasons as the head/assistant coach of the Sherwood Park Crusaders.
“I was in Sherwood Park for the longest time when I was playing because it was convenient for my hockey training, and that led to coaching with the Crusaders,” said Woywitka during practice on Tuesday.
“I was there for the past six years and thought it was time to move on, so I bought a house in Vermilion and I’ve been coaching my nephew’s U15 team in Wainwright.”
Woywitka also explained the timing for a return to Junior hockey had to be right, and in the case of the Bobcats, the timing was perfect.
“(Head coach) Nigel (Dube) wants me to come in and help him,” said Woywitka.
“I’m going to be working with the defence and running a lot of the skills training, and he also wants a lot of my input, too, as far as the structure of the team and introducing a few new things.
“For me, learning and getting a feel for things here will be key, and we’ll see what the future holds.”
For Dube, the addition of Woywitka could be just what the doctor ordered.
“As an organization, we want to continue to move our program forward both on and off the ice,” said Dube.
“Adding Jeff to our staff is us taking another step forward in our plan. He has developed some of the best to come out of the AJHL and we look forward to him working with our players.”
The Bobcats have a busy upcoming home schedule and will play nine of their next 12 games at the Civic.
“We are gearing up for a big second half and Jeff is a start to it; we will be playing more in the Civic and we need to make every game count and get the most out of our group.”
Of course, Woywitka is no stranger to the AJHL, but he’s also familiar with the local team and is looking forward to seeing what the future holds with them.
“It’s the team’s 40-year anniversary this year, so it’s a team that’s been around for a long time and I’ve known a lot of people that came through the program,” he said.
“When I was coaching in Sherwood Park and would come to Lloyd, it was always a great Junior setting with a great vibe, and I think the support of the city is there.”
Going forward, Woywitka’s plan is to keep improving the program as far as recruiting, bringing in players, and developing players.
“It’s good to recruit, but you still have to develop, as well as make it an attractive place for players wanting to come and play here,” he said.
“It’s a team I believe deserved better in the past, but it hasn’t been there, and we want to get things to the elite level, but to get there it takes time, a lot of commitment, a lot of hard work, and investing from the players.
“The future looks good and I think there’s a lot here to work with.”
The Bobcats host the Canmore Eagles this Saturday for their Buzz the Bobcats fundraiser before hosting Drayton Valley for back-to-back games on Jan. 13 and Jan. 14.
