Natives coach resigns

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This article was published 04/11/2011 (5064 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Neepawa Natives left-winger Ward Szucki hadn’t heard that his general manager and head coach Bryant Perrier resigned on Thursday, but the news didn’t surprise him.

The 19-year-old from Neepawa felt the executive, which accepted Perrier’s letter of resignation at a noon meeting on Thursday, was not impressed with the team’s 1-16-2 start to the Manitoba Junior Hockey League season and put a lot of pressure on the head coach. There was even more pressure on Perrier after a hazing incident in September became public knowledge.

A league investigation ensued which resulted in Perrier, assistant coach Brad Biggers and 16 players being suspended. The Natives roster has also been depleted over the past week as 14 players have either been traded, released or walked out on the club.

Although Szucki thinks he understands his coach’s mindset, he wants to put the matter behind him and get back to playing hockey.

“It’s sad to see him go, but you have to do what’s best for the team,” he said. “We have to move on. I don’t really know what to say.”

Perrier’s resignation puts even more pressure on the Natives’ board of directors. The team is now left with one coach, part-time assistant Byron Billett. Biggers quit the team last month.

The board has already started its search for a new coach and general manager, and plans to use its hockey operations committee to help fill the void in the meantime.

“We have a list of volunteers in hockey operations who I’m sure will help us fill the bill,” Natives president Dave McIntosh said. “We did (Wednesday) night. We played in Waywayseecappo. We got the team there and we played and we still have players who have been suspended and that affects how many players we can put on the ice.

“The willingness of the board to keep the team on the ice is nothing but 100 per cent.”

Szucki said the remaining players are also unwavering in their support of the franchise.

Szucki is even hearing rumblings that some of those who left the team are considering rejoining the Natives now that the former coaches have left the team, and the players still with the Natives would welcome them back with open arms.

“It definitely sucked (when they left),” Szucki said. “You’re all friends with them for a couple months and you get attached to them, but they felt quitting was the best option for their careers and they felt they had to do that.

“We just understand it’s tough times right now but with a new coach coming in we’re moving forward and obviously we want them to be a part of the team going forward.”

On Thursday, the Natives’ board and players released separate letters of apology for the hazing incident in September, which had five rookies perform degrading activities as part of a team ritual.

In addition to the suspensions, the league fined the club $5,000 and barred it from making any player transactions until the investigation concluded.

The league opened a second investigation after four players recanted their statements about the event. The RCMP is also investigating the matter.

» cjaster@brandonsun.com

What the players said:

In regards to the recent hazing allegations towards the Neepawa Natives, the players of the Natives would like to apologize to the players involved in the incident, our community, the organization, coaching staff, sponsors, loyal fans and all who have supported the program that has given so many players the opportunity to play Junior A hockey in a well established league.

An apology addressed toward the acts that took place within our dressing room: We would like to make it clear that the events that had taken place had no malicious intent and, in no way, were aimed to harm or ridicule any player on our team. First and foremost, no player was forced or threatened to take part in anything they were not comfortable doing, this was and remains a team policy from the start of the season. The victims of the incident participated in the events that took place in the month of September on their own will and were not pressured in any way by any member of the team.

We are truly sorry for allowing this kind of immature behavior to happen in our dressing room. The acts that took place in our dressing room were simply a part of rookie initiations, and at the time, the team deemed them as harmless fun. However, now that we have put a great amount of thought into this, we realize that our actions were extremely inappropriate and unnecessary. We deeply regret partaking in such behavior, but most importantly, letting our actions affect so many people around us in a negative way.

We, the Neepawa Natives, ask for forgiveness for our mistakes and a chance to move on and play the game we are all so truly passionate about.

— Sincerely, Neepawa Natives leadership and players.

What the Natives board said:

The Neepawa Natives organization understands that our player’s actions have reflected poorly on our organization, our community, our league and hockey in general. For this we join the players in offering our sincerest apologies to the victims, our sponsors, our player’s parents, our fans and our community.

We share the public’s position that such actions should not be part of the game that we love. As a Board, our goal was and remains the same — to build and oversee a Junior Hockey program to allow young players an opportunity to develop their personal and their hockey skills — on and off the ice. We know the events that occurred in the dressing room in late September and the weeks following has put this goal in jeopardy. We understand that an example needs to be made and we are prepared to accept our role to ensure it never happens again. Our organization has been put on the national stage in a most negative light. We accept this. What we cannot accept is that this somehow is a reflection of our community. Nothing could be farther from the truth. We need everyone to know that our best efforts have been made every step of the way.

The issue was reported to the authorities as soon as it was known. Ongoing communication with both the players and the league uncovered more irregularities which were reported immediately as well. We will continue to cooperate with both the MJHL and the RCMP in their investigations and we are as anxious as anyone to understand what happened. We have faith in the process and will accept their findings, deal with the consequences and act on all recommendations. Make no mistake, this issue has rocked us hard and we had to consider every option. After a great deal of discussion we are here today to reconfirm and renew our commitment to Junior Hockey in Neepawa. We humbly ask that our players, fans, sponsors and the community renew their commitment to the Neepawa Natives.

In closing, we need everyone to understand that this organization is not closed to anyone. All organizations need new people with fresh ideas to be successful. We need this now more than ever before. Please consider this as our plea for help and your invitation to join our team — in any capacity — as we enter a new era of Junior Hockey in Neepawa.