Pearson relishing time behind bench

If you asked Ken Pearson when he began his career behind the bench 30 years ago how long he’d last in the business, he wouldn’t have had a clue.

Now, it’s safe to say it’s become more than anything he would have ever expected.

The head coach and general manager of the Neepawa Titans checked off two big milestones on Sunday night after coaching his 1,500th game in the Canadian Junior Hockey League following a 4-2 win over the Dauphin Kings at Credit Union Place. The victory was the Titans 18th of the season and was also the 750th of Pearson’s career in the regular season.

It’s hard to put into words what significance just a pair of numbers means to a person, but for Pearson, it’s rather simple.

“I just love the game,” said Pearson, who’s in his seventh consecutive year with Neepawa. “I never would have expected to be in the position I am today, for sure, but I still have the drive, and I still enjoy coming to the rink every day, and a lot of it has to do with all the people you meet and the relationships you build, whether it’s players, coaches, it’s what makes it memorable and keeps this going.”

Hockey has played a big part in Pearson’s life ever since he was five years old when he began his first season in Carberry. His mother became a single mom of three boys after his parents divorced early in his childhood, but nonetheless, she still managed to find time to get everyone to the rink.

From age six to 20, Pearson played all of his hockey in his hometown of Neepawa, with the exception of spending a few years with the Yellowhead Chiefs U18 AAA squad, but when the Neepawa Natives organization entered the Manitoba Junior Hockey League fold in 1989, he shifted his focus to junior.

Pearson played for his home club for three seasons from 1991 to 1994, where he registered 14 points in 50 games and also was a big part of the leadership group in his 20-year-old season after serving as an assistant captain. Little did he know that title would soon evolve into even bigger responsibilities.

And that’s all in thanks to chocolate and an injury.

In January 1994, Pearson’s campaign took a drastic turn after he suffered a serious shoulder injury, which had him sidelined for more than a few months. That’s the moment he began to wonder where his career was taking him.

“That was kind of when I really started to look hard and think hard about what I was going to do when I turned 21 because I wanted to stay in hockey,” he said. “I just wasn’t sure where everything was going.”

And that’s when a sweet opportunity presented itself right in front of his lap.

At the time, Natives head coach Don MacGillivray was also busy working for Nestle Chocolates as a salesman, so the odd time his schedules were bound to overlap — and that’s exactly what happened.

MacGillivray needed to attend a sales meeting in Calgary, which meant he would miss two of Neepawa’s games. So, he asked an injured Pearson to replace him behind the bench alongside assistant coach Jim Cockburn. He didn’t know it at the time, but that’s exactly when Pearson discovered his destiny.

“He had me stand on the bench with assistant coach Jim Cockburn, and I really enjoyed that,” Pearson said. “I knew I wasn’t going to play any high-level college hockey or anything else like that when I was done as a 20-year-old, and I realized coaching was something I wanted to get involved with, so in the summer when Don presented me with an opportunity to join him as an assistant, I had no hesitation.”

Pearson knew he made the right decision the following season, as the coaching gig fit him perfectly, however, he did face a bit of an awkward dynamic with the players.

“It was definitely tough in the sense that I think there were 12 or 14 guys that I’d played with that were able to come back that following year. Two of them were my linemates,” Pearson said with a chuckle. “I had to quickly find a way to separate myself from them once we left the rink when they went and did their things as players, and I had to go and do what an assistant coach does and prepare for practice the next day and do some scouting and whatnot.

“It was tough at times, but overall I think the players gave me that respect, and I knew we would still be friends when things were all said and done.”

After two seasons with the Natives, Pearson joined the Winkler Flyers as an assistant coach, but that didn’t last very long, as the following season he would again reunite with his pal MacGillivray, who brought him on as an assistant after he got a bench boss gig with the Prince Albert Raiders of the Western Hockey League. A year later, he reunited with the Flyers coaching staff in 1997-98, when they brought home their third Turnbull Cup title.

After a handful of years in Winkler, Pearson brought his head coaching services to the Alberta Junior Hockey League’s Brooks Bandits, the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League’s Battlefords North Stars and the MJHL’s Winnipeg Blues, who gave him his second set of hardware after winning a championship in 2006.

Following another stint with the Flyers, which saw him coach and manage the club for eight years, Pearson put pen to paper in 2019 with the club where everything started — home in Neepawa. He’s been with the organization ever since and now finds himself in his 28th MJHL season. Being able to coach for as long as he has certainly isn’t easy, but he’s found a way.

“It’s so difficult because the game has changed so much from what it once was, so I just think it’s important to keep your beliefs as a coach but also to keep up with the times and adapt, or else you will be left behind. It’s as simple as that,” said Pearson.

Pearson’s well-balanced coaching style of being fair while also holding players accountable for their actions is a product of him knowing what it’s like to be on both sides of the coin — whether it be a player on the ice or a coach behind the bench. He believes those experiences make his relationships with players, especially the younger ones coming in from U18, a whole lot easier when it comes to adapting your identity on the ice.

“All throughout minor hockey and into AAA, I was more of a goal-scoring type of guy, but when I came to junior, I kind of found myself more in a penalty-killing type, bottom-six type of forward role. It was a tough adjustment, being 17 years old and 18 years old trying to change the style of game that you played, and I did have some difficult times with that, and it took some time, but once I figured out what my role was and made that adjustment, I was happy,” he said.

“I’m so glad I went through that because now as a coach, I can see both sides when they come in now to see me and ask questions. I can talk to them about both sides of both situations. It’s tough because, I mean, your ego takes a bit of a shot, but again, in order to play in certain situations, that was what you needed to do. I’m a guy that wears my heart on my sleeve and will do anything for my club, and that’s what I did as a player.”

It’s also what he will do as a coach, as he continues to strive toward bringing a Turnbull Cup back to his hometown of Neepawa.

“As a hometown boy, obviously winning a championship here would mean everything, so that’s certainly the goal.”

» mdelucataronno@brandonsun.com