Westlock’s Brett Wold will take over coaching duties for the Red Deer Sutter Fund Chiefs next season.
Westlock hockey product Brett Wold will be the one pacing the bench as the Red Deer Sutter Fund Chiefs head into the 2019-20 Alberta Female Hockey League season.
Wold, 29, was named head coach for the ‘AAA’ midget team earlier this year after spending the last three seasons as assistant coach for the team. Prior to joining the Sutter Fund Chiefs’ coaching staff he coached Red Deer’s Midget ‘AAA’ Optimist Chiefs, an elite boys team, as part of his more than 10 years of coaching and skill development.
“It has been a lot of work so far, but I feel pretty lucky to be where I’m at right now, so I’m just happy with that and looking forward to seeing how things go,” said Wold, who is also an instructor at the Notre Dame High School Hockey Academy.
Wold grew up in Westlock and played minor hockey here from novice all the way to midget level before playing in both Canadian and American collegiate leagues.
“I played all of my midget hockey in Westlock, then I went on to play junior and senior, I played ACAC at Red Deer College and then NCAA down in Wisconsin-Superior. From there I found a coaching role and my education job. My playing days are kind of done,” said Wold, but coaching still gets him his “hockey fix.”
“I feel I’m better in the coaching role than I was at the playing role, so I enjoy it a lot.”
Wold said he enjoys giving back to the sport that has given him so much. He can often be found back in Westlock, helping out with the annual Bellz Edge Elite Hockey Camp.
“This will be year seven coming up so I look forward to working with the kids and athletes again and giving them something they can build off and someone they can look up to and to show that even if your from a small town you can still do big things,” said Wold.
Ultimately, Wold hopes his players learn to love the game as much as he does.
“It has provided a lot of good memories and friendships and years of good things that you can’t take for granted and I just want the kids to enjoy what I’ve enjoyed for my career and give them a career that they can look back on and build on by helping out as well,” he said.
In the last three years, Wold and the Chiefs have sent off 27 players to post-secondary teams in Canada, as well as a few to the American NCAA.
“For me, it’s all about their development. Obviously, we want to win an Esso Cup at the national level, but for me the biggest thing is just developing them so they can move on to post-secondary and reach their goals. I feel if we can develop their skills and their tactics and team play, that gives us a better chance to win as well,” said Wold.
