After five years with the Victoria Grizzlies of the B.C. Hockey League, Victor Gervais is ready to develop a new team, right from the ground up.
Gervais has been named general manager and coach of the new Westshore Wolves club of the Vancouver Island Junior Hockey League and should feel at home in the same digs where the Grizzlies play - Bear Mountain Arena.
It will be an intense challenge for Gervais, who was general manager and assistant coach with the Grizzlies last season, but the GM title was mostly in name only as majority owner Len Barrie made most of the calls.
Now, Gervais takes a bigger role with the newest Junior B team.
The Wolves' motto, as stressed on its new website, is about community. "For the strength of the Pack is the Wolf, and the strength of the Wolf is the Pack."
"They're in it to succeed and make this a good community hockey club. We want to win, but they also want the community to come out and have a good time and that we will have kids that work hard every day," Gervais said of owners Kory Gronnestad, Dave Horner, Ken Carson and Derrick Hamilton.
"We want to get the community involved and the four owners are really excited. They don't necessarily have deep pockets, but they're a group of guys who have lived in Langford and they're excited about having a team. They'll do a good job of running this hockey club. It's all about community for them."
Gervais, himself, will draw upon his contacts in the BCHL to form his team - which will feature the blue, white and silver colours of the Tampa Bay Lightning - and already has had discussions with several potential players. A goaltender, already playing in the VIJHL, is said to be on board and a July camp will draw other recruits.
"It's a good thing I know all the coaches and GMs in the Junior A league. I have connections there," said Gervais, who previously sent players down to the VIJHL from the Grizzlies.
"The key is we're trying to have a lot of kids from this area [Juan de Fuca hockey] play on this team. Obviously we'll have the odd guy from out of town."
Gervais, who is excited about the challenge, has already interviewed for assistant coaches.
"I think I had a pretty good coaching record in the B.C. Hockey League and I'm looking forward to growing even more. It's the kids that make you a winning organization," he offered. "You have to have the structure and I've noticed that the last few years, and I think I've got better at it.
"You learn something new every day," added Gervais. "It will be fun and I look forward to being the coach and making those final decisions."
The Wolves team is playing Wednesday nights out of Bear Mountain.
mannicchiarico@timescolonist.com
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