Fife Flyers: new coach Tom Coolen set to tie up first signings in a new-look team

The Canadian gave his first hint of what lies ahead since being appointed this week, and his comments have struck a chord with the fan base eager to see the club re-invigorated.

Coolen, who described himself as a “career coach” in an interview with Flyers TV, will be reunited with netminder Shane Owen when he arrives in Kirkcaldy ahead of the September face-off. He coached the netminder when both were at GKS Katowice in 2017-18.

Owen is the only players signed for next season, but Coolen said: “Shane is consistent and also very good. That’s a great place for us to start.”

Coolen - who becomes only Flyers’ third head coach since 1996 - effectively has a blank sheet as he builds his own team for the forthcoming autumn start, and he will be looking to his extensive contacts book to bring a number of new imports to the dressing-room.

“I like the progress I’m making,” he said. “I have about five commitments from players to sign on dotted line. They are all good and will fit in well in the league. I want to rebuild the defence, bring back a couple of guys from that core from last season, and add three to four new guys..

“A good team has different parts. You need speed, you need to be able to score and knock guys down when you have to. I’m trying to build a team that has key, skilled guys down the middle at centre - that’s my first priority.”

That was an area Fife struggled in after losing Shawn Cameron to a season ending injury in October - a loss that was one of the defining moments of the campaign which saw them finish ninth and miss out on the play-offs.

Although new to the UK, Coolen has had an insight into the EIHL, coaching against Belfast Giants in the Continental Cup, and also speaking to players within it he know,s including Cam Critchlow of Manchester Storm.

His own CV also spans leagues across North America and Europe, and includes a stint as assistant to head coach Ted Nolan at Buffalo Sabres. The duo also coached the Latvian national side at three world championships and the OIympic Games.

“I’ve touched base everywhere as a coach - always loved it and ready to love it again,” he said. “I know every agent and with the guys who are former players of mine, I believe I have a very wide network reaching into Europe or North America. I like to think I have as good a network as anyone else.

“We want to make sure we put a team in there that people will be happy to come and watch. That’s my focus - to get a team to work hard every night and put in the right players to compete. We need some physicality, but we need guys who want to compete hard - that’s the key. If it gets tough, we need to be a team that gets tough too. The kind of players I want are ones who leave it all on the ice.”