On Tuesday, Jan. 24 the board of directors of the Yorkton RawTec Maulers announced that they have released Graham Garrett as general manager and head coach of the Maulers Midget AAA hockey team.
Garrett had been with the team for the past two seasons.
Kevin Rawlick, who was previously the assistant coach/GM of the team under Garrett, will be stepping up as head coach and GM for the remainder of the season.
The Maulers have聽 nine games left in regular season action. They鈥檙e currently in seventh place in the league standings, with a 15-18-0-2 record, giving them a total of 32 points.
Glen Faford, President of the Maulers board of directors, spoke to Yorkton This Week about the changes.
鈥淭he RawTec Maulers board of directors felt that although Mr. Garrett鈥檚 philosophy and coaching knowledge is high performance and has been much appreciated, there was a change needed to finish out the rest of the season and to start immediately,鈥� said Faford.
He said the new direction should entail a culture shift that lines up more with the board鈥檚 vision on providing the AAA Midget experience to all the Yorkton RawTec Maulers shareholders.
鈥淲e appreciate the time and all the services coach Garrett provided for the better part of the last two seasons,鈥� said Faford. 鈥淓specially his mandate involving the organization鈥檚 involvement in the community youth and reach out program.鈥� 聽
Garrett鈥檚 final game with the RawTec Maulers was on Sunday, Jan. 22 when the Maulers played the Swift Current Legionnaires at the Farrell Agencies Arena. The final score was 5-1 for the Legionnaires.
The Maulers now have one week to adjust to the changes before they play again on Wednesday, Feb. 1 at the Farrell Agencies Arena. The puck will drop at 8:00 p.m. and they will face the Tisdale Trojans, who currently sit in sixth place - just one spot above the Maulers and leading by just one point. The sixth place position is where the Maulers will want to be to ensure their spot in the playoffs, which are quickly approaching in March. The next nine games will be crucial to secure that spot.
