Gulutzan earns chance to coach at higher level
Glen Gulutzan is in his sixth season as Wranglers coach and has directed the hockey team to a second consecutive conference final. He produced three 100-point seasons between 2005 and 2007, the first ECHL team to accomplish such a feat.
In 2006-07, the Wranglers tied a professional record with 18 straight wins. They made the Kelly Cup Finals last year and have missed the playoffs only once under Gulutzan.
He is 290-151-55 as coach (playoffs included) and has finished no worse than second in the division five times.
Just wondering: What in the world is this guy still doing here?
I’ve often sat in his office at the Orleans Arena. Believe me. He’s not hanging around for the palatial digs or the Nachos Grande at Don Miguel’s.
Don’t misunderstand. I love great coaching, and there isn’t anyone better in Las Vegas at any level of any sport in getting the most out of a team. Gulutzan is the best we have.
If it were up to me, he could coach here forever, or at least until the franchise doesn’t exist, which given countless rumors about its unsettling future, might arrive faster than most imagine.
Gulutzan is not afraid to speak his mind, to tell the truth, to take responsibility for failure, to praise and hold players accountable publicly, to not hide in a shell of paranoia and treat legitimate questions as if they are some top-secret military inquisition.
Which means he wouldn’t fit in college athletics at all.
He deserves the opportunity to test his skill at a higher level, as an American Hockey League assistant or head coach or NHL assistant. He has earned a shot.
“Glen has a fabulous record,” Wranglers president Billy Johnson said. “He’s a pragmatic teacher. That’s a big deal. It’s odd to get a guy like him who came right from the playing ranks to be a head coach and emotions don’t get in the way. They don’t for Glen. The wheel is always turning for him about situations. Again, it comes back to the record, proving you can overcome anything. Glen is poised to (make a move).”
The Wranglers open a best-of-7 National Conference final tonight at Alaska. The Aces are better. They own home-ice advantage. They went 6-3-1 against Las Vegas in the regular season, including 3-1-1 in Anchorage. If all is equal, they win the series.
But it’s also true Gulutzan this season has turned in his finest coaching performance. He has maneuvered through the always choppy and uncertain seas of minor league hokey like Vespucci. He’s not a guy to bet against.
Lon Kruger is a skilled coach, but he who runs UNLV basketball has a fairly solid idea of which players are going to be available on a daily basis.
There was a time this season when Gulutzan lost 10 players to call-ups and injuries in a matter of days, when he suited up a pharmaceutical salesman and some kid from a pro shop who hadn’t played in 18 months.
It would be like Kruger needing to grab a few bodies from the university rec center hours before playing Arizona.
But more important to Gulutzan than playoff wins and championship runs and ascending the coaching ladder is his family. His wife. His four children between the ages of 2 and 8.
Major clubs and AHL teams inquired about him the last few years. He had some interviews. But he won’t jump for the sake of it. He is 37 and yet doesn’t need the ego boost at the expense of those he loves most.
“If it means dragging my family all over God’s creation to coach in the AHL or NHL, I won’t do it,” he said. “It has to work for everyone, not just me. I’m not going to sacrifice the happiness of the entire group.
“At this point, with the ages of our children, it would make the most sense to pursue a good opportunity now. But I never got into coaching thinking about being at a higher level than the one I played, which is this one.
“But as you go along and have more success and learn your trade, you start to think, ‘How far can I take this?’ I certainly would like to coach at a higher level, but it’s not the only reason to move.”
Professional hockey changed following the lockout of 2004. Many old-school principles died. It became a more exciting game, and in turn those in management positions of the NHL and AHL thought more openly about giving younger coaches opportunity.
Glen Gulutzan has earned his.
He’s the best we have, and his career warrants an upgrade.
Las Vegas Review-Journal sports columnist Ed Graney can be reached at 383-4618 or egraney@reviewjournal.com.
