nivek_wahs
04-17-2007, 02:41 AM
http://www.canada.com/reginaleaderpost/news/sports/story.html?id=fc739d7b-e804-4c27-85e7-1730db7de579
Parker likely to return as GM
Rob Vanstone, Leader-Post
Published: Tuesday, April 17, 2007
Don't expect Brent Parker to step down as the Regina Pats' general manager.
There was more uncertainty about his future one year ago, after his team was eliminated by the Saskatoon Blades in the first round of the WHL playoffs.
"I'm very empty right now,'' Parker said on April 5, 2006. "I wonder if maybe it is better to let somebody else take a crack at it.''
One year later, Parker has yet to commit to returning for another season -- but he sounds more enthusiastic about doing so.
"I couldn't put a percentage on it,'' he said. "I think it's probably likely.''
Parker made that comment in the wake of playoff elimination at the hands of the Medicine Hat Tigers, who swept the Pats in an Eastern Conference semifinal. The Pats met Medicine Hat after winning their first playoff series since 1998, ousting the Swift Current Broncos.
"Certainly last year, and this year to some extent, there's that empty feeling when it ends, but I just felt that last year the best team didn't win that series,'' Parker said. "I really felt that we were capable of doing what Moose Jaw did and going on the run that they went on (to the league championship series).
"I think this year's club was very capable of it, too, but we lost to a better hockey team. I don't think there's any other way to put it.''
That said, Parker feels his team could have presented more of a challenge.
"Do I think we could have made the series closer? Yeah, I think we could have,'' he continued. "We showed them probably a little too much respect early in the series.
"Talking to Willie (Desjardins, the Tigers' head coach) afterwards, he felt we didn't get any bounces through the course of the series. They got some breaks and, maybe to some degree, that's accurate. But, ultimately, we would have had to have a lot of things go well to beat Medicine Hat. To me, they're a better hockey club right now.''
The 2006-07 Pats became a better club as the season progressed. They finished second in the East Division with a 36-28-2-6 record, thanks to a 22-8-1-3 slate after the New Year.
"I think we took a real step in terms of the culture in our dressing room,'' Parker said. "That, to me, would probably be the biggest thing. I think our guys learned how to be a team. They learned how to look out for one another and learned how to lead with some of the things we did in the second half of the year. I think our guys have become better people and ultimately, as that gets passed on to the younger players.
"The type of people they are ... that, as much as anything, will be the legacy of this team.''
Parker would also like to create a legacy which includes an ever-increasing demand for tickets. The Pats averaged 4,676 spectators over 36 regular-season home games at the 5,750-seat Brandt Centre. Regina also averaged 5,410 spectators over five home playoff games.
"Our crowds were good in the playoffs,'' Parker said. We were probably 500 a game less than we thought we would be, so you kind of question that a bit.''
The Pats raised their ticket prices for the playoffs, culminating in a $20-per-game adult rate during the Medicine Hat series. Parker noted that his team had the second-lowest ticket price of the WHL's eight second-round playoff teams, and that the Pats also absorbed the cost of parking, effective this season.
"The reality of it is that everyone's costs go up,'' he said. "There's all sorts of things that you go through. You sit there and think, 'Geez, do we really want to keep beating our head against the wall trying to get things to the standard that we believe it should be at?'
"Maybe our standard's too high. Maybe we need to realize where we are in this market, this is where it's going to be, this is how things are going to be in this building, this is the kind of (media) coverage we're going to get ... Those are all the things that you analyse with the franchise. Maybe we're being unrealistic with our expectations, too.''
That expectation has not changed since Parker became the GM in 1995.
"We really believe that 5,000 should be the norm for regular-season games,'' he said. "There's 200,000 people in this market and we want to find a way to get 5,000 people in on a regular basis.
"We're creeping closer to that goal. We need to find a way to get to that number. That's something to strive for.''
© The Leader-Post (Regina) 2007
Parker likely to return as GM
Rob Vanstone, Leader-Post
Published: Tuesday, April 17, 2007
Don't expect Brent Parker to step down as the Regina Pats' general manager.
There was more uncertainty about his future one year ago, after his team was eliminated by the Saskatoon Blades in the first round of the WHL playoffs.
"I'm very empty right now,'' Parker said on April 5, 2006. "I wonder if maybe it is better to let somebody else take a crack at it.''
One year later, Parker has yet to commit to returning for another season -- but he sounds more enthusiastic about doing so.
"I couldn't put a percentage on it,'' he said. "I think it's probably likely.''
Parker made that comment in the wake of playoff elimination at the hands of the Medicine Hat Tigers, who swept the Pats in an Eastern Conference semifinal. The Pats met Medicine Hat after winning their first playoff series since 1998, ousting the Swift Current Broncos.
"Certainly last year, and this year to some extent, there's that empty feeling when it ends, but I just felt that last year the best team didn't win that series,'' Parker said. "I really felt that we were capable of doing what Moose Jaw did and going on the run that they went on (to the league championship series).
"I think this year's club was very capable of it, too, but we lost to a better hockey team. I don't think there's any other way to put it.''
That said, Parker feels his team could have presented more of a challenge.
"Do I think we could have made the series closer? Yeah, I think we could have,'' he continued. "We showed them probably a little too much respect early in the series.
"Talking to Willie (Desjardins, the Tigers' head coach) afterwards, he felt we didn't get any bounces through the course of the series. They got some breaks and, maybe to some degree, that's accurate. But, ultimately, we would have had to have a lot of things go well to beat Medicine Hat. To me, they're a better hockey club right now.''
The 2006-07 Pats became a better club as the season progressed. They finished second in the East Division with a 36-28-2-6 record, thanks to a 22-8-1-3 slate after the New Year.
"I think we took a real step in terms of the culture in our dressing room,'' Parker said. "That, to me, would probably be the biggest thing. I think our guys learned how to be a team. They learned how to look out for one another and learned how to lead with some of the things we did in the second half of the year. I think our guys have become better people and ultimately, as that gets passed on to the younger players.
"The type of people they are ... that, as much as anything, will be the legacy of this team.''
Parker would also like to create a legacy which includes an ever-increasing demand for tickets. The Pats averaged 4,676 spectators over 36 regular-season home games at the 5,750-seat Brandt Centre. Regina also averaged 5,410 spectators over five home playoff games.
"Our crowds were good in the playoffs,'' Parker said. We were probably 500 a game less than we thought we would be, so you kind of question that a bit.''
The Pats raised their ticket prices for the playoffs, culminating in a $20-per-game adult rate during the Medicine Hat series. Parker noted that his team had the second-lowest ticket price of the WHL's eight second-round playoff teams, and that the Pats also absorbed the cost of parking, effective this season.
"The reality of it is that everyone's costs go up,'' he said. "There's all sorts of things that you go through. You sit there and think, 'Geez, do we really want to keep beating our head against the wall trying to get things to the standard that we believe it should be at?'
"Maybe our standard's too high. Maybe we need to realize where we are in this market, this is where it's going to be, this is how things are going to be in this building, this is the kind of (media) coverage we're going to get ... Those are all the things that you analyse with the franchise. Maybe we're being unrealistic with our expectations, too.''
That expectation has not changed since Parker became the GM in 1995.
"We really believe that 5,000 should be the norm for regular-season games,'' he said. "There's 200,000 people in this market and we want to find a way to get 5,000 people in on a regular basis.
"We're creeping closer to that goal. We need to find a way to get to that number. That's something to strive for.''
© The Leader-Post (Regina) 2007