Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, July 25, 1990 TAG: 9007250487
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C-3 EDITION: EVENING
SOURCE: RANDY KING SPORTSWRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
"I just hope I don't get too tongue-tied up there," said Noel, adjusting his tie before heading into the glaring camera lights.
After a formal introduction by team owner Henry Brabham, the new Roanoke Valley Rebels hockey coach stepped to the podium and performed flawlessly.
"Did I do all right?" Noel asked afterward, obviously relieved to escape the camera's eye.
Well, Tuesday was the easy part. The hard part, as Noel realizes, begins today.
"It's time to go to work," Noel said. "My big job is get some players and there's a short time to do that. But I'm very confident in my abilities."
The calendar doesn't make Noel's task an enviable one. The 1990-91 East Coast Hockey League season starts three months to the day from Tuesday.
While his family prepares to move south, Noel hopes to spend a lot of time on the phone before checking back into Vinton on Sept. 1.
"From playing 13 years of hockey, I know a lot of people," he said. "I will be on the phone with all my contacts.
"Yeah, it's late. We're behind the eight-ball, for sure. But it's my job to find players. Everything depends on that right now."
Nobody has to tell Noel that he will be on the hot seat when the ECHL drops the puck to begin its third season on Oct. 24.
"Sure, I have some reservations," Noel said. "What happens if things don't work? What happens if things don't work out in December? Will I still be here?
"So, sure, there's pressure. There are risks involved, but you have to take risks in any business to be successful.
"I'm confident I can do this job."
This is Noel's first head coaching post. He served as a player-assistant coach in his final two seasons in the International Hockey League at Toledo and Kalamazoo (Mich.). He spent the past two seasons as an assistant coach with the North Bay Centennials of the Ontario Hockey League.
Noel, 34, admitted he's entering foreign turf. He knows little about the ECHL; even less about what kind of team he will put on the ice.
"I've talked to a lot of guys who have played or coached in the league," he said. "The disadvantage about not knowing the league is knowing what type of players to go after. Do I go after the Canadian player out of juniors? Or do I go after the American player out of college? I just don't know the mentality of the players here yet. But from a coaching standpoint, I don't believe I'm at any disadvantage.
"As far as what kind of team you'll see, that simply depends on who comes here and what we get from different [NHL] affiliates. All I can do is take the available talent and mold it around my system. I think that defensive hockey wins games, but then again I want us to take the puck and move it up the ice when the opportunity presents itself."
\ ICE CHIPS: In addition to his head coaching duties, Noel also has been named the club's director of hockey operations, giving him full control over personnel moves. . . . The Rebels will open preseason camp on Oct.14. . . . Brabham said he named the team the Roanoke Valley Rebels in hopes of producing more area-wide interest. "I think we made some people mad in Salem when we moved to Vinton," Brabham said. "Hopefully, we can get those people back now." Virginia ranked a distant last in ECHL home attendance last season, drawing some 1,650 fans per game. . . . Commissioner Pat Kelly said league expansion plans for next season include serious looks at Charlotte and Raleigh-Durham, N.C., and Dayton and Toledo, Ohio. Two former Michigan entries in the IHL - Flint and Saginaw - also are possible candidates. . . . Kelly said five of the 11 ECHL clubs have secured NHL affiliations for 1989-90. They are Johnstown (New Jersey); Greensboro (Minnesota); Hampton Roads (Detroit); Erie (New York Rangers) and Richmond (New York Islanders).
by CNB