S P O R T S HAWKS HEAD COACH REACHES MAJOR CAREER MILESTONE GREGG CHAMBERLAIN nouvelles@eap.on.ca
as a left winger for the Eliot Lake Vikings. The game of hockey now, Leonard noted, has become faster, with quicker moves and maneuvers on the ice, and less of the rough-and-tumble that characterized the sport sometimes during the past few decades. He noted that the current style of hockey always require a different style of coaching, more encouraging words and less harsh criticism. “You’re always learning,” he said, “always learning to adapt to change.” Learning to adapt was maybe part of the reason why he chose hockey as his sport during his youth. “Hockey kept me busy,” he said, “and I had some really good coaches and mentors.” One of those mentors later encouraged him to try his hand at coaching when he was with the Blind River Beavers. It worked well as an older version of himself felt the need to find something to keep him involved in hockey when he was no longer able to play at the junior level. “When I was young, I wanted to be able to give back,” he said. At the time, when he was with the Blind River club, Leonard was employed with the Algoma District School Board as an education assistant, working with special needs students. “I was trained to work with students with autism,” he said. Coaching and mentoring students and junior hockey players worked well for him. He moved from assistant coach to full-time coach when he was 24, and continued on with his teaching career for the Algoma school district. “Over the years I’ve watched guys growing up and beginning their own careers,” he said, adding that some of the players he’s
Ryan Leonard marked a hockey career milestone earlier this month that almost went unnoticed for him. The head coach and general manager of the Hawkesbury Hawks scored a personal achievement with the February 6 home game between the Hawks and the Navan Grads. It was Game 1000 for Leonard as a hockey coach for more than two decades. “I didn’t realize it until the day before,” said Coach Leonard, during an interview after last Thursday’s practice session with the Hawks. The day before the game against Navan, Leonard and a friend who also coached hockey were reminiscing a bit about their years in the game. Then the question of how many games they each had coached came up and both realized they didn’t really know. After sitting down and reviewing all of his stats for the past 24 years, Leonard discovered that the February 6 home game for the Hawks would also be his 1000th game as a hockey coach. “I’m just turning 46 this year, and I’ve got 24 years under my belt in the junior A,” he said, thinking over his coaching career. Leonard’s coaching career began at age 22 when he was assistant coach for the Blind River Beavers. Since then he’s now been involved in coaching for five different clubs: Blind River Beavers, the Eliot Lake Bobcats, the Cochrane Crunch, the Renfrew Wolves, and since 2024, the Hawkesbury Hawks. “Hockey has changed so much in the past years,” said Leonard, thinking over the years he spent as a coach, and earlier when he began playing hockey himself at age 15
Sur la glace, pendant une séance d’entraînement des Hawks, l’entraîneur Ryan Leonard est toujours à l’affût du joueur qui affiche la bonne attitude, celui qui montre qu’il veut devenir le meilleur joueur de hockey possible. (Gregg Chamberlain, EAP)
coached moved on up to the professional leagues while others followed different career paths after their time in the juniors. Leonard’s own coaching style these days emphasizes two things: accountability and attitude. “I hold the guys accountable,” he said, “and I look for attitude.” Both accountability and attitude distin- guish the player who wants to be a lead ath- lete and welcomes “a little push” towards being the best he can be on the ice, and also off the ice. As a full-time coach now with the Hawkes- bury Hawks, Leonard treasures his off-ice
time with his family, including spending at least a couple of weeks every summer with an “old home week” visit to Northern Ontario. In the arena, both during practice ses- sions and observing the game from the Hawks bench during the season, Leonard keeps in mind the advice he would give anyone interested in hockey, as a player or a member of the coaching staff. “Through all the ups and downs, keep your head up, and keep close to your circle of friends so you’ve got someone to talk to,” he said. “Make sure you’re able to provide full commitment.”
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