Meet the new Calgary Hitmen coaches: Dustin Friesen named 13th bench boss
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There were many stops and years playing the game — nine, in fact, over a whopping 20 seasons — compared to just a handful teaching the sport. And even at that, the Saskatchewan native has only been a head coach of high-school talent.
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But that didn't stop the Calgary Hitmen from making him the 13th head coach of the storied Western Hockey League franchise.
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'Yeah … they had some interest in my experience, which I think is fairly unique experience, I would say,' said Friesen, who was named to the gig by the Hitmen last Friday a few weeks after Paul McFarland returned to the NHL after one season leading the WHL club.
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'Both as a player, which is probably not the most traditional route for coaching, and the same thing as a coach, I've been in different leagues,' continued Friesen. 'And coaching in the Prairie Hockey Academy and working with young players and building a program has given me a bit of a unique background. But I think it's been valuable in my journey.'
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Friesen joins the Hitmen on a multi-year deal after a standout season as associate coach of the Québec Major Junior Hockey League's Moncton Wildcats, with whom he helped lead the team to a championship and a Memorial Cup appearance.
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'I had a really good situation in Moncton,' said 42-year-old Friesen, a native of Waldheim, Sask. 'But, obviously, to be a head coach, that was my goal since I started coaching.
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'And to be close to my family (wife Katherine and daughters Karen, 16, Nova, 11, and Evelyn 7 in Caronport, Sask.) in the Western league is obviously another priority.'
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Prior to his time in the Canadian Hockey League, Friesen served as head coach of the PHA's under-18 prep team of the Canadian Sport School Hockey League from 2021-24.
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He also contributed to the WHL's Moose Jaw Warriors during the 2023–24 season, when the Warriors captured its first-ever league championship and competed at the Memorial Cup.
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'I just think when you look at where he's been, what he's done …' Davidson said. 'I mean … he's tracked through junior hockey, went to college and got a degree, and he went to Europe and played professionally there. He's been involved with two Memorial Cup teams.
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'I guess the only thing really hasn't been a head coach before, but I don't have any issues with that. I think he's going to come in here and just carry on with what he's been doing here, only he'll be the guy in charge, and I know all of us around him will give him all the support he needs.'
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