We want to be one of the top four organizations in the province and right now we’ve got a real strong local talent pool coming up that hopefully wants to be Maulers...
— Graham Garrett, RawTec Mauler head coach
A familiar face is back behind the Yorkton RawTec Maulers bench for the 2015/16 season as former Mauler (then Harvest) head coach Graham Garrett will return to the midget ‘AAA’ coaching ranks after four years away from the SMAAAHL.
“It’s nice to be back here,” Garrett told Yorkton This Week during a lull in action at the 2015 Maulers Spring Camp. “I previously coached this team for three years then took a couple of years off.
“Then I was with the Bantam ‘AA’ Terriers for the last two years and thought that this is where I needed to be right now.”
In his first coaching stint with the club, Garrett posted a 51-72-9 record over three seasons (2008/09-2010/11), getting the team into the playoffs twice, once in 2009/10 and then again in 2010/11. He then resigned as the head coach to focus on his career.
Two years later and Garrett was back behind the bench, this time coaching the Yorkton Bantam UCT Terriers of the SBAAHL where he led the UCT Terriers to back-to-back league and provincial titles.
He also accumulated a record of 55-6-1 throughout two regular seasons and a 16-2 record in 18 playoff games behind the UCT Terrier bench.
That experience with the UCT Terriers is also one of the reasons why Garrett was named as Dan Cross’ replacement on the RawTec Mauler coaching staff as he has prior experience coaching five of the returning Mauler players (Derrick Budz, Tyler Stratechuk, Cody Dubas and Carson and McKenzie Welke).
In addition several members of the 2014/15 UCT Terriers will most likely be on the RawTec Maulers for the upcoming season and Garrett’s familiarity with them, as well as their familiarity with his systems, will, according to Mauler general manager Garth Simms, help the team in its hope to come out strong. “We’re definitely hoping we’ll get off to a running start at the beginning of the season,” said Simms. “Graham’s knowledge of the first and second year midget players, not only on our team but the other ones as well, will definitely help us come out strong.
“It’s time that we took advantage of the talent that we’re bringing out of this area to ‘AAA’ midget and I think Graham is the person that can get this team to the next level.”
Garrett also feels that the time is now for the RawTec Maulers to become one of the SMAAAHL’s elite teams; something that he was unable to do in his first stint as head coach. “We didn’t get into the top four here when I was coaching my first time around and I think that’s where the organization wants to go now,” offered Garrett, continuing, “We want to be one of the top four organizations in the province and right now we’ve got a real strong local talent pool coming up that hopefully wants to be Maulers and with them I think we can be a top four team.”
