Following Friday’s official announcement of Marco Sturm as the new head coach of AHL Ontario, a media call took place where he joined Reign GM Rich Seeley for a round of questions. Below are selected comments Sturm shared during that chat…
Opening thoughts from Sturm
“Thank you to Seels and the Ontario Reign, as well as Rob Blake and the entire Kings organization, and to the coaches in LA, especially Todd McLellan. He taught me a lot of good things the last few years and he basically gave me the opportunity [and prepared me] to do the job coming up. So, thank you guys for everything; for the trust and believing in me. I’m super excited to get this opportunity. As soon as I heard about this being available, there was no hesitation on my side. I love working, especially with young kids. I know the system, I know the organization, so I’m ready to go. And, like I said, pretty excited.”
Sturm on any specific things he learned or skills he honed while in Los Angeles the past three-plus years
“There’s a lot of things. I played for a long time in the league, so I knew everything on the ice. I think what our coaching staff with the Kings, especially Todd, taught me was what was going on behind the scenes. The daily job we have to do, the ups and downs – especially the bench management, as well. I’ve never seen a guy like Todd in my career, somebody who is that sharp and that organized. Stuff like that is something I really took from him the last few years. I’m trying to do kind of the same thing.”
On the one or two Kings prospects he’s most excited to work with next season
“I don’t want to name any names. Right now, for me, I’m very excited for all of them. [One advantage I have] right now is that I have met a lot of those young kids already. I saw them play. I’ve seen the way they act, on and off the ice. There’s a whole lot of excitement. I can’t mention one or two names, I think it’s a whole group. And that’s how I’m gonna approach everything. It’s not gonna be a one-man show. It’s gonna be a whole team effort. I’m just gonna try to help those kids reach the next level. Then also, you know, win some hockey games.”
On if there is any pressure coming from a Kings team that has struggled on the power play at times vs. now joining a Reign team that had the AHL’s all-time best power play last season
“Absolutely not. If you want to blame me, that’s fine. I think it’s always a group effort. We always tried to do our best. Hopefully, in the future, the Kings will have a better power play, that’s for sure. But we tried; on special teams, I know it’s very important. I also know the Reign had a very successful power play last year – maybe not in the playoffs – but that’s something we still have to work on. Again, there’s a lot of up and downs to it, even on special teams. We’ll just try to stay on top of it and make sure that it was not just a lucky year. We want to be very consistent.”
On the process of landing this job and when it became a realistic possibility
“Everything happened pretty much after the season, for us and the Reign. I think everybody took a little time off and then right before I left LA, I got the call and [began] asking for it. I went home and I was thinking about it for a little bit. But, again, I said it before, I just wanted to make sure everything will be okay with my family. On my side, it was a yes right away. This is an opportunity for me, one that doesn’t happen very often, especially in a place like Ontario. I can stay in LA, next to the Kings. A lot of good things happen with the players in the organization and everything. I wouldn’t want to go anywhere else. When this came up, for me, it was a no-brainer.”
On balancing player development and winning games in his new role as Reign head coach
“That will be something new for me. It’s also something I experienced a little bit with the [German] national team. I built up the whole hockey program there, with a lot of young kids and a new system. I also had to win games. I think it’s pretty much the same here in Ontario. There are a lot of similarities with those two things. It’s part of the business too. I know what I’m getting into. Like I said, I love to develop, but also hate to lose. I want to win games and I think we have a good enough team to do that. It’s what we’re gonna try to do again this year.”
On relating to players who haven’t had the success he had in the NHL or even internationally
“It’s one of the reasons why I took the job. I played, I coached as an assistant coach, internationally I was involved, and this is the last [piece] I would like to get in terms of experience. You mentioned a lot of good things, new things I will get [out of it], but that’s also why it’s so important for me to have a good staff. [I’m joining a staff] who has already been involved for many years. It will be a group effort and there will be a lot of new things for me too. At the end of the day, I’m trying to do my thing. I’m trying to build something here or just move forward with the stuff that we already started three years ago. That’s what I’m gonna try to do – go game by game, month by month, and see what happens.”
More on his personal development and outlook on the Kings/Reign situation
“Even coaching youth hockey helped me. There are many different stages of my coaching career that have helped me get here, all the way through the Olympics and then landing in LA. I learned a lot through all those stages of my career. … The last three years with Todd and everyone else, I think they just gave me the icing on top of my coaching cake. Now, I feel like I’m ready to take the next step. … As I said before, I hate to lose, I want to win. I always want more. I think I’m a worker; I was that way as a player, and I think I’m the same way as a coach. I’m not always satisfied. I think there’s always more in the tank. That’s what I’m gonna try to do here. I think there’s a lot of room left with the players and with our whole group; room for the whole organization to move up. We’re not done yet. We did a great job the last few years, doing the rebuild and building something. Now, we just want to continue that and get better, grow as a team every year.”
We’ll have additional comments from Seeley up in the coming days.
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The Kings’ powerplay problems are not difficult to diagnose and cure. I’m disgusted they haven’t done so already.
They hold on (individually) too long giving the defenders time to adjust position. There needs too be a fine any time a player holds on to the puck (in the offensive zone) for more than one second.
Much of the PP woes are due to El Jefe, Kopi himself as the driver and when not injured, DD tickling the rafters from the point instead of wristing it through. Then to complete the stale PP gong show, there is zero net front presence beyond the newly retired Brown. To much perimeter play and hot potato between Kopi and Drew.
I hope this season The Todd starts to slot Arty in on the first PP over AI, and then actually utilize his shot where even if he doesn’t score, can create rebound nightmares for the goalie.