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Jared Bednar Named Colorado Avalanche Head Coach

By Ryan Ritchie

Nov 28, 2015; Denver, CO, USA; Colorado Avalanche left wing Gabriel Landeskog (92) celebrates his goal with teammates on the bench in the first period against the Winnipeg Jets at the Pepsi Center. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 28, 2015; Denver, CO, USA; Colorado Avalanche left wing Gabriel Landeskog (92) celebrates his goal with teammates on the bench in the first period against the Winnipeg Jets at the Pepsi Center. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports /
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Jared Bednar Has Reportedly Been Named Head Coach of the Colorado Avalanche, Replacing Patrick Roy

Just months after winning a Calder Cup Championship with AHL’s Lake Erie (now Cleveland) Monsters, Jared Bednar will be the man to replace Patrick Roy behind the bench in Colorado.

Jared Bednar was one of several names being linked to the Avs, and the team announced on Wednesday that a decision would be made before the end of the week.

TSN’s Darren Dreger broke the news on twitter.

This will be Jared Bednar’s first taste of the NHL over the course of his 14-year coaching career.

via Cleveland.com,

“I think I’m a demanding guy,” Bednar said when asked about his coaching style. “I try to be as patient as possible. It’s almost like being a parent. I demand a lot from our players and try be fair to them every chance I get.”

[AHL Assistants] Pratt and Petersen described Bednar as detailed, structured and fair while emphasizing fast, aggressive play, going hard on the forecheck and a commitment to defense.


Jared Bednar Playing/Coaching Resume:

Born in Yorkton, Saskatchewan, Canada, the now 44-year old Bednar also enjoyed a lengthy playing career growing up. He spent time with Saskatoon, Spokane, Medicine Hat, and Prince Albert during his Western Hockey League (WHL) days, but went undrafted in the NHL. 

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Bednar spent the majority of the next nine years playing in the East Coast Hockey League (ECHL) with Huntington and South Carolina. He did however enjoy a 55-game AHL stint with St.John’s in 1996-97, and spent a year playing for IHL Grand Rapids in 1998-99. Jared eventually retired from pro hockey following the 2001-02 season with ECHL South Carolina.

Jared Bednar wound up accepting a position as assistant coach for the South Carolina Stingrays that very next season in 2002-03. He served in that role for five seasons before eventually being promoted to head coach in 2007-08.

Bednar spent two years behind the bench before accepting his first AHL promotion to be assistant coach for Abbotsford in 2009-10. A year later, he earned his first AHL head coaching job from Peoria, and served in that role for the next two seasons. In 2012-13, Jared Bednar accepted a position as assistant coach under Brad Larsen, and eventually took over as head coach in 2014-15. 

Which brings us full circle to this past season. While the Columbus Blue Jackets were struggling on the ice, their AHL affiliate, Lake Erie (now Cleveland) posted a record of 43-22-0-11 in the regular season.

The Monsters got a major boost from goaltenders Anton Forsberg and Joonas Korpisalo, along with eventual Calder Cup MVP Oliver Bjorkstrand.

Next: Offseason Review: Who Got Better, Who Got Worse

Good Hire for Colorado

Give Joe Sakic some credit on this one (something we don’t do around here very often lately). You’re inevitably rolling the dice when you make this type of hire, but it definitely seems that Jared Bednar has the right philosophy and attitude to get the most of out his players.

Whether or not the Avs have constructed a competitive enough lineup – time will tell. One thing is for sure, if the effort level isn’t there, the Avs new head coach will not put up with it. We could learn a lot about this team over the next season.

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