7/13/2023 0 Comments Dyck saying farewell to the Giants(Vancouver Giants/website) The Michael Dyck coaching era has ended with the Vancouver Giants. Dyck, hired by the Giants organization in 2018, has accepted an assistant coaching position with the Toronto Marlies, the American Hockey League farm team of the Toronto Maple Leafs. Dyck’s WHL career began as a player, with 218 games from 1985-88, with the Regina Pats, Brandon Wheat Kings, and Calgary Wranglers. He had staff positions in the Western Hockey League since the 1990s. Dyck, 54, has more than 25 years in coaching and management roles at hockey's junior and international levels. Before joining the Giants, he held coaching roles with the Medicine Hat Tigers, Lethbridge Hurricanes, and Kootenay Ice. The organization had just started turning the page on a time of struggling teams, and the decision to pursue Dyck paid off from the beginning. The Lethbridge, Alberta native joined the G-men after their first season at the Langley Events Centre, where the club lost in a first-round seven-game series to the Victoria Royals. Under Dyck's leadership, the Giants were one goal away from playing in the Memorial Cup in his first season. “When we hired Michael in 2018, he was part of our original culture of the Giants winning programs,” Giants majority owner and president Ron Toigo said. “We brought him back to re-instill that, and he did. He took us to the Western Hockey League Finals in his first year. The organization is in much better shape now than when he got here. We appreciate everything he did for us.” Finding a coach as good as Dyck, who served in multiple capacities with Vancouver before being their bench boss for five campaigns, will be challenging. The 54-year-old was previously with the Giants as an assistant coach (2002-05), scout (2009-10), and director of player development (2010-12). As the head coach of the Giants, the team benefitted the most. From 2018-23, Dyck compiled a regular season record of 144-120-17-7 and a playoff record of 21-17 for Vancouver. On top of making it to the WHL Finals in 2019, Dyck also helped the Giants become the first number eight seed to defeat the number one seed in the opening round of the WHL playoffs when Vancouver eliminated the Everett Silvertips in six games in the 2022 post-season. It was no surprise to the Giants General Manager, Barclay Parneta, that Dyck was offered the chance to have his new position. “Working with Michael for the past five years and seeing his impact daily, it was clear that it was only a matter of time before his abilities would get recognized,” explained Parneta. Michael Dyck meant a lot to his players, the people he worked with, and his team's fans. “He is an excellent coach that connects with his players. He will continue to succeed and positively impact the player’s and organization’s development wherever possible as he continues his coaching career,” added Parneta. Internationally, he has been an assistant coach at the 2022 World Junior Championships (gold medal), the 2021 World Championships (gold medal), and the 2021 World Juniors (silver medal), as a head coach at the 2020 Hlinka Gretzky Cup (silver medal), and as an assistant coach at the 2016 Youth Olympic Games (silver medal).
“I particularly want to thank Ron Toigo for his support and guidance and for allowing me the opportunity to come back and work with the Giants organization,” said Dyck. The Giants are also thankful for all of his efforts in helping to put the organization back into a serious competitor. The hunt for a new head coach begins immediately for the Vancouver Giants, who will host the Victoria Royals on September 22 to open up the season.
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