Going with your gut

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Are you doing things, right? How do I get my group to buy into the way I want them to play and accept the systems that emphasize the strengths of the group and camouflage its weaknesses?

The head coach of the Kelowna Rockets listened to his gut Sunday afternoon in a 5-2 win over the Everett Silvertips.

In the second period, with Mallette’s team holding a slim 3-1 lead, the Tips scored on a goal-mouth scramble when forward Jackson Berezowski, a 40-goal man from last season, was able to knock the puck out of mid-air to make it a one-goal game.

Hold the phone, though.

Mallette, who gets nowhere near the praise he deserves for guiding a team where the pressure to win is a seasonal norm, and rebuilding is never uttered out of the lips of anyone in the front office, the 41-year-old was forced to use his hockey acumen.

In the dictionary, the word acumen is defined as the ability to make good judgment and quick decisions, typically in a particular domain.

Sounds accurate to me.

Sensing the play was offside, Mallette challenged the goal, a gutsy move considering; if he is wrong, the game is tied at three, and the Tips are awarded a power play chance with the Rockets penalized for delay of game.

I am not sure what Mallette’s heart rate was at as the two referees gathered at the time-keepers bench and video was used to review the play.

Mallette was right, though.

The play indeed was offside, and the goal for the home team was wiped off the board.

It is hard to suggest it was pure luck, but a quick eye from the bench, when the blueline his team was defending was easily 40 feet away from where he was standing.

Mallette could have cowered under the situation.

With his team emotionally vulnerable with two consecutive losses to a team they should have beaten, (Spokane 2-1 – Friday) and then to an opponent they could have easily upended (Tri-City 5-1 – Saturday), the third-year head coach could have accepted the result and hoped that the one goal-lead wouldn’t translate into more colossal damage.

Challenging his team to be better, especially in a season where struggles often override accomplishments, Mallette has asked his players to do things outside of their comfort zone.

So, when the coach is put into the same spot, should he not show his players he can make a bold decision, in an uncomfortable situation, even if the consequences may hurt his team?

Mallette’s hunch paid off, with his team rewarded him with a hard-fought road effort.

Colton Dach, playing in his final game before attending the Canadian world junior’s selection camp, scored twice and Gabriel Szturc added his ninth and tenth goals of the season in the team’s 10^th win of the season.

Mallette must make tough decisions as a coach.

Changing line combinations to find chemistry, benching players for indifferent play, and challenging them to be better is only the tip of the iceberg on what coaches at this level must do to make the players better, in an industry where success is only measured in wins and losses.

On this night, indigestion for Mallette wasn’t a factor after a bad pre-game meal.

It was listening to his gut, using instincts and high hockey IQ that contributed to the win, which looking back at it now, was desperately needed for the morale of the entire group.