From the Point: 67’s head coach Andre Tourigny

Ottawa 67’s head coach Andre Tourigny recently sat down with Junior Hockey Magazine to discuss his appointment with Hockey Canada, the chance to win gold on home soil at next year’s World Juniors, and the opportunity to represent the Great White North at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing:

Junior Hockey Magazine: Did you ever think you’d be headed to the Olympic Games?

Andre Tourigny: Never, ever. It was a dream, and if I am still dreaming, please don’t wake me up. It is an unbelievable opportunity for me and I am really grateful to Hockey Canada and the 67’s to give me that chance.

JHM: What is it going to be like to play for gold on home ice at the next World Juniors?

AT: That will be unbelievable. We never look for excuses as coaches but it was a special circumstance this year and I am really proud of the way we performed and the way we played, but unfortunately we came up short in the final. We had an unbelievable run until then. The U.S. played really well. Give them a lot of credit. The crew we had, the special circumstances, and to get up and running so quickly … to have another opportunity to do it this year is really fortunate.

JHM: What does it mean to you to take that next step in your coaching career?

AT: It means a lot. Having an opportunity is never your decision. It is always somebody else who gives you that opportunity. You don’t get to decide to be the head coach. It is someone else who trusts you, and being trusted by someone who you work with means even more. I earned their trust and now they have given me this opportunity, and it is the same with the 67’s. Having that trust from the organization means a lot. They think you are worth it so it means a ton. I am really committed to making the best out of it.

JHM: What does it mean to you that the 67’s are allowing you to step away to focus on this opportunity?

AT: It is not about where you work, but for whom you work, and in Ottawa, the environment they have created from the top down is unbelievable. The human side is seeing the opportunity for me, and it will bring a lot of exposure for the organization, so I am really blessed to have a chance to work for people like that and to work for them in the long term.

JHM: What does it mean to have the next 12 months to focus on what you can bring to Hockey Canada?

AT: To people who I know, I often say I am a junky for learning. I love to learn. I love to pick brains of other people and look at how they do their thing and learn from it. Now I will have the best life ever, from working with the coaching staff at the World Championships, the World Juniors, and the Olympics, and then going again, and the best management teams. I will be there with them to do scouting, player evaluation, to prepare. I will have a chance to listen to and learn from them, so it is a year of professional development that is unbelievable and I am really grateful for it.

JHM: Who was the first person you called after you were offered the job?

AT: The discussion took about two minutes. I said I would love it. It was really short. I talked to my general manager with the 67’s, James Boyd, to talk about how we can make it happen, and then after my close family, my wife, my kids, and mom and dad, and they were really emotional.

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