Dineen guides Tigers to memorable run earns Coach of the year honors

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Kennebunkport, Maine, United States of America (Free-Press-Release.com) October 13, 2011 -- The four-year plan has come and gone for Gardiner Area High School coach Matt Dineen. Fortunately for the Tigers, a brief run of poor play is gone, too.

Dineen, in his fifth year as coach, guided the Tigers to a 14-5-0 mark that was good for second in Eastern B to John Bapst.

For leading Gardiner into the regional semifinals, Dineen has been named the Kennebec Journal Hockey Coach of the Year.

B.J. Dostie of Cony and Jeff Fowler of the MHW Hawks were also considered.

"This season was one that I was looking forward to and dreading at the same time because of the number of seniors we had," Dineen said. "They were just such good kids and they had really developed. This was the best team I've had in Gardiner."

The Tigers this season skated 11 seniors, who capped their careers with an impressive turnaround. The group went 2-15-1 their freshmen season.

"We put in a system four years ago and the kids' ability to understand the system was terrific," Dineen said. "They worked hard for what they got. They did everything we asked them to do."

Dineen added that it took some time to develop this year's senior group.

"They came in with a basic idea of a triangle and running out of the corner," Dineen said. "We took what they knew and moved it into the style of hockey that I was used to, which is a little more finesse, a little more backdoor. Hey, it wasn't ground-breaking ideas. You can go to Barnes and Noble and get this stuff."

The players responded and the Tigers steadily improved over the last three seasons.

"It took us awhile to develop a culture here," Dineen added.

Dineen's top challenge was to implement a system that favored depth over skill. The point, he said, was that most kids could thrive in a well-run system, regardless of individual talent.

"I think you can take a kid with desire, heart and intensity and plug them in, and the system should work no matter who is in it," Dineen said. "That's what these kids did.

"Every one of these kids have impacted my life in one way or another I've learned something from these kids. Being a role player is a tough role to play. They were an amazing group of kids."

The players, said captain Peter Caradonna and leading scorer Mike Hersom, responded to Dineen's coaching.

"He's a real energetic guy," Caradonna said. "He's probably the most energetic coach I've ever had. He knows the game very well. He knows a lot about systems because he's played a lot of hockey in his day. He knows when to keep the mood light, but he also knows when to keep it serious."

Added Hersom, who scored 41 points: "He always listens to what players have to say, and that's the most important thing. He understands kids. It's easy to get along with him."

Dineen     M. B. Dineen     Matt B. Dineen     Matt Brian Dineen     Matt Dineen     Matthew B. Dineen     Matthew Brian Dineen     Matthew Dineen