ST. CLOUD — Mike Petroske always wanted to be a head hockey coach at the high school level.
At 54 years old, Petroske finally has his chance. Petroske was named the new head coach of the St. Cloud Clash women's hockey team late last week. District 742 announced his hiring in a news release on Saturday, April 20th.
Petroske replaces Amanda Pickett, who resigned shortly after the Clash season ended in February.
Contribution / Mike Petroske
“I've wanted to be a high school head coach for quite some time,” Petroske said. “I was an assistant on some good (St. Cloud) Cathedral men's teams. Now that my youngest son (Ben) has graduated from Cathedral, I've had more time to play a role like this. That's what I'm really excited about.''
Petroske, a 1988 St. Cloud Apollo graduate, served as an assistant coach at Cathedral from 1999 to 2005. He was involved with the St. Cloud Youth Hockey Association for many years, including serving as president of the St. Cloud Youth Hockey Association for six years. He also co-chaired Minnesota Hockey Day in St. Cloud in 2018.
Petroske works as a mortgage loan officer at Bell Bank. His oldest son, Jack, is a hockey player, and Ben Petroske was a member of the Crusaders' Class A state championship team in March of this year. He also has a 22-year-old daughter, Julia, who never played hockey, but she still grew up loving the sport. Petroske said hockey has always been a big part of his family's life, she said.
“I started coaching in the Big Lake area with Becker when I was 27 years old,” he said. “After I stopped being an assistant coach at Cathedral, I started working at the youth hockey level. This sport is just a part of who we are.”
The Crush went 7-18-1 last season, losing 1-0 to Brainerd/Little Falls in the Section 8-2A quarterfinals. St. Cloud added forwards Molly Berkstrand (21 points), Maggie O'Hara (16 points), Liz Bell (14 points) and Jaden Lane (11 points) from last year's team, as well as backup goaltender Jordan. -Bobby is expected to return.
“I think the biggest thing the team needs is stability. I think I'll be the fifth coach in eight years. I'm known as a disciplined guy who runs a tough ship,” Petroske said. Ta. “I want my girls to get used to consistency and understanding what they're going to get from me. I want them to take pride in their team and get better every day. I want you to come to the rink to become one.”
Steve Coles / Brainerd Dispatch
Petroske has begun to assemble his coaching staff for next season. He hopes to meet the players returning to the Clash as soon as possible.
“We have solid scoring and goaltenders back from last year, but we lost a lot of defensemen,” Petroske said. “I know a few girls on the team, but I don't know everyone. I was a goalie, so I'm a defensive-minded coach. If you can't get the puck out, you win the game. You can't do that on the net.
“I'm very excited about this opportunity. Timing-wise, it's probably the best time to do this. I'm excited to build a team with a great culture, with hard-working players who will reach their full potential.” I think I want to do.”
