By Aaron Wilbur

The Seattle Times recently held a live online chat with first year WHL head coaches Steve Konowalchuk of the Seattle Thunderbirds and Mark Ferner of the Everett Silvertips. It great to see both men take time out from their busy schedules in season to engage with fans and offer some insight into the junior game from a coaches persecutive.

Both coaches are in similar situations in that they have been handed young teams and the task of leading them back to contender status. They’re paths to their respective positions however have been a contrast.

Konowalchuk was most recently an assistant coach with the Colorado Avalanche, the organization he retired from in 2006. The former Portland Winterhawk sniper is relatively inexperienced when it comes to head coaching experience and inherits a Seattle team that is desperate for direction. He’ll be afforded the opportunity to learn the ropes and grow with a nucleus hungry to return to the post season. He has one of Canada’s potential goaltenders for the upcoming World Junior Championship as the backbone of his team in Calvin Pickard, so there is reason for optimism. If Konowalchuk can have the Thunderbirds playing come playoff time it will be a huge accomplishment.

Mark Ferner returns to the WHL after four years at the helm of the BCHL’s Vernon Vipers. Under Ferner’s guidance the Vipers dominated the Jr A landscape for the past three seasons. They advanced to three consecutive Royal Bank Cup National Championships, winning the tournament in 2009, 2010 and finishing runner up in 2011. He has previous experience coaching in the WHL with the Kamloops Blazers from 2002-2006 including 1 1/2 years as their head coach. The Silvertips boast legitimate NHL prospects in goaltender Kent Simpson and defensemen Ryan Murray but overall this is still a young team with a roster that is bound to encounter some growing pains this season. The former defensemen and veteran on 16 professional seasons comes with a reputation of coaching teams who play a stingy defensive system, so look for the “Tips” to be in a lot of hockey games this season. If they can stay in the playoff picture until Christmas, this is a team that should be much improved down the stretch and could be in the postseason conversation come spring.

You can check out the complete live chat here…