The American Hockey League aligns with the NHL for both developing prospects via game experience and, just as importantly, embracing the grind of a 72-game pro season that starts with training camp in mid-September and, fingers crossed, extends into June. That’s why first-year AHL affiliate Coachella Valley coach Derek Laxdal introduced an Iron Chef competition to his Firebirds squad in mid-December. He’s done it most recently with his junior team in the Ontario Hockey League as a “team builder.”
“It was a fun day, something different,” said center Luke Henman, an original Firebird who was the first player signed to a professional contract by the Kraken. “Lax wasn’t really a huge fan of our original menu. I would say we weren’t the most prepared team, but we ended up winning.”
Players split into five teams, plus the assistant coaches formed a cooking group and the CVF support staff made it a competition of seven. All were charged with planning a menu of appetizers, entrée, and dessert; they would follow the format of the famed TV show, shopping for 90 minutes and then heading to chef stations set up by Acrisure Arena personnel.
Laxdal was diligent about the menus, previewing all teams’ choices, providing suggestions, and demanding the players’ best efforts (no different than expectations on the ice and in the AHL franchise’s state-of-the-art training center).
“The way we split up the teams was Lax put the college [NCAA] guys together, the Euros together, and so on,” said Henman. “Our team was called the ‘French Guys’ because we all played in the Quebec [Maritimes Junior Hockey] League. So we originally wanted to make poutine as one of our dishes to with the French theme. We didn't end up doing that [Laxdal nixed the traditional dish of fries topped with cheese curds and gravy].”
‘Course-Correcting’: Give Laxdal the Primary Assist
Instead of poutine, Henman took on a new appetizer he spotted online (“my mom was impressed”): maple orange bacon-wrapped scallops (who’s hungry now?). Henman, who the Kraken and Firebirds organizations widely appreciate for being a 24-year-old pro’s pro, admitted the dish wasn’t the “strongest presentation because the bacon was a little too crispy to wrap around the scallops.” No matter, Henman and his chef-squad mates (prospects Jacob Melanson and David Goyette, plus AHL veteran defensemen Nikolas Brouillard and Ryan Jones) taste-tested the appetizer and deemed them delicious. Three impartial judges from the Coachella Valley community concurred by making it the top-rated appetizer.
Laxdal said the pre-planning is a vital aspect of the event for generating team camaraderie: “It can be little like pulling teeth in the early part, but once the players hit the grocery store, the competitive juices start flowing.”
In the case of the assistant coaches, that group was most definitely – and naturally--the most ardent planners before the competition day. Coaches Brennan Sonne and Stu Bickel were bouncing ideas among fellow chefs Colin Zulianello (goalie coach), Peter Thome (video/pre-scout coach), and Evan Pivnick (Firebird play-by-play broadcaster who made a chicken parmigiana entre with “a little garnish”). Bickel was touting he and his colleagues needed to dress up as gourmet-type waiters while Sonne was locked on making homemade pasta from scratch as an entrée side.
“The assistant coaches went all out,” said Henman. “They were really prepared. So was Max’s team [referring to captain Max McCormick’s “The Professors” squad that included NCAA stars John Hayden (Yale), Lleyton Roed (Bemidji State), Brandon Biro (Penn State), and Ben Meyers (University of Minnesota)]”
You Cook Some, Win Some, Lose Some
After the acclaimed appetizer, the French Guys followed with filet mignon, sweet potato mash and asparagus, with judges gushing that the filet mignon prepared by Jones was “perfectly cooked” (for confirmation, check out the video accompanying this story) and same for Goyette knowing not to allow the asparagus to become soft and/or mushy. Melanson’s prep on the sweet potatoes mash turned out a smooth and well-seasoned side that the ‘Q’ team kitchen-managed adroitly as the fifth of seven teams presenting (“we had to time it right so food wasn't ready too early, sitting there cold,” said Henman). The entrée and sides rated top-two among the chef squads.
Any doubt of a close competition – which, in fact, was the case for the second- through seventh-place finishers – vanished when Brouillard whipped us his own family recipe for banana pudding. Henman described it as “unbelievable,” and the judges raved.
Is There a ‘Situation Room’ For This Kind of Thing?
As it turned out, the assistant coaches finished sixth, homemade pasta and spiffy competition-day wardrobe notwithstanding. Per Laxdal, his staff might have been looking for a review of the judging, not necessarily naming names or dishes. But the coaches were, well, a bit miffed about the final standings in which just a point or two separated teams in places two through seven.
This is a first-year coaching group that has impressively drawn close, with Laxdal establishing an all-voices-valued approach. Plus, the squad has steered a much younger team to be yet again a strong contender in Coachella Valley’s third season. Following a weekend sweep of Chicago, the Firebirds are in second place in the Pacific Division, just four standings points behind archrival Calgary and rank top-five for points across the AHL. Yet, Laxdal good-naturedly said “I was banned from the [assistant] coaches room for two weeks” due to bit too much of his chirping.
Planning and Preparing a ‘200-Foot’ Meal
Henman and his fellow “French Guys” delivered tasty food and an esprit de corps that won the first annual culinary showdown by a wide margin. You might say they performed well in all zones.
“Other teams had a really good appetizer and dessert, but their entree fell short or vice versa,” said Henman, who admits he is more the griller and his fiancé the recipe maven when they prepare dinner together. “Our menu was kind of [his modesty emphasized here] pretty good throughout, solid with appetizer, entrée, and the sides and dessert.
“I think Lax was very surprised we won, just based on how well prepared the coaches were, and Max’s team had a good menu. It all just came together for us [earning a $100 gift certificate to the local LG’s Prime Steakhouse]. It was great being with the team. You get away from the rink and you laugh with the guys and everyone.”