Huskies hire former captain Nick Oliver as SCSU men's hockey assistant coach

ST. CLOUD — The rumor had been out there for quite some time, but it became official Wednesday. Call it a line change of former St. Cloud State captains.

Former Huskies captain Nick Oliver has been hired to be an assistant coach for the Huskies men's hockey team.

Oliver, 26, has spent the last three seasons as an assistant coach in junior hockey for the Sioux Falls Stampede of the United States Hockey League. Oliver was a forward for the Huskies 2011-15 and captain his senior season.

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"He's a perfect fit for a couple reasons," said Brett Larson, who was named St. Cloud State's head coach on April 13. "He's a young guy whose been out there and knows the talent pool for recruiting. Given that he's only a few years away from playing, I think he can connect with our players right away.

"I was also looking for a guy who had been a forward because Gibby and I were both defensemen," Larson said, referring to assistant coach Mike Gibbons. "I wanted a guy to work with the forwards and then there's the added bonus that he is respected captain who would bleed for the program. It just doesn't get any better than that."

READ: Brett Larson named SCSU's new head hockey coach

Oliver played in 145 games for St. Cloud State, helped the Huskies win two conference regular season titles, play in three straight NCAA Division I regional championship games and reach the Frozen Four in 2013.

"It's a program that, obviously, holds a real special place in my heart and the university holds a special place in my heart," Oliver said. "The reality of being able to come back is a real special thing for me.

"When I got into coaching, I knew, at some point, I'd like the opportunity to get into the college game. But you don't know when or where those opportunities are going to come up. In the back of my mind, I was always hoping an opportunity at St. Cloud State would come around. Fortunately, it did and I'm extremely grateful for it."

Oliver was an academic all-conference pick three times and received the NCHC Sportsmanship Award in 2015.

READ: SCSU hockey assistant coach did not apply to replace Bob Motzko as head coach

Replacing Raboin

Oliver replaces former St. Cloud State captain Garrett Raboin, who spent the last six seasons as an assistant coach at St. Cloud State. Raboin, 33, according to a Star Tribune story, will be named an assistant coach for the University of Minnesota men's hockey team.

Raboin would not comment on the Gophers' job Wednesday, but did reflect on his time at St. Cloud State.

"The experience was incredible," said Raboin, who played for the Huskies from 2006-10. "From coming in with a great group of players and having the opportunity to essentially walk into a Frozen Four with that group of guys, to working with two experienced coaches who spent endless amounts of time mentoring me ... I knew nothing about coaching when I got into a Division I collegiate coaching role.

"But I understand the business. It's time for me to experience a different place."

Larson replaced Bob Motzko, who spent 13 seasons as the program's head coach. Motzko resigned to take the head coaching position for the University of Minnesota men's hockey program.

Raboin said that Larson's hiring has nothing to do with his departure.

"I have the utmost respect for him and I plan on maintaining a great working friendship with him," Raboin said.

Mike Guentzel, according to the Tribune's story, has resigned as an assistant coach for the Gophers. Guentzel was also interviewed to replace Lucia as head coach.

USHL assistant coach

Oliver played for Roseau High School and then played for the Fargo Force of the USHL from 2009-11. He was a fourth-round pick of the Nashville Predators in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft and had seven goals and 10 assists playing for the Huskies.

He finished his playing career at St. Cloud State, received his finance degree in May 2015 and turned down an offer to play minor league hockey.

Oliver decided to become an assistant coach for Scott Owens in Sioux Falls.

"He was a great fit here because he knows the USHL so well," said Owens, who was the Colorado College head coach from 1999-2014. "He came in eager and excited to get started in his coaching career.

"He brought energy on the ice with our players. He was a tireless evaluator and recruiter. He did a fabulous job. I couldn't be happier for him to be going back to St. Cloud."

Owens said that Oliver got on his radar when he had an opening on his staff in Sioux Falls after a conversation with Motzko.

"Bob couldn't speak highly enough about him and Bob's an old friend," Owens said. "He talked about his character, what kind of a captain he was and he fit exactly with what I felt that I needed, having a younger person in that position."

The USHL, a Tier I junior league which has players ages 16-20, has drafts for players and also gets players through tryouts. So, similar to college hockey, there is a lot of player evaluation and recruiting that goes into filling out rosters.

"There's a lot of teams in this league (17) and a lot of people who really know what they're doing in this league," Owens said. "He was able to establish a network that he trusted and his work habits were never an issue.

"He was able to get out and meet a lot of people and see a lot of different levels of hockey," said Owens, who was a head coach of the Des Moines Buccaneers from 1995-99. "We called upon him to work with our forwards.

"This was a great testing ground to get ready for college hockey."

He replaces Raboin, who joined Motzko's staff with no coaching experience after playing professionally in Europe from 2010-12.

Raboin decided not to apply for the St. Cloud State head coaching job after Motzko resigned to take the Gophers' job. But Raboin sounds excited for Oliver, a player he helped coach at St. Cloud State.

"This is a great opportunity for Oliver to come into a great team with a great staff," Raboin said of the defending NCHC regular season champions. "I'm excited for the players to get to be around Ollie. He's got outstanding character and, as an alum, I'm excited for the hire.

"He's extremely well-respected, not only in the USHL, but at all levels of hockey. He's a likable guy and what you see is what you get."

Follow Mick Hatten on Twitter, Instagram @MickHatten and at Facebook.com/sctimesmick. Reach him by phone at 259-3621, by email at mhatten@stcloudtimes.com.