He’s back.
After 3+ years away from leading the bench of the North Bay Battalion, Stan Butler is back in the OHL. The Erie Otters hired him to replace B.J. Adams after an underwhelming start to their season.
In Dec 2019, Butler was reassigned to the position of special adviser to Battalion owner Scott Abbott. Ryan Oulahen was named Butler’s replacement behind the bench. Adam Dennis was also named GM.
Although Butler has been out of the OHL since then, he’s kept close tabs on what’s going on in today’s game. He sat down with the Hockey Writers for a Q&A session discussing his return to the OHL, his motivation behind the decision and what fans can expect from him.
Stan Butler Speaks
At the time of his departure from the Battalion bench, Butler was dealing with some health issues. He knew he needed time to address them. Now, he’s more than ready to tackle the challenge of trying to turn things around for the Otters.
“I feel a million times better (than in 2019),” Butler said about his health. “I feel younger than my actual age.”
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Butler was still under contract with the Battalion at the time of his hiring with the Otters. He confirmed that Otters’ owner Jim Waters reached out to Mr. Abbott to obtain permission. From there, GM Dave Brown took over.
“I’ve known Dave for a long time. He’s originally from Brampton. I think when you’re in the league for a long time, we have relationships. I would say I still talk to half the GM’s in the OHL. I talk to them on a regular basis because they’re friends. Just because you’re not in the game, you’re still friends. And the one thing I tried to do in the time I was off, to be honest with you, I watched as many OHL games as I could so I could stay current.”
“I got a call from Dave (Brown) one time and he said to me ‘Do you have any interest in getting back into the game? And I said you know what? In the right situation with the right people I would consider it. And then the guy (an agent) said to me well, there might be a situation that could become open.”
That’s when Waters reached out to Abbott about obtaining permission. That permission was granted and the rest is history.
Butler Still Has Something to Prove
It’s clear in speaking with Butler that he still has a strong desire to be a coach….
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