Clyne said the organizers were not prepared. They did not have enough players. Despite not wanting to coach, the Bottineau people kept calling back, and so he went down to the school. They told him if he did not coach, they would fold the program before it even started. So he said okay, finding out then how few players there were and how there was no schedule. He was able to contact players in the local areas and was able to pull enough for the team, including his brother Guy.
The ice was not in in the arena when they started, so they practiced on Strawberry Lake around Metigoshe. One of the first things Clyne did was get the players in shape by skating them around the lake. This would be a theme for him, driving players and getting them in condition.
The young players, who had to be enrolled in the college, were fairly green. Clyne put them up against the South West Hockey League teams, including the Border Kings he had recently played for. Although some questioned putting kids up against the men of the SWHL, he said they would learn more playing them than anyone else.
“They took a beating, they did. Everybody was trying to run them. You know kids – cocky. They deserved what they got. But it taught them how to handle themselves.”
This meant a bit of border hopping at night, when the customs at the Peace Garden was not yet 24 hours. Clyne said he was able to set it up with the authorities to stay open when the games were on, as long as he let them know ahead.
He remembered their first college game in Hibbing, Minnesota, where his athletic director, a man with a background in different sports, asked him how many players they started with in hockey. He knew then he would have to be the go to guy for the sport.
According to the college records, the team finished its first year with a solid 11-4-2 record, showing the training and teaching regimen was working.
By the second year, they were allowed into Junior College playoffs. They won their end, and went to Nationals in Minnesota. Clyne said the rest of coaches, managers and athletic directors would not talk to them, thinking they were not on their level. However, Bottineau made the finals, losing in double overtime. The star for them was Boissevain’s Terry Garden in goal, stopping 70 shots.
“When it was over, every coach and athletic director was there to shake our hands,” Clyne said. “They couldn’t believe we had done that.”
He said that finish really pulled the team up and from there the Lumberjacks were tough and competitive. The plaque he received at the end of the year thanked him for his efforts, saying he made them competitive and gave them the attitude to win. Clyne said attitude was the biggest thing.
He said they filled the arena nearly every game. Hockey was big in North Dakota, so the players were like local stars. The community treated them well, and the program became a lot of fun.
Over the years, there were many players from our entire area. In the 1975-76 roster, for example, there were two players from Boissevain, two from Souris, one from Medora and one from Deloraine. There were also plenty of Americans.
There were many memories for sure. In his first exhibition game as Bottineau coach, he was in Virden. There was a box on the counter. It was for him, and he opened it up, revealing a 10-gallon Stetson. It was a memory of his Flin Flon coach Pat Ginnell. Although reluctant, his players said they would not go out on the ice if he did not wear it. He wore one ever since.
After many years, Clyne was replaced when an American applied for the job in 1980. He said his replacement did not last long, but the next coach, Gary Warren, brought them championships. Clyne himself moved on to coach Killarney and Boissevain for several years, still protesting he did not want to be behind the bench. However, in retrospect, it was a big part of his life.
“In the end, I’m glad I did. I learned more about hockey from coaching. It was fun to coach them at that age.”
To coach in Bottineau, he said he would start with hard work. You had to instill attitude, teach them that winning was the only thing. He skated them hard. His years in Flin Flon taught him how to win, and players like to win more than lose. Discipline is key, but if you can make it fun too, you keep them interested. The community embraced him and the team.
“I really enjoyed it down there,” Clyne said. “Great people. They really treated me great down there.”
Dakota College in Bottineau is holding a special 50th anniversary celebration on June 12. Clyne is looking forward to it. He has talked to a few of his former players who are going down, as well as some from the area who came later. A Jacks hall of famer since 1994, he will have a chance to catch up.
“There will be kids I haven’t seen for 50 years,” he stated. “It will be interesting and fun to see. We had such a great bunch of players when I was there.”
by PAUL RAYNER, Recorder staff