Episode 85: Damon Whitten

Episode 85: Damon Whitten. Lake Superior State University HC Damon Whitten joined the prohockeypod this week. He started his hockey career as a goalie and played until he was in his Junior year of highschool before switching to forward. It seemed to be an easy transition as Damon would go on to play tier 2 junior hockey in multiple leagues before heading off to Michigan State University. He would spend 4 years there playing alongside the likes of goalie Ryan Miller and forward Shawn Horcoff, both who went on to have respectable NHL careers. After school, Damon spent 2 years in the ECHL where he won a Kelly Cup with the Greenville Grrrowl. After this, Damon would make the switch to coaching and spend 2 years at Wayne State University. Damon then moved to Univ. Of Alaska-Anchorage where I was very eager to talk to him about his living experiences. He joked about seeing a lot of wild life but enjoyed his time there. Damon would then get a chance back at Michigan State as Director of Hockey Operations. I picked his brain about his day to day responsibilities and how he felt it was a very importance experience for his coaching career. Damon went on to Michigan Tech for 4 years, coaching a buddy of mine, before getting his first HC job at Lake Superior, where he has been stationed for the past 11 seasons. This episode is full of great helpful experiences as well as advice for any young coaches out there. Happy Damon had the time to share them with me. Hope you enjoy!