Monday, March 18, 2024

PD grad named head coach of Boise State Hockey Club

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The journey of Lloyd Ayers has been an interesting one, from basketball player at Peshastin-Dryden to hockey coach at the Boise State Hockey Club. A 1980 graduate of PD, Ayers did not play hockey as a youth. 

He only became involved in hockey in 1999 when his two boys were wanting to play hockey when they were younger. He say it just took off from there. 

“I spent a lot of my time doing the practices. It was colder standing on the sideline that being out on the ice,” Ayers said. “I made my choice to go out there and help. It progressed from there. I went from being a level one coach in USA hockey to being a level five coach, which is their highest level. I’ve been through the ranks with USA hockey.”

In order rise up through the coaching ranks, Ayers took every new class available. He took time going through the books learning what he could do through their process of becoming a coach. 

“When my oldest son was 12-13, I realized I could spend a lot of time helping and developing kids, so that’s where that went. Just more of the want to develop and work with kids,” Ayers said. 

He started out with the youth programs in Idaho Falls, then he was transferred to Boise for his job, a project manager for a lumber company. 

“I went through the ranks of the ages, from mites up to midgets and then AA U18 midgets, then high school,” Ayers said. “I am still coaching the high school program. Then, the opportunity came for Boise State. I put an application in for that.”

At Boise State University, hockey is a club sport, not an NCAA sport, though Ayers hopes to change that. They still play a challenging schedule against teams like University of Washington, Arizona State, Weber State and San Jose State. 

One of the biggest challenges for Ayers is the recruiting. He’s leaning on his assistant coaches for that. 

“I’ve actually have a couple coaches with me who have worked in that aspect. Some that are new to it as well. It’s a new process here. Boise State is new to hockey. They’ve had a club program off and on. I would like to see it become a Division 1 hockey program. That is our goal,” he said. 

Coaching at Boise State is a part time job. 

“Boise State does not have ice, so we have to rent space at a local ice rink. Hopefully, we’ll eventually get to that level. Until then, it’s part time,” he said. 

The season for the Boise State Hockey Club starts Sept. 30. 

Ian Dunn can be reached at 548-5286 or editor@leavenworthecho.com.

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