WRAY GOING HOME TO NEW BEGINNINGS

(RAPID CITY, SD) – On May 1st at the Rapid City Rush’s “State of the Nation”, it was announced by the Head Coach and GM of the Rush, Joe Ferras, that longtime Rush Captain Scott Wray would join him as an assistant coach of the team. Just like the game of hockey, life changes very quickly, and such is the case with Scott Wray and his family. By the end of next month, Scott and his family will be moving back to Canada, where he’ll begin a new chapter as a head coach in junior hockey.

“It was a family decision, but come next hockey season I will be the head coach of the Powassan Voodoos of the NOJHL,” said long-time Rapid City Rush captain Scott Wray. “I want to thank the community of Rapid City for taking my family in as one of their own and supporting us over the years. My best years of playing professional hockey have come in the Black Hills, and I will miss it dearly. This is not a ‘goodbye’, however, but rather an ‘I’ll see you soon’.”

The Powassan Voodoos is an organization in the North Ontario Junior Hockey League, considered Tier-2 Junior A Hockey in Canada.

“The North Bay Battalion sought me out exclusively for this position,” added Wray. It’s just outside of Shanna’s (wife) hometown. The boys (Owen and Masen) will be able to meet family they have not met before or have not spent much time with over the years. One of the best parts of taking this opportunity is that I will be able to see my boys grow up and play hockey at home, and that to me means so much.”

“It’s a very exciting time in Scott’s life for himself as well as his entire family, he has been a great player for this organization, a great captain and a also a great friend, “said Rush General Manager and Head Coach Joe Ferras. “I have known Wrayzer for over 14 years now and I have had the opportunity to be is coach for 10 of those years. He has been the ultimate competitor and team player who always lead by example with one of the best work ethics of any player I have had the privilege of coaching. To see Scott come to Amarillo as a young man early in his pro career ready for anything and to know the man that he is today, a great husband to Shanna and the outstanding father he is to his two boys Masen and Owen, I am very proud of him an all his accomplishments.

“I look at some of the former players that I have had the opportunity to coach that have gone on to be very successful coaches, Mark DeSantis (Brampton-CHL), Brian Pellerin (Tri-Cities-WHL), Rod Aldoff (Pensacola-SPHL) and they all have similar qualities as players and people that Wrayzer has,” concluded Ferras. “They all love the game, they all played with passion and left it all on the ice and this is exactly how Wrayzer played the game and I know he will bring this same enthusiasm and commitment as he starts his coaching career.”

From Ottawa, Ontario, Wray has been a professional hockey player for 15 years, making trips through the ECHL, the BNL, the EIHL in London, the UHL, and the CHL. It is in his time in the CHL that he had the most success in his career, winning the 2010 Ray Miron President’s Cup with the Rapid City Rush, his final team as a professional. This past season, Wray became the first Rush player in history to score 100 goals, and the fifth player in CHL history to score 300 in his CHL career. He also played in 376 consecutive games over the course of six seasons before a shoulder injury sidelined him until the playoffs towards the end of last season. Wray’s name is seen many times in the Rush record books as the all-time franchise record-holder for goals (106), points (236), and games played (314, 312 of which were consecutive). He was the 3rd captain in the history of the Rapid City Rush, and the longest serving captain in franchise history (4 seasons).

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