Interim coach Rob Weingartner understandably wanted a quick decision on his future with the Wichita Thunder hockey team.
He won't get one.
Thunder president Chris Presson said he has received six applications for the coaching position and he is hoping for two or three more from "legitimate candidates."
With the organization coming off the worst season (20-42-2) in its 16-year history and his attention divided by another sport -- the inaugural season of the Wingnuts baseball team -- Presson is giving himself ample time to make a decision.
He has set a deadline of June 1 to hire a coach.
While declining to name any of the candidates, Presson said all have head coaching experience at the professional level.
Presson stressed that Weingartner remains a strong candidate.
Weingartner went 16-29-2 (.362) after taking over for Mark French, who was fired when the team started 4-13 (.235). The Thunder played a more physical style and averaged 2.6 goals under Weingartner, compared to two with French as coach.
"Rob inherited a situation that wasn't a very good one, and to ask him to make champagne from something else was a little bit daunting," Presson said. "He had some positive effect, but we didn't win the amount of games that either one of us was comfortable with. I want to see what else is out there."
Weingartner, a key player on the Thunder's championship teams who had no previous head coaching experience, described the season as a valuable learning experience. Weingartner, who quit his position with the Goddard school district to coach, said he understood Presson's decision to open the job to outside candidates.
"Obviously, it puts me in a bind, being that I need to work to support my family, but it comes with the territory," he said. "I wish I could have made it easy on him by winning a bunch of games, making it a no-brainer of a decision. But since we didn't so well, he's got to weigh other options."
Presson said his responsibilities with the Wingnuts independent baseball team are a factor in the timetable for finding a new hockey coach. The Wingnuts open the season May 7.
"Once we get baseball off and running, we can turn the focus back to a coach," he said.
Presson said that making a decision until as late as June 1 would not affect the coach's recruiting efforts. Top players, Presson reasoned, won't be ready to commit until mid-June anyway.
"We can all go out and recruit players 7-18, and do it now," he said. "But the upper-echelon players are on good teams and, thus, they're all still playing (in the playoffs). There's no need to be in a big hurry."
Weingartner, who made numerous moves in an effort to improve the team, said the roster still needs substantial upgrading. The Thunder, last in the league in offense (2.44), is most in need of scoring, he said.
"Obviously, we need someone who can put the puck in the net," he said.
Weingarter said that whoever is named coach would be "a little bit behind" because of the delay.
"Any time the year is over, you want to get started right away on recruiting and bringing players in," Weingartner said. "It mostly affects the older players, the veteran types who want to know where they're playing."
