The first team Jared Bednar coached to a championship is gathered around a television inside a South Carolina beach house where grainy hockey video plays on the screen.
They’re re-watching Game 7 of the 2009 Kelly Cup finals — a 4-2 South Carolina Stingrays victory over the Alaska Aces that sparked Bednar’s coaching journey from the East Coast Hockey League to the NHL. Initial proof for the Colorado Avalanche that Bedar might lead their franchise to the Stanley Cup.
“We threw in the video and I bet we watched it no less than 10 times in a 48-hour period,” said Matt Scherer, a former Stingrays forward (2007-12), in reference to a 2019 team reunion.