Adam Krug leaving Adrian College for AHL coaching opportunity
ADRIAN, Mich. (CBS DETROIT) - For the first time in a decade, Adam Krug will spend next season in a different hockey arena.
"We're champing at the bit to take this next step," said Krug, who was part of Adrian Bulldogs' first NCAA men's hockey team during the 2007-2008 season. "My coaching career is something that is important to our family, and I appreciate that about them. But right now, our emotions are kind of all over the place. We have a lot of people to say goodbye to."
After accepting an assistant coaching position with the Bakersfield Condors, the AHL affiliate of the Edmonton Oilers, Krug immediately organized a Zoom call with his players to inform them of the news, albeit emotionally off the bat.
"The next order of business was to tell the guys, and that was very difficult," Krug said. "I think some guys were a little surprised that it happened now and maybe that it was the professional level. I think a lot of guys thought that I'd be moving on to Division I ... But I think everyone had a sense that I was moving on at some point. I've had that questioned asked to me a lot over the last few years when I would recruit on campus or just even guys in exit meetings. They'd say 'Well, what's next for you? When are you leaving?'"
As Krug has told athletes before, it only takes one person to give you an opportunity and believe in your talent. That one person giving Krug the opportunity to coach at the professional level is none other than his childhood idol, Paul Coffey.
"We were playing his son's [Blake] team in 2022 in this building actually, Hobart College, and we beat them in the NCAA quarterfinal. It just so happened that I looked at the ticket list that day, saw that his name was on it. He was a childhood idol of mine as a player. I played for a team out of Garden City named the Kings, and we wore the black and silver uniforms. I wore 77 because of Paul."
Krug called his wife Lindsay, a former soccer player for Adrian College, and asked her to find the old jersey in the basement before the game. Krug's father was able to track Coffey down during the game, explain the connection and get the jersey signed. But that wasn't the end of their chance encounter.
"After the game, fortunately for me, Paul stuck around and we chatted for a little bit, just about hockey, and about our team, and the way we played, and how I coached," he said. "We exchanged phone numbers and stayed in touch. Next thing you know, I'm getting a call from him during the Stanley Cup Final this year. I was shocked – I thought it had to be some kind of pocket dial."
At 41, the Livonia native is excited to take on a new job without the responsibility of running the entire show. This opportunity allows him to focus on the game a little more purely, but he will always call Adrian home.
"Being a Bulldog is one of the greatest things that has ever been a part of my life and really, my family's life ... Our kids have grown up their whole lives here," Krug said. "Watching the guys connect with our kids – that's been probably my favorite part of this journey. But even the season ticket holders and the fans, the support we get from the community, it's really second to none."
At the time of resignation, Krug owned the highest winning percentage (.800) among all active head coaches across all divisions of NCAA hockey. He leaves with a 229-52-14 coaching record, the most memorable of them all leading to the 2022 NCAA National Championship, which was the first such in Adrian College history.