Craig Hartsburg sticking around

Published 4:46 pm Wednesday, June 9, 2010

The Silvertips announced today that they signed head coach Craig Hartsburg to a contract extention. Hartsburg was signed through the 2012-13 season. Associate head coach Jay Varady and assistant coach Chris Hartsburg also signed contract extensions through 2012-13.

This is great news for Everett, and not just because Hartsburg guided the Tips to a tie for the best record in the Western Conference in his first season at the helm. When Hartsburg was hired last offseason he was signed to a two-year contract, and at the time one got the feeling that the ex-NHL coach was taking a bit of an exploratory approach to returning to the junior ranks. The fact that he signed on for two more years indicates his return has met with approval.

Hartsburg verified that when I talked to him about the extension this afternoon. The thing he stressed most is having similar beliefs, values and visions to those in the organization, particularly general manager Doug Soetaert. He talked about the positive environment working alongside Varady and his son, Chris, on the coaching staff. And he said he enjoyed the region, Comcast Arena and the enthusiastic fan support.

So look for the Tips to continue building on the identity developed last season for a while to come.