25 Years Behind the Bench

Since 1987, Babey has coached nearly 1,200 young athletes, has won a record number of post secondary hockey games and has brought home three International Ice Hockey Federation gold medals.

It’s an impressive record, but Babey is perhaps best known for his holistic approach to coaching which focuses on his player’s academic and personal success, as well as their athletic success.

Jim McLean, Trojans Men’s Hockey Assistant Coach and Corporate Development Officer for SAIT Athletics and Recreation not only coaches and works alongside Ken today, but he was also a player under him back in 1994.

“As a player I knew about Ken’s philosophy coming in. I had heard from other players about the work ethic and integrity of the team being really strong so I jumped at the opportunity when I was recruited to play here,” says McLean.

“He wanted 110 per cent effort during hockey time. And whether that was in the gym or on the ice or in the classroom, it was all part of it.”

Shane Lust (BAMK ’11) echoes McLean’s sentiment. He currently plays on the Ligue Magnus, France’s national hockey circuit, but he spent four years on the Trojan hockey team under Babey’s tutelage.

“Ken made me a better person on and off the ice,” says Lust. “I’ve never had a coach believe in me or a team as much as he did. He never gave up until the end of the game.”

Championship wins pepper Ken’s career. He’s won eight ACAC Championships, including four in a row between 2006 and 2010, as well as three Canadian Athletic Association National Championship medals. In 2010, Babey was honoured as the post-secondary hockey coach with the most wins to his credit.

Currently, Babey has 459 season and playoff wins under his belt. It’s an outstanding accomplishment considering he is working with almost a completely new roster every year. Since most SAIT programs are two years or less, Trojan players are often only on the team for a couple of years. The teams loses 14 to 16 players every season and have to start fresh.

Babey’s success stretches beyond SAIT to the national and international level. He served as the assistant coach with Canada’s national teams during the 1990s and more recently, as the assistant coach of Japan’s national junior team and as the coach for teams in Denmark. In 2000, he brought home a gold medal with the men’s under-18 team at the Four Nations Cup.

“Ken is everyone’s hero,” says Irene Lewis, SAIT President and CEO. “While he’s lent his knowledge and expertise to teams in other countries, we are so fortunate that his heart and his passion for his team at SAIT brings him home to us every time. He is a SAIT treasure and we are all so proud of him.”

This degree of success has provided Babey ample opportunity to move on from SAIT. There’s no question that offers have come across his desk but he chooses to remain at SAIT with the Trojans.

T.J. Babey, Babey’s son, former Trojan player and current program coordinator for SAIT Recreation says his Dad stays because he enjoys teaching and working with students at SAIT. “He loves the environment that SAIT offers, the Trojans and the program he’s built,” says T.J. Babey.

For Babey, the enjoyment he’s found in his 25 year career at SAIT is part of understanding the whole game, not just the part that happens on the ice.

“When I see some of those guys now and they’re running businesses or they’ve got families and they’re successful men contributing to the community in a positive way, that’s success to me,” says Babey. “I’m as competitive a person as there is on the ice and in games, but at the end of the day, really, the game is just a micro-view of life.”