Hull Seahawks : Sylvain Cloutier backs Matty Davies to be coaching success after playing career ends

Hull-born Davies, 32, has struggled with a knee injury for some years and has only made a handful of appearances for the NIHL National team he helped put together last summer, a team which brought second-tier hockey back to the city.

Wednesday will see him step out onto the ice one last time against former club Leeds Knights, before he hangs up his skates to concentrate on a full-time coaching role at the Seahawks.

Cloutier was Davies’s coach at Hull Stingrays in the Elite League from 2009-2014, the two forging a strong relationship which remains in place to this day.

After taking up the Seahawks’ player-coach role, Davies cited Cloutier as one of the most influential figures in his 16-year senior career.

Cloutier, now coaching junior hockey at Corpus Christi Ice Rays in Texas, in the North American Hockey League, paid tribute to his former player, believing he will rightly get a warm send off from fans all around Hull Ice Arena on Wednesday evening.

“When I first met Matty, he was quite the character, so I immediately liked that about him,” said Cloutier. “He was outgoing, I liked his attitude and the way he prepared himself. He was a pro.

“You never had to worry about Matty, you knew coming into the season he was going to be in top shape and ready to go. I watched him grow as a young man and come into his own as a player. He wasn’t the biggest guy but he had the heart of a lion.

“He worked so hard and wanted to be the best. He has been one of the best British players in the last 10 years or so

“His compete level was what set him apart, he wasn’t intimidated by anyone and never, ever got outworked - those are the kind of players you wanted in your team.

“Not only was he a good team-mate but he became a good friend of mine. I’m always going to pull for Matty Davies - I would have him on my team any day.”

Since leaving the Stingrays in 2014, Cloutier - winner of two Elite League championships with Coventry Blaze in 2006 and 2007 - has continued his coaching career in junior hockey.

He first went to Bradford Rattlers in Ontario before spending five years at Essa Stallions, who changed their name to the Severn Stallions for the 2020-21 season.

He was persuaded to return to Texas and Corpus Christi for a second spell, having started out his coaching career there back in 2008 when it used to be a pro hockey franchise in the now defunct Central Hockey League.

Now, the IceRays is solely a junior hockey organisation and Cloutier is revelling in the chance to develop the kind of youngsters who are attracting the attention of NHL scouts.

He believes Davies has all the ingredients to be a successful coach, including the ability to pass on his experience and knowledge to the younger players coming through in Hull.

“Matty’s hockey IQ has always been very high,” added Cloutier, who played seven games in the NHL with Chicago Blackhawks and won a Calder Cup in the AHL with Houston Aeros. “He was always a smart hockey player, very shifty, clever and skilled.

“He’s such a fierce competitor and he’ll take that on to the bench too, which will help him and his team.

“He’ll be a good guy for the younger guys on the team. The thing with Matty is that he’s so giving, so he’s going to have time for them, to work with them and teach them everything he has learned over the years.

“He has bags of experience, so whoever gets a chance to play for him will get a lot from playing under him.”