Mike Bartley On Coaching Career: 'It's Been A Great Experience'

Shaker Heights' legendary hockey coach Mike Bartley thanked the community for supporting him and the sport that he loves.

Bartley, who is retiring, said there are many factors into his decision to step down as coach after 37, more than 1,000 games and four state championships. He declined to go into the reasons, only saying there were "many factors to his decision."

Bartley talked to Shaker Heights Patch about his coaching career:

Why he enjoyed coaching: Bartley, a native of Canada, started playing hockey when he was 7 and played for four years at Bowling Green University on scholarship.  He got into coaching after a stint playing professional hockey for a few developmental teams. 

He said he lasted so long as a coach because he loves hockey.

"It’s a game I grew up with," he said. "Its about sharing that love of the game with players, with young men, and teaching them the skills and, above all, seeing them enjoy the sport."

How coaching has changed over the decades: Bartley said it's a different game today than it was when he first started as a coach.

"I think overall the quality of the players, the talent level, is much improved," he said. "I think the quality of coaching has also improved from a technical and tactical standpoint."

He said, though, that sometimes high school sports are focused on the wrong thing.

"There’s still work to be done with respect to philosophies of high school coaching," he said. "There's too much emphasis on winning and not on the total educational piece."

What his players taught him: "They taught me to be patient, to be caring and be supportive," Bartley said. "That each young man has a different situation in life."

"It's learning to deal with them as individuals and see them as individuals and not just as players," he added.

On working in Shaker Heights: “Shaker has always been very supportive of our program," Bartley said. "The community really values the hockey program and I’ve thoroughly enjoyed working with the young kids and the high school kids."

"It’s been a great experience," he added.